Outdoor Gear

My recommendations on the following pages originated with backpacking, but most of the observations are applicable to a variety of outdoor activities.  I also have a list of my “gear for life“. I strive for simplicity and gratitude.

Ultralight / Light Approach

I have found that a light-weight approach (my 3 season backpacking gear list) keeps me as safe and comfortable as my heavy-weight friends in camp, and is significantly more comfortable when I am moving.

If you have enough money, it’s possible to purchase gear that gets you to an ultralight base weight, even though you are approaching an activity like a classic “heavy-weight” practitioner. True ultralight is a bit different:

The key to ultralight is to use your head… having enough experience to know how to deal with various situations, and to carefully think about what is needed (or more likely not needed).

An effective ultralight approach uses experience and skills to develop a system of gear and practices which allow you to face a wide variety of circumstances with less gear than most people.

My Stages and recovery from Gearaholicism

Phase 0 (many years)

I was the prototypical boy scout.  I wanted to “be prepared” for any situation, so I carried everything including the kitchen sink, whether or not it was likely to be needed.  If it was theoretically possible, one needed to be prepared for it. Everything was build to survive anything short of a nuclear blast. Heavy leather boots, 1000D Cordura Nylon, etc. A 4-season mountaineering tent was guaranteeded to do when in wind, rain, and snow so it would be great in milder conditions.

Phase 1: Discovery (2 year)

I found that I wasn’t really up to carrying a 60lb pack anymore, and came across people doing adventure racing, Mark Twight’s Extreme Alpinism, ultralight backpacking advocated by Ray Jardine, the folks at BPL which predated the /r/Ultralight community. While I don’t completely embrace all their ideas, my approach has been strongly influenced by them. I will agree with Andrew… ultralight people need to chill.

I replaced my heaviest items with light or ultralight weight versions. I drop some items I always took but never used and asked the question “Do I actually need these things?” and “Can I improvise or use something I already have to cover this potential need?”

Phase II: Incremental Improvement (3 years)

I treated each trip as an experiment, often varying the items I brought and the approach I took. I was constantly pushing myself, and my gear to the edge, looking to see what the real (rather than imagined) limitation was.

I took a notebook on each trip where I would log the conditions (logging thermometer / mini weather station was very helpful). I would make notes about what worked and what didn’t work. I found both the comfort and the safety ranges of my clothing, shelter, and sleep system. I figured out of various items could be combined to cover unusual circumstances.

I would often bring something extra as a “safety” item, but commit to not pull it out unless it was actually a safety rather than a comfort issue. For example, the first couple of trips that I was using a poncho as raingear and nighttime shelter I carrying a tarptent it case I couldn’t manage severe weather with just the poncho, but didn’t use the Tarptent even though weathering a strong storm with just the poncho was unpleasant.

After each trip I would review my experiences. My goal was to remove at least one item for future trips until there was nothing left to remove. If I was smart, I would have been content with the system I arrive at near the end of this phase.

Phase III: Obsession (4 years)

I was on a quest to find “perfect” gear and to get my pack weight as low as I could. I was a gear-a-holic. This resulted in purchased multiple items which provided the same function in varying conditions. Multiple shelters, packs, bags, etc. Each trip had a different combination of gear. During this time I spent a lot of cash and engaged in a lot of “catch and release”, purchase gear (often used), use it on a few trips, sell it and try something else. I spent a year trying  super ultralight (SUL) approach, e.g. based weight <5lbs. I recorded my last super-ultralight gear list from 2007.

Phase IV: Comfortably Dialed In (4 years)

I decided to rein my spending, and to get more focused on using rather than buying gear. I started that transition by committing to a zero-cash spend in 2006. If I wanted something new, I had to sell items I already owned to cover the cost. My “budget” was whatever was in my PayPal account. I have a lot of gear that I had accumulated during my obsession phase. The items that were uber-lite and I didn’t enjoy using were sold off. Each trip I selected the optimal system from my “quiver”, often influenced by which items were loaned out to people on the trip I was leading.

I decided lightest weight pack just wasn’t that important. There was no different in fatigue or enjoyment when carrying <20lb with a good pack with a weight transforming hip belt compared to <10lb, so why I was I using a sleeping pad which wasn’t comfortable, using a shelter that didn’t protect me from bugs, just to save weight, especially when I had to carry >15lbs worth of food and water on trails without resupply or infrequent water sources.

My base went when from <5lb to between 8-12lbs depending on if I had to bring a bear can, and if it was 3-season or winter trips.

Phase V: Minimalist (10 years)

I wanted to minimize my possessions so I could focus on things that really mattered to me. I wanted my activities to maximize enjoyment and meaning. This resulted in changing the trips I planned. For example, while I could push myself to do 30 (or in one case 50 miles) in a day, that my sweet spot is more like 15-20 miles/day. While I could do solo winter trips, I didn’t enjoy them, nor hot desert trips.

Eliminated the more extreme trips reduced the conditions I would face. This made it possible to build a “standard” packing list which would cover 95% of my trips with no variance. When I learned the next several days were free, I could pack and be out the door in around 15 minutes. It was OK to carry a bit of extra weight if that removed a decision and allowed me to sell of gear than was somewhat redundant. I downsided my gear, typically striving to have a single item for each function: 1 backpack, 1 quilt, etc. During this time my system didn’t change except when items wore out and needed to be replaced.

Phase VI (current)

I was over constraining myself by insisting on a single item to meet ALL requirements. I decided I was too focused on limiting the total number of items, and that it was OK to have some specialized gear. For example, these days I have two shelters. A GG Whisper for my three season solo trips, and a X-Mid 2 Pro for 2 person and more severe weather.

Lists and Reviews

Other information you might find useful include:

Buying Stuff

Other People’s Recommendations

I am not following outdoor gear as closely as I used to. As a result, some of my recommendations might become dated. There are several sites that I use when I want to see a list of current products that are likely to have category leading performance:

  • Ryan Jordan’s personal selection
  • Adventure Alan does a good job covering ultralight equipment. I  appreciated Alan’s articles in the early days of backpackinglight.com.
  • Frank Revelo has a pragmatic, moderate cost, often DIY approach to gear which is refreshing
  • Cleverhiker comes closest to my personal taste in equipment. While I don’t stack rank items exactly the same as they do, I never find myself saying “Why did they include XYZ in their listing?”
  • Greenbelly Backpacking Guide has a recommended gear section (need to scroll down) which I find is very readable. I tend to agree with Cleverhiker in actual picks, but Greenbelly’s pages are often more complete. 
  • Outdoor Gearlab covers a wide variety of gear types, but I never agree with their stack ranking. Sometimes items are in their list which I find myself saying “Really? You liked it?”. Most of the time items I think are the best appear in their lists, just not top rated by them. Fail to include the smaller, class leading cottage companies. Are they a shill for big name outdoor gear companies?
  • Gear Junkie for outdoor industry news and reviews.
  • roadtrailrun.com – running focus

Useful References

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