PCT Planning - Initial Gear List and Potential Upgrades

One of the first things Chris and I started to look at when we made the decision to do the PCT was what gear we had, what we needed, and what we had but needed to be upgraded before the hike. The good news is we have a lot of things we need. The bad news is a lot of the gear we have, we initially bought based on price, and for 98% of hikes it's been perfectly fine.

Welcome to the other 2%.

The items that we need to upgrade with the biggest price tags are our backpacks and sleeping bags. If you don't want to read about things to consider when buying a sleeping bag skip ahead to backpacks or the full gear list link at the very bottom.

Sleeping Bags
My current sleeping bag is rated for 30 degrees, however I run cold, and anything under 40 I have to basically be wearing every stitch of clothing I own in order to be comfortable. Chris' bag is also not warm enough, but the bigger problem for him is comfort. Chris is too tall for his bag, while that's not a huge issue for a couple of days, even a week or two, after three months of sleeping in a cramped sleeping bag every night you are not going to be having good mornings.

The big contender for our sleeping bags is REI.

I am specifically looking at either the REI Women's Joule or Serrana. Now for those of you who roll your eyes when I say I want a Women's sleeping bag, stop it. Even the staunchest feminist would agree that the average woman is shaped differently than the average man. We also tend to have a lower body temperature, ladies will want to look at the EN Comfort Rating on a bag, rather than the overall temperature rating. Women's bags are cut wider at the hips than the shoulders and provide added warmth in the foot box specifically. Chris is a little bit easier, he's just looking for a bag that's got the "long" option in the temperature range he wants, so we're most likely looking at the REI Flash, Radiant or possibly the Igneo (though that's at the high end of the price range). The other reason he's also planning on going with an REI bag is because REI Women's and Men's bags zip together. I don't think I need to expound further on that.

The main considerations with the sleeping bags is temperature rating (EN rating for me), fill ratio, compressed volume (this dictates how much space it'll take up in the backpack) and weight. For me, the Joule is pricier, but it weighs less, is 700 fill down instead of 600, has a compressed volume of 6.6 L (versus Serrana's 9.9) and has a slightly better temperature rating. So provided we can make it work financially that would be my preference. Chris is a bit trickier. The Igneo and the Radiant have better temperature ratings, but the Flash and the Igneo have a better fill ratio and weigh considerably less. The Flash also has a significantly lower compressed volume (3.7 L versus 6 and 7.3). They are also both more expensive than the Radiant.

Backpacks
Both Chris and I have VERY heavy backpacks. Mine is somewhere 7 lb range and Chris' is 10-11 lbs. Now, that may not sound like much, but for extended trips your base backpack weight (before food and water are added) ought to be very small. Here's why: Chris and I will on average be carrying food for 7-12 days to minimize our stops. We'll be carrying somewhere between 2-2.5lbs of food per person per day. At the low end (7 days at 2lbs/day) that's 14 added pounds each, seems reasonable... but at the high end that's an added 30 lbs and that doesn't include water at all.. So shaving off pounds and ounces elsewhere is crucial.

A few of our friends have Osprey packs and seem to really like them. Having observed their functionality on the trail, Chris and I are pretty on board as well. The primary candidate the Osprey Aether Pack most likely the 70 L, but possibly the 60 if we can keep our volume down. There are a couple of features that we particularly like. The biggest is the external (though very much protected) reservoir sleeve. Anybody who has unpacked and repacked their pack over and over in order to refill their reservoir knows why this is important. It is a huge inconvenience, and honestly I never seem to get my stuff packed up as neatly as when I did it in the morning. The top lid is removable and can be carried as a separate pack. The last thing is pretty widely available but still important. Chris and I both currently have packs without zippered pockets on the hip belts. This is SO damn irritating. I want to be able to have snacks at easy reach. I want my Go-Girl (for stand-up peeing) in easy reach! I want hankies/tissues in easy reach!!

So that's what we're upgrading. The full gear list is below the cut. It also includes how many spare pairs we are going to have with our box mailer for replacement as needed.

4 Things Beginning Backpackers Should Know About

I mentioned briefly in my last post that my backpacking trip for this past weekend got cancelled. Which is a big bummer because I had a bunch of posts that were contingent on that trip. There was going to be a food for backpacking post, Primitive Fire Part 1: The Bow Drill, and obviously a Trail Review, since that's not happening now I had to make something up on the fly.

That something is going to be 4 Things/Products you should  know about or have for backpacking.

1. REI's return department.
I had no idea this existed until a few years ago, and it's pretty much amazing. Basically because REI has such an amazing return policy they end up having to re-sell a lot of items. Some are not perfect but if you take some time you can almost always find something great. In Seattle's big REI store it's behind the Bicycle area downstairs. Some fun examples of stuff I've got there: REI Half Dome 2 (MSRP $189.00) for $20. The only thing wrong with it is a small hole in the mesh about the size of a pencil eraser. A Marmot 30 degree sleeping bag (MSRP $99-$109) in my favorite color (Chartreuse, not easy to find!) for 17.50, no problems the original buyer didn't like the color!

2. Dr. Bronner's Liquid Soap (4 oz - $4.25 @ REI)
Backpacking it's always good to have things with multiple uses, it saves weight and just generally makes your life easier. Dr. Bronner's is pretty much the ultimate soap. It's good for face, body, shampoo, toothpaste, some people on extended trips use it for laundry detergent. It's pretty much awesome, as well as being pH balanced, sulfate free, organic and biodegradable.

3. Jack Black SPF 25 Lip Balm- Assorted Flavors
(There's a full review of these on my beauty blog The Dead Don't Lie)
I have a thing about my lips. If they are at all chapped at all I will pick at them till I bleed. I have really fair skin and large lips, and they get dried out and burnt pretty easily. For this reason I always carry lip balm that has SPF, if I'm going to be out in the sun, the wind, and alpine areas with less moisture I need help. My favorites are Honey and Shea Butter and Grapefruit and Ginger

4. Swiftwick Socks (Website here)
Have you ever put on a sock, gasped audibly and then exclaimed: "Holy Shit Ballz! This is the greatest sock ever?" No? Well I have, and slipper socks DON'T COUNT. Swiftwick socks are seriously incredible. Chris and I each have a couple of pairs and we love them. I'll do a full review at a later date. But if you do any kind of activity you should get these. They come in varying price, length and thickness. The Vibe line are my favorites, they are the most amazing compression socks ever. EVER.