Ultralightweight Backpacking -- How To Do It (updated for 2002)
by Bob Gross
If you've read the early articles going back twenty years, you've seen
the basics. Now we get a little more modernized. I'll make references to
a recent two-person backpack trip in the Sierra Nevada Range near Bishop
California and also to a recent solo backpack trip inside Yosemite National
Park.
Food and Cooking
If you go solo, then food planning is simplified since you have only yourself
to satisfy. I can go a long way on logan bread and soup and Gatorade, with
camp cooking (actually just water boiling) over a small alcohol burner.
For a two-person trip for four nights out (five days), the plan was for
each person to bring two dinners for two, and then the rest of the food
was independent. Since we were to be in areas where campfires were not
allowed, we used a folding Esbit stove (solid hexamine fuel) heating one
0.85 liter titanium pot (covered by aluminum foil). For two hot meals per
day for two, we used approximately three ounces of Esbit fuel since we
were only boiling water for instant or dehydrated food.
After five days, the titanium pot looked like hell from fuel blackening.
The good news is that it cleaned up nicely with a few drops of Coleman
fuel followed by some Ajax scrubbing.
I typically bring along almost two pounds of food per day, and I can
seldom eat that much. Total consumption is closer to 1.3 or 1.4 pounds per day.
Food Storage
Bear canisters are required in some areas and not required in others. It
depends on whether there is a bad bear problem. In some places, it would
be silly to carry the three-pound empty weight of a canister. In other
places, it is more convenient. Study your destination in advance.
Water
A convenient plan is to filter stream water using a Pur Hiker water filter
directly into a three-quart, wide-mouth, Nalgene folding canteen. That
can be used in camp or carried for dry stretches along the trail to augment
a single water bottle.
Boots
Lightweight boots are still the norm. I find that an extended training
period in advance of the trip should toughen up feet so that there is no
blister problem. I've been using the Montrail TRS Comp boots for about
three pairs now. They are not made to last for twenty years, but they are
plenty durable and light for what we are doing now. For five years now
I have been using the Ultimax socks and they seem to stay cushiony.
Sleeping Bag and Shelter
When going solo in a mosquito area, a simple mosquito net shelter works
great, assuming that you have some tree limbs to tie it up to. In the event
of rain, a silicone-nylon tarp can be hastily thrown over that to provide
some rain protection. For two people, and since we would be above timberline,
we took a Sil-Shelter, which is similar silicone-nylon fabric fashioned
into a tent without a floor. The basic shelter weighs less than one pound,
but then there are metal stakes and cords and poles to consider. Some modifications
were fashioned with a few ounces of mosquito net.
I still use my 1983-vintage Feathered Friends down sleeping bag with
Goretex shell. It packs into a small ball about the size of a football.
I carry an old closed cell foam pad to sleep on, and it wraps around a
bear canister while in the pack.
Clothing
This is still a controversial subject. To minimize shin injuries when climbing
over rock, I have adopted nylon field trousers as my norm. One Capilene
T-shirt can be rinsed out in a stream in the evening and is dry and ready
to go the next morning. A long-sleeve shirt or two may keep off the evening
mosquitos, if any. There are several light rain shells that weigh only
8 ounces or so.
Backpack
The Golite Company has introduced a few successful backpacks that weigh
hardly anything (due to use of a super-strong/super-light fabric, Spectra).
For my solo trip, I used the Breeze pack, which has a capacity of about
4200 cubic inches but weighs only 12 ounces. For the longer trip, I used
the Gust pack, which has a capacity of about 4800 cubic inches but weighs
in at 19.5 ounces. I can't imagine needing more volume capacity than either
of these for a weeklong summer trip.
Other Items
Heavy flashlights have been shelved for the newer LED flashlights or headlamps.
Battery life is much longer, and the solid state element is not subject
to breakage like a typical incandescent bulb.
A modern GPS receiver can be pre-programmed with a specific route to
facilitate navigation over wide areas with pinpoint precision. I still
carry paper maps, but they are custom ones that I print myself using the
TOPO! computer program and database.
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