Photo Journal of my 7.4lb 3 Season Gear List

If a picture is worth a thousand words then this should be a much more interesting gear list than your typical spreadsheet. The gear is intended to work on a multi-month through hike in the Sierras, so it needs to be durable and provide a reasonable margin of safety in all kinds of conditions. My 7.4 pound base weight (everything except consumables, i.e. food, water, fuel) includes shelter and quilt for two people.


Packed first are my Nunatak 2 person quilt, Montbell UL Down Inner Parka, an extra shirt (so I have one to wear while my other is drying), Montbell wind pants, an extra pair of Wigwam Ironman Triathlon hiking socks, PossumDown sleep socks, waterproof cuben fiber stuff sack, all on top of my Gossamer Gear Thinlight pad - cut down to 1/4 x 21 x 41, with my Make Your Own Gear (MYOG) 3,000 cubic inch cuben fiber backpack in the background.

Gear is compressed, waterproof, and ready to go into the backpack.

A close-up shot of how to make a standard stuff sack closure waterproof...just fold it over once, then wrap the draw cord around three times and cinch tight.

I like to fold my sleep pad rather than roll it. This helps keep the backpack flatter against your back as well as adding more padding where it counts.

The remaining gear consists of a cuben food storage stuff sack with 3 days worth of food, Marmot Essence rain jacket, Smartwool glove liners (packed in the waterproof pocket of rain jacket for easy access), Zpacks Hexamid Twin tent, Trail Designs Caldera-H stove with MYOG cuben stuff sack, essentials bag (more details in a future post), knee brace, tp, and hand sanitizer.

Tent and stove packed.

Food packed on top.

Top is closed and cinched down for vertical compression. Everything else is packed in the outside pockets for easy accessibility, along with a 1 liter Gatorade bottle (or two, depending on water conditions).

Optional items depending on the trip...Tenkara USA 12' Iwana rod, fishing gear in MYOG cuben stuff sack, Simblissity Mosquito Headnet (peak season only), Blackberry (for updating online trail journal).

Optional items packed, horizontal compressors snugged up, and I'm

 READY FOR THE TRAIL!!!