How much does your day hike kit/pack weigh?

[sicily02]

HikingMono, could you post a pic of how your carry your belt gear set up?

I am looking through my maxpedition catolog and just wondered if you carry it on your belt or do you carry it on a extra belt and then wear your canteen and pouch and knife on that. I hope I just made sense lol.

anyways a pic would be great if you will post one,

Thanks,

Bryan

 

[HikingMano]

Thanks Bryan. You, and a few others, actually inspired me to put together my own on-person sized kit when I first started browsing W&SS. Your kit always looked so well used too :thumbup:

ETA: Sure, Bryan. Let me look to see if I have one. If not, I'll just snap a shot. I used to carry it on a separate belt, but that became too cumbersome and annoying. It works out pretty well on my pants belt, and you get used to stringing it on between your belt loops before hikes.

 

[sicily02]

HikingMano, Thanks for the kind comments. I tell ya, having some gear in your pockets and on your belt can be a life saver.
Yea having another belt with gear on it can be a pain depending on how heavy the belt kit is. I could see just putting them items on your pants belt
working good too.

Great I look forward to the pics .
Thanks again,
Bryan

 

[mtwarden]

Bryan didn't answer your other question, yes the neck knife is setup similar to Picts (some different items, but similar)

Mike

 

[HikingMano]

Here you go, Bryan. These first two are from a few months ago, I've since replaced the black paracord pulls with orange paracord, and added the lanyard loop to the keychain in my pocket (lark's head to belt loop):

Here are quick pics I took just now to show the other sides:

Right

Front

Left

Back

If I'm only carrying the canteen and knife, the knife goes on the right and the canteen on the left.


ETA: I usually like to keep the canteen between 3 and 5 o'clock and the pouch between 9 and 7. I like being able to slide it around on the belt because sometimes if you need to squeeze through somewhere, it's better to have the relatively bulky pouch and canteen more to your rear to slim your silhouette and reduce risk of snagging or wedging. I slide the canteen and pouches up closer to the 9 and 3ish positions for comfort when sitting though.

 

[sicily02]

mtwarden, Thanks. I love orange handled knives lol.


Thanks for the pics HikingMano, The set up you have is awesome.

Thanks again for posting the pics,

Seeing both of your kits is giving me some ideas. You guys rock:thumbup:

Bryan

 

[HikingMano]

You're welcome :thumbup: This just works for me. I don't like having things around my neck, or having relatively heavy items in my pockets. The only thing I use my cargo pockets for are light weight and soft items like a beanie and bandana, snacks, map, etc. With this set up, I'm comfortable, mobile, and everything's in easy and quick reach. I can also use this set-up with a backpack that has a full waistbelt.

On most hikes, the only thing really used is the canteen and SAK. The pouch is "emergency only", so I don't have to go digging through it unless I'm really in need of something in there.

 

[sicily02]

I hear what you are saying. Yea the water and the blade are my most used items too.
my binos get used alot too though lol.

Bryan

 

[HikingMano]

Ah! Yes, that's another thing I'd like to pick up sometime this year :thumbup:

 

[sicily02]

HikingMano, yea I use my binos all the time. That is the first thing I take out of my pack and put on. then I put my pack on and away I go.
What kind do you think you might get?

I use the Stieners called the preditor. They are pretty small. I really like them. they did not cost me a arm and leg either. I think I paid around $130 for mine. There are some others that I like but I just am not going to pay what they want lol.

mtwarden, in that pic you posted it looks like you are above the tree line is that right?

How high up are you? Does your water freeze in your drinking tube?
Chat with you guys later,

Bryan

 

[mtwarden]

mtwarden, in that pic you posted it looks like you are above the tree line is that right?

How high up are you? Does your water freeze in your drinking tube?
Chat with you guys later,

Bryan

Bryan- yeah- that pass is about 10,000' no worries in the summer , in the winter I used an insulated affair from Platypus (Insulator) it does a pretty good job of keeping ice out of the tube, in the winter I also get in the habit of blowing back the water in the tube to keep water out of it

Mike

 

[tknife]

Dang everytime I see your NWA in that Hanzo sheath, I want one. That setup is sweet.

 

[HikingMano]

[...] binos [...]
What kind do you think you might get?
[...]

I honestly don't know yet. I want something small and compact (and affordable ) that I can use just for wildlife/bird spotting or checking out terrain features. I've looked at a bino review by UnknownVT here on the forums, but I haven't researched it further than that, at least not recently.

Your Steiner, is it the 8x22?

Dang everytime I see your NWA in that Hanzo sheath, I want one. That setup is sweet.

Get one I love it. I'm also a big fan of BF member Kiah's work, but I do love this Hanzo sheath. Just about perfect, if you like fold-overs. :thumbup: One of my favorite features on it is the webbing and snap buckle dangler - incredibly convenient.


Just got back from an 11miler, time to take a shower and kick the feet up Just a note, with 3 L water, two ham and cheese sandwiches, and the marmot precip rain jacket, I had 25.6 lbs on me total. Back down to 14.8 lbs as I consumed everything.

 

[mtwarden]

take a peek at the Steiner 8x30's- pretty darn good glass, small- but not tiny

 

[HikingMano]

Will do, thanks! :thumbup:

 

[sicily02]

Hi all,

HikingMano, I bet you are ready to shower and put your feet up.
awesome pic. I love water falls.
Yea, I have the 8x22

mtwarden, I looked at them same binos at Cabelas lol. yea they are small but I just wanted even smaller lol. I liked view with the 8x30, but man I just kept looking at the smaller preditors and went with them.
anyways,
Chat with you later all,

Bryan

 

[sicily02]

I ment to say since you started this thread and asked what our packs wieght in at roughly mine is and it depends on if I am taking lunch and extra water with me. mine is
12 to 15 pounds I have had up to 19 pounds so far, but I was planning on having a grand meal that day lol.


Bryan

 

[redpoint]

11-15 lbs generally, but it totally depends on what I'm doing. I'm usually in the mountains so while it can be warm there during the day [summer], night time is a different story.

Last Wednesday afternoon, I was backcountry skiing [the winter day hike around here] around 3200'-4200'. In my pack [a lightweight 30 liter Arc'teryx deal with no frame] I had the following:

Spyderco Military

Petzl Tikka XP2

1.5 liters of water in a Platypus

carbon fiber avalanche probe

aluminum avalanche shovel

basic high-energy food [gel, energy bars etc.]

heavy duty, warm Gore-Tex gloves

ski goggles

a super warm parka with hood [in compression sac] - to put on for a break or in emergency

very basic survival and FAK

compass w/map [sometimes GPS - the weather was horrible so it might have been a good idea]

I sometimes carry a Leatherman [for binding repair/adjustment] etc.

That's the essentials. I don't carry a full wallet with me [just ID, Health Card, VISA] and I never carry a cell - generally useless in the mountains.

 

[redpoint]

Bryan- just a zip jacket w/ a hood, it is lightweight ~ 4 oz and packs small, Patagonia Houdini- it has a good DWR finish so it sheds light rain/snow pretty well (if it's going to be raining not a substitute for a rain jacket)

+1 on this jacket, I have the same one. Stupidly light. When I'm aerobically giving 'er [in the winter], just my base layer isn't enough ... b/c for example light winds [e.g. like those as you approach a saddle] chill me fast as I lose heat to evaporative and convective heat loss. A full-blown shell is too hot, but this little baby keeps me dry from light external sources [mist or snow] and breathes very well. A very sweet piece indeed. Dries in minutes too. It creates the perfect ecosystem between my skin and the outside world.

 

[HikingMano]

Thanks, Bryan. I'll have to check out the 8x22 and 8x30's. :thumbup:

Good stuff, Redpoint. It's always interesting to see what the essentials are in different environments. Have you ever had to use your avalanche probe and shovel? And, out of curiousity, how cold does it get up there on a summer night?

Speaking of snow, we got a little dusting recently in the Santa Cruz mountains. A little pre-hike exploration further up in the hills earlier today:

The whole forest was pretty soggy today. Really makes me want to get an extra insulating layer and put that AMK bivy in...I don't know how successful I'd be starting a fire to keep warm in a place that wet and chilly.


ETA: I just ordered the REI Spruce Run jacket. With my giftcard and the clearance sale, I got it for 1/2 off. I'm not thrilled about the color ("java" - some maroon-ish color, only one left), but it'll keep me warm just the same. I think I'll be leaving that jacket, and my light smartwool beanie in the pack. If rain is a possibility, I'll add the rain jacket. I'll be leaving the siltarp in and adding the AMK thermal bivy too. Looks like I'll need to shave down the other contents a bit more....