Ultralight backpacking?

S

SLiuGraphite

Joined
Aug 4, 2011
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Hey guys, I see that there are plenty of backpackers here on the forums but I don't see too much mention of ultralight backpacking.
For those of you who don't know, ultralight backpackers have a base weight of 10 lbs or less.
And for those of you who don't know what a base weight is, it's the weight of your backpack not including water, fuel, or food.
Mine is around 11 lbs right now.

Of course, being a member of this forum, I bring lotsa sharp objects with me :rolleyes:
I usually bring a big knife and a smaller knife along.
For example on one trip I brought my HI Ang Khola and a CKC trailblazer.
The secret to bringing along so much steel and still be ultralight? Don't have them in your bag!
I have my Ang Khola on a sling and my CKC on my belt. They don't count towards my baseweight!
Heck, sometimes I carry my Wetterlings carpenter axe with me.
Any other ultralighters out there? Anyone share my two obsessions?!?
 
I do some backpacking, but not ultralight because some of that stuff gets expensive and I try to save my big bills for more knives :D
I think my baseweight currently is about 30 lbs. I can't imagine having a 10 lbs pack!! :eek:
 
It definitely gets a little pricey but I think it's worth it!
You're so much less fatigued after that long hike in. More energy for playing with my toys and making big fires :D
 
That makes perfect sense, can't argue :)
But I don't mind the extra work and fatigue I accumulate when I go snuggle up in my hammock, just makes for a great night's sleep.
 
Guess I'm close to being ultralight, but am in no hurry to spend more money to lighten a load that I don't even notice as it is.
I use the Osprey Exos 46 and 58 liter packs. 37 and 40oz.
800 fill 40F Marmot Arete and 15F Pinnacle sleeping bags: 24 and 40oz. My Trestle Trails summer bag is 24oz, too.
Tarptent Notch. 26oz including stakes and bugnet. 19.7oz with a cuben ground sheet.
Big Agnes Air Core and Insulated Air Core pads: 19 and 24oz. Also a <7oz Inertia X-Lite Recon pad, though I rarely use it.

My big 4 is 7.7# for winter, 6.6# the majority of the time.
I can easily drop another 1.5lb off the winter sleep system while maintaining the same comfort level(for $400-500!), and another pound or more off the packs(never happen-not giving up a ventilated back for anything), but it would be throwing money at a nonexistent problem.
I don't even know what my "base weight" is. I use a ti mug/pot, a 2oz canister stove, a 3oz Sawyer Squeeze for filtering water, light baselayers and a down puffy for insulation.
It all adds down:D

Come summer, I might do some overnighters in good weather with a daypack using the 9oz bugnet for the Notch as my shelter, an 8oz S2S Reactor liner as a bag, and the Inertia pad.
Doesn't get much lighter than that.

One of my favorite things about the lightweight stuff is that I never have the urge to take the pack off, even though I'm constantly bouncing around off the trail climbing rocks, down in ravines, etc. If I do get hurt, I've got all my gear with me.
 
Do yourself a favor and don't mention big knives and big fires in the ultralight crowd! :D
 
The lightest gadget is the one you left at home. I also limit myself to the essentials. That means one small knife unless I am planning on building a fire. Which I normally would not do hiking anyway.

For the shelter I just ordered a Hennessy expedition hammock to test out. For summer outings it should give me a nice weight/ performance level.
 
The only thing that keeps me from being a true ultralight backpacker is that I insist on a full size, full thickness insulated air mattress and a full coverage tent. And I have to carry a canister in many of the areas where I go.

That being said, my base weight is around 15-20 lb. It took a good amount of money over a number of years to get to that point.

At the trailhead on a nine day backpacking trip that I did last year, my full pack weight with fuel, food and water was right at 40lb.
 
Minimalist gear is what started me on ultralight too! I plan to cut some weight by making some of my own gear.
I have a ULA circuit which I want to replace with a homemade cuben fiber one.
I have a Warbonnet Blackbird 1.7 that weights in at 26 oz. I can replace it with a homemade hammock with woopie slings. Gonna try to get a 5 lb base weight for summer backpacking by going tarp shelter.
I always have the 10 Cs of survivability though!
Big fires are my favorite so I gotta have big knives or an axe.
 
oguruma said:
I'm not a Nancy, so I prefer a pack that weighs more than a loaf of bread.
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Seriously dude? :rolleyes:
SLiuGraphite said:
They don't count towards my baseweight!
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You're not an ULer if you don't count that. You should be counting your skin out weight if you want to call yourself an ULer. What you're doing is a bit of cheating but you're not alone. A lot of people do that so they can give themselves the ultra light label. I carry light gear but it's over the arbitrary number but that's okay, I have no aspirations for a label.
 
oguruma said:
I'm not a Nancy, so I prefer a pack that weighs more than a loaf of bread.
Click to expand...
I'm a rugby prop, martial artist, specialized infantryman and olympic weightlifter... but my pack weight makes me a nancy. OK then, I suppose next you'll be saying kilts are girly.
 
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Shotgun said:
Seriously dude? :rolleyes:


You're not an ULer if you don't count that. You should be counting your skin out weight if you want to call yourself an ULer. What you're doing is a bit of cheating but you're not alone. A lot of people do that so they can give themselves the ultra light label. I carry light gear but it's over the arbitrary number but that's okay, I have no aspirations for a label.
Click to expand...

My definition of ultralight is 10 lb base weight.
My definition of SUPER ultra light weight is 10 lb skin out.
I'm definitely cheating a bit but it's all in good fun :D
I could just leave my knives at home and bring a mora but what fun is that?
 
Still can't get into the mindset of going ultralight! It's too much fun bringing lots of goodies on the trail, albeit it hurts a tad :)
 
I have been into lightweight backpacking for a few years now and it has been a steady progression.....
Working out what works and what doesn't in our unpredictable UK climate. It certainly allows me to explore further, higher and for longer without resupplying. Disappearing in to Knoydart in Scotland's Western Highlands for 5 days with a 33 litre and 99g backpack is liberating :)

Gear that works well for me :
Gossamer Gear Whisper Pack 99g 33 litres in spinnaker.
Gossamer Gear Spinshelter 291g spinnaker shelter or a Z packs Hexamid at 264g for a cuben tent with full midge netting.
Nunatak Arc Edge 345g Down quilt
Nightlite torso pad 104 g with a full length Thinlite at 50g underneath.

R0017812.jpg


R0015561.jpg


Even lighter is a cuben tarp and bivy I made - details HERE at 90g and 110g respectively.

My dog Murphy carries his own stuff too....

murpharoo.jpg
 
sideways said:
I'm a rugby prop, martial artist, specialized infantryman and olympic weightlifter... but my pack weight makes me a nancy. OK then, I suppose next you'll be saying kilts are girly.
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Now I just laugh at those comments because most of them come from out of shape people who have never done a 25 mile hike in their life. Let alone 25 miles a day for months on end. ULers take what they need and leave the rest at home which makes perfect sense to me. It has nothing to do with their physical ability.
SLiuGraphite said:
My definition of ultralight is 10 lb base weight.
My definition of SUPER ultra light weight is 10 lb skin out.
I'm definitely cheating a bit but it's all in good fun :D
I could just leave my knives at home and bring a mora but what fun is that?
Click to expand...

No sweat. I have the same mindset. As minimal and as light as I can go except in the knife department. To me it's as much a luxury item as it is an essential. Some carry books, some journals...I carry a knife to point sticks. It's all good. :D
 
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