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Appalachian Trail - Going Light!
By: Greg Goodson
List Description
List Description
This list was for a 2 night trip on the AT that I took from southern Shenandoah NP to the fish hatchery, just south of the Priest. I took the trip in late September - the weather got down to 40 degrees at night, and up to 75 degrees during the day, but the wind was constantly blowing around 15 mph so the wind chill affected the temperature. Elevations of the trip ranged from 1000 ft to 4500 ft. The first night I stayed in the Paul C. Wolfe shelter about 5 miles south of Rockfish Gap and the second night I stayed in the Maupin Field shelter about 7 miles north of Tye River. Because of the shelters helped block the wind, I was easily able to get away with a 35 degree sleeping bag (if I had gotten cold, I still had my smart-wool base layers, shirts/shorts, and rain jacket/pants. The Petzl e+LITE is great for around camp (especially for 1oz) but I had just a little trouble following the trail with this. For trails that aren't marked well, less traveled, or require a little bushwhacking, I'd bring my Petzl Tekka Plus headlamp instead. I checked the weather before I left and I realized that there was only a very small chance of rain, so I decided to pack a bivy. It was a toss up between my TarpTent Contrail (tarptent.com @ 24 oz) and my REI Minimalist Bivy (rei.com @ 15oz) but decided to save the weight and go with the bivy. Plus it adds some temperature rating to my sleeping system. I used a 2007 Gossamer Gear Mariposa Pack (gossamergear.com @ 17 oz, 3000 cu in) which was more than enough to carry my gear. If you haven't figured it out yet, I like to go light, so my total pack weight with water and food was around 11 pounds. I am still looking for ways to go lighter. Now that this trip is over, I am in the market for a tarp/poncho/pack cover that weighs less than 10 oz, so I can get rid of my Sierra Designs Microlight Jacket (8oz) and use a tarp to go along with my bivy and something that will cover my pack instead of using garbage bag liners (the GG Mariposa + large black garbage bag does great against downpours... I know by experience). The trip was great and I was happy with the gear choices that I made. I did some night hiking as well. Between moving relatively fast and my Smartwool base layers, Sierra Design rain gear, and a hat, I was very warm in the 40 degree night. Other gear I brought that isn't on the list below: 1 REI Minimalist Bivy 1 Gossamer Gear Mariposa Pack (2007 version - 17oz @ 3000 cu in) 3 plastic 20oz water bottles 2 handkerchiefs 1 medium sized gas canister for my stove 1 handmade aluminum foil top for my titanium cup 2 lighters 10 advils 1 needle and thread set 1 camera 1 pen and REI waterproof journal 1 Leatherman Skeletool 1 small tube of vasoline 1 pack of gum 1 black garbage bag 1 set of toothbrush and toothpaste 1 cell phone 1 small sports wristwatch 1 pair of cotton boxers 1 Carhartt hat 1 pair of lightweight cheap gas station sunglasses 1 packet of homemade jerky Even though the list below shows a whole pack of Honey Stinger chews, 8 tubes of Nuun, etc., keep in mind I only took enough for two days to save weight. I used 50 ft. of cord (could have gotten away with 25 feet) to hang my
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