On losing weight (on the AT...)
So one goal of mine is to get back on the Appalachian Trail and through-hike it again. A local outfitter has been having a huge sale, so I have gone in a few times to poke around.
I picked up a book detailing the Benton MacKaye Trail, which runs about 300 miles, roughly parallel to the southernmost part of the AT. The book only covers the first 93 miles of the Trail, basically just the Georgia section. 93 miles is about a week's worth of backpacking, so I am strongly considering doing that as a spring break trip.
One big desire of mine between now and then is to eliminate about five pounds from the dry weight of my pack; that is to say before food and water are stored. While I was on the AT my pack was about 30 lbs. fully loaded. I am guessing it was about 25 lbs. dry. That is significantly heavier than I would want it. Eliminating five pounds is a goal. Eliminating more than that would be even better.
Here is a table showing my old equipment, stuff that went with me for 500 miles on the AT, alongside replacements that would help me achieve the goal.
OldWeightNewWeightSavings
Gregory Forester 4700 ci
4 lbs. 14 oz.
GoLite Quest 4400 ci3 lbs. 3 oz.1 lb. 11 oz.
REI Sololite4 lb. 2 oz.
Hennessy Hyperlight Asym1 lb. 10 oz.2 lb. 8 oz.
MSR Simmerlite
8.5 oz.
MSR Pocket Rocket
3.5 oz.5 oz.
40F Polarguard HV Sleeping Bag~2lb.
40F Down Sleeping Bag
21 oz.~11 oz.
Canon SD500
6.5 oz.
Canon SD403.7 oz.3 oz.
Sony SRF-593.0 oz.
(with battery)
iRiver T60
1.4 oz.
(with battery)1 oz.TOTALS12 lb. 2 oz6 lb. 10.6 oz5 lb. 8 oz.
That is right, a five and a half pound savings! Now I just need to start gathering all of the gear together (well, gathering money together to purchase the gear, I suppose).
There are a few other weight reductions I can make, as well. It is possible I could trim another half pound, making it about an even six pound weight loss.
More updates to come!
I picked up a book detailing the Benton MacKaye Trail, which runs about 300 miles, roughly parallel to the southernmost part of the AT. The book only covers the first 93 miles of the Trail, basically just the Georgia section. 93 miles is about a week's worth of backpacking, so I am strongly considering doing that as a spring break trip.
One big desire of mine between now and then is to eliminate about five pounds from the dry weight of my pack; that is to say before food and water are stored. While I was on the AT my pack was about 30 lbs. fully loaded. I am guessing it was about 25 lbs. dry. That is significantly heavier than I would want it. Eliminating five pounds is a goal. Eliminating more than that would be even better.
Here is a table showing my old equipment, stuff that went with me for 500 miles on the AT, alongside replacements that would help me achieve the goal.
OldWeightNewWeightSavings
Gregory Forester 4700 ci
4 lbs. 14 oz.
GoLite Quest 4400 ci3 lbs. 3 oz.1 lb. 11 oz.
REI Sololite4 lb. 2 oz.
Hennessy Hyperlight Asym1 lb. 10 oz.2 lb. 8 oz.
MSR Simmerlite
8.5 oz.
MSR Pocket Rocket
3.5 oz.5 oz.
40F Polarguard HV Sleeping Bag~2lb.
40F Down Sleeping Bag
21 oz.~11 oz.
Canon SD500
6.5 oz.
Canon SD403.7 oz.3 oz.
Sony SRF-593.0 oz.
(with battery)
iRiver T60
1.4 oz.
(with battery)1 oz.TOTALS12 lb. 2 oz6 lb. 10.6 oz5 lb. 8 oz.
That is right, a five and a half pound savings! Now I just need to start gathering all of the gear together (well, gathering money together to purchase the gear, I suppose).
There are a few other weight reductions I can make, as well. It is possible I could trim another half pound, making it about an even six pound weight loss.
More updates to come!