I’ll be the first to admit.  I’m lazy.  All my backpacking gear is from the 1990s and who knows where all of it has ended up.  Okay…I know where some of it is…it’s in the garage…but back in the 1990s terms like “ultra-light” weren’t even part of the hiking lexicon.  If it was, it was all about sawing off the handle of your toothbrush to save 1oz.

So off I went for a trip to my local neighborhood REI.  I’ve always liked REI.  They actually hire people who have hiked, lived on the trail, and know the demands and the gear.  I probably spent about 2+ hours getting the following:

Backpack (and rain cover)

Tent (and footprint)

Sleeping bag and pad

Camp stove and cook gear

Spork (seriously, you have to own a spork)

Compression bags

Additional hydration packs

As I sit here typing, I can think of a pile of things I didn’t get and should have.  Rain gear, extra sock liners, maybe synthetic underwear (don’t judge).  That’s why I started early…so I can think of these things.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be documenting exactly the gear I bought, the weight, and my initial thoughts “before” the trip and my thoughts “after” the trip.

Oh…the trip.  Have I mentioned it?  I’m doing an all women’s backpacking trip in the Ft. Davis Mountains.  I’m very excited and eager.  Yes…this will mean loading up all that gear mentioned above and hiking with it.  But I figure I have time for that.

So if you see a woman straining under a backpack load simply stop and offer a few words of encouragement.  She and I will be very much appreciative!