[pct-l] base pack weight

[Paul Mitchell]

Hey Jim

I've got about 2300 PCT miles & have brought my pack weight down each time
I've been on the trail, and it absolutely makes a huge difference in my
enjoyment of the miles.  Even dropping from a base weight of 12lb to 7lb
made a huge difference.

You shouldn't need to ditch your MP3 and camera.  The bulk of your weight is
in the "big three" items, your pack, sleeping bag and shelter.  Go
ultra-light with those, your cook set and your clothes and it's easy to hit
the 10lb mark.  Moving down from there takes more attention to every single
item in your pack.  I managed 7lb without really compromising any comfort,
except perhaps for the sleeping pad.

Here's a couple great pack providers - you'll see a lot of these on the
trail:
http://www.gossamergear.com/cgi-bin/gossamergear/pack_matrix.html
http://www.ula-equipment.com/packoverview.asp

For shelters my top choices are:
http://tarptent.com/rainbow.html
http://www.gossamergear.com/cgi-bin/gossamergear/The_One.html

For bags here's a couple great options:
http://www.nunatakusa.com/site07/main_pages/product_sleep_systems.htm
http://marmot.com/fall_2009/equipment/sleeping_bags

For stoves/pots:
http://www.whiteboxstoves.com/
http://jwbasecamp.com/Articles/SuperCat/index.html
http://www.rei.com/product/708071

Clothing system advice:
http://promountainsports.com/clothing.shtml

> I suspect I may be taking too much "what if this happens" stuff out of
conscious and subconscious fear.

Almost definitely.  It's pretty common for new PCT hikers to ditch a lot of
extra stuff within the first couple hundred miles.

Anyway, obviously there's a lot to learn about each piece of gear when
moving to ultra-light, but those providers are good places to start. The big
change I'm making to my gear for this year's hike is to pay much more
attention to optimizing my clothing choices, which should help take another
.5 to 1 pound off and improve the effectiveness of what I do bring.

I've used gear from all the companies in the above link, in some cases
multiple items from each so if you have any questions feel free to shoot.

Cheers,
- Potential178