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Ok, here’s my almost finalized gear list. I would like to decrease the base weight* but the only way I can see this being possible is to cut out:
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Stove – my Jetboil minimo including a 100ml gas canister weighs 645 grams… could I live without the stove eating cold meals with no hot coffee/chocolate?
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Icebreaker tech-t (this would be a spare t-shirt that I would be carrying), 115 grams
-
Compass – do I need this if I have one on my phone and on my SOS device? 35 grams
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Tripod – it only weighs 50 grams! If I haven’t used it daily within the first 2 weeks, I’ll post it home.
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Knife – do I need one or will my Swiss Card knife (tiny!) be enough? 60 grams
* “Base weight” is the weight of the bag and contents before adding food or water. I will have capacity to carry 6 litres of water (+ ~6kg) and will be carrying 5 days of food on average (+ ~4kg).
Here’s the summary:
| Category | grams |
| BIG 4 | 2900 |
| KITCHEN/WATER | 929 |
| RAINGEAR | 476 |
| SLEEP CLOTHES | 471 |
| CLOTHES IN MY PACK | 708 |
| ELECTRONICS | 1370 |
| TOILETRIES | 729 |
| OTHER | 251 |
| TOTAL | 7834 |
And here’s the breakdown:
| Item Name | Description | Qty | Grams |
| BIG 4 | |||
| Tent | YAMA Mountain Gear DW Cirriform | 1 | 765 |
| Sleeping Bag | WM Alpinlite & compression sack | 1 | 965 |
| Sleeping mat | Women’s NeoAir X Lite | 1 | 345 |
| Backpack | Gossamer Gear – Mariposa | 1 | 825 |
| KITCHEN/WATER | |||
| Water Filter | Sawyer Squeeze incl 1 litre bag | 1 | 100 |
| Water container | Platy 2l bottle | 2 | 72 |
| Water back-up | Aquamira drops | 1 | 57 |
| Stove | Jetboil Minimo & 100g gas | 1 | 645 |
| Spoon | MSR Folding spoon | 1 | 10 |
| Food storage bag | Loksak Opsak odor proof bag 12″x20″ | 1 | 45 |
| RAINGEAR | |||
| Umbrella | Euroschirm Swing Liteflex | 1 | 225 |
| Jacket | OR Helium 2 | 1 | 160 |
| Pack liner | Trash Compactor Bag | 1 | |
| Rain skirt | Lightheart Gear Rain Wrap | 1 | 91 |
| CLOTHES I’M WEARING | |||
| Shoes | Brooks Cascadia 10 | 1 | 0 |
| Socks | Darn Tough | 1 | 0 |
| Sock liners | Injinji crew liners | 1 | 0 |
| Skirt | Purple Rain Skirt | 1 | 0 |
| Underpants | Icebreaker hipkini | 1 | 0 |
| Desert shirt | Patagonia Sol Patrol L/S | 1 | 0 |
| Sports bra | Sweaty Betty | 1 | 0 |
| Knee Brace | LP Support | 1 | 0 |
| Sun hat | 1 | 0 | |
| Sunglasses | Dirty Dog Polarized | 1 | 0 |
| Gloves for desert (sun) | 1 | 0 | |
| Gaiters | Dirty Girl | 1 | 0 |
| Hiking Poles | Carbon Pacerpoles | 1 | 0 |
| SLEEP CLOTHES | |||
| Baselayer top | Icebreaker Oasis L/S Crewe 200 | 1 | 160 |
| Baselayer bottoms | Icebreaker Everyday Leggings 200 | 1 | 160 |
| Socks | Darn Tough | 1 | 45 |
| Beanie | Mouse works | 1 | 70 |
| Earplugs | 1 | 10 | |
| Drysack | Sea to Summit Ultra-Sil, 4l | 1 | 26 |
| CLOTHES IN MY PACK | |||
| Wind pants | Patagonia Houdini | 1 | 95 |
| T-shirt | Icebreaker Tech T | 1 | 115 |
| Down Jacket | MH Ghost Whisperer Down Hoody | 1 | 203 |
| Socks (1 spare) | Darn Tough | 1 | 40 |
| Gloves | Lowe Alpine Polartec | 1 | 35 |
| Camp shoes | Bedrock Sandals – Gabbro | 1 | 220 |
| ELECTRONICS | |||
| Phone & Case | iPhone 5s & Mophie juice pack plus | 1 | 205 |
| Music player | Nano – 6th generation | 1 | 35 |
| Camera, case & spare batt | Sony RX100 III | 1 | 355 |
| Tripod | Ultrapod | 1 | 50 |
| Solar Panel | Poweradd Apollo 2 | 1 | 280 |
| Cables & adaptor | Phone/camera/nano/solar panel | 1 | 145 |
| Headlamp | Petzl Tikka Plus 2 | 1 | 80 |
| Headlamp batts – spare | 3 x AAA lithium batteries | 1 | 20 |
| SOS | Delorme InReach Explorer | 1 | 200 |
| TOILETRIES | |||
| Toothbrush, paste, | & floss, soap | 1 | 95 |
| Toilet Paper, wetwipes | 1 | 50 | |
| Lipbalm | Vaseline SPF 15, 4g | 1 | 10 |
| Sunscreen | SPF 50, 50ml | 1 | 60 |
| Bug spray | Incognito spray (100% natural, deet free), 18ml | 1 | 35 |
| Hand sanitizer | Antibacterial, 50ml | 1 | 60 |
| Hand cream | Norwegian formula concentrated, 15ml | 1 | 20 |
| First aid & antibiotics | Ibuprofen, painkillers, metronidazole (Giardia), antihistamines, plasters | 1 | 365 |
| PackTowl | Ultralite Medium | 1 | 34 |
| OTHER | |||
| Compass | Silva Ranger | 1 | 35 |
| Maps | per 2 sections | 1 | 90 |
| Trowel | Qiwiz original titanium | 1 | 11 |
| Ziplock bags | Quart freezer bags for rubbish etc | 5 | 30 |
| Victorinox Swiss Card | Scissors, tweezers, nail file… | 1 | 25 |
| Knife | Opinel No.8 Outdoor Knife | 1 | 60 |
| THINGS I’LL POST AHEAD | (NOT COUNTING AS BASE WEIGHT) | ||
| Bug Head Net | OR deluxe spring ring headnet | 1 | 60 |
| Microspikes (for Sierras) | Kahtoola | 1 | 420 |
| Fleece | Macpac hooded | 1 | 285 |
| Total grams | 7,834 |
My Big 4: pack, sleeping bag, mattress & tent
My Kitchen: water filter, stove, spoon, food bag and water bladders
All my gear except what I’ll be wearing
followingthearrows 
I am smiling at the trekking umbrella! I know they work, but its just so British! I venture to guess you won’t see another on the PCT! Godspeed! I can’t wait to read of your adventure.
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Thanks Liz 🙂 I’m hoping the umbrella will help provide shade through the desert (rigging it to my pack so I can use it hands free) and then as rain protection if it rains. I’ve never hiked with an umbrella before so I’ll let you know how it goes 🙂
Buen Camino for your walk xxx
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Hey Lady, Keep your compass…GPS can fail. You might never use it on the PCT but I think it’s good to get in the habit of having it on you .
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Have a great time. I might suggest changi gnto a micro alcohol stove. Could bring the tiny msr rocket and buy some fuel if the alcohol does not pan out. Other than that perhaps reduce number ofnitems in first aid asnyou can restock along the way. I am in shikoku half way around for secondntime. Did an overuse injury maybe to Achilles tendon plus burni g quad. I will watch your progress.
dara
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Hi Dara,
I was originally going to get an alcohol stove but California is going through a major drought and so dry that bushfires are a common occurrence and at the moment only stoves with an on/off switch are permitted in most areas – so no alcohol stoves.
I hope you’re having a terrific time back in Shikoku, ki o tsukete ne!
Kat
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Kat, I just found your blog, coincidentally after returning home from 3 days on the PCT (a few test days). I will be donating to you and following you. Keep up the great work. I would like to know how you like your solar charger? Keeping my phone charged, is one problem I am trying to solve. ~Ann
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Thanks Ann 🙂 I’m actually using my Anker instead and I have the solar panel in my bounce box. I think my Anker is the E5 or something like that and it has more power than the solar charger.
Happy trails!
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I have been using pacer poles for three years now and LOVE them! I broke my fibula 13 weeks ago and had to crawl out the rugged trail to a road. Once on the road I could use my pacer poles as crutches to get me out. I am so glad I had them! Have fun out there and be safe.
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