I think this is just another incarnation of optimising everything in our lives. - I have done my fair share to lighten my pack over the last decade. But actually, in the last two years my bag got heavier. That 700g tent in which I cannot get a decent sleep unless there is no breeze, no rain and low humidity, and still requiring me to be a contortionist for everything I want to do other than just lying down. An actual pillow gives me a proper night’s sleep, rather than just stuffing my clothes into a dry bag. Camp-shoes / sandals make your evening so much more comfortable and put your feet into better shape for next day. Yes, clothes to change is a waste except for socks. Many hikers take too much food. Consider where you can buy food for re supply on the way. If there is water, take a filter rather than loads of water in your pack. - I aim to strike a balance between comfort while walking (reduce pack weight) and comfort while at camp and sleeping. I don’t want to be miserable. It’s a holiday not a competition. - Consider trail running shoes instead of hiking boots. The saying is, one pound saved on your feet is equivalent to five pounds off your back. And train, train, train with a heavy back. Most of us can put one foot in front of he other but that doesn’t make you a good and fit hiker. Most issues on long-distance hikes are down to lack of training and preparation, not the weight of the pack. - Reducing the pack weight is not a quick-fix for lack of training.
I’m with you on water insecurity. I’m in Southern California, and until just recently, water sources were nearly non-existent in many areas. Three liters minimum for a day hike is the norm for me!
I agree with you 100%. I usually hike off trail in West Virginia and Western Maryland. Water is there, but to access it you have to travers some pretty steep grades... and don't think it's worth the risk to save a couple of pounds.
I find that there is a trade off between durability and weight when it comes to gear. I hike in the Victorian high country, and when I use ultralight gear I need to do running repairs more often than I do with heavier, traditional gear. Balance between weight and wait and fix.
eyyy great tips, H! I only learned to rid of the 'just in case' mentality this last year, and man oh man it's so liberating! Coincidentally, only yesterday, I cut off unnecessary straps, some straps' length, reservoir pouch and clip, replaced some thicker straps with bungee cords on my pack and shaved off a good 220g! So fun!
Hayley, you are amazing! Having spent many years making 'Camino hiking' content myself, it's such a joy to see your films. Well researched, well presented, very well produced and with a good dose of humour. Bloody good little Aussie!
@@rockytopwrangler2069 i don't know the math, but you'll probably need a big bladder of Helium to "lift" a small amount of weight. so if you have a huge bag it might work.
Great tips Haley lightening you load does not mean comprising on comfort. It just means choosing gear that it multi purpose, not packing your fears or swapping things out which are lighter.
i do wild camping and biggest hit on weight saving was going from 3mm paracord to 1.6mm dyneema, 3mm shockcord on underquilts to 1.5mm and ditching carabiners for soft shackles. 1.8k removed. carabiners were 17.8g soft shackle is 6.9g.
Haha! just been weighing some of my stuff when I came upon this video! My pack was too heavy last time I tramped so going to cut back next time - starting with my camera gear!
Thanks a lot for the ideas, I am really slow because the way of my backpack. However, I disagree with using trail shoes instead of at least mid cut hiking boots. You need good feet support hen you carry backpack. I have seen really fast people on trail with trailing shoes carrying relatively heavy backpack. They periodically almost twisting they feet.
I think either the PCT or the AT would be on my list of things to do before I die haha. I talked about it once with a friend. Maybe it needs another thought. :)
Agree on the water tip. I hiked the combined Wilsons Prom southern and eastern circuits with a far fitter friend a few yes back. The 7 litres of water he was carrying slowed him down nicely. He couldn't believe my system was just downing the remain water in my 1.25 litre bottle every time we found flowing water. I'd refill, pop in a purification table and 30 mins later back was to drinking with much lighter pack.
Excellent video 👍 I'd add that if you like managing your pack weight on a phone instead of a computer, I find Packfire works better than Lighterpack as it's more mobile friendly. I use both though.
I find the current hiking gear culture here is Aus so interesting. It seems so far behind in its offering of lighter weight gear compared to the US. Although as you mention the tide is finally turning with more Aussie online companies offering lighter gear appearing. I can’t work out if companies don’t see enough of a profit in UL gear, it’s seen as too niche, maybe we don’t have a large enough hiking population or it’s not always suited to some of the types of trails we have here? Or other factors? 🤔
I often think about this quite a lot! It's hard to pin point why. I always think about the first time hikers who go into a regular outdoor stores for advice, but don't know yet that there is a whole other lightweight world!
You can use a pot cozy lined with a zip-lock to make a bowl, and nothing to clean afterward. A 4-quid reflective car windshield sun-shade is lighter than any commercial sit pad. You can make 2 by cutting them in half. A 2-quid mylar emergency blanket is one of the lightest tent footprint replacements. Trimmed to size they can weigh less than 25 grams. Throw everything that can't get wet into one pack liner, and ditch all the separate stuff sacks. Keep all your small items organized in small zip locks, placed inside one larger zip lock. Remove tags and any unused things from all your gear.
/Looks at current setup... Nope, not too heavy yet as it ain't ordered yet haha all my gear is spread across rooms as I'm still building the system :-p
Definitely some good advice here. (I have about 16,000 km of hiking now, and most videos I watch I laugh at how poor some of the advice is. But this is solid.) A suggestion for you, if you get a chance try the Platypus Quickdraw water filter. I saw you using the Sawyer, and the Platypus is so much faster! My friends and I have all switched to it. I've used it on the CDT and my hikes across Ireland, Scotland, and Spain, so it's well tested. It's a definite upgrade. So here's a question for you. I'm looking at coming over to Australia around August/September and am looking for some good long trails to hit. I'm thinking of New Zealand, Tasmania, but then I want to do some on the continent. Any suggestions? The longer the better. I usually hike about 6-7 months a year, so I figure I'll still have time after New Zealand and Tasmania. Also, any tips for Australian hiking? I've done the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and as I mentioned Ireland, Scotland, and Spain. But one thing I've learned after hiking that much is that there is always new things to learn, especially when it comes to hiking in a place you've never hiked before. :) Again, great video!
I once ran out of water in the Himalayas, I would now rather carry more than ever be that dry again. You can always use the excess to cool off or rinse items at the end of the day.
Hmm the sleeping bag/quilt you would be able to get custom made for your height. I think some companies would custom make packs too you'd just have to find the right ones. I can imagine finding a tent and a mat would be difficult for you though! At least you could start with all the accessories to make those lighter.
Most wight its my digital camera batterys🤷♂️ its not an mirror one and sucking to mutch power.... every searching using power. Your must be an mirror camera. How many battery's u use at an 4-5day trip? And wear merino then of course never smelling like plastic fibres!
If it doesn’t fit in your pack don’t take it. Reason when you go of track it catches on everything and anybody can stay on the track, the fun begins of the tracks Cheers have a great day
My tip: Don't be too narrow in your thinking when looking at equipment, in other words, don't look at one thing in isolation if it affects other things. For example, my tent is lighter than my hammock. But if I use my hammock, I don't have to bring a sleeping pad, just a light rubber insulated pad. So it's not the weight of the hammock that counts, but the weight of the (tent + sleeping pad) vs. (hammock + insulated pad). In my case, they turn out to be almost the same so I usually take the tent because I find it more to my liking. Same thing with stoves. My solid fuel stove is lighter than my propane stove. And for shorter hikes the solid fuel stove is more weight efficient. But the fuels is hard to come by so I have to bring the entire supply for the whole trip. If I'm out for more than a week, the propane stove is more efficient because the fuel is so much lighter. (14 g/liter-boil solid vs. 3.5 g/liter-boil propane.) Seems like a small difference but it adds up on long hikes. And yeah, I ran out of water twice in the Grand Canyon. Both times I managed to find more within a few miles, but I'm paranoid about water and usually start the day with 3 liters now.)
Great video Hailey and I like your tip to weigh everything 😊 I’ve slowly been updating my heavy items. Just got a better quality sleeping mat, a sleeping bag a while ago they make a big difference for sure. Luxury I always take my nature hike pillow it makes a big difference and not much more weight
