The Tarptent Protrail is plenty light, partially because it uses your trekking poles for support. Photo from the Tarptent website.
One way to lighten up on the trail is to make sure you are getting the most out of everything you carry. Why pack two things if you can get away with one? Each of these three items should perform at least double duty.
1. Base layer, sun shirt, and pajamas. My choice for all three is a Patagonia Capilene 2 long-sleeved tee. I like hiking the JMT at the end of the season, so a long sleeved shirt is comfortable even in the middle of the day while climbing a pass. It also gives me 20-UPF sun protection. It’s comfortable against the skin as a base layer that I can wear under either a light rain jacket or something more robust while relaxing in camp if I get cold. At night I pair it with a set of silk-weight long underwear, which means I can carry a higher temperature-rated sleeping bag. My personal experience with Capilene is that it doesn’t absorb body odor and it has a very long life span. I’ve worn these shirts for years.
2. Trekking poles. This may be the year that I go with tent that is more like a tarp. I’m particularly impressed with this (or at least with the photos). Regardless, with all the choices out there today it doesn’t make sense carrying trekking poles AND tent poles. (Here’s another that comes in under two pounds.)
3. Phone, trail guide, GPS, and camera. During may last JMT thru-hike I carried four electronic devices: a phone, a GPS, a camera, and a SPOT. Combined they were well over twelve pounds. I’m going out on a limb here, but I think I can shave just a bit off that weight. I’ll still carry a paper map (I describe the reasons why, here), but the GPS, trail guide and phone will all be in one device. And, although I don’t own a phone with a good enough camera, now, there is no doubt that some phones have cameras that are plenty sufficient for most JMT hikers.
From the beginning, ultralight enthusiasts have not only recommended carrying light stuff, they have also been proponents of multi-use items. These three are a great place to start.
Good hiking, Ray
Wow, over 12 pounds for phone, gps, spot and camera. Given the following assumptions: iphone 5oz, garmin gps 10oz, spot 6oz that means your camera is over 10lbs! Seems like a lot and maybe a good place to look at weight savings? I’m not a camera buff so I can’t recommend any solution, but I hike with lot’s of people who are avid photographers who take fantastic pics with a set up that can’t weigh 2lbs?
On a related subject, if anyone knows of a device that combines all of the above into one device and works off Satelite vs. cellular so you can have the emergency locator functionality in the backcountry I would be very interested in getting it.
Thanks for the comment, Mick. Yes, I carried (on my last trip) a Nikon D800 and superzoom lens. It weighed a bit. For a three-part discussion regarding cameras on the JMT check this out: http://jmtbook.com/tag/camera/.
Ray, thanks for the info on cameras. Unfortunately I don’t seem to have the kind of eye to capture all the beautiful shots that some can so I mainly use my iphone and what memories I keep in my head!
I would be interested in comments and details about phone apps for replacing/supplementing guides/maps/gps’s. How do they work in the back country when there is no cell service? Do they eat of battery life? Any info would be appreciated.
This is going to be my first thru-hike with a smartphone, and I’ll be testing a number of apps before I depart. More to come on the blog as I complete those evaluations. Thanks!
I would add rain pants. Keeping your legs dry is the least important of their many uses. They keep rain from entering the tops of your boots or shoes, esp. when paired with gaiters. They add a great deal of warmth on windy, cold days. On the unusually cold night, when you are wearing your jacket inside your sleeping bag (it happens), your legs will freeze until you put on your rain pants which have the warmth advantages of a vapor barrier. When you are washing everything else, they protect your modesty. I’d leave pants at home before leaving my rain pants at home.
Exactly right, John. I’m a big believer in using rain pants as an extra-layer. Thanks!
Great post! As always I learn so much. Are you using GPS and trail guide apps on your phone in an effort to combine all three? If so, can you share what apps you feel are most helpful? And won’t they drain your phone battery pretty quickly? Thanks.
Great question, Betsy. I’ll have more on that in future posts as I try out different apps. Thanks for the comment!
I have been happy using trekking poles as part of my shelter. But with any multi-use item, there are possibly risks involved. My Hexamid Twin requires two trekking poles to set up correctly. Last summer, one of my poles broke and luckily I was able to still rig the shelter to work using a portion of the broken pole. But if I had lost the pole, I would have had to rely on tree branches or other improvised solutions. I find this risk acceptable overall.
The camera on my phone (Moto G) can’t replace my camera yet and I’m still taking a Spot this year but eventually I think that we will have all-in-one devices that will shave off quite a bit of weight. I’ll probably never be comfortable without paper maps.
I’ll carry a separate camera until there is an iPhone which can shoot RAW files. Interesting point regarding the trekking poles. Just yesterday I received a replacement lower section from Black Diamond to fix a pole I broke. I was thinking this morning about the wisdom of carrying one with me as a spare. It weighs practically nothing and when I break a pole I usually break the bottom section. Thanks for the comment, Ravi!
Another great Sierra Designs tent is the Tensegrity 1 Elite at 1 lb 1 oz min wt (2 lb 1 oz packed wt). I like having the gear closet next to my head, away from the door, so I can store my pack out of the rain. Good point from Ravi about the downside of double use.
Thanks for the tent-tip, Inga! For those interested, here is the link: https://www.sierradesigns.com/product/tensegrity-1-elite. Pricey little guy!
Thank you for all your efforts, Ray. Your commitment in sharing information and providing advice is appreciated, especially for those of us preparing for our first JMT. Keep up the great work! And if you’re hitting the trail around the end of August, I hope to thank you in person. Kudos!
Thanks for the kind words, John. I’ll be leaving Yosemite Valley on August 31st, heading south. From what trailhead and on what trail? I’m not sure!
A few years back when it came time to purchase a tent for myself (instead of borrowing 3.5lb monsters) I decided to go with a tarptent as well. I have never looked back or regretted this decision. I have since moved on to a cuben version and a cuben tarp when bugs aren’t an issue, absolutely the greatest way to save weight and easily handle heavy rain and hail.
Like you I need something that can shoot RAW files. I’m debating between a compact 1″ CMOS sensor camera like the Sony RX100III or Lumix LX100. They are both pricey I know but I get out on the trail so much I know I’ll get my moneys worth. do you know anyone who’s used either camera?
Thanks for the comment, Hondo. Interesting to hear that the Tarptent held up in unpleasant conditions. I talk about top-of-the-line point-and-shoots in an upcoming article. Stay tuned!
Always enjoy your postings Ray!
I had a Tarptent( 3 person rainbow, I think) for years and have to say, while usually adequate in dry weather with the occasional light rain or dusting of snow. It was shaky at best in bad weather. In heavy rain it had to be kept extremely taught or puddles would develop on top and even then condensation would rain down from the inside. I invested in a Big Agnes fly creek 3 when my son and I did the JMT a couple of years ago and was glad I did. For about 12 oz more in weight, we had a tent that kept us bone dry in wind and pouring rain.
I have since given the Tarptent to my son, who now lives in San Diego. While he uses it sometimes, if there is a chance of bad weather, he takes something else.
Mike
Thanks, Mike. Interesting take on the Tarptent. I have a Big Agnes Seedhouse 1 and have been very pleased with it, except for the weight. Thanks for the comment!
FYI, I’ve been using my iPhone as my only GPS with great success. I use the Gaia GPS app on my iPhone and have been very happy with it. There are other good apps that people like as well, but Gaia seems to be the best-regarded for the iPhone. To date I’ve only used this setup for hikes in the eastern U.S., but I would imagine it works just as well for western hiking as well, such as the JMT. I guess it depends on how good the GPS chip is in your phone. The iPhone’s GPS is pretty good.
The app is a huge improvement in user friendliness over my previous dedicated GPS unit, due to the fact that it’s operating on the user-friendly smartphone interface. I’ve since retired my dedicated GPS and haven’t looked back. I should note that on the iPhone you won’t get a GPS reading if you put the phone in airplane mode, so there is somewhat of a battery life penalty you incur if you want to use the GPS constantly to monitor your track. But with prudent battery management you can get quite a long life out of a smartphone while still using it as your GPS. There is a website with a wonderful comprehensive write-up on getting the most from this setup. Search for AdventureAlan’s site for the info.
Thanks, Mark, for this great comment. I have the Gaia app downloaded on my iPad and it certainly seems feature rich. Are there any good tutorials out there on how to get the most out of it? Thanks!
Aside from the Adventure Alan site I mentioned above I know that the Gaia site itself has a lot of good info and discussion about using the app as well. I’m not aware of any other specific sites to recommend. I guess with the user manual the learning curve was low enough that I never felt the need to track down a lot of additional info.
Thanks, Mark!
If you are going to evaluate iphone apps give this camera app a try: 645 Pro MK III
It doesn’t give you RAW format but you can get a TIFF.
I have not used this software since I use an android phone.
Sounds interesting…and I love the name! Thanks, Jason!