Pic Request: Backpacking setup with tent AND sleeping bag AND pad

[Inazone]

My brother and I are kicking around the idea of a hiking trip in northern Minnesota in late April or early May, and while we haven't determined whether or not we're camping - or where exactly we would camp - neither of us has done a true backpacking or hike-in camping trip. I have no idea what he has aside from a USMC ILBE pack (full size, not just assault pack) but I have both an older Kelty Yukon external frame pack and a new High Sierra 45L internal frame pack to choose between. I would be bringing an Eagle's Camp Crystal Canyon "backpacker" tent (Cabela's description, not mine) and one of a number of rather non-backpacking sleeping bags, plus most likely a USGI sleeping pad. It's possible that the bag and/or pad would get swapped out between now and then, but not a certainty.

I have plenty of hiking experience, minimal camping experience and zero experience hiking with that kind of load. What I'm hoping someone can post is pictures of their tent/bag/pad setup as actually carried in/on their pack. I don't care if the pack or other items are similar to mine - I just want to see how other people are set up.

This will most likely be a test run for me, with the actual camping (if we camp) being at a site within short walking distance of our vehicle. However, I want to make use of the opportunity to get a feel for how best to get around with what I have.

 

[justsomedude]

I will try to post some pictures for you soon, I'm not really a photography guy...

There are lots of great places to go backpacking in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin, I recommend calling park ranger offices, I've found the rangers to be very helpful in trip planning.

My setup for two (keeping in mind it's my wife and we share a down quilt, cutting a lot of weight) is as follows:

REI Flash 45 x2
Tarptent Double Rainbow
Nemo astro air pad x2 (got a great deal on these and love the built in 'pillow')
Nemo Tango Duo quilt
Basic Ti shephard hook stakes x8
Sawyer water filter
Snowpeak gigapower stove
GSI Halulite Kettle
Cheap tupperware
TI sporks
Tikka headlamp x2
Pick a 4" fixed blade
Disposable Plastic water bottles

Add clothes and food and that's it!

Our packs weigh about 8-12 lbs each, depending on clothing, before food and water.

I recommend the Flash as it's inexpensive and very very light (got 'em for $80 each last year on sale). However I am upgrading to an Zpacks ArcBlast for this season.

I recommend the Tarptent because, again, it's inexpensive and light (less than half the weight of your current tent. It also is very easy to set up and versatile. Hammocks are the most weight-efficient and versatile camping option but don't work for couples... I used to use a Hennessey Hammock and it was wonderful. I've also used a standard ENO and it was excellent. (EDIT: Just remembered how many mosquitoes there were back home in WI, may want to avoid a hammock considering...)

You can't do better than closed cell foam weight-wise for sleeping pads, so if I were you I'd 'upgrade' that last.

If you're going to get a new sleeping bag I recommend going for a quilt or a Big Agnes bag instead. Big Agnes only puts loft on the top of the bag, the back is just a sleeve for a sleeping pad. I say this because loft you lay on top of is useless, so unless you move around a lot in your sleep there's really no point in having it under your back. Feathered Friends makes the best but are very pricey, I like my Nemo a lot but I also got a really good deal on it, or else I would have gone FF.

I recommend a Kettle because it boils water much faster than an open pot, then I pour the hot water into one of the tupperwares along with whatever I want to rehydrate. Much more weight efficient than having two pots and cooking one meal in each, for instance.

Sawyer filters are a must have: they weight a pound less than pump filters and are much more convenient than chemical purification.

 

[druid189]

My brother and I are kicking around the idea of a hiking trip in northern Minnesota in late April or early May, and while we haven't determined whether or not we're camping - or where exactly we would camp - neither of us has done a true backpacking or hike-in camping trip. I have no idea what he has aside from a USMC ILBE pack (full size, not just assault pack) but I have both an older Kelty Yukon external frame pack and a new High Sierra 45L internal frame pack to choose between. I would be bringing an Eagle's Camp Crystal Canyon "backpacker" tent (Cabela's description, not mine) and one of a number of rather non-backpacking sleeping bags, plus most likely a USGI sleeping pad. It's possible that the bag and/or pad would get swapped out between now and then, but not a certainty.

I have plenty of hiking experience, minimal camping experience and zero experience hiking with that kind of load. What I'm hoping someone can post is pictures of their tent/bag/pad setup as actually carried in/on their pack. I don't care if the pack or other items are similar to mine - I just want to see how other people are set up.

This will most likely be a test run for me, with the actual camping (if we camp) being at a site within short walking distance of our vehicle. However, I want to make use of the opportunity to get a feel for how best to get around with what I have.

I'm sorry I don't have personal pictures to share [all lost when my other pc took a dump on me] but this is the pack I use:

....which is smaller than your brother's ILBE pack. It does hold a ton of gear though, even for as 'simple' a pack that it is.

Hiking loads: This is an arguable topic. Most people will tell you that any hiking load should be not [much] more than 20-25% of your body weight. I have tried several weight loads and 20% seems right for ME. You may differ though, depending on your size, strength and endurance levels. Others will tell you more or less. UL backpacking is "generally considered" to about 10% of your weight or so.

I'm 6'2" and 240 lbs on a strong "farmer" frame... so the suggested load for me at 25% is about 60 lbs. However, I HAVE carried up to 80 lbs and that was just a bit too much on some trails. The problem is not the load, the problem is the terrain. Some trails I've hit were way too steep to comfortably [and safely] navigate. The weight of the bag is what makes you go A** over tin cup, which is a major safety problem. Also, the body is uneven and can cause the more-often experienced injuries....twisted ankles and tweaked back muscles.

I pack my bag with the heaviest gear on top - which is my tent:

....but that tent is heavy compared to most of similar size....

and sleeping bag on the bottom, which happens to be this one:

The only thing is I made and added a fleece 'inner bag' to go inside the mummy bag. They can be used independently or combined for extra cold weather.

Everything else goes inside the center of the bag, between the tent and the sleeping system.

My suggestion is to pack a bag with whatever weight and make "quick trips" locally. See how you fare at ____ weight and take notes from the experience.

 

[gadgetgeek]

My gear won't apply to you much since my camping is as a guide, and I use a hammock. That said there are a couple of things I would recommend you keep in mind.

Water is heavy, but it is a critical item. Don't carry too much, but be very sure of where you are re-supplying from. Park rangers are good for this sort of info.

Don't worry too much about the tent yet, if there are two of you, spit it up, and share the load. Don't take two heavy tents. Earplugs are great.

Really stick to that 20% limit. The temptation is to shoulder a pack and think, that's not so bad. Most packs are comfy for the first hour, after that, things get real. Practice, load it up and go for a couple hour walk, see how much ground you cover.

with an external frame pack, in open country you should be able to secure things like tent poles, and your sleeping mat to the outside.

Other than that, give it a go, and see what happens.

 

[Alberta Ed]

Colin Fetcher's The Complete Walker is the backpacker's Bible. Get the latest edition. It's probably the best resource for anyone planning on carrying his (or her) house in a backpack.

 

[Inazone]

Good points on weight. This time up, we wouldn't be hiking through with full gear, but possibly heading in with it, camping overnight and then back out. Another possible scenario is that we'll be camping at a "walk-in site" (near trail head) and then hiking further in to get a feel for the distance to a "hike-in" site a few miles up the trail. Reason being, at this particular state park, the campsites can all be reserved in advance, whereas some of the others are first come, first served single or shared sites. I'll leave that adventure for when I am a bit more accustomed, in case I have to go further for an available site.

I know that some folks swear by paracord for every possible purpose, but any suggestions for external attachment? Last fall, my wife and I saw a Boy Scout lose his sleeping bag over a cliff when it came detached from his pack while heading up one of the steeper trails we'd been on. I'd rather keep mine, thanks!

 

[druid189]

::snip::

I know that some folks swear by paracord for every possible purpose, but any suggestions for external attachment? Last fall, my wife and I saw a Boy Scout lose his sleeping bag over a cliff when it came detached from his pack while heading up one of the steeper trails we'd been on. I'd rather keep mine, thanks!

I don't attach my sleeping bag to the exterior. Mine goes into a dedicated pouch at the bottom of my bag. I have done it in the past though and tried two [that I can remember] methods;

One was heavy [thick] tarred bank line:

http://www.amazon.com/SGT-KNOTS-Tar...d=1425198218&sr=8-1&keywords=tarred+bank+line

The other was heavy [read that as vehicle grade] bungee-type cords:

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Shock-B..._sim_hi_4?ie=UTF8&refRID=19CWMAVK7XE4TK4E7VGX

Bank line is awesome stuff....but it's extremely difficult to get knots out if they winch tight.

Bank line is [IMO] a very capable replacement for paracord in their given weight classes.

The lower the # [IE. #12] is thinner than a higher # [IE. #36] and therefore supports lighter load weights. Thinner bank line is AWESOME for things like snares, simple camp chores, etc - while the heavier is only slightly less load bearing than paracord.

My personal choice would be the bungee cord for attaching a sleeping bag to the outside of a pack.

 

[gadgetgeek]

I like straps with ladder lock buckles for attaching stuff. Easy to tighten up, and if you use two short straps to attach something, they back each other up. Paracord is great for a lot of things. or rather its good for a lot of things, great for nothing besides parachutes. I find it is too springy, doesn't play well with water, and knots can be problematic. I prefer braided static accessory cord used by climbers. Its got less overall stretch, holds knots better (and lets them go better). If you trust your knots, bank-line, mason's line, or really anything will work. its just a matter of taking the time to do it right. Bungee cords take out a lot of the guess work.

 

[pinnah]

Colin Fetcher's The Complete Walker is the backpacker's Bible. Get the latest edition. It's probably the best resource for anyone planning on carrying his (or her) house in a backpack.

The other book I really like is Chris Townsend's "The Backpackers Handbook". Another Scot. Chris has a great blog too.

Super big sleeping bags are a problem. If you have an internal frame pack, put it in the bottom but this will be huge. For big synthetic winter bags, I've used compression stuff sacks and they help a bit. On an external frame pack, put it in a waterproof bag and attach to the frame below the pack. Mummy style sleeping bags are much easier to pack. Again, in an internal frame, they go in a stuff sack at the bottom of the pack.

For attaching things to packs, I prefer 3/4" webbing straps with ladder lock buckles. Easy to adjust and secure.

Foam sleeping pads go on the outside of the pack. Out west on wide trails, they can go horizontally on the back bottom of the pack for an internal fram. On some externals they can go horizontally on the top of the pack. In the east, where trails are narrow, this will rip up the pads. I prefer vertical along the back of the pack.

Inflatable pads get rolled/folded and inside of the pack.

Tents are hard. I shoot for 3lbs person or lighter. Split them up among the whole party.

 

[Wandering_About]

This is my complete pack for 7 days in the mountains of Wyoming in August 2013. I carried a 0-degree rated sleeping bag but no sleeping pad, as I was running a bit heavy. It weighed in around 45lbs with food and water at the start of the hike. (I have since bought a nice small pad that will always make it in my pack) Personally, I am of the opinion that as much as possible should go inside the pack as anything outside the pack tends to get snagged on anything and everything and is exposed to the elements unless you use protective stuff sacks (which are extra weight). On this trip we split the weight of a 2 person tent (Marmot Limelight 2 person) between the two of us. This old Kelty pack comes in at 5500 cubic inches capacity, which is about 90 liters.

Pack

Tent/Camp

For short trips in warmer weather I have started using this REI Flash 62 liter pack, which is very light, carries very comfortably, and still has room to keep most everything inside (carried extra water on this trip, hence the bottles on the outside)

Doing a couple short hike in overnights is an excellent way to try stuff out, but you do have to be a bit disciplined about it. On short ones I do get in the habit often of throwing a bunch of extra comfort items in until my pack has little resemblance to the load I'd be carrying on a real hiking trip. As a hint: Unless there is absolutely no chance of any rain whatsoever, bring some rain gear! Nothing ruins backpacking like being soaked through. Waterproof your sleeping bag and spare clothes at the very least by putting them in garbage bags, as getting those wet is a sure recipe for a miserable trip also. Learn to set up your tent quickly and securely, as when a storm comes rolling in you do NOT want to be arguing about how to set up the tent. If you can get a more compact sleeping bag, that will help with packing immensely.

 

[OwenM]

My Exos 38 with shelter attached outside, quilt and pad in the bottom. Overnighter, but had already packed for a 4 day hike, so there's still 3 days' food(heaviest for size) in the middle. Unless facing a broader range of conditions, my stuff does not change for 1 night vs. 1 week except for maybe another extra pair of socks and more food.

Same stuff, just playing with my new 58L version of the Exos on a quick overnighter last month.

The best advice I can give you starting out is to get rid of all the stuff you don't need(for instance, you do NOT need changes of clothes!), and pare it down to a minimum of items.
Pre-back/pelvis injury, I carried a huge amount of crap, because I didn't know better, and I could.
This is from a coffee break on an *overnighter*, and was easily 60lbs.
I carried a full cook kit with 2 large pots just for coffee...
Not including water, my pack for an overnighter now often weighs barely more than that Dana Designs Astralplane Overkill did empty.

Last September, my pack(old version of the Exos 58) for 7 days/6 nights started at <30lbs with food and water, and I brought plenty of extras, since I was expecting much colder temps than actually experienced, and to eat a lot more than I did.

The funny part is that with all the modern gear and materials available now, I could easily drop a couple more pounds if I was concerned about being truly "ultralight". I don't skimp on comfort, though, and am actually much more comfortable, on and off the trail, than I ever was with all the heavy stuff I used to carry around.

 

[22-rimfire]

Nice set up Owen. That Exos 58 looks like a great pack. You have the Large. Is the large a practical size for a couple days camping?

I am mostly a day hiker (some longish, but still one day, or a one night backpacker. But I could use a good pack with some flexibility and it seems the OP could use one too.'

Selecting a tent is always a bit of a pain. Prices vary significantly and if you are not used to choosing, you really have no idea what the difference is between a $79 versus $300 small tent other than weight. Perhaps some pointers for Spring-Summer-Fall camping.

 

[pinnah]

Owen,

Great shots!

1) How do you like sleeping with a quilt? I fear getting cold.

2) What is the tent and how do you like that style? I've been eyeing the Sierra Designs tents of that style.

 

[bdmicarta]

I have done a lot of backpacking in the past, not much in the past 10 years. I used a Kelty external frame pack. I had a couple of different sleeping bags, both synthetic fill. I used a cheap foam pad, and a Sierra Designs 2-man tent. So far this is the easy part. The hard part is picking out appropriate clothing, food, and cooking gear.

The external frame pack to me carries the weight very well. I think everybody has switched to internal frame packs now. In the old days they didn't carry the weight as well, maybe more modern packs work better. A big pack generally has no problem carrying everything you want to carry, and if you really fill it up it probably weighs more than what you want to carry. I always strapped the foam pad on the bottom of the pack, and the pack carried best if the heavy stuff was up high. Around 50 pounds is the heaviest pack that we ever carried. I've done mostly overnight backpacks but I've done 4-day trips on 3 different occasions.

The biggest knife that I ever carried was a very light Gerber LST.

 

[adam0321]

I have hiked many many miles with the ILBE. get rid of it ASAP. I will try to post some pictures but this is my setup.

Osprey kestrel 48
Big agnes seed house 1
Big agnes down bag
Big agnes air core mat
MSR MIOX
MSR pocket rocket or jet boil.
Sigg water bottle

Everything fits inside my bag except my water bottle. I can't stand having things hang off my bag.

 

[jonnyt16]

A thread I started a few years ago with pictures showing all my backpacking/camping gear.... http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1061810-My-Stuff-(if-anyone-cares)-Pic-Heavy

 

[Macchina]

If you can carry a couple of 5 gallon pails you can leave the tent at home...

 

[Jamesh Bond]

A bit off topic, but i was shown a neat way to pack that basically mitigated the need for a rain cover.

Basically line the pack with your loose tent and/or rain fly. Sleeping bag first, then twist to kind if seal it. Clothes and such goes next, in a compression sack to save space and add protection. Then heavier stuff and the rest. Then pull, twist, and tuck the rest of the tent/fly around the load.

Barring consistently watery conditions, this will keep your clothes and sleeping bag nice and dry

 

[ROCK6]

This is what I don’t want to do anymore! Just under 100-pounds for just three-day hike-to camp trip. We only hiked in a four or five miles to set up a base camp; however, I was packing just about everything for a family of four including a large 4-person tent (definitely not a backpacking tent). I don’t plan to pack that much crap ever again unless surviving the apocalypse!



I actually like this setup. It’s a 60-liter Gregory pack that I “piggy-backed” an older Maxpedition Devildog lumbar/should bag. I used this to hike in, setup a comfortable base camp and used the Devildog for day hikes and fly-fishing.



I’ve now evolved to keeping my total pack weight (including 6-7 days of food, 2-3 liters of water and fuel) around 30 pounds (with a few comfort items). I much prefer keeping as much inside the pack and keeping it as streamlined as possible. Although we do more trail backpacking than bushwhacking, we practice Leave-No-Trace and will hike off-trail a couple hundred feet to find a campsite…even for this short distance, you can get hung up in thick brush if you have crap hanging off your pack or sticking out too far.







I highly recommend you plan a short “hike-in” camping trip; no more than a mile to your vehicle. Take everything you think you need or will make you comfortable and then assess those items after that short hike. Of the “big three”, you tent and sleeping bag will often cost more if you want more compact and light-weight. There are few ways to get around this. The majority of camping sleeping bags are not backpacking sleeping bags and those that don’t compress will consume a large amount of pack space. Kelty has some nice, relatively inexpensive down bags that are decent quality and compress quite well. Depending on the temperatures, you may get by with an even lighter sleeping bag (Snugpak’s Jungle Bag comes to mind which is just like a beefed up poncho liner with a zipper).

Don’t succumb to the idea that you need a change or two of clothing; pack layers, extra socks and just where your clothes. I do pack sleep clothes (often just a lightweight wool hoodie for winter, T-shirt in summer and either silk-weight long underwear or a pair of boxer briefs); they can be used for layering in colder temps, but I keep them dry and clean for sleeping.

About the only bulky item you need outside your pack would be your sleeping pad. Try to plan your trip and campsite near water. I limit my packing water weight to just two or three liters and plan our hiking distances around water sources to refill. I do have the capacity to haul a couple gallons once a campsite is setup and I can just carry water from the water source.

Hope that helps,

ROCK6

 

[hollowdweller]

I have different set ups for how cold it is.

Far as tent, sleeping bag and pad.

I have a Golite Hex 3 tent. Not called the Shangri La.

I have the nest for it, but I usually just leave that at home and use a sheet of Tyvek for the floor.

It's now called the Shangri La.

http://sectionhiker.com/golite-shangri-la-3-tent-review/

This review says the fly only which is what I usually take is 25 oz. I put a sheet of Tyvek on the floor.

I have 2 sleeping bags I use. In summer I use a Lafuma Warm N Light 600. It's really small. Will fit in a side pocket. Stuffed size 6" X 9". Weight 1 lb 5oz

http://www.amazon.com/Lafuma-Light-...ing/dp/B000F9LFH8/ref=cm_cr_pr_pb_opt?ie=UTF8

In cool weather I use a Campmor 20 degree bag, I don't think they make them anymore. It's 2 lbs and 4 oz. Stuffed size 7 X 14.

For a trail pad I don't scrimp because I'm old. Big Agnes insulated air core.

The one I use is the 72" length 5" X 9" packed size, weight. 1 lb 4 oz

http://www.rei.com/product/846692/big-agnes-air-core-insulated-sleeping-pad#tab-specs

So that's like 3 lb and 2 oz for the summer bag, tent and pad. That's not counting the tyvek, which is minimal.