My Completed Gear List Is Here.

This past summer we backpacked majority of the southern end of the appalachian trail. It was the ideal test for what gear would be the best for thru-hiking. Here is the gear list of what I used this past summer and what I will be replacing for my thru-hike this year.

Gregory Jade 63 Backpack: Weight: 2 lbs 15 oz I will be replacing this with an Osprey Ariel 75 backpack  (Provided by the Thru-Hike Syndicate) for my thru-hike. Weight: 4 lbs 15 oz.

The Gregory Jade backpack is now getting passed on to my 11 year old daughter, Jade. It’s a fantastic backpack and I really loved the back ventilation.

Big Agnes Ultralight Fly Creek UL 1 Tent: Weight 1 lb 11 oz I will be replacing this for my thru-hike with the Nemo Hornet 1p Ultralight tent (Provided by the Thru-Hike Syndicate).  Weight 1 lb 11 oz.

The Big Agnes is also getting passed along to my daughter and I have absolutely nothing but awesome things to say about Big Agnes. You can put this tent up in 2 minutes, literally. Kept me 100% dry in a few downpour situations and despite being a one person tent it offers plenty of room.

Therm-a-rest Prolite Sleeping Pad: Weight: 1 lb 14 oz I will be replacing this for my thru-hike with an Astro Air Lite 25L sleeping pad (Provided by the Thru-Hike Syndicate). Weight 1 lb 1 oz.

Again, this will be getting passed on for my daughters pack. This was a great pad. Super lightweight and easy to pack.

Marmot NanoWave 50 Semi Sleeping Bag: Weight: 1Lb 14oz I will be replacing this for my thru-hike with the Nocturne 15 Long Down Sleeping Bag (Provided by the Thru-Hike Syndicate). Weight 2 lbs 8 oz.

I will swap the Nocturne out for the Marmot when I see fit. I froze my ass off this past summer in the Marmot in June on Roan Mountain. I will not make that mistake again for my thru-hike. Just because its summer do not underestimate the weather at the higher elevations.

The PowerPot Thermoelectric Generator Stove. Weight: 14 oz I will be replacing this with the MSR Superfly canister stove. Weight: 4.6 oz

Unfortunately, I have nothing good to say about this “power” pot. I was excited about this in hopes that it would charge my phone. When I tested it at home everything worked great. I put it under the flame and the green light popped on. It was ready to charge my device. When I began using it while backpacking it was useless. Just not what a backpacker needs. I wasted so much fuel just trying to boil my water and it charged nothing. It’s just not an efficient pot for a backpacker. It might be great for someone doing a weekend camping trip that can burn up fuel. Even on a roaring campfire flame you won’t get much of a charge on any device. I think it’s an innovative idea just needs a lot of work.

Lifestraw Water Filter: Weight: 2 oz

I absolutely love this thing and tell everyone about it. You can use this to directly drink from water sources. Or fill your gatorade bottle, stick the straw in, and drink! It uses an advanced hollow fiber membrane technology to filter up to 264 gallons or 1,000 liters of water. I also love that it contains no chemicals.

Sawyer Squeeze: This will be my main water filtration system.

Osprey Hydraulics 3 Liter Reservoir: Weight: 10.9 oz (Provided by the Thru-Hike Syndicate)

Leki Super Makalu Cortex Poles. My husband now uses these poles. I will be using the 2015 Cressida Leki poles.

Ok, now that I have covered most of the big items I will move into clothing, first aid, and extras. This past summer while backpacking we made a lot of stops. So we were carrying extra clothing, etc.

We stopped and stayed in hotels along the way to be able to see neat things off the trail within the towns we were passing thru. I love to travel and absolutely recommend stopping and doing some zero days in these neat places if you can. Such as Helen, GA. Or Parrot Mountain within the smokeys. Bryson City outside of the Fontana Dam area, NC. I could go on with an entire list of neat stops around the trail but that is for another post. Back to the gear…

Clothing & Shoes:

*Winter items will get shipped home when no longer needed.

Helium 11 Rain Jacket-Outdoor Research. Adding to this some rain pants and maybe an umbrella due to input of others about this (I welcome suggestions/advice on this topic).

I really am not a rain person. I know a lot of people opt out of carrying rain gear but staying dry is really important to me.

Patagonia Women’s Ultralight Down Jacket: Weight: 7.6 oz Added this to my gear for the winter months of my thru-hike. Insanely warm and packs down to nothing for a down jacket. The only thing I wish it had was a hood.

Hoo-Rag Beanie Hat for colder months

Hoo-Rag bandanas for colder months to cover my face and warmer months to push my hair back as a hairband.

Leki Fleece Gloves

2 Under Armor Sports Bras

2 Under Armor Undies

1 Under Armor Long Sleeve Shirt

1 Under Armor Short Sleeve Shirt

2 Pairs Under Armor Pants

2 Darn Tough 1906 Over The Calf Socks. I will use this for the winter and while I am wearing my high hiking boots (Provided by the Thru-Hike Syndicate).

2 Darn Tough 1901 1/4 Socks. I will use these for summer and when I swap to my trail runner type shoe (Provided by the Thru-Hike Syndicate).

Darn Tough socks are guaranteed for life and made in the USA in Vermont.

Vasque ST Elias GTX for the winter months then I will swap these out for the Vasque Inhaler Low (Provided by the Thru-Hike Syndicate).

Cheap Flip Flops

First Aid and Extras:

Travel Medic First Aid Kit

1 bottle of Ibuprofen

Antibiotic Doxycycline (prescription from my Dr.): This is just as a precaution. Living in NJ and hiking here in the spring/summer I know just how serve the ticks can be. I personally would rather have this medication on hand to administer then not.

Duck Tape (taken off the wooden spool)

Hoo-Rag Stuff Sack Waterproof

Light Rope (for hanging bear bag)

Black Diamond Headlamp

Deodorant/Toilet Paper/ Hygiene Products

The A.T. Guide: Northbound Edition

These next items are not for everyone. I understand a lot of people want to hike to get away from technology, as do I. But Its my “zen” to be photographing. These extra items are luxury and important to me personally.

Small lightweight Journal

A.T. Passport: (I love to scrapbook all our travels and I love this as a keepsake that we started getting stamped this past summer)

iPhone 5s and my Canon with one lens.

Lepow POKI 5000 for charging my devices

When all is said and done my base pack weight is around 19 lbs without food and water. Give or take depending on having winter gear and so forth. I am sure this list will change as I begin my thru-hike. I will be doing a second post shortly on my food plan and items.

I am open to any positive suggestions/advice within the comments below!

“You only stand on the mountain top for a moment. It’s the journey that provides all the best memories.”

Happy Adventuring,

Jess