My Big 3 for the CDT

Finally, I’m blogging about gear.  My last blog post went ‘viral’ and had 1,800+ readers.  I guess borrowing ideas from James Clear is a good way to get noticed.  I’ll have to check my notes to see if he had anything about choosing a backpack in Atomic Habits.

My pack

I’m going with the Gossamer Gear Gorilla 50.  This is my first thru-hike, but in past weekend excursions, I’ve used an Osprey 60-liter pack and when I was choosing my CDT pack, I knew I was going to go lighter, but I also know that I enjoy food and didn’t want pack space to limit what food I brought along. That led me to a 50-liter pack instead of a 40-liter.  Why the Gossamer Gear over countless other packs?  I liked the idea of having a spot for a sit cushion.  I like sitting and knew I was going to take some sort of sit pad, so having a convenient place to store it while also acting as a barrier between my back and the pack was a win-win.  I have about 50 miles with this pack so far, and so far so good.  I like how tight I can get the waist and the shoulders are comfortable up to the 20 pounds I’ve been training with.  I know there will be some times when I’m heavier than that, but this is a good average weight to train with.  

My sleep system

For those of you who aren’t into backpacking gear, we backpackers tend to combine our sleep pad, sleeping bag/quilt, and pillow into one package. I’m going with a sleeping pad, inflatable pillow, and quilt.  My pad is where I made lots of allowances for weight and a little bit of size.  I’m 6’4” 220ish and 45 years old, so comfort was important enough for me to sacrifice weight.  Additionally, I’m a hammock backpacker when all things are equal, but the CDT isn’t a great place to hammock.  My sleeping pad is the Therm-a-Rest NeoAir Xtherm sleeping pad.  It comes in at a whopping 24 ounces or 680 grams.  If I don’t sleep well on this, it will be the first thing I swap out for a lighter item.  I haven’t had the chance to use it yet, but I have high hopes.  

I’m taking a Sea to Summit Aeros inflatable pillow.  This weighs in at 4 ounces or 105 grams.  I’ve used stuff sack pillows in the past and they’ve always been disappointing.  I’m sure I could cut this if I was aiming for ultra-light, but comfort matters for my old bones, and laying on the ground without a pillow while trying to read is awful.

Finally, I’m using a 10-degree long and wide Enlightened Equipment Revelation Quilt with straps.  It weighs in at 771 grams/27 ounces.  I’m stoked about this quilt and think it’s going to work out well. Enlightened Equipment is a Minnesota company and their packs and puffy jackets are very popular among thru-hikers.

My Shelter

There are a few options for shelters and overall the tent is the most popular.  Some other options are bivy, tarp or hammock.  This was the item I deliberated over the most.  There are a few really good options and it came down to a balance of price and weight.  I was set on a trekking pole tent that needed to be over 85” long.  If the price wasn’t a factor, I would have gone with the Zpacks Duplex.  It’s lighter and is very popular with CDT thru-hikers.  But at half the cost, I went with the Six Moon Design Lunar solo.  

I’m not shooting to be ultra-light and I frankly don’t geek out over gear, but I think these are solid choices that will serve me well.  One thing I’ve planned for is that there will be some gear and some parts of gear I don’t like.  Throughout the 2,900 miles, I’m bound to want something different.  I decided to buy the gear I thought fit me best and then plan on adjusting the fire as the hike went on.