Dead Weight: 13 Thru-Hikers Reveal the Gear They Sent Home

Mo “Hummingbird” Wynne | Gear Sent Home: FLEXTAIL TINY PUMP 2X / Powerbeats Pro Earbuds / Big Agnes Rapide SL Insulated Sleeping Pad

Flextail Pump: “I didn’t notice how loud this (TINY) pump was when I tested it at home before trail, but I felt like I was disturbing the peace of my natural surroundings when I used it at shelters or tent sites on trail. In fact, I only used it one night on trail before sending it home.”

Powerbeats: “Over the past year of using these (Powerbeats Pro) earbuds, I’ve consistently had issues with connecting them to the charging ports in the case. They eventually stopped charging altogether, so I swapped them out for some open-ear, bone-conducting headphones that I’m testing now.”

Big Agnes Pad: “I still love this (Big Agnes) pad and will use it for years to come. I’m just at the point in my thru-hike where I can sleep on pretty much anything and wanted to lighten my base weight slightly. I swapped this with a NEMO Switchback.”

Luke “Blues Clues” Widolff | Gear Sent Home: Smartwool Merino T-Shirt 

“I thought it would help keep the stinkies at bay, but once it was wet, the shirt would never dry out. It was also too hot to hike in.”

Kevin Tremaine | Gear Sent Home: 10° Sleeping Bag / Zpacks Brushtail Possum Beanie / Gloves / Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer Hoody

“(These gear items were) toooooo warm.”

Prune “Pixie” Carpentier | Gear Sent Home: Gregory Octal 55 Pack

“A strap broke, and Gregory sent me a new backpack (Facet 55). I sent the old one home to fix it later.”

Editor’s note: The Gregory Octal 55 is no longer available.

Mack “Pot Luck” McGhee | Gear Sent Home: Amazon Kindle

“Too tired to read.”

Pacific Crest Trail Gear Sent Home

Kirby Oliver | Gear Sent Home: Tarptent ProTrail

“It was a well-made tent, but the lack of headroom started to feel claustrophobic. At 5’11” I had to squish myself right by the door if I wanted to sit up. Being a single wall tent, condensation was inevitable, so when I inevitably hit the tent walls with my head or shoulders, I would get wet with condensation.”

Abby “Shitwater Fireball” Evans | Gear Sent Home: Sun Umbrella

“Didn’t need it! Couldn’t figure out how to attach it to my pack without it bonking me in the head. I just figured dealing with the sun in my sun hoodie was easier than finagling (sic) the umbrella.”

Kurt T Bachmann | Gear Sent Home: MSR Stove (into San Diego Airport trash)

“Too many boil overs made stove dirty and not allowed on airplane. The red koozie broke free (recall item I found out at Medford REI).”

Sakari “Paws” McGregor | Gear Sent Home: Senchi layers and ice gear

“No more cold nights and no more snow.”

Continental Divide Trail Gear Sent Home

Rebecca “TBD (The Best Daughter)” Ellis | Gear Sent Home: Gossamer Gear Sun Umbrella

“I sent the sun umbrella home because I wasn’t using it. Whenever I tried to use it, it dug into my shoulder with the flimsy strap attachment from Gossamer Gear. The wind would blow the umbrella almost away, and it caused more trouble than it was worth.

“Unfortunately, we are also currently dealing with some horrible customer service from GG and would no longer recommend their packs. I might end up sending the pack home and finding a different UL backpack brand with more trail-proof products and better customer service.”

Kate “Big Catt” Riley | Gear Sent Home: Camp Shoes 

“Do I regret (sending home my camp shoes)? Sometimes, yes. For the weight/use ratio, I ditched my camp sandals early in New Mexico. Even at camp I found myself lounging in my trail runners until crawling into my quilt.

However, in the New Mexico Gila River Gorge and in the muddy, wet, and slushy snow-covered mountains of Colorado, dang, the dry camp shoes would be nice. Still not worth the weight, though, at least on this trail!”

Maja “Pinecone” Horstkotter | Gear Sent Home: Waterproof Socks

“Just didn’t work! Seemed like they actually trapped the water, like walking in plastic bags filled with water.”

Al “Lookout” Marriot | Gear Sent Home: Sun hat

“Didn’t use it.”

Want to know which items our thru-hikers couldn’t live without? Check out our round-up of 2024 thru-hikers’ favorite gear for long trails.

Featured image courtesy of Jim Rahtz