Just Your Typical Appalachian Trail Gear List

Everyone loves gear lists, right? Hikers are gear junkies! I didn’t think I’d become one to post about my gear, but here I am, doing exactly that. No shame, no shame. 

But for real, I’m actually intrigued, because I had never made a gear list before I left for the AT, nor had I when I finished. I’m interested to pile everything into a list so I can take a look at it all as a whole and start figuring out what new gear I want to invest in! 

Anyways, here is what I carried on the Appalachian Trail. It’s not the most lightweight by any means, but it worked well for me and was sort of in-between heavy and ultralight. I hope at least one of you who reads this finds it even a little bit helpful 🙂 And if you’re a gear expert, please leave a comment if you have any tips or recommendations! 

The Big 3

Pack: ULA Circuit 

 

 

Tent: Big Agnes Fly Creek UL 2 

 

 

 

Sleep System: Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol and the REI Lumen 20

 

 

Clothing and Waterproofing

Puffy: L.L.Bean PrimaLoft Packaway Jacket 

Hiking Clothes: Basic Nike shirt and shorts (one pair of loose shorts, and one pair of spandex shorts for chafing)

(I also used a tank top in the summer and a long sleeve in colder weather, I just swapped out items through mail-drops depending on when I needed them.)

Sleeping Clothes (Base Layers): L.L.Bean midweight long sleeve crew and pants

Underwear (Not Pictured): No name brand sports bra and 2 pairs of underwear

 

Rain Gear: REI Rainier Jacket, a Six Moon Designs Umbrella, and a contractor bag to line the inside of my pack

 

 

 

Other Clothing Items: Picture Equipment beanie, 2 pairs of Darn Tough socks, Altra Lone Peaks

 

Kitchen

Water System: Sawyer Squeeze filter and 2 Smart Water bottles

 

Cooking System: MSR PocketRocket 2 with fuel, Toaks Titanium 550mL pot, Toaks long-handled spoon, and a lighter

 

 

Food Bag / Bear Line: Sea to Summit Ultra-Sil Dry Sack,  50ft of Paracord, and a carabiner

(I also used my tent stake stuff sack as a rock sack to hang a bear line)

 

Miscellaneous Items

Headlamp: Black Diamond Spot 350

Trekking Poles: Black Diamond Trail Poles

Small Things: Pocket knife, pepper spray, and 2 bandanas (1 for cooking, and 1 as a pee rag that I tied to the outside of my pack!) 

Electronics

Phone: iPhone 11 with charger, wall adapter, and earphones

Battery Bank: Anker PowerCore 26800 with charger and wall adapter (huge, I know, but I did get 6-7 charges, so, worth it!)

GPS: Garmin InReach Mini

 

First Aid

Homemade Kit: Duct tape, medical tape, Neosporin, gauze, Advil, tweezers, safety pin, electrolytes

Butt Paste: LIFESAVER when it comes to chafing! Body Glide is a no go for me. This stuff also works wonders on feet if your skin rubs raw!

 

Last Notes

I also carried some ziplock bags for waterproofing my electronics, a journal, and a couple of small sentimental items / good luck charms.

Depending on the weather, some of my gear changed. From VA – MA, I carried bug spray and a bug net. I swapped out the sleeping bag pictured above for a 50-degree quilt when it got hot, I cold soaked (went stoveless) for the summer, and also carried one or two more layers at the beginning and end of my hike when it got uncomfortably cold.

Lastly, I ended up switching to an inflatable Big Agnes sleeping pad, and to an L.L.Bean one person tent, both of which are not pictured. I switched to those items in Massachusetts.

These are the basics of what I carried, with some things being swapped out depending on temperatures and season!

Ahh! I Almost Forgot!

CROCS!