A guy in a shelter told me to lighten my pack and it changed everything

I was on the John Muir Trail about 4 years ago and my pack weighed close to 50 pounds. A thru-hiker named Dave looked at my setup and said, you don't need half that stuff, you're just carrying fear. I swapped my big tent for a tarp and left my camp stove at home. Now I aim for 25 pounds max and the miles go way faster. Anyone else get told something similar that actually worked?

2 comments

2 Comments

fiona_nelson515d ago

It's funny how that mindset applies to everything, not just hiking. Like how we carry around old grudges or useless habits because we're scared to let them go. Once you drop that dead weight life just moves smoother.

nathanking5d ago

Well I have to gently push back on the idea of leaving your camp stove at home, especially on the JMT. You really want to be able to boil water for safety reasons up there, even if you're just doing cold soak meals. There's streams you can treat but you need to purify water and a stove gives you that option if your filter breaks or freezes. I tried going stoveless once on a trip in the Sierra and regretted it when I couldn't make hot drinks to warm up at night. I get the idea of cutting weight but ditching the stove entirely is a different kind of risk. A small alcohol stove setup only adds a few ounces and gives you a lot of peace of mind.