Spent 3 hours shaving grams off my pack for nothing

I spent a whole Sunday afternoon trying to trim weight from my gear, cutting tags, swapping out a heavy stuff sack, even trimming my toothbrush handle. Got down maybe 6 ounces total. Then I realized I left a 2 pound bag of trail mix in the bottom of my pack that I forgot about. Anyone else waste time on micro-optimizations while missing the obvious stuff?

2 comments

2 Comments

seth_nguyen13d ago

Brother, I have totally been there. Did the same exact thing last year. Spent a whole afternoon swapping out tent stakes and cutting the handle off my spoon. Felt real proud of myself until I realized I still had a full Nalgene bottle I forgot to empty out. That's like a pound and a half right there. Micro-optimizing is a trap because it feels productive but it's really just busy work. You gotta weigh everything first or you're just guessing. I learned that lesson the hard way too.

brown.susan13d ago

You cut the handle off your spoon? That one got me. I had to read that twice. I mean, I get wanting to save weight, but a spoon handle is what, a few grams at most? That's dedication bordering on obsession, friend. I guess we all have our moments where we get a little too focused on the small stuff and miss the big picture entirely.