On July 18, 2018 I did one final gear check before True Friend and I began our drive north. For this end to end hike of the Long Trail I packed the following items:
-
Osprey Women’s Lumina Pack and a fanny pack
- Black Diamond Distance Carbon Z Poles
- Two Sea to Summit bags, one for my down quilts and one to use as a food bag
- Half-wit Hammock by DutchWare Gear and Hyperlite Mountain Gear’s 8′ x 10′ tarp hung asymmetrically on a DutchWare Gear ridgeline and two stakes
- Hammock Gear 20 degree top quilt and 20 degree underquilt
- Jetboil Flash, fuel canister, titanium spoon, and a food cozy that doubles as a sit pad
- Sawyer Squeeze and two smart water bottles
- First Aide Kit
- Clothing: dress to hike in, leggings and a long sleeve shirt, raincoat, down coat, two pairs of darn tough socks, hat to keep rain off of my glasses, a bug net
- Footwear: Altra trail runners and two prescribed ankle braces
- Journal and pen
- Technology: headlamp and batteries, iPhone 5s, GoPro, Clip for the GoPro, SD card, back up battery and chargers
- Lacrosse ball
- Knife
- Home insulation wrap to use as a ground cloth
A quick note about food:
One of the most important things while backpacking is making sure you fuel your body with enough calories to meet the demands of physical activity. With that in mind True Friend and I brought lots of food! Breakfast was usually oatmeal with dried fruit and and seeds, lunch was dried fruit with nuts or tortillas with peanut butter, and dinner was either homemade dehydrated food or Harmony House Meals. When preparing my homemade dehydrated foods I relied heavily on The Backpacking Chef’s website. True Friend and I also snuck in a pre-trail dinner on our northbound drive. I opted for the calorically dense gyro and curly fries!
What are your favorite items in your pack? Do you have any go to backpacking foods?
Disclaimer: All the linked products are products I carried on the trail. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.