Backpacking for the Beginner
Feel free to link to this page, but please do not copy any information from it. All photos ©2009 Shane Parker Photo.
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How it all started...
On the 21st of August, 2006, I decided to venture out on my own to try my hand at an overnight backpacking trip. I decided to do a "short" trip my first time out; the place I chose was the Burnt Lake trail here in Oregon. Boy, what a trip! I’ll say a couple things right off:
- I’m one out-of-shape fella.
- I’m not as young as I used to be.
With that out of the way,“the hike” on the way up was incredibly hard for me. What might have taken a healthy person about two hours to do, I did in 3. I’m not kidding when I say that if I had to have gone another 50 feet I probably wouldn’t have made it. Before going, I did a lot of research online and found a lot of useful information on various forums and websites. To sort of give something back to future hikers, I decided to create this guide; I hope it will help you on your quest.
The hike was really tough for a few reasons:
- I already mentioned the “old and out of shape” reasons.
- The elevation change was pretty big for being only a few miles (2650ft to 4970ft - That's a 2320 foot climb)
- I thought I was pretty smart when I managed to keep my pack to 25 lbs... and then I remembered the camera gear. All told, I was pushing around 32lbs (which is considered a heavy pack for a one-nighter). Throw in my weight fully clothed with hiking boots on and I was lugging around 207 lbs.
- Top all of that off with the fact that I’ve NEVER done an overnight backpacking trip and you’ll soon realize why it was such a tough hike for me.
On a side note, I am very proud of myself for completing the hike; especially when I was about two hours into it and I ran into a couple of spunky teenagers, bouncing down the hill like they just got out of a pep rally! More on that later...
Before I go any further, let's get a few technical things out of the way. What did I bring? What was I wearing? What food did I have? Did I inject steroids? etc.
What to Bring
The list below contains the gear that I brought with me. It is by no means a "complete" list that will fit every person's needs for every hike. However, it should be a good starting point. In total, I was packing 32lbs (would have been around 25lbs without the photography gear). Ideally, you want a 20lb pack... but you'll have to make sacrifices to get it!
- Pack
- Food & Water
- Stove
- Shelter
- Sleeping Bag + Pad
- Clothes + Footwear
- Hiking Pole
- Other Equipment and Miscellaneous
- Camera Gear
The pack I purchased was the North Face Patrol 45. I chose this one because I wanted a pack that I could use in the winter for snowboarding trips. It's very durable but is a bit heavy if you're looking for a "warm weather only" pack. Some of its features:
- Front shovel pocket
- Dual tool tubes
- Dual multi-purpose utility pockets hold water bottles, wands, collapsible poles, etc.
- Adjustable torso length
- Side access zipper
- Floating lid with pocket
- Hydration compatible
- Safe-T whistle buckle on sternum strap
- Tool loops on hipbelt
- X-Frame Suspension (carbon fiber cross bars)
Personally, I think internal frame packs have come a very long way and I wouldn't chose an externally framed pack; that is just my opinion though. There are already many reviews of internal -vs- external online that you can locate by doing a google search.
Me, wearing the pack along with my dog Sable (please keep the snickering to yourselves!):
As far as water is concerned, it is completely a judgement call on your part. I own a 70 oz. CamelBack that I use for biking. I was able to remove the bladder and put it into the hydration pocket inside the Patrol 45 pack; very convenient! Just remember that the more water you bring, the more weight you're going to carry. Because there was a stream next to the trail, I didn't have to worry about water for Sable. And I didn't fill the CamelBack up that far either since it was a relatively short hike (well, it should have been). I also purchased some water purification tablets. Before I went to bed on the first night, I filled up a couple of 16 oz bottles with lake water and dropped the tablets in (the tablets I used take about 4 hours to purify); that way I had water in the morning. WARNING: The tablets WILL make your water taste a bit funny, but it's not unbearable. There are many methods available for purifying water and you can research them via google searches. I chose the tablet method because they are small and weigh next to nothing.
What you bring for food is also completely up to you. Obviously, you want to bring the lightest food possible with a high calorie count, and there are many options available. I opted to bring along some power bars, Top Ramen (You know, your favorite college food!), and Mountain House freeze-dried food. You may be saying to yourself; "But wait, wouldn't he have to have a stove to make this stuff?" And you'd be correct; so let's go on to the next section...
Again, it is up to you on whether or not you want to bring food that needs to be cooked. I chose to purchase a small stove called the MSR Pocket Rocket. It's super light and cooks very well for being so small and simple. The 'Rocket weighs in at a scant 3 oz. and the fuel cannister is around 8 oz (they also have a 4 oz. cannister that I plan to bring next time to save even more weight). The 'Rocket is very well engineered and doesn't cost a whole lot. I would also recommend purchasing a lightweight titanium pan (although they are a bit expensive for what they are).
This is another judgement call, and a vital one at that since it can be a major player in the weight category. I have a buddy who uses a Hennessy Hammock that is very cool, but because I'll almost always have a dog with me I need a shelter that can accommodate both of us. I got a very good deal on a fairly light tent; it's the Marmot Twilight 2p. The tent has performed very well; no tears and it's very easy to put up and take down. The poles are made from Titanium; so they're very light.
This one is also very important because it can cost you a lot in weight. I have the North Face Aleutian Bx which is a 20 °F/-7 °C bag. I have no gripes about the bag, in fact, it's very comfortable and keeps me very warm. However, this will be my first "upgrade" in my hiking gear. Why? One word: Weight. The bag is near 4lbs and while that may not seem like much for "regular" camping, it is for backpacking. I would like to purchase a down-filled bag (this one is synthetic) because they are much lighter (a comparable down bag weighs in at a little over a pound). The only catch is that they are insanely expensive.
As for the pad, I simply purchased the lightest thing I could find. It's one of those blue/foam thingies; I'm sure you have an idea of what I'm talking about.
[UPDATE] Someone from the Portland Hikers forum graciously directed me to the Therm-a-Rest website and pointed out that they are MUCH more comfortable than the cheap blue pad I was using. I have purchased one since this write-up, and they were right! It's very comfortable, I highly recommend it over the very uncomfortable blue pads.
I think this subject might be one that is overlooked by a lot of first-time backpackers. Luckily, I didn't overlook it. Make sure the shirt and pants/shorts are lite and breathe well; the shirt I wore was a biking shirt from REI. I also wore a bandana to aid in avoiding heat stroke. It was also great for keeping the sweat out of my eyes (And I sweat buckets on the way up!)
Another piece of clothing that people might not think of is underwear. Yes, underwear. I purchased a great pair of REI biking briefs (not the padded ones) and I cannot stress enough how well they functioned. I've done day hikes, in the past, wearing both cotton briefs and boxers and everytime I seem to get rashes (ok, maybe too much information... but it's true!) The biking shorts breathed well and were "slippery" so that my legs didn't chafe; these are a MUST in my book.
Shoes. Shoes. Shoes. The MOST important part of your hiking wardrobe (In My Opinion). If you're going to be anywhere near water (small streams, mud, rain, etc.) I highly recommend buying hiking boots that are water resistant (usually gortex material or similar). I reviewed hiking boots a lot online and finally settled on a pair. However, after trying on a different set, I ended up purchasing a completely different pair than I had originally intended. I orginally had my heart set on a pair of $200 boots but after trying on a pair of $99 REI boots I was in love. Seriously! I tried these on thinking; "These can't come close to the 'other' brand I'm considering that cost over a hundred dollars more." I was wrong. These suckers fit my feet perfectly and they had great reviews online. I wore them around the store for about an hour while shopping for my other stuff and I was sold.
They're the REI Monarch III GTX Hiking Boots. Now, I will make a disclaimer that this may be a fluke and that these boots just happened to fit my feet extremely well... your mileage may vary. But through creeks, mud, and a slip into the lake (don't ask!), these suckers kept my feet completely dry and very comfortable. In fact, they're more comfortable than most of my sneakers! You can see the boots in the first photo above.
One other note on fitment: Luckily, I happened to read this somewhere online before I went to purchase boots. Basically, the idea is to purchase boots that are a little bit larger than you would typically wear. Why? Well, try walking down a steep hill for a couple hours and you'll see why very quickly; it's so you don't cramp your toes by ramming them into the front of the boot continually. With that said, you have to be VERY CAREFUL that you don't buy boots that aren't tight enough around the ankle area and snug enough on the sides so that your foot slides all over the place. That wouldn't be good either because you'd get some nasty blisters. A few folks on the Portland Hikers forum have some great "duct-tape" methods for keeping the blisters away that I'm going to try next time.
This is a personal preference. Personally, I couldn't have made it without a hiking stick; it's great for catching your balance on rocky trails. In my case, I brought my Manfrotto 679 Monopod because I needed it for my camera. It doubled very nicely as a walking stick although I'd recommend that you purchase the optional spiked foot for it if you happen to have this model. Otherwise, there are a ton of light-weight carbon fiber poles you can purchase.
Other Equipment and Miscellaneous
- Safey Kit
- Waterproof matches
- Flashlight
- Spork
- Utility knife
- Extra string
- Park pass when required (I recommend the $30 forest pass which covers you for 1 year in Oregon)
Obviously, you may not be bringing camera gear with you. I brought along my Canon 5D with an EF 24-105L IS USM lens attached. I think it's the absolute perfect combination for landscapes and all-purpose shooting in a hiking senario. I even built myself a makeshift tripod so that I could do a bit of low-light photography:
To carry the camera, I attached carabiners to the straps on both sides of the camera and attached those to the packs shoulder straps; that way I wasn't carrying the camera weight on my neck. Then, I had a fexible cord that went around my waste that I could tuck the camera lens under while hiking so that it didn't "bounce" against my body. It worked quite well.