Backpacking Gear Checklist
Lightweight Approach for Summer Backpacking in the Sierras

Despite the many good ideas of ultralight backpacking, I prefer a little more comfort for my one-week trips. On the other hand, I would have never taken up backpacking again (after quitting in my mid-twenties) if it meant feeling like a pack-mule as I trudged over passes with forty pounds on my back, wondering if my knees would hold up during a forty-mile trip in the rugged Sierra Nevada high country.

My solution is to combine some ideas of ultralight backpacking (mostly gained from Ray Jardine's landmark book) with the benefits of newer lightweight gear (primarily from Adventure 16), but without any major sacrifices in comfort. My base weight is 19-21 pounds, which means 27-30 pounds with food and water as I hit the trailhead, and around the mid-twenties for most of the trip. This approach has brought back the joy of backpacking, of being in the High Sierra, enjoying the incredible scenery and feeling like I'm carrying a daypack rather than hauling my old 45-pound Kelty.

Here is my gear list:

Pack and water:

Gregory G Pack (3100/30 lbs)
Spare garbage bag to enclose all items inside pack
Gregory 3.8 liter hydration
Katadyn Guide water filter

Sleeping:

Western Mountaineering Ultralite sleeping bag
Sierra Design Ultra Lightyear tent (excludes main bag)
Space blanket for ground tarp (cut to tent footprint)
Z Rest 3/4 length (11 oz original) - 20% cut off
Max Lite 3/4 length 48" Self-inflating (2nd mattress for comfort)

Stove, cookpot, bear cannister:

Gigapower 10,000 btu with plastic container
Gigapower fuel small
Flame protector
Snowpeak Trek 9000 cook pot and cup
Blue bowl
Scrub pad
Bearikade/Kodiak Kan /2 (9x10")

Cold or wet weather items:

Ski hat with face cover
Capilene light long sleeve top
Capilene light legs
Patagonia expedition Goretex gloves
Fleece liner mittens
Pillow case
MEC Northern Lite Primaloft synthetic down
Marmot Precip pants
Marmot Precip jacket

Emergency items:

Fire starter kit
50' of cord
Duct tape
Sewing kit

Soaps and lotions:

Dr. Bronner's liquid soap
Purell
Deet mosquito repellent
Johnson's Baby Powder
Moisturizer

Miscl. Items:

Spoon and fork
Micro LED light
LED headlamp
Spare battery for LED headlamp
Tylenol
Plastic whistle
Paper and pencil
Quarter
Large pack towel
Extra socks (1 outer, 2 liners)
Extra Ex officio briefs (1 spare)
Mosquito head net
Collapsible plastic cup
3 four-gallon white plastic bags
First aid kit
Shower shoes for use as camp shoes (SprintAquatics.com)
Safety pins for drying socks
Plastic shovel
Garbage bag emergency rain cover/entry tarp
Toilet paper

Front waist pouch:

Car keys
Plastic wallet
Knife
spf 30 lip balm
Sunblock
Permit letter

Wear or pants pockets:

Hiking boots
Socks & liners
Nylon shell pants (convertible to shorts)
Ex officio Airstrip shirt
Bandanna
Hat
Sunglasses
Sunglass cord
Watch-altimeter-compass
Topo maps
Hankerchief

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