Gear for Larapinta

[Dale]

I'm heading to the Larapinta Trail at the end of August for a solo walk for 5 / 6 days, thinking of Standley Chasm to Alice Springs. I'm keen to get input about gear. Here is a link to what I'm thinking of taking:

http://www.geargrams.com/list?id=4015

These are the bits I'm looking to finalise:

- Tent pegs - how sandy is it ? Will my MSR groundhogs do the trick or do I need something else ?
- Trail running shoes - current choice are the roclite 315s, I figure with the warm days it should give these shoes the opportunity to dry if they need it, have good venting for my feet and they're light. Do you think they'd 'suffer' from the harsh terrain - sharp rocks etc... ?
- Warmth - overnight temps look to be around 5 - 10 degrees, so a light down jacket and merinos should be OK - I'm thinking of adding a windshirt as well
- Ground sheet - not planning on taking one. Should I ? I've picked up the Big Agnes Fly Creek UL1, and apart from setting up in the backyard it's untested for me. Reviews have been positive on its durability.

Any other tips or advice are very welcome ! I've never trekked in this environment before so I'm looking forward to it !

Thanks - Dale.

[jez_au]

Heya, I've done the western half from Redbank to Ellery Creek, returning to finish from Ellery to Alice on the 20th. Thanks for the recent mouse info btw.

Where did you get the overnight temperatures from? When I was there in August of last year it was more like 0.
Overnight Low -0.2C 1.1C 0.9C 2.6C -0.4C
Clear desert skies = cold. Especially cold if you camp high.
Like you say though, the days are warm.

I haven't walked that section, but the rest is a rocky trail, I expect no less from the eastern end. With a tarp tent I still took a tyrek ground sheet, sharp rocks under the tent, I also have a neoair inflatable mattress that is easily damaged by sharp rocks. Most of the campsites are not that rocky (that I have seen), just if you plan to camp outside of the regular campsites might be an issue.

Your not creek walking where it really is super rocky and good thick soled hiking boots are good. I would think if you like trail shoes or runners they would be if you are game.

That's a good trail weight you've got, 15kg. I might go through your list in more detail to compare.

[Dale]

Hi Jeremy - thanks for the info !

As far as the temps go I looked up historical data from the Bureau's website for Alice Springs which had minimum overnight temps for Aug last year of 7 degrees. My sleep system will go to the low minuses so that part's fine, I was trying to figure how much clothing I needed for around camp. Thanks for the heads up I'll make sure I have enough for low temps...

I'm taking a double wall tent albiet it still light enough but concerned about getting it punctured with the terrain. Might play it safe and take a Tyvek groundsheet. I'll be hitting the trail on the 29th August and plan about 5 - 6 leisurely days.

Have a great trip !

Dale.

[photohiker]

I was trying to figure how much clothing I needed for around camp. Thanks for the heads up I'll make sure I have enough for low temps...

Its the desert. If there are no clouds, the temps will drop like a stone as the sun goes down. If you are walking big days, your body reaches a low ebb when you stop so be prepared. Good thermals and down will serve you well, make camp before the sun sets and get a brew on.

Can't really comment on pegs, but I would expect groundhogs to be ok. Only time I've camped out that way has been with a swag. What food are you taking?

Enjoy the trip, its on my list!

[Dale]

Hi Michael - Thanks for the tips. My clothes will be comfortable at zeroish without a fire, I may even switch out my lighter down jacket for a heavier one.

For food, freeze dried pre prepared meals at night - I like the chefsway brand, in particular I've become a big fan of the irish beef stew... Now if you could rehydrate guinness that would be heaven Breakfast is oats and fruit, during the day I tend just to snack on fruit and nuts, maybe some muesli bars.

I'm also adding the Spot Tracking feature on your advice - looks very worthwhile.

Certainly looking forward to it !

[jez_au]

Hey Dale, you might be aware of the wildfires around Alice over the past ten days or so. The Larapinta Trail has now been closed from sections 1 to 6 (Alice to Ellery Creek). A fire at Hugh Gorge is still going, further east the fires around Simpsons and Standley are out. The trail is being assessed and may reopen mid next week, and may not. Watch here for details: http://www.nt.gov.au/nreta/parks/walks/larapinta/currentconditions.html (it is quickly updated when status changes)

I'm flying up tomorrow to walk sections 6 to 1 from Ellery Creek back to Alice. Obviously we cant do that now. I have already walked sections 12 to 7 last year, so Plan B I have a few ideas, mmm. Natural events always make walk plans interesting.

[Dale]

Cheers for the info Jeremy. I hadn't checked trail conditions in the last few days so lucky I read your post ! I might look at walking the other sections instead...On the bright side we weren't on the trail this week

Good luck with Plan B !

[Dale]

I thought I'd share some thoughts on gear used for the trail. I walked Ellery Creek to Glen Helen Resort, the weather was clear, not a drop of rain and the locals told me there had been no rain to speak of for two months. Day time temps were up to low twenties, often with cold winds and night time wasn't colder than -3.

So, to the gear:

Shelter - Tarptent Notch - posted about this in the gear section so you can check it out there. The shelter was about 820g with pegs and stuff sack and performed well. There was some tough ground and tying down to rocks became necessary. I used MSR Groundhogs and Easton 9" aluminium stakes.
Sleeping Bag - Western Mountaineering Apache MF - minus 10 bag and was overkill !
Mat - Exped UL down mat short - great warmth for 500g
Pack - Aarn Featherlite Freedom - I took this for hauling extra water as there was one day with no access to water so I needed an extra 3L. The pack system is great and balances the weight so it sits on your hips, with lighter gear however I think I could get away with a more basic pack

Clothing - wore RAB softshell pants and a Lowe Alpine long sleeve synth top during the day. The great performers for the trip were my Inov8 Roclites and Montane Wind shirt. Despite the tough terrain (man I've never hiked over so many sharp rocks) I never got a blister, hot spot or sore feet wearing trail runners. The shoes are also still in great shape, despite the punishment there's barely a blemish (apart from dust, ohh so much dust...). The wind shirt at 65g is possibly the best bang for buck for weight / warmth. It did a great job at cutting out the wind and was worn quite a bit.

Overnight I had a nanopuff as my mid layer and Brooks Range Alpini for my insulation layer. The Brooks Range down jacket was way overkill, but it did make an awesome pillow

Also worth mentioning is the Sawyer Squeeze Filter - it performed flawlessly and purifies water quickly with no electronic issues !

Loved the trail and look forward to returning and doing the whole thing.

[forest]

Thanks for posting up what you thought of the gear and conditions.

I too wear Inov-8 runner but moved from the 315's to the 295's (much nicer toe box and shape on my foot)

How often did you have the windshirt on ??

I'm thinking about taking my Montane Air eVent rain jacket and letting that double as a windshell. It's either that or I buy a really UL rain shell and take a windshirt too.
I had a good run a few weeks ago using the Air jacket as a windshell too but that was all but sub zero on barrington tops. I also had my Montane Featherlite Smock and I found both good in the cold wind. I couldn't really pick a huge difference but it was a bit of a hard test as it was pretty cold and I wasn't really generating any serious heat even though I was walking hard all day.

I too just picked up a short UL downmat. They are the poo eh

[Dale]

Hey Forest - as much as it's tempting to cull the windshirt and have my rain jacket do double duty, it really comes down to comfort. I have an Integral Designs event jacket, and although it does breathe well, it doesn't match the comfort of the windshirt which provides warmth without the clamminess of a rain jacket. Another option is can the rain gear altogether. I met some hikers on the Larapinta who took a chance on the forecast and didn't bother at all with rain gear. If your windshirt has good DWR you might get away with it. The day time temps are sufficient IMO that if you keep moving you should be OK. I saved weight on the rain pants by wearing soft shell pants instead which are fast drying.

Whenever I was hiking at any elevation I had the windshirt on, the wind chill is pretty significant. So probably about a third to half of the time I needed the windshirt. After midday / 1pm the temps warm up and a baselayer is fine.

And yeah... the downmat is the bees knees