Bushwalk Australia

And I just wanted to be the first to post.
'I admit to being on the "Heavy side" but I know I can learn a lot from the lightweighters

+1

hehe - but I wanted to be first
I have lost 12kg off by base base weight (my stomach) in the past few months - but keen to loose more from my pack.

I just fall into the lightweight -- and it is has been a great change from the 20kg plus packs I used to carry.

I would love to hear from other lightweighters there top 5 tips for reducing weight.

Matt

I have found this site excellent for calculating gear weight and making up gear lists. http://www.geargrams.com/ Once you have overcome the tedium of weighing and entering all your gear you can easily make up a list and the weight will be calculated for you. Thanks in part to this calculator and my purchase of new gear over the last couple of years I can call myself officially 'lightweight'.

Such a cool addition to the site. I'll be keeping a close eye on the threads here

For the noobs. what would one classify as light weight and heavy weight?

ricadam wrote:For the noobs. what would one classify as light weight and heavy weight?

Taken from the forum rules at the top of the thread:

"light backpacking base weight less then 9.1kg
ultralight backpacking base weight less then 4.5kg
super-ultralight backpacking base weight less then 2.3kg
extreme-ultralight backpacking base weight less then 1.4kg "

It should also be noted that people distinguish between base weight, skin out weight etc... I'm not expert in these things so I might leave someone else to define all that jazz.

Pongo wrote:

ricadam wrote:For the noobs. what would one classify as light weight and heavy weight?

Taken from the forum rules at the top of the thread:

"light backpacking base weight less then 9.1kg
ultralight backpacking base weight less then 4.5kg
super-ultralight backpacking base weight less then 2.3kg
extreme-ultralight backpacking base weight less then 1.4kg "

Where can we put Bear Grylles? EUL? Or a category of his own?

What does one do then with water as having one day supply is around 4 Kg alone? is that not considered as pack weight or do you just find water out on the track somewhere and treat it and/or filter it?

EDIT: I noticed the top of the forum Base pack doesn't include water. Though i'd still be interest to know what people do RE: fresh drinking water

ricadam wrote:What does one do then with water as having one day supply is around 4 Kg alone? is that not considered as pack weight or do you just find water out on the track somewhere and treat it and/or filter it?

Water is variable. You might start with 4 Ltr but finish with 1 Ltr. Or none at the end of the day.
I'll try to manage my water and treat as I go if possible. H2O is a heavy substance but we must have it.
I always carry a spare 600ml, just in case. That's ontop of what I might consume between supply points. But I drink a lot less than others I have walked with.

Well Ive lost 3.4kg in the early hours of this morning not to mention oodles more in fluid
On a serious note Im pleased to see this added to the forum. As someone who has a mixture of gear from ultralight to ultra comfortable (depending upon my trip and whats required) I look forward to reading many reviews and hopefully contributing (once back on the trail that is

Bluegum Mic wrote:Well Ive lost 3.4kg in the early hours of this morning not to mention oodles more in fluid ......

Wait a minute....3.4kg in the we hours...... and more......I've seen this happen a couple of times......I believe congratulations are in order Bluegum Mic

Haha, so did my niece. Congrats mic..
As for the new forum- meh, we had just removed this pedestal : ?

Congrates Bluegum Mic -- Hope you both are doing well.
This must be some record for shortest time between birth and posting.

I set off on a ten day hike to find first night someone had stuffed a half a brick as well as a dust pan and broom in my pack before setting off. Not keen to carry it for ten days, and been LNT minded, I hid them in friends pack the next day. Needless to say a game started and we all become protective of our packs (fun walk in vic alpine area)

What is the heaviest most useless thing you have packed for a walk?

Congrats Michaela- so did you score a little boy or girl bub? Hope you all recover quickly and hit the tracks/slopes soonish.

Ha. Thanks guys. Yes Matt I wish I wasnt able to post cause it would mean Id be all snuggled with him but he has done nothing but feed then sleep for 4 hours all day in his bassinet...short lived Im sure but Ive got plenty of time on my hands today...lets see how tonight goes

great news - I hope he continues to sleep well. Our first was hard to get to sleep - but once there slept very well (in fact still does)
Enjoy whilst is last - lets hope that is for many years.
You back in NSW for a while?
Congrates again.

Love to see a photo when you get a chance.

Matt

Good move. Well done to whoever initiated it.

Without checking lists, I'll put myself around 9kg base weight (as defined above) I can probably go a kilo or so lower if I work at it.

As for water - I have a simple approach: - Organise and pack everything(except water) - weigh loaded pack - congratulate myself smugly for having got the weight down so low - pack water - DO NOT reweigh after packing water.

I believe it's called "delusion", but it makes me feel better

It should also be noted that people distinguish between base weight, skin out weight etc... I'm not expert in these things so I might leave someone else to define all that jazz.

I'll give it a crack.
Base weight is essentially the weight of your pack and all your gear that doesn't change weight during your bush walk. Base weight does no include the clothes you are wearing (ie. gear worn) or your consumables like food, water and fuel.

Consumables should be self explanatory. Anything that will be used and the weight reduced over time. Stuff that gets eaten, rubbed on your face, drunk or burned.

Like wise Gear Worn includes the clothes you wear during the day, shoes, socks, hat and sunglasses.

Pack Weight is your base weight plus consumables at the start of a bushwalk and declines over time.

Skin out weight is the total weight of absolutely everything - your pack weight and gear worn.

When comparing gear lists and weights, ultralighters are generally talking about base weights.

Ultralight is a base weight under 4.5kg or 10 pound.

GPSGuided wrote:

Pongo wrote:

ricadam wrote:For the noobs. what would one classify as light weight and heavy weight?

Taken from the forum rules at the top of the thread:

"light backpacking base weight less then 9.1kg
ultralight backpacking base weight less then 4.5kg
super-ultralight backpacking base weight less then 2.3kg
extreme-ultralight backpacking base weight less then 1.4kg "

Where can we put Bear Grylles? EUL? Or a category of his own?

Category of his own - extreme heavyweight (once you include what he actually has with him that you don't see on camera).

GPSGuided wrote:

Where can we put Bear Grylles?

Some would call this Crazy Light or Stupid Light.

Stupid Light Weight = not carrying what you really need.

Check out Andrew Skurka's blog http://andrewskurka.com/2012/stupid-light-not-always-right-or-better/

Hi Mat 1st one would be your pack my first was a black wolf about 1.5 -2kg . My next one i bought was a zpack blast near new off ebay 250gm.2nd is a tent my 1st overnight hike was Mount Barney with a 3.5kg 3man Oztrail tent , only had a two man fly ,it rained that night and on the way up i lost my foam sleep mat ,was a night to remember. I then bought a 500 gram bivi used it a couple of times , liked the freedom of a tent beter.Sold it and got a 1.1 kg modified tent . 3rd would be your sleep bag again i had a 1.5 kg BCF speacial. My favorite piece of gear is my Rab sleeping bag 600gm add a silk liner to it in winter . If i hiked down south i would get a warmer bag .4th is a sleep mat i have only used a ccfoam pad ,150 gms . Waiting on a Thermarest xtherm off ebay item says payment pending and the guy after 3 days hasent posted ,come on paypal. Extra 250grams but worth the warmth and comfort.5th Stuff you dont realy need or use spur of the moment packing..Hopes this helps to a more comfortable ,less stress on joints ,agile hiking adventure .Darrin

Pongo wrote:

ricadam wrote:For the noobs. what would one classify as light weight and heavy weight?

Taken from the forum rules at the top of the thread:

"light backpacking base weight less then 9.1kg
ultralight backpacking base weight less then 4.5kg
super-ultralight backpacking base weight less then 2.3kg
extreme-ultralight backpacking base weight less then 1.4kg "

It should also be noted that people distinguish between base weight, skin out weight etc... I'm not expert in these things so I might leave someone else to define all that jazz.

It's funny that even here the definitions are based on the imperial unit:

light: 20 lbs ≈ 9.1 kg
UL: 10 lbs ≈ 4.5 kg
SUL: 5 lbs ≈ 2.3 kg
XUL: 3 lbs ≈ 1.4 kg

It's also worth noting that these defintions presume a fairly narrow set of conditions, usually just walking with benign environmental challenges.

Congrats Bluegum!

DARRIN-G wrote:Hi Mat 1st one would be your pack my first was a black wolf about 1.5 -2kg . My next one i bought was a zpack blast near new off ebay 250gm.2nd is a tent my 1st overnight hike was Mount Barney with a 3.5kg 3man Oztrail tent , only had a two man fly ,it rained that night and on the way up i lost my foam sleep mat ,was a night to remember. I then bought a 500 gram bivi used it a couple of times , liked the freedom of a tent beter.Sold it and got a 1.1 kg modified tent . 3rd would be your sleep bag again i had a 1.5 kg BCF speacial. My favorite piece of gear is my Rab sleeping bag 600gm add a silk liner to it in winter . If i hiked down south i would get a warmer bag .4th is a sleep mat i have only used a ccfoam pad ,150 gms . Waiting on a Thermarest xtherm off ebay item says payment pending and the guy after 3 days hasent posted ,come on paypal. Extra 250grams but worth the warmth and comfort.5th Stuff you dont realy need or use spur of the moment packing..Hopes this helps to a more comfortable ,less stress on joints ,agile hiking adventure .Darrin

That sounds like a very light bag - nice
My first big weight saving was a quick mod to my tent so that I did not need to carry the inner - just used the fly.
Funny how quickly the pack becomes the unnecessary heavy item bit (obviously still need a bag, but as the weight comes out you don't need a frame and such heavy material.

I now do the hammock thing with an over quilt and under quilt. The most comfortable I have every slept in the bush - I have used it in the snow and it is wonderful. I do miss it when the environment I am heading into calls for a ground dwelling tent. The hammock, fly and quilts are 2kg all up possible todo lighter but this is working well for me now.

For all the safety issues that get through around against lightweight - one huge benefit comes from how much more agile and less tired you are. Able to recover easier from slips, less back strain, and less blisters. Able to move faster if pushed for time etc.

Matt

Made into separate topics

And CONGRATS MIC!

And possibly another suggestion - to have a little hammocking sub-group too?

Having a LW sub forum is a great idea - thanks

A hangers forum -- Like it.
I was thinking of several subforums in Equipment eg
Hammocks
Sleeping bags
Tents
Packs
Clothing
Outershells
Footwear

But I am unsure as what if you want to talk about ultralight sleeping bags?? Ultralight or sleeping bags
any thoughts??

Matt

A bit late but congrats Michaela.

wildwalks wrote:A hangers forum -- Like it.
I was thinking of several subforums in Equipment eg
Hammocks
Sleeping bags
Tents
Packs
Clothing
Outershells
Footwear

But I am unsure as what if you want to talk about ultralight sleeping bags?? Ultralight or sleeping bags
any thoughts??

Matt

It also gets complicated where some people will consider gear to be UL, whereas others might not. There must be a reason why these subforums have not been added in the past?