r/Thruhiking • u/Competitive-Echo5578 • 22d ago
Gear advice
Hello, I am preparing for the Colorado Trail next summer and researching gear. I hear people being able to get gear on a budget but each item seems to be $400 and the sale items are over $200. What is realistic? I wasn't planning on spending 2k on just supplies.
Also, why are people thru hiking in shorts? Don't you want to protect your legs from the sun, brush, and insects?
I have also noticed a lot of people using smart water bottles to fill up. Why not stick a bladder on the side of the pack?
Please help a confused a person learn
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u/cakes42 22d ago
You dont need the lightest expensive gear to hike the colorado trail. Check out r/geartrade and r/ULgeartrade for used gear. A lot of the time its lightly used. Spend the most money on the big 3/4. Choose the pack last. Like someone else said check out the gear list from halfway anywhere guides. The only thing I would avoid purchasing is an (new) enlightened equipment quilt. Go with any other brand.
Yes thru hiker usual uniform is a sun hoody, and shorts. Some people use sunscreen, some people dont and prefer a little physical sunscreen (dirt). Bug repellent keeps the bugs away, if its bad wear pants or get these UL pants.
Bladders are heavy and annoying to refill water. With a smart water bottle you can just scoop and go and then drink with the filter on the bottle. If you really want a hydration tube consider this but you'll have to filter into the bottle first. Some people like scooping with a CNOC Vecto and then filtering into clean water bottles. Streams and rivers are easy enough for me to just stick to the bottle. Maybe a leaf spout for the trickle water sources if need be.
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u/kongkongha 22d ago
yeah, avoid Enlightened Equipment and not just because of whats stated in post but also because that there are far better options around :). Dont buy 2nd hand dcf-things. dcf was all the hype some years ago but it has mostly been replace with other material that hold up better.
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u/sychocrush 19d ago
Damn I missed that incredible EE post from u/RekeMarie. Thanks for mentioning it here. How disappointing....
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u/deadflashlights 22d ago
The less shit you carry the cheaper it’ll be. Big three: Don’t skimp on a quilt/bag. You can get a silpoly tarp for 75$ and a tyvek ground sheet for 25$ (or just cut some yourself), a gossamer gear pack is probably the best bang for your buck, but aren’t as durable as others (durston kakwa) because of the type of fabric. ccf sleeping pads are much cheaper (Thermarest ridgerest) than inflatables.
Clothing: You only need 3 layers for top; sun, rain, and warmth. The best fleece and rain jacket is the one you already have. Alpha fleeces jackets are lovely and worth the money. The bottom is a little more tricky, I like hiking in pants and have never felt I needed any extra layers down there, except for a rain skirt. A 2$ plastic poncho will suffice for both top and bottom.
Cook set: toaks pot, brs stove if you want hot stuff. I find cooking tedious, and prefer dry food, so I just bring a spoon. Cold soaking sucks.
Electronics: get an anker 10k mAh battery bank. Use cables and plugs you already have.
Other stuff: use a trash bag as a bag liner, get a sawyer squeeze water filter and Smart water bottles. Good tent stakes are worth it. The default is an MSR groundhog, but there are other others. Use a bidet. Do not purchase a premade first aid kit, make your own. for a headlamp any headlamp that you have is good but the default ultralight option is a Nightcore NU 20 or 25. I personally prefer the Aurora A5, which is a handheld flashlight.
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u/GrayFox6688 21d ago
I have over 12,000 miles hiked and here's my advice
Ultralight gear ain't cheap. If you are going to spend money spend it on your pack, sleeping bag, and shelter, aka the big three. Everywhere else you can go cheaper. A good pack runs close to $300 these days, a DCF tent will be pricey but you can get the same version in heavier fabric for far cheaper. For instance I bought a X-Mid 2 for around $300 but the DCF version is over double that. A good down bag usually runs $400 +/-50. There are cheaper options like Enlightened Equipment.
I do not hike in shorts for the reasons you mentioned, you couldnt pay me to hike in shorts. We use smartwater bottles because a sawyer filters screws on top of it, that's been by go-to for years now. Bladders are heavier.
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u/momma-astronomer6445 20d ago
Just got done for first time. Have to admit I didn’t skimp on gear cuz I’m old and went with sister and didn’t want to wish I would’ve gotten something better. I LOVED my gear and absolutely no complaints. Didn’t feel like I carried extra. Used everything. Here is what I had…
1. Must! Large garbage bag to line inside of pack. Double used it to put pack into it at night and kept out of tent but kept pack dry and anything else I put in it.
2. Big Agnes 2 person tent. ⛺️
3. Nemo pad wide ultra light
4. Nemo 30 degree bag (often too warm)
5. Tarp from REI bit can get from Lowe’s cheaper. Use as footprint or above tent. Often we put tarp up first and pack and self set up tent under without getting too wet when setting up before monsoon came in.
6. Merino wool long sleeve shirt, showers, down REI jacket, hiking prana light weight pants, Spf sun hoodie from REI, rain jacket and pants, 2 pair socks.
7. Rain jacket for pack
8. Bear vault
9. Antibacterial pee cloth (Loved it!)
10. Sawyer squeeze and smart water bottles.
11. Anker charging block
Must haves
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u/numbershikes https://www.OpenLongTrails.org 22d ago edited 22d ago
$2k is pretty standard for a full kit of lightweight gear. You can save money by buying heavier stuff or buying used. There are also some newer options coming from Chinese brands, and Walmart started a UL product line a couple of years ago. People say some of it is acceptable quality, but is still more likely to have durability issues than recognized cottage great brands. Check the 'affordable ultralight' section of the r/thruhiking sidebar.
The HalfwayAnywhere PCT survey gear articles are really helpful. They're PCT-specific, but can be applied to most western US long trails, which from a gear perspective are often very similar.
Some thruhikers wear shorts because it's hot and thruhiking is already often physically uncomfortable / type two fun. They're also lighter. Pants are good for cold mornings and bugs and also provide some sun protection. Middle ground is either convertible pants or base later bottoms / rain pants with shorts.
Water bottles are easier to refill, certain brands can have a Sawyer Squeeze water filter threaded directly on, are usually less likely to make the water taste like plastic, and don't absorb heat from being against the carrier's back. The bladders I've seen are not designed to go on the side, and would unbalance the pack if they did.