If there’s one thing that most backpackers can obsess over, it’s gear.  Luckily, we did most of our obsessing when we prepared to hike the John Muir Trail (JMT) in 2015.  For that trip, we replaced our backpacks and sleeping bags (two of the “big three”) to go with lighter options.  While our packs were not small by PCT standards, other JMT hikers consistently noted our small pack size.

Elizabeth’s gear

Elizabeth’s clothes, backpack, and sleeping bag.

Michael’s gear.

Michael’s clothes and additional gear.

Most of our preparation for hiking the PCT took place while we were traveling abroad.  This limited our ability to gather and test new gear.  We did upgrade our tent, replacing our old REI Half Dome that we purchased circa-2007 with a brand new Zpacks Duplex.  We easily shaved over two pounds on that switch.  Other changes include purchasing external batteries to keep our gadgets charged and the Delorme Inreach to give our parents some peace of mind.  We’ll also be experimenting with umbrellas to offer us shade in the hot desert sun (and rain protection of course).

Testing out our new tent.

I know that there are additional ounces that we could shave from the gear lists below, but we’ve simply run out of time and will have to learn from our mistakes on the trail.  We’ll have the opportunity to swap out some gear after the first 250 miles, so it will be interesting to see what changes we make at that time.

We are each carrying our own individual gear and have split up the shared gear between us.  Michael is stuck carrying an extra three pounds at the start — both because his individual gear is larger and weighs more and because he’s simply bigger.  I’m sure our gear allocation will change as we hit our stride.

For now, this is what we’re bringing:

(Obviously I have no OCD tendencies… In my defense, this is the list that we’re using to make sure that we pack everything.)

We’ll be adding additional gear when we hit the snow at San Jacinto and in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, such as microspikes and whippets.  And of course, we’ll be carrying our trusty old bear cans where required by park regulations.  Hopefully by then our legs will have adjusted to the weight of long water carries and we won’t mind the extra pounds (too) much.