Appalachian Trail - Equipment weigh in....Base weight 17.4 lbs

Sarah Williams
May 20, 2017
3 min read

In order to move as quickly as I want to, I have to get my base weight down.

Ideally I was going for 15 lbs. It didn’t quick work out at that!!!

All in all, my base weight comes to 17.43 lbs which I’m ok with - I could reduce it down a little further to get bang on 17 lbs...

FYI

Base weight = Everything in your pack, but not including food or water.

I have done a separate post on the costs involved in getting to the Appalachian Trail and what I’ve spent on equipment.

Here is a breakdown of the equipment I will be taking with me, and what the weight of each item is in grams.

My heaviest items as expected are my BIG 4 - tent, backpack, sleeping bag and sleeping mat.

Backpack - 1750g

Tent (2 person) - 1296g

Sleeping Bag - 710g

Sleeping Mat - 352g

TOTAL = 4108 g

= 9.05 lbs

= 4.01 kg

However, I’ve gone as light as I can on all of them and there’s no way to reduce this down any further without reducing down the comfort factor!

However, if I don't take my compression sac for my sleeping bag, or the bag, my sleeping mat comes in, this would save me 29g.

I will also be able to cut some of the straps off my backpack which will save a few more grams.

My other heavy items

Guide Book - 321g - this will get lighter as the trail goes on as I’ll be ripping out the pages as I go
Camp Shoes - 258g - I think it’s important to be able to air my feet out once I get to camp
Battery pack - 281g - this will give me at least 4 full charges

Where I could save weight

Not taking the syringe or the straw for the Sawyer Filter System (This would save me 32 g)
Reducing the number of homeopathic remedies I take with me (Half it - 148g)
Not taking camp shoes (285 g)
Only taking 1 ipod shuffle (11g)
Not taking my Garmin watch and charger (100g)
Not taking the spare bags for the tent pole and tent pegs (9g)
Don’t take the Osprey pack cover (120g) - I’ll have a trash bag inside my bag, with everything else in dry bags
Don’t take the compression bag for my sleeping bag and just stuff it into the dry bag with my sleeping clothes (16g)
Don’t take the Thermarest bag (13g)

Total weight saving potential = 734g

Keeping the shoes - 449g saving

Digital Scales

If you want to save weight, you have to get really specific and you have to get into the detail. You have to know how much everything weighs down to the gram! In order to get this specific you need to get digital scales!

It’s surprising when you go through and weight everything and see how quickly the little things can add up! You can also see the areas where you can potential save weight, and which items you need to swap in or swap out.

Other tips!

I will be transferring everything into ziplock bags e.g. food, supplements etc. This will reduce the weight of the packaging.
Cutting out labels from all my clothes - a little excessive but it all adds up
Cutting off excess straps from my backpack
Not taking the top compartment on my backpack - less space, therefore l’m less tempted to try to fill my rucksack
Duck tape has been taped around my poles
I’m not taking any shampoo, conditioner, deodorant etc. I will be embracing the stink!
I have two sets of clothes - one for hiking and one for sleeping.