Current Gear List
My current gear list reflects the cold-weather hiking I did in October 2020 for 500 miles on the Blue Mountains Trail. Some of these items were swapped out during the hike as conditions changed. The main objective for cold weather hiking? Stay warm, stay dry, stay alive.
AND new on this gear list are some discounts you can get from some of my sponsors. Thanks Six Moon Designs, Food for the Sole, and Gather Nuts!
| Item | Specific Item | Weight | Discount Code | |
| Backpack | Six Moon Designs Swift X | 36oz | GoWild12 | 10% off one-time order at Six Moon Designs |
| Sleeping Pad | NeoAir UberLite Inflatable Pad – Small & Thinlight Foam Pad – 1/8″ | 6oz | ||
| Sleeping Quilt | Katabatic Grenadier 5°F | 28.8 oz | ||
| Ground Cloth | Tyvek | 5 oz | ||
| Shelter | Six Moon Designs Lunar Solo (for fall/winter trips I will use a freestanding double wall tent) | 26 oz | GoWild12 | 10% off one-time order at Six Moon Designs |
| Stakes | TOAKS Titanium v-shaped pegs | 2.4 oz for 6 | ||
| Poles | Black Diamond Z-Poles | 17 oz | ||
| Cook Pot | TOAKS Titanium 900 ml pot | 4.4 oz | ||
| Spoon | TOAKS Titanium Long Handle Spoon with Polished Bowl (so pretty) | .65 oz | ||
| Stove | MSR Pocket Rocket (for winter conditions/fire season) otherwise I use: TOAKS Titanium Alcohol Stove (.7oz) or TOAKS Titanium Backpacking Wood Burning Stove (5.4 oz) | 2.6 oz | ||
| French Press | Planetary Design Big Sky Bistro (I cut off the handle and the outer cup to only use the inner liner and french press plunger) | |||
| Water Containers | CNOC Vecto 2liter | 2.6 oz | ||
| Hydroflask insulated water bottle | 10 oz | |||
| Water Filter | Sawyer Mini | 2 oz | ||
| Water treatment | eye dropper of bleach or Aquamira – in cold weather | |||
| Camera/Phone | Galaxy A51 | 6oz | ||
| Case | Loksak (CDTC special!) ziplock bag | |||
| External Battery | Anker PowerCore 20100mAh | 12.6 oz | ||
| Phanny Pack | Freerange Equipment | |||
| USB charger & 2 charging cords | Verizon | 7 oz | ||
| GPS/Beacon | DeLorum InReach | 7 oz | ||
| Umbrella | Six Moon Designs Silver Shadow Carbon Umbrella | 6.8 oz | GoWild12 | 10% off one-time order at Six Moon Designs |
| Headlamp | Petzel Bindi | 1.2 oz | ||
| Stuff Sacks | Random stuff sacks & SMD Pack Pods | 1.6 oz | GoWild12 | 10% off one-time order at Six Moon Designs |
| Knife | Gerber US1 | 1 oz | ||
| Bag Liner | Trash compactor bag | |||
| Jacket | Montbell Alpine Light Down Parka | 11.8 oz | ||
| Outdoor Research Tantrum Hooded Jacket | 4.4 oz | |||
| Vest | Rab Altus Vest (don’t sell anymore) – an extra insulation layer in really cold conditions | 9.2 oz | ||
| Hat | Alvord Desert/Steens Mountain trucker hat by Sheila Dunn & Warm hat knitted by the one and only NEMO | 2 oz | ||
| Fanny Pack | Cotopaxi | 4 oz | ||
| First Aid | Misc | |||
| Long sleeve shirt | Palente Grid Fleece and/or Outdoor Research zip long-sleeve (don’t sell anymore) | 9 oz | ||
| Skirt | Purple Rain Skirt | |||
| Sports bra | Patagonia Switchback Sports Bra | 2.93 oz | ||
| Long johns | Patagonia Capilene Thermal Weight Bottoms | 4.9 oz | ||
| Socks | X3 pairs Point6 socks (I still have a ton of good pairs from 2015 when I was their ambassador – thats quality!) | |||
| Shoes | Merrell Moab | 28 oz | ||
| Chaco Z2 Sandals | ||||
| Gortex Socks | Cabellas brand | |||
| Rain skirt | trash compactor bag | |||
| Rain pants | Outdoor Research Apollo Rain Pants | 10.9 oz | ||
| Rain coat | Marmot 3-ply Gortex Shell (don’t sell any more) | |||
| Mittens | Outdoor Research Sensor Mittens (don’t sell any more) | 1.6 oz | ||
| Outdoor Research Revel Mitts | 3.7 oz | |||
| Transcendent Down Mittens (for when it’s REALLY cold) | 4.8 oz | |||
| shorts | spandex shorts (chaffing protection!) | |||
| Gaiters | OR Gortex Gaiters | 10.2 oz | ||
| Gather Nuts | Nuts and seeds | Wearehikertrash | 20% off if spend more than $25 | |
| Food for the Sole | Gluten & dairy free breakfasts & dinners | sherahikes | 20% off total purchase (one time use) | |
| Microbiome Bars | bars |
Typical Gear List
| Item | Specific Item | Weight |
| Backpack | Six Moon Designs Swift X or Six Moon Designs Minimalist | 36oz or 34 oz |
| Six Moon Designs Flex Pack (for packrafting trips) | 51 oz | |
| Sleeping Pad | Klymit Static V (it’s heavy, but cheap…will most likely upgrade soon) | 18 oz |
| Sleeping Bag | Western Mountaineering Ultralight or Feathered Friends Flickr 40 | 29 oz 19.7 oz |
| Ground Cloth | Tyvek | 5 oz |
| Shelter | Six Moon Designs Lunar Solo or Six Moon Designs Deschutes Cuben Fiber or Six Moon Designs Haven (2 person tent) |
26 oz 7 oz 34 oz |
| Stakes | TOAKS Titanium v-shaped pegs | 2.4 oz for 6 |
| Poles | Black Diamond Z-Poles | 17 oz |
| Cook Pot | TOAKS Titanium 550 ml pot | 2.6 oz |
| Spoon | TOAKS Titanium Long Handle Spoon with Polished Bowl (so pretty) | .65 oz |
| Stove | TOAKS Titanium Alcohol Stove or TOAKS Titanium Backpacking Wood Burning Stove (with high fire danger I use the MSR Pocket Rocket) | 0.7 oz 5.4 oz 2.6 oz |
| French Press | Planetary Design Big Sky Bistro (I cut off the handle and the outer cup to only use the inner liner and french press plunger) | |
| Water Containers | CNOC Vecto 2liter | 2.6 oz |
| Vapur 1 Liter Bottle | 1.4 oz | |
| Water Filter | Sawyer Mini | 2 oz |
| Water treatment | eye dropper of bleach | |
| Camera/Phone | Galaxy S7 | 5.36 oz |
| Lifeproof Case | 1.5 oz | |
| External Battery | Anker PowerCore 20100mAh (it’s heavy but I’ve never run out of juice when I need it) | 12.6 oz |
| Sunglasses | Runners Sunglasses | 0.9 oz |
| USB charger & 2 charging cords | Verizon | 7 oz |
| GPS/Beacon | DeLorum InReach | 7 oz |
| Umbrella | Six Moon Designs Silver Shadow | 8 oz |
| Headlamp | Petzel Bindi | 1.2 oz |
| Stuff Sacks | OR UltraLight Dry Sack | 1.6 oz |
| Six Moon Designs cuben stuff sack | ||
| Knife | Gerber US1 | 1 oz |
| Bag Liner | Trash compactor bag | |
| Jacket | Montbell Alpine Light Down Parka | 11.8 oz |
| Outdoor Research Tantrum Hooded Jacket | 4.4 oz | |
| Outdoor Research Helium II | 5.5 oz | |
| hat | Hikertrash trucker hat – a collector’s item! not sold anymore 😦 | 2 oz |
| Random warm hat from my shelf | ||
| First Aid | Misc | |
| Long sleeve shirt | Outdoor Research sunshirt | 6.7 oz |
| Tank top | thrift shop tank | |
| Skirt | Purple Rain Skirt | |
| Long johns | Outdoor Research Essence Tights | 5.2 oz |
| Socks | X3 pairs Point6 merino socks | |
| Shoes | Oboz Luna (Oboz stopped making this shoe, my favorite shoe ever. I still have a pair I’m trying to make last) | 12.6 oz |
| Chaco Z2 Sandals | ||
| Gortex Socks | Cabellas brand | |
| Rain skirt | trash compactor bag | |
| Mittens | Outdoor Research Sensor Mittens & Shuck Mitts | 1.6oz & 1.1oz |
| shorts | spandex shorts (chaffing protection!) | |
| Gaiters | OR Gortex Gaiters | 10.2 oz |
2015 Continental Divide Trail Gear
Putting together my gear list was harder than I expected, probably because I switched my gear out as I hiked over the 160 days, in addition to the fact that I had never weighed my pack, either before the trail or during. You probably couldn’t call me a light-weight hiker, more of a medium-weight hiker. If it fit in my pack I carried it! A lot of what I carried can be attributed to my pack, the Six Moon Designs Fusion 50. It could carry whatever I put in it no matter how heavy…7 liters of water? skis? Check. The suspension was wonderful.
| Item | Specific Item | Weight |
| Backpack | Six Moon Designs Fusion 50 | 36 oz |
| Homemade Cuben external bag | ||
| Sleeping Pad | Neo Air (Short) | 9 oz |
| Ridgerest | 14 oz | |
| Gossamer Gear Air Beam 3/4 Wide | 11.7 oz | |
| Ground Cloth | Tyvek | 5 oz |
| Shelter | Six Moon Designs Deschutes Cuben Fiber | 7 oz |
| Stakes | MSR Groundhog x6 | 4.6 oz |
| Poles | BoomGear Carbon Fiber Poles | |
| Cook Pot | Evernew Titanium Pot 600ml | 3.4 oz |
| Spoon | Hand-carved wooden spoon | |
| Stove | PBR can stove | |
| OLicamp Vector stove | 3 oz | |
| Pot coozie | ||
| French Press | REI | |
| Water Containers | Hydrapack 3L Shape-Shift Reversible Reservoir | 5.7 oz |
| Platypus Hoser 1.8 liter | 3.4 oz | |
| Vapur 1 Liter Bottle | 1.4 oz | |
| Water Filter | Sawyer Squeeze | 3.5 oz |
| Sawyer Mini | 2 oz | |
| Water treatment | eye dropper of bleach | |
| Camera/Phone | Galaxy S5 | 5.1 oz |
| Lifeproof Case | 1.6 oz | |
| External Battery | Anker 2nd Gen Astro E5 | 10.9 oz |
| Headphones | Apple | |
| keyboard | Zagg Pocket Keyboard | 8 oz |
| USB charger & 2 charging cords | Verizon | 7 oz |
| Music | Ipod Nano | 1.3 oz |
| Tripod | ||
| GPS/Beacon | DeLorum InReach | 7 oz |
| Umbrella | Golite Chrome Dome (now Six Moon Designs) | 8 oz |
| Headlamp | Petzel Tikka RZP Rechargable Headlamp | 4 oz |
| Stuff Sacks | homemade cuben stuff sacks | |
| OR UltraLight Dry Sack | 1.6 oz | |
| Six Moon Designs cuben | ||
| Knife | Kershaw Lockback pocket knife | 2.4 oz |
| Bag Liner | Trash compactor bag | |
| First Aid | Misc | |
| Sit Pad | piece of old Ridgerest | |
| Bear Cord | 50′ paracord | |
| Jacket | Montbell Alpine Light Down Parka | 11.8 oz |
| Patagonia Hoodini | 4.3 oz | |
| Homeschool Outerwear Ghost Shell | ||
| hat | Hikertrash trucker hat | 2 oz |
| Beanie | ||
| Long sleeve shirt | Smartwool Women’s NTS Mid 250 Zip T | |
| Sun shirt | thrift shop cotton button down | |
| Tank top | thrift shop tank | |
| thrift shop New Balance tank | ||
| Skirt | Purple Rain Skirt | |
| Long johns | Patagonia Merino Bottoms | 5.6 oz |
| Sports Bra | thrift store | |
| Socks | X3 pairs Point6 merino socks | |
| Shoes | Oboz Emerald Peak & Luna | 12.6 oz |
| Chaco Z2 Sandals | ||
| Orox leather sandals | ||
| Gortex Socks | Cabella Unins Gor Tex Socks | |
| Rain skirt | Homemade cuben fiber wrap | |
| trash compactor bag | ||
| Mittens | Gordini Stash Lite Touch Mitt | |
| Homemade cuben fiber mittens | ||
| shorts | spandex shorts | |
| Sleeping Bag | Western Mountaineering Ultralight | 1lb 13oz |
| skis | Atomic touring skis with shoe bindings | 4lbs 4oz |
| gaiters | Dirty Girl Gaiters | |
| OR Gortex Gaiters | 10.2 oz | |
| snow pants | Marmot Gortex Pants | 14.7 oz |
| micro spikes | Kaahtoola | 13.1 oz |
| ski wax |
