Better late than never! Also, babies are really time consuming.
2020 By The Numbers
- Trips: 20
- Days: 33
- Nights: 13
- Miles: 264.9
- Elevation (new!): 55,086 feet
Compared to 2019, that’s almost double the number of trips with a similar number of days but a little over half the nights. It’s almost double the number of miles as well. In other words, I did a ton of day trips and then a handful of much longer and more strenuous trips.
Gear Lists
We’ll be comparing the following two lists:
Overall, my base weight decreased from 16.61 pounds to 15.8, not too bad for a well-prepared comfort backpacker.
Sleep System
I upgraded my quilt from a Sierra Designs Nitro 20F to an Enlightened Equipment Enigma 20F in long/wide, saving 36 grams. On the surface that’s not much bang for the buck, but the Nitro is limit-rated and the Enigma is comfort-rated, so it’s both warmer and lighter.
I swapped out my Therm-A-Rest Compressible Pillow for an Exped Deepsleep, netting 49g of weight savings. The Exped is also softer and more comfortable.
As much as I loved my Acorn Versafit sleep socks, the warmer quilt meant I could replace them with some REI CoolMax socks. However, recent experience has taught me that they need to be a size up to accommodate end-of-day swollen feet, but in the meantime I’m enjoying leaving 39 grams behind.
The Gossamer Gear Thinlight reigns supreme as an anti-slip foam pad. However, towards the end of 2020 I realized that I could cut it down quite a bit without any loss of functionality, saving 26 grams.
Shelter
Easton’s 6″ Nano Nails replaced my MSR Mini Groundhog stakes, saving a measly gram per stake. However, the Eastons are indestructible, easier to get into the ground, and pull out clean, making them functionally superior.
Worn Clothing
Reading through my 2019 gear list sometimes makes me feel like I’m rifling through a stranger’s closet.
At the end of 2019 I was still in my trail runner phase, sporting some Salomon XA Pro 3Ds at 400g per shoe. For 2020 I returned to my light hiker roots and my Oboz Sawtooth II Lows at 476g per shoe. That’s quite an increase, however, it’s also a significant increase in comfort since the Oboz fit me better than any other shoe I’ve ever tried. Also, they’re burly, which helps for days of scrambling up and down rocky ridges.
I’d almost forgotten about the Kuhl Kontra Air pants. Nothing can compare to the Prana Stretch Zions, their relative heaviness (400g vs 329g) is far outshined by their comfort.
My affinity for button-downs, specifically the loose, breathable, and low-cost Wrangler Riata, finally ended with the advent of the incredibly comfortable and heat-busting Columbia PFG Zero Rules long-sleeve shirt, which is the best hiking shirt I’ve ever worn by a decent margin. I spent entire days in 90F high-desert sun in southern Utah and had no complains about the heat.
My other clothing stayed the same with the exception of a silicone ring which I opted to stop bringing.
Packed Clothing
While the Sierra Designs Elite Cagoule is still functionally the best rain jacket ever made, it’s also quite heavy at 246 grams. Paired with the 85g Massdrop Veil wind shirt (but not at the same time, obviously), I’m covered as far as the weather is concerned. However, in 2020 they were both replaced by the 190 gram Montbell Versalite, which, thanks to its pit zips, doubles as both a rain and wind jacket. Unfortunately you lose the cagoule’s thigh coverage, so I tossed in an Enlightened Equipment Rain Wrap to compensate, adding on 49g for a total savings of 92 grams. Not bad!
At some point near the beginning of the year I added in the legendary Kuiu Peloton 97 fleece to aid with chilly shoulders during extended rainy periods. This adds 138 grams back in, completely canceling out my earlier savings. However, it occurs to me that I may have still been wearing a paper-thin button-down rather than a knit shirt, so the fleece might not actually be necessary after all. I certainly didn’t use it for the rest of the year, so tossing it would be an easy win.
I loved Mountain Hardwear’s Bandito fingerless gloves due to the built-in convertible wind-proof mittens. However, at some point I realized that they were overkill seeing as how you can just stick cold hands into your pockets. And so, 55g was saved by exchanging them for Columbia’s Omni-Heat Touch liner gloves.
2020 saw the introduction of the DexShell ultra-thin waterproof crew socks after I found them indispensable for water crossings and other unpleasantness. An extra 68g per pair, to be sure, but well worth it.
Essentials
2019’s PackTowl towel gave way to a Buff, which acts not just as a towel but a neck cover, a face mask while sleeping in the cold, and all the other things people normally do with Buffs. Surprisingly it’s actually 17 grams heavier.
I was using some weird clear and eye-burning all-chemical sunscreen in 2019 but replaced it with something from the opposite end of the spectrum: Coppertone Pure & Simple Baby SPF50. It’s mineral-based (i.e. white and creamy) and much less irritating than traditional sunscreen.
For a modest increase in comfort I began lugging along all 27 grams of the Zpacks sit pad. Sometimes you just need to sit your butt down on a wet log or an uncomfortable rock, and you’ll be much happier when you do if you have a sit pad handy. It occurs to me just now that perhaps this could replace the Thinlight altogether (or vice-versa).
I stopped bringing the 21-gram Victorinox Swiss Army Classic SD multitool due to not needing all of the various tools. Instead of the knife bit I opted for the Litesmith micro scissors which weigh an astonishing 4 grams. The never-used toothpick is possibly replaced by a loop of floss which I have run through the eye of a needle as a ready-to-go sewing repair kit. The needle is stored alongside Silver Gripper tweezers in their tiny screw-top container, which together weigh a whopping 5 grams.
Electronics
The only change here was my phone: after an unfortunate water-related accident, the long-in-the-tooth Google Pixel 1 was replaced by the slightly-less-outdated Google Pixel 4a for a weight penalty of 4g. However, the new phone is a massive across-the-board upgrade so I don’t mind in the slightest.
First Aid
In 2019 I was experimenting with Green Goo first aid balm (36g) as a sort of generic cure-all for a number of conditions. 2020 saw this replaced by a teensy Vaseline tub (12g) and Safetec sting relief wipes (1.33g), since the wipes are much better at their job than the balm turned out to be. In any case this new combo weighs in at just over a third of the balm, not too shabby. This gave me some headroom to add a few other things, such as a Litesmith shorty toothbrush (5g) and a pair of Aspirin (< 1g) since I’m officially a heart attack candidate due to my age (sad!).
Toilet
The crowd favorite. I replaced the expensive do-it-all Restop #2 ($3.40, 81g) with a DIY combination of a mylar bag (13g), 6 squares of toilet paper (3g total), a wet wipe (3g), and Bark+ large-sized dog bags (2g). At around $0.50 a pop, that’s a seventh the cost and a quarter of the weight – nice!
Photography
2020 introduced my all-time favorite tripod, the 270g Manfrotto Pixi Evo, which replaced the 100g Pedco Ultrapod Grip. Despite being almost three times heaver the Pixi Evo is an incredibly versatile table-top tripod which has allowed me to take shots that would have been impossible with the Ultrapod, which has a shorter maximum height, vastly inferior ball head, and shorter, less-stable, unadjustable legs. Totally worth it.
I swapped out the 375g 16mm Fuji lens for the incredibly-light 118g 18mm pancake, sacrificing a tiny amount of speed and viewing angle for a massive weight reduction. In 2021 I’m actually looking at moving away from wide-angle to something with a narrower field of view – and lighter still! The smaller lens also meant I could drop my Peak Design Pro Pad, saving 39g, since I no longer needed the extra stability. This is a good example of how moving to lighter gear becomes a virtuous circle.
I also started carrying a circular polarizer and 10-stop neutral density filter (18g and 6g, respectively) since you never know when you’re going to need them, and smaller lenses have smaller and lighter filters so you pay less of a penalty for preparedness.
Kitchen, Water, and Food Storage
All the same! It feels good to have complete year-over-year stability in some categories, really makes you feel like you’re starting to get things figured out.
The End
It’s frustrating how pervasive link rot is: half of the gear links in this post had to be removed since they no longer point to anything. Grr.