TRT—Gear list

I’ve made some changes from my usual gear list. This is about as low as I can comfortably get my base weight with a bear canister in the mix.

I loved using the Opsack for food storage on the Uinta Highline Tail, but I’ve decided to take a bear canister on the Tahoe Rim Trail (TRT). I don’t think my bear bag will hang well given the short-branched firs at high elevation and I can’t do the counter-balance method without someone else. The canister adds 2+ pounds to my base weight, but I can cram freezer bags of food into it and sleep easy knowing my food will still be there in the morning.

I’m planning to resupply around the halfway point, so I’ll only ever have to carry a 4-day supply of food at a time. That means I can get away with carrying the BV450 instead of the BV500 I carried on the John Muir Trail. I plan to carry 2 liters of water unless it’s a long, dry stretch. That means my fully loaded pack should never weigh more than around 22 pounds while on the trail and it’ll get lighter as I consume my food.

I’m not taking my homemade gravity-fed water filtration system. I’m just going to screw the new Sawyer Micro Squeeze right onto the bottle. The flow rate isn’t supposed to be as fast as the regular Squeeze (but still faster than the Sawyer Mini), but it shouldn’t make a difference since I’m drinking straight out of dirty bottles and not wasting time filtering into clean bottles.

Pre-hike impressions

The main change I’m making involves the new water filter. Sections of the Tahoe Rim Trail are dry, but I think I’ll be okay with a 4-liter carry capacity (two SmartWater bottles and an empty 32 oz Sawyer roll bag as a back-up). 4 liters of capacity is what I’ve always carried, but I rarely carry more than 2 actual liters of water at a time. Water is the single heaviest item in my pack on most trips.

Here’s the filter set that includes the roll bag if you want to read the reviews for yourself. It’s lighter than the regular Squeeze. I’ll have plenty of opportunities to test it before I head out to Tahoe. Notice that it also comes with a coupler (the round, blue thing) in case I want to turn the roll bag into a very slow gravity filter. I doubt I’ll do that, but it’s nice to have the option.

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See larger image Sawyer Products SP2129 Micro Squeeze Water Filtration System, 1 Pack, Black/Blue New From: $32.95 In Stock Buy from Amazon.com

I’m planning to walk until sunset, cook dinner, make camp, and sleep. Then I’m planning to wake up before dawn, break camp, and walk until sunset. Repeat as necessary. I really don’t need a lot of stuff. And if I find that I do, I won’t be more than a few days from a resupply point.

I’ll probably go through 6–8 audiobooks on this trip, so I’ll be sufficiently entertained.