Base Weight Face Weights – The Trek

My base weight is 6.9 pounds, theirs is 20 pounds. Hers is 8 and his is 15…honestly, who gives a damn. What I have tried to do over the years is lose weight without losing important elements of comfort and, most importantly, be versatile. Having this middle ground means you don’t sacrifice recovery. Whenever you embark on a big adventure where you’re taxing your body day in and day out, it’s important to me to make sure you can properly maximize your recovery while resting. Recovery will allow you to go and do the next day without it being miserable. Instead of feeling pain and misery, you’ll be able to focus more on the precious details of your hike.

The Specters

Did you not sleep because it was too cold or because your sleeping bag is a 30 degree bag with a temperature of 80 degrees? …Yes, there are those who are not prepared and those who are over prepared. Being adequately prepared means having flexibility, comfort, and recovery capabilities. If you’re a weight-focused person, it’s okay to cut back on amenities, as long as it’s enjoyable. Obviously, venture out at your own pace, walk your own hike, do your own thing. This is just my very opinionated opinion.

When reading about friends lighter packs or Trek gear list; I’m really amazed at people who are comfortable with less than 6 pounds. I’m not sure they are telling the truth when they say they have complete comfort. Where’s your pillow? Is it soft? How about a suitable pillow for sleeping? Hot coffee in the morning? A seat for your bony adventurous butt? What happens if you are too cold? Can you deal with it? Ah!

There is the opposite end of the spectrum, the on prepared. Those people carry backpacking chairs, a Jetboil, Nat Geo maps that only have a few hundred miles of a thousand-mile trail, ten days of food, and spare hiking shoes. There is definitely a type of aircraft carrier and you would be surprised at the human effort when you see those people over a hundred miles away. It reminds me of when I climbed Camels Hump in Vermont for the first time and took refuge with a guy who had a base weight of 35 pounds. Amazing with our modern camping equipment.

The happy medium

Being too far from either side speaks of overconfidence or naivety. So, my personal opinion is to choose five things that ensure comfort and allow you to recover mentally and physically for your daily commute. My five are: sleep, heat, food, weight and entertainment. These allow me to have a very solid experience as I am passively and actively promoting my recovery. For weight nerds, my base weight is 14 pounds. It’s not too heavy, it doesn’t sacrifice comfort, allowing me to ride long distances and sleep through muscle pain.

There are the big three: sleeping bag, tent and backpack, which will allow you to significantly reduce your base weight without compromising comfort. I use a lining because silk feels better than polyester and if it’s too hot, the monsters still can’t touch my feet.

Versatility

Options; Having equipment that can be used for many things is key. If you have a liner, you can use your sleeping bag as another pillow. Sitpads are versatile! They are great tools to elevate your feet after a long day. Trekking poles like tent poles, CNOC water bottles with boiling water will lower your sleeping system by 10 degrees. The list goes on and on. Be creative, think about how you can use things over and over again to multitask on your computer. It really makes things more fun and a creative endeavor every time you come up with a fancy use for a simple piece of equipment.

Don’t be that person who prepares too much or poorly. Being creative will get the most bang for your buck. If you’re interested, here’s my gear list.

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