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My son has convinced me to take him sheep hunting in 2015. Down 15 pounds but 80 pounds to go. Also lightening up my gear. Have rethought everything. Ringing out a Forbes 20B in 308 with a VXII 3-9x40 with CDS. It's working pretty well. Evolved my stove choice from a Svea 123, used when I was last a back-packer; to a Jet boil, to playing with alcohol, and finally settled on an MSR pocket rocket married to an Optimus weekender heat exchanger pot. I am getting unbelievable boil times!

Switched to a tarp with optional bug nest from Bear Paw Designs. Sub three pound three person shelter! Using an old Mighty Mite down bag or my son and I might both take our Woobies and cuddle up. Experimenting with light clothing systems and seeing if moving away from Impertech and Wool is doable. Salewa Repace books fit..took a long time to find such a good fitting boot. Will be doing lots of practice trips to ring out gear and work on fitness. I put my first part thoughts in a video and would invite comment from experienced back-country backpack hunters.

Only thing I Know for sure is that my Dana Designs Astroplane will be coming with me. It's a wonder, and at 7 pounds isn't light but it seems to have an anti-gravity device built into the suspension!

Anyway, advice welcome. I have a lot to learn and a lot of pounds to lose in both my gear and my gut.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUiSlhirqSY&list=UUMrvqN2-Jr7OAnV0ceWlkmw

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I don't have gear advice but congratulate you on setting your goal and your progress to date. Setting a goal and working towards it is very rewarding. Last year my wife and I decided that after 33 years of marriage we both needed a physical and spiritual challenge. We agreed to walk the ancient pilgrimage in Spain called the Camino Santiago. 800 Km by foot, over three mountain ranges, while carrying everything was a daunting challenge for a couple of non-backpackers. Training and determination, good gear and good attitudes all helped us achieve our goal. We grew personally and as a couple. I hope you and your son have a similar success! There is an ancient greeting that pilgrims use to encourage each other when on the Camino. It means Onward! with perseverance and Godspeed - Ultreia!

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You know it's bound to happen. Someone's gonna' tell you to dump that seven pound pack, There are lots of really comfortable backpacks that weigh 4# and a few that weigh less.

A Pocket Rocket is hard to beat so long as temps don't get too cold.

What's a Woobie?

I wanna' see another video when you've lost 80#.

KC



Wind in my hair, Sun on my face, I gazed at the wide open spaces, And I was at home.





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A wise man is frequently humbled.

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On the subject of light rifles, anybody play with the new Howa lwt rifle?

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Originally Posted by castnblast
I don't have gear advice but congratulate you on setting your goal and your progress to date.


+1, nothing like a mountain hunt for motivation. You may want to check the conditioning thread on this forum to see what some other guys are doing.

As far as gear, you are on the right track in focusing on the your heaviest items--tent, bag, and sleeping pad. I didn't see you mention the pad but you may want to check out the Thermarest Neoair, and think about bringing a lightweight closed-cell foam pad like a 3/4 length z-rest to use in combination with it and to sit on while glassing, eating lunch, etc.

As far as a tent, I'm not experienced in hunting up there but my personal preference would not be a tarp that needs to be rigged using trekking poles in that location above treeline, especially with a down bag. You can get blasted with wind and rain, and I'd think you might want to consider a more bomb-proof shelter, even at the penalty of an extra pound or three. And personally I'd go with a synthetic bag and insulating layer, I'm not sure treated down has stood up to the test of time.

Lots of experienced AK guys here, hopefully they will chime in.

Nice rifle.




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N61,

I'm envious but hopefully I'll draw a local tag. It'd getting tougher for a guy in mid-70s but it needs to be tried anyway.

Our sheep over here have taken a hit from bad winters....how are YT sheep doing and what general area are you headed for? I've sure seen some interesting areas to the West of you.

Your gear is on the heavy side alright but just keep on studying. I've gone to some of these new pants with spandex content. The lower priced stuff from 511 or Duluth Trading work fine. Impertech will be quite heavy also.

Those final ounces to become ultralight are also ultra-expensive.

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Originally Posted by Calvin
On the subject of light rifles, anybody play with the new Howa lwt rifle?


I think I might've been the first guy to kill a big game animal with one. They're a nice little package.

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The journey to lightweight is an interesting one. It's about compromise.

As a family we started very heavy years ago and ended up at 68 pounds total for three packs for a week in the mountains. 28, 22, 18. That was the average for the last few sheep hunts we did. Rifle not included in that weight.

The one place I finally compromised was with my integral designs sleeping bag. It was super light and collapsed to about the size of a grapefruit, but after many sleepless nights I added a pound and a half with a deluxe pad and warm down bag. The wonderful sleep was worth every ounce.
A 35* summer bag has no place on the sheep mountains. Lesson learned.

Tony Russ said that a sheep hunter will usually be a bit uncomfortable if weight and bulk are properly addressed. Agreed. Warmth and space come at a premium.

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Originally Posted by smokepole
Originally Posted by castnblast
I don't have gear advice but congratulate you on setting your goal and your progress to date.


+1, nothing like a mountain hunt for motivation. You may want to check the conditioning thread on this forum to see what some other guys are doing.

As far as gear, you are on the right track in focusing on the your heaviest items--tent, bag, and sleeping pad. I didn't see you mention the pad but you may want to check out the Thermarest Neoair, and think about bringing a lightweight closed-cell foam pad like a 3/4 length z-rest to use in combination with it and to sit on while glassing, eating lunch, etc.

As far as a tent, I'm not experienced in hunting up there but my personal preference would not be a tarp that needs to be rigged using trekking poles in that location above treeline, especially with a down bag. You can get blasted with wind and rain, and I'd think you might want to consider a more bomb-proof shelter, even at the penalty of an extra pound or three. And personally I'd go with a synthetic bag and insulating layer, I'm not sure treated down has stood up to the test of time.

Lots of experienced AK guys here, hopefully they will chime in.

Nice rifle.

Thanks Mate...forgot to put in the pad but my son and I each bought a neo-air last summer when they were on sale. Impressive piece of technology, light comfortable and warm. Will use the tarp a bunch on training runs and if it isn't up to scratch I have been impressed with some of the Big Agnes 3 man offerings. I am resisting though. Andrew Skurka is a tarp guy even on his amazing cross Alaska/Yukon hike. The tarp requires skill in set up and site selection that looks like fun to learn. I have used a tarp tent and wasn't impressed with the moisture handling. I will give the tarp a whirl!

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Originally Posted by broomd
The journey to lightweight is an interesting one. It's about compromise.

As a family we started very heavy years ago and ended up at 68 pounds total for three packs for a week in the mountains. 28, 22, 18. That was the average for the last few sheep hunts we did. Rifle not included in that weight.

The one place I finally compromised was with my integral designs sleeping bag. It was super light and collapsed to about the size of a grapefruit, but after many sleepless nights I added a pound and a half with a deluxe pad and warm down bag. The wonderful sleep was worth every ounce.
A 35* summer bag has no place on the sheep mountains. Lesson learned.

Tony Russ said that a sheep hunter will usually be a bit uncomfortable if weight and bulk are properly addressed. Agreed. Warmth and space come at a premium.


I have been thinking about the sleeping bag. I thought if my son and I both brought a woobie we could use them like a double comforter and cuddle. My other lightweight bag is a Western Mountaineering mighty mite that is rectangular and good to 35F. I sleep really warm but how much has that have to do with having a nice coat of blubber. Maybe without the blubber I'll need more bag?

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Originally Posted by Calvin
On the subject of light rifles, anybody play with the new Howa lwt rifle?


Just googled it.

Looks pretty good! Bansner stock, 5.7#'s....

That plastic DBM might have to go.


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Agreed on the plastic DBM..

Looks like the lwt rifle field is filling up nicely. Lots of choices.

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In the famous words of EdT..."anyone can carry 70lbs of ultra light gear.." or something like that.

The point being, cut down on total items in the pack, not just the wt. of each item. Keep it simple, only bring what you really need.

And IMO better to carry 40lbs of gear in a 7lb. pack that carries heavier loads well than 50lbs. of "ultralight" gear in a 4lb. pack that sucks when packing 80lbs. of meat and gear.


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Originally Posted by SBTCO
In the famous words of EdT..."anyone can carry 70lbs of ultra light gear.." or something like that.

The point being, cut down on total items in the pack, not just the wt. of each item. Keep it simple, only bring what you really need.

And IMO better to carry 40lbs of gear in a 7lb. pack that carries heavier loads well than 50lbs. of "ultralight" gear in a 4lb. pack that sucks when packing 80lbs. of meat and gear.


I know the Astroplane is a good heavy hauler. Hard to experiment with 500.00 pieces of gear. Trying to get the base gear (including packs) to under 15 pounds for my son and I (30 pounds total) + food and hunting gear. Every ounce counts in this game.


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Just curious, with losing all that weight, what are you going to do to build strength?

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Originally Posted by Calvin
Just curious, with losing all that weight, what are you going to do to build strength?


Hill Climbing, and weights. Pretty simple routine of squats, benchpress, deadlifts and some curls to rehabilitate a torn bicep tendon.

Also putting on lean muscle helps with the fat burning (or so I am told).

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Not to hijack the thread, but dang Vern, that is motivational in itself, I hope I'm still doing this kind of stuff when I get there.

Best of luck in the draw!



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That Optimus pot looks awesome... I'm going to have to pick one up.

Good luck next season, hope to see some pics of a nice dead ram!

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Thanks Tanner. We will do what we can.

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