Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Define Ultra Light

For quite a while I have been thinking that I have been carrying an ultralight backpacking kit. My base weight pack weighs about 20# without any food or water, but with everything else. However, the more that I think of it, I'm really carrying a lightweight backpack, not ultralight. Here's my logic. I carry everything that I need in my pack. It's as lightweight as I can find and my light weight gear is not cheap. But I don't leave anything out. It seems to me that I have to start leaving things out in order to consider my backpack "ultralight". For instance I could leave the tent and just use a tarp. I could leave out the canister stove & fuel, then just cook over a campfire like I use to when I was a kid. Or I could forget cooking all together and just eat no-cook snacks. The only thing that I carry that I don't expect to use is a first aid kit. I could strip that down some, but I wouldn't want to leave it out all together.

That base weight does not include any gear for hunting or fishing or climbing. That would all be extra.

How about you guys. Do you consider your backpack lightweight or ultra light?

Typically 30# with food and 2L of water is the ultralight cutoff. I wouldn’t worry too much about 30# vs. 35# unless you are planning the AT/CDT/PCT where those 5# will add up over weeks.

Not sure where the lightweight cut off is. Think that depends on where you look. I just did a trip with some new lighter gear that kept me to around 24 lbs for three nights. Had a chair , coffee press and shoes for numerous water crossings in the mix. I had a puffy , 20 degree quilt and thinner base layer for 30 degree nights. I don't see myself going any lighter at least for quite awhile. I paid a lot to get this light and ain't putting out any more money for awhile. I won't even consider going stove less meal route, cold soak ain't gonna happen. Upgrading the big three ( pack, sleep system and shelter cut a lot of weight for me.

It can be carried by 1 llama without blowing out his legs.

Llamas make the pack weight irrelevant. But are they a lot of work to maintain when not packing in? I suppose that you have to have a few acres for corrals, stock shed, etc.

Got an extra llama for an Internet buddy?

I've raised a lot of different animals over the years and llamas are the easiest of the bunch to care for. Certainly much easier than horses...but you can't ride one.

I think ultralight is when you don't bring real coffee creamer and settle for the powdered stuff. Pack light beer in cans instead of bottles, etc. Serious stuff for serious backpackers only.

Its a bit like rifles. An ultralight rifle years ago was maybe 7lbs including scope. Now with lightweight materials and designs its probably 6lbs including scope. So what is "light" now, was considered "ultralight" years ago.

I consider ultralight as getting it done with a high degree of discomfort. I think lightweight adds enough comfort in a very managed way to make a light load more enjoyable ie ltwt tent vs tarp, a little extra food and indulgences, a full toothbrush instead of one with the handle cut off, etc. I also think ultra light can be closer to dangerous depending on terrain/weather/season. Ultralight seems to work better closer to summer, whereas lightweight is more important the colder/wetter the weather.

Screw it. I've been on enough uncomfortable trips in my life to fulfill my greatest desire for pain. I'm old enough now to want a bit of padding under me and a good cup of coffee in the morning.

Pointless


Pretty simple.

Carry what you need. If it is 40 or 50lbs, I doubt it will make or break you.

I'm not sure what Ultralight weight is. Last weekend I went for 2 days with a 28lb pack including 40 oz water. I could probably get to 26-27 lbs but why? I have everything I need and am comfortable. I can also cover ground at 2-3 mph at that weight depending on slope gradient. I really don't think saving a couple extra pounds is going to make me faster or able to hike farther.

I think this is an excellent take - how light do you need to go to make 2-3mph given all the variables that hunters contend with. Myself, I say 30lbs fully kitted minus rifle gets me nearly anywhere except extreme cold (where extra layers are involved) it’s taken me 30 years to leave stuff behind that I ‘might’ need but never do. That knowledge, for me, and a Kifaru UL 3500 & a Rem 700 Ti .270 allows me to tackle almost anything at. 2-3mph.

Honestly though - under 35lbs sh*t get super personal & nobody can crack the code other than you. It’s all about trade offs for me. I know what ‘I’ need but certainly would never tell someone else what ‘they’ need.

Jackson Handy:

You must be a young man. I use to have the same attitude. But I hope that I have gotten a little smarter as I have gotten older. Maybe. Maybe not.

I’m not in the ultra lightweight group as I tend to carry a few extra luxuries usually.
What I have found to be a good help when trying to reduce pack weight is to make a list of everything you take in your pack and weigh them all. Then you can see where it’s easiest to eliminate some weight.

I think jh is exactly right. If all goes as planned you will be adding 100+ lbs. 10 lbs on your pack in aint gonna matter. If it does, guess what? You always have the option to do it twice. Gotta love options.

I used to work with a guy who almost made weight reduction a religion. He literally did cut off his toothbrush handle to cut weight. He wasn't a hunter, just a hiker. If he hunted, he would probably go to the smallest legal gun just to cut cartridge weight.

Bill:

I think that we are in the same situation. When I add a couple quarts of water (4 lbs) and food for 3 days (3 lbs) them my pack probably weighs about the same as yours. Neither of us have made any real sacrifices to save weight. We both have spent the $$ to get good lightweight gear and we are carrying a light weight pack, but not ultralite.

The fact is, you need what you need.

You have two options. Spend a ton of money for lightweight stuff and lose everything that is not a must have, and be miserable. Or you can spend a ton of money on lightweight gear, take some comfort items, be 5-10lbs heavier....and not miserable.

Do whichever you like...

I think for some of us that are older the lightweight class is a good place to be. Yes the dollars will be spent to get there but sub 30 lbs for 3 nights is a good place to be.
My first trip out west for elk I was packing 60 lbs. I never did that again. I got it down to around 37 pounds with 5 days of food a few trips after that. My sub 25 lb pack weight now a days are non hunting trips.

Besides a rifle, ammo, binocs, and other necessary hunting gear, the season's usually in the fall and requires warmer clothes. I don't know how I could keep it under 40.

I've only been archery season and don't include weight of bow and arrows in the pack weight . I'm usually carrying them in hand most of the time. I have had some nights in the 20's and one or two in the teens and had my base layer and puffy with hoodie on in my 20 degree quilt to stay warm enough to sleep. Slept a lot of nights at 10 k elevation and above.

Now that sounds like a sheephunters voice of reason! Haha!

Love it.

Two alpine start and a dash of swiss miss per morning.

Some things aren’t worth sacrificing!

When I first started sheep hunting years ago, I was obsessed with having everything as light as possible. But as time goes on I have improved on some things that make a performance difference, like my optics. That has added weight. My binos, spotting scope, rifle scope, tripod have all gotten better but heavier.

Even though I use a lightweight down quilt, I’ve settled on a Exped Downmat 7 for the comfort, which is a weight penalty.

I’ve also been in some scary mountain storms that have made me want solid shelter instead of light as possible shelter.

My food is usually around 1.3 lbs per day and I’ll usually have an extra days worth in my pack.

Now for a 14 day stone sheep hunt, my pack weighs in the 65+ lb range depending on my food choices.

You pack canned beer?

How gauche.

In college I went on a pack trip with some guys I worked with. We went in 8 miles. One guy was on his 1st trip. It was a 3 day trip so he took 3 16oz beers, 1 per day. We got camp set up and he popped the 1st one and set it on a log before he tasted it. It fell off and he lost it all. That night the other 2 froze and broke. 3lb of beer for 8 miles and he didn't get even a sip.

Rookie mistake. Almost as bad as opening up your dry fly box when the wind is gusting.

Nope, neither of those.

Mine runs 32-33 pounds all-up. I load everything I don't wear when hiking into the pack for weigh in. It doesn't do me any good to cheat the weigh-in by wearing stuff ... what really matters is the weight on my feet, ankles, and knees, and that doesn't change by moving stuff from pack to wearing it. The 32-33 pounds is everything but my clothes ... socks, underwear, tee shirt, shoes, whatever pants. It includes my jacket, gun, ammo, fishing tackle, camera, and full canteens / water bladder.

Folks here helped a lot. Back in 2011 when I went on my first backpacking trip in a while I was still carrying my 1982 gear. I was at 47 pounds for 2 nights. By the next year, with the advice I got on gear .. stuff like western mountaineering bags, tarptent tent, thermarest neo-air ... I gained comfort and dumped 15 pounds or so. I tried a few more changes along the way but those didn't work out well for me. I don't really see any good way to shave weight without losing function .. which defeats the purpose.

Doing a thru hike .. different purpose. I could give up some stuff (probably). On the other hand, it might make my ol' creaky back so sore I couldn't do the trip. Who knows?

Tom

I sectioned hiked the AT last year from Damascus, VA to Springer Mountain, GA. My base weight was 15.26 pounds and with water and three days of food, my carry weight starting out was 23.76 pounds. It got lighter by 2 pounds every day (food eaten) until re-supply. I don't think you will need that expensive of equipment, but I could have saved weight by switching from a 55 ltr Hyperlite Windrider pack to a 45 ltr pack and switching from a Nemo Hornet 2 Tent to a Zpacs Duplex tent. I'll be happy to send my pack list, with costs, if you would like. I hope this helps.

when backpacking out of hunting season, my pack weighs about 10 -12 lbs w/o food/water (typically 1.5 lb/day for food and usually carry about 2.5 lbs of water)- pretty lightweight

for hunting- w/ a meat hauling pack, rifle, optics, ammo and on and on, it triples! but about as light as I can get it

I can go really light but it takes more research than what many do.

Example. I have a Kelty Cloud 6400. It is uncomfortable with a full meat load but it is the lightest pack of its type ever made. I once asked Kelty why they don't make them anymore and they told me that they would have to charge 2500.00 for them It weighs 2.1 lbs. It is fully dynema with dynama stitching. They cost about 900 dollars in the 1980s and 1990s.

I have a pair of Swarovski 10X25 CL Pockets. They can work to spot game. I also have a Vortex razor 11-33X50 with a slik 525cf tripod.

I have a harvest right and can make calorie loaded foods that taste better and have less sodium and msg than standards. Use Honey instead of powerbars. Electrolytes are good.
Alcohol stoves suck and don't work on the glacier. Better to just use soto odp with ignitor and titanium cup and large isobutane canister.

I have BA Flycreek UL 2 and its ok but not the best when it is raining. APex merino top, MH stretchdown jacket and then good windshirt for top and wind pants for bottoms.

I need to go to bed. Will add to this.

KC - I agree 100%. Like most everything else, I gack over equipment, try lots of stuff and have settled on my current pack and contents. I've learned alot from you and others, Brad has helped alot, and arrived at my nirvana mix of lightweight and comfort. I could save a 1lb or so on sleeping pad, another on a shelter, maybe cut off a few handles (kidding) but I'm not going to. I have a postage scale and have weighed everything, it's options, and multiples I have. I rotate a few things in/out depending on the situation but will likely never get the a 20 lb pack for 2-3 days. And I'm cool with that. I'm going to patent dehydrated water in the future to save more weight

H

I'm 54 years old now so I dropped 20 lbs by buying some light gear and I backpack in with a 60 lb pack now instead of 80 lbs! I decided to go lightweight but can't really consider it ultralight until I get it down to 50lbs

I set up for ultra light pack packing and had my wife's and my packs at 13#. It just wasn't as comfortable. First to go was our TarpTent, a great product but the vented lower walls and minimal vestibule was a deal killer, the single wall wasn't a problem on the few trips. We stepped up to a Nemo Dagger 2P and happily added the two pounds. Then my wife complained about only carrying a closed cell foam sheet for sitting and we added chairs, another two pounds. I got tired of the alcohol stove and my Whisperlite international and switched to a Jetboil with canister fuel. I weigh our packs before each trip and divide the weight equally, she's 21 years younger and never complains but last trip I notice we where heavy and found TWO books in her back for an overnight trip. Always carry whiskey and never beer, have found an instant coffee that is better than most restaurants, use Aqua Mira drops instead of a filter, no extra clothes except a pair of socks. But then I'm not hiking in during hunting season and only doing 2-4 day hikes when the temperature is 25 our above.

A super weight saver that I didn't think would work was our Duck Brand Window Seal material for a ground cloth. The light weight stuff hold up FAR better than I ever expected, is water proof, and folds up small than any other - forgive me if this is a well known item. https://www.duckbrand.com/products/weatherization/window-insulation-kits/indoor-84-in-x-120-in

I will, with rare exceptions, not trade comfort/convenience/effectiveness for weight. For example, on solo backpacking trips I regularly use a 6-man tipi rather than one of my lightweight tents or tarps. Why? I have made a subjective decision that the comfort and convenience is worth it to me. Ultralight is a subjective term for every individual, in my opinion. As objectively as I can state it, I would say that an ultralight setup is a setup that is as light as one can go without sacrificing effectiveness and utility.

More realistically stated, the above is what I tell myself to make myself feel better and to enable me to convince myself that my sacrifice was not stupid for any given regret.

"Define Ultra Light"

Weighing between "Super Duper Light" and "MEGA light."

Somebody posted a video of a guy who really into radical ultralight. He showed what he uses for a sleeping pad. It looked like a thin rubber sheet cut down to just long enough for shoulder to crotch. It might have added R1 of insulation but for padding it was a big 0.

There’s a thing called going too far, and not leaving a margin for error.

They’re usually highlighted in the coroner’s report.

^ I've always called it "stupid light"

That's what the extremists do. They take nothing for backup, zero. They calculate their food and water to the last sip or calorie. They won't take a stove, just food that can be eaten cold. No fire starter other than matches or a single lighter. No extra dry clothes. The goal isn't the hike or the scenery. It's all the game of getting it as light as possible. No thanks.

The last sentence is really funny 😁

Ultra Light is a point when your gear is no longer functional.

A pebble and maybe some moccasins.

The "Surviving a Cold Wet Night" thread has tips and insight on how ultra light I'm willing to go.

Went to Arctic Survival School at Eielson AFB, AK when it was -42* (at that temp, *F and *C are the same). We had a minimalist kit, but the necessary items were there.

Too little is too little.

BTDT