Isle Royale Forums

Base pack weight and go !!!


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5lbs, 14 oz.

It's all the stuff I put in it that loads it down.

I've tried various UL packs, but darn, that Baltoro is so comfy and seems to be worth the extra weight, so I keep coming back to it.

Personally, I'm not an ounce counter, but do like to go for lighter gear when it's time for replacements... And often that just happens naturally because of advances in gear. For instance, I finally decided to retire my MSR International I've been carrying for over 20 years and just use it for edge of season trips/winter and switch to isobutane. Dang, my new Kovea Supalite Titanium (think SnowPeak) will drop some weight for me.

I tend to hike early or late season on the Isle, and so the extra warm gear keeps my pack weight a little higher than I may like. It feels like a pillow if I can start my first steps on the trail (with water, food, etc) at <30lbs, but that's not always the case.

All that said, the best way to drop 10 pounds off my trail weight will be to lose it from my middle.

I picked up a discontinued 50L Jansport pack a couple of years ago. It's very no frills, but weighs in at around 2.5 lbs. Depending on what I stuff in it, I'm between 30 &35 lbs with 5 days of food (and bourbon).

I'm sure I could go lighter if I dropped the kindle, upgraded my bag and left the chair behind.

I just picked up a Granite Gear Leopard VC 46 over the winter that weighs 2lbs 12 ozs. I'm hoping it's a little more comfortable at the end of the day than the Jansport pack.

I have an elemental Horizons Kalais. It weighs 31 oz. My base weight for three season hiking is about 14 lbs. I like the way this pack carries. It's similar to the better known ULA Catalyst.

"Dry" (sans water & food) about 14-15 lbs depending on season. I try to keep the total "wet" weight below 30 lbs. Then I carry this "spare tire" around the middle just for fun.

Dry, summer 12 pounds. cold +6, winter 7 more. Fully loaded for 2 weeks on the island in June, close to 65.