[pct-l] Ultralight as a must?

[CJ & Cristy Miller]

Stefan,
 
Uncle Tom is right, replace/remove gear as you go.  The terrain & weather will vary 
so you'll often need to add & remove items, and for certain UL shouldn't be intimidating.  
Mostly because, you have to be comfortable, able to rest & sleep, and carry on the next day.  
If that requires you to take on an extra few pounds then go for it.
 
From my experience here is how I (we) approach it:
I have an old Kelty pack that is familiar and comfortable.
I know where everything fits and clips and stores.
It is a heavier pack but, it is comfortable for me
We (my wife) has a REI flash pack.
It is great, weighing just over 2lbs.
and easily accommodates her gear
with space for our shared gear
(tent/pole/pots/stove - however we split that up)
It is sturdy and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend
the flashpack.  That will save a little weight.
 
On the heavy side:
We like our tent(s). Depending on where we're hiking and for how
long we'll often times bring our 3person, just to have a bit more
room on the longer trips.  Which may sound a little backwards from
what we should do (smaller tent, less weight on longer trips). Oh well,
we get well rested and the difference between the two tents is about 1.3lbs.
Worth it to us!
 
On the lighter side:
I have a friend I hike with that has the UL setup pretty well.
We're in Oregon so it works to have a hammock/hammock tent
setup.  He loves it and the hammock tent setup he has can work
just as a bivy tent.
In addition, he doesn't cook, which I always have trouble reconciling
after a couple days but, to his credit he is fine & comfortable with
that approach and, his baseweight is nearly 5lbs lighter than my pack.
We haven't weighed and compared exactly but, county lbs
at camp and walking the trail, it seems to be around 4 and maybe up 5lbs.
 
To summarize though, you have to do what is comfortable for you/both.
And that is likely to change, hence the bounce box.  Get your prep/test hikes
in and see how it feels and begin learning what extras you have that you can
get rid of.  That will usually add up to a lb.or so.
Of course, hike your own hike, be comfortable and enjoy the experience!
Best to you both!
 
 
 
Stefan Rinnert stefanrinnert at googlemail.com 
Sat Sep 29 04:48:41 CDT 2012 
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________________________________

Dear all,

somehow we are a bit confused about the gear we are planning to take with
me for the pct-hike. we thought we had found the "right way" for us, but
this UL-thing keeps coming back into our minds. we'll hike as a couple and
therefore are able to share some weight/gear. beside our packs (osprey
aether 70 and ariel 65, each 4 - 4,5 lbs; both packs that fit our expected
needs, and our tent which weighs little less than 4 lbs) we try to keep the
total gear weight very low and aim to reach a total of round about 14-18
lbs excluding pack (empty), food and water. since the PCT-community in
germany is from non existing to not so big, we feel somehow helpless and
intimidated by this "ultralite monstrum". Beyond, we cannot assess the
impact of weight+ total distance.
alltogether, the chosen gear might be a result of cautiuosness: tent as
protection against insects, snakes and the "heavy" backpack due to health
considerations even though we`re 24&26 and
 fit :)

we're thankful for suggestions, comments and experiences!

regards,

stefan