[pct-l] Pack and body weight perspective

[Douglas Tow]

A pack's weight for any given hiker will vary widely from section to
section, even day to day, as specialized equipment (such as an ice axe and
microspikes) is taken on or shed, food supplies rise and fall with resupply
and consumption, and water is taken on.  One day, my pack varied by 15
pounds, as I took on 8 liters of water and ended up with less than one.

Make sensible choices about what you take and what you leave behind.  Yes,
you can have an ultralight sleeping bag, but that two pounds less may cost
you many hundreds of dollars.  Don't try to save the weight of an umbrella
in the desert.  If the lack of hot coffee in the morning will drive you off
the trail, choose water heating equipment that works for you.

For your own sanity, try not to stress too much about weights and ratios.
I daresay more folks leave the trail because they miserable from reasons
other than those relating to pack weight.  I intentionally carry some
creature comfort extra weight in the form of a Neo Air mattress and full
fly enclosed tent and a JetBoil, but oh, they prevent lots of physical
misery, for me anyway.....

Chipmunk