Packing list for first backpack hunt

[Wumbo]

For context, its January/December AZ hunt.
Here's what I've got so far:

https://lighterpack.com/r/jl4fv7

Any suggestions on how to make it lighter?
A few ideas I have so far are to get a lighter pair of boots, and to get lighter cordage.

 

[Drenalin]

How many days?

I probably wouldn't tote the Vaseline, or the hand sanitizer. Or the towel. You can get individually wrapped Dude Wipes or something like that and just carry a few depending on how long you'll be out. I pack one per day, and maybe drop one or two in my kill kit. That's a heavy med kit.

I use the Atwood reflective paracord. The 30 feet of it in my kill kit weighs about 3 ounces. Are you using the blade on your mutitool for everything? If so, may want to add a small sharpener.

You can get a Toaks pot for about $30 that will being your stove and pot down to half of what it is now. What is the 6.7 ounce Sawyer kit? Filter, bags, plunger, etc.? I have the micro filter and ditched everything that came with it. Put a sports cap on one of your Smartwater bottles to backflush the filter with, and you may want to consider a different bag for collecting dirty water - I hated the bags that came with the filter (hard to fill).

I'd probably ditch the polyester shirt and keep the merino.

All that would save you a pound and a half, roughly. You could drop a lot of weight in your sleep system, but that gets expensive really fast.

 

[Wumbo]

How many days?

I probably wouldn't tote the Vaseline, or the hand sanitizer. Or the towel. You can get individually wrapped Dude Wipes or something like that and just carry a few depending on how long you'll be out. I pack one per day, and maybe drop one or two in my kill kit. That's a heavy med kit.

I use the Atwood reflective paracord. The 30 feet of it in my kill kit weighs about 3 ounces. Are you using the blade on your mutitool for everything? If so, may want to add a small sharpener.

You can get a Toaks pot for about $30 that will being your stove and pot down to half of what it is now. What is the 6.7 ounce Sawyer kit? Filter, bags, plunger, etc.? I have the micro filter and ditched everything that came with it. Put a sports cap on one of your Smartwater bottles to backflush the filter with, and you may want to consider a different bag for collecting dirty water - I hated the bags that came with the filter (hard to fill).

I'd probably ditch the polyester shirt and keep the merino.

All that would save you a pound and a half, roughly. You could drop a lot of weight in your sleep system, but that gets expensive really fast.

My tentative plan now is for 3-5 days, but i could potentially go for over a week..might come back and break it into 2 sections. just trying not to bite off more than i can chew for my first solo backpacking trip

I could drop the hand sanitizer and use the wipes im already bringing.

I can definitely drop items from the medkit i.e. tourniquet but need some practice improvising first. Perhaps I could drop the chest seals since I have duct tape. Often times I carry the medkit for our group, but I am going solo so it could be slimmed down.

Ill have to check out the atwood reflective cord, I also saw someone suggest dyneema cord in another thread so Ill check that as well.

I'm planning on using the multitool to field dress for everything, any light sharpener you would recommend?

I'll keep the toaks in mind for future upgrade

The sawyer kit includes 2x bags, plunger, filter and the caps that came with. I use the sawyer squeeze. Ill ditch the extras and grab a different cap for my smart bottles. I have a water bladder at home, but its likely heavier than the 2 that come w the sawyer so i might just deal with them for now.

Ill ditch the polyester shirt

Maybe in the future I'll get a 1 man tent and upgrade to a quilt to drop some weight. Some of the stuff I bought used, discounted or was just within what i could spend at this time.

 

[Drenalin]

This is the sharpener I use. Looks like it's out of production, but really anything small and light. The trick with these kind of sharpeners is to use them to touch up your blade and never actually let it get dull. You should be able to get something adequate at BassPro or Walmart for less than $10.

The med kit is totally your call. If you know how to use what you're packing, and confident you can use it on yourself, then go for it. I have a little training from the military and about all I care to pack along is a compression bandage, a few bandaids, and some basic pills (Ibuprofen, Aspirin, Pepto chews, Benadryl, and Unisom (not for 1st aid)). There are lots of things that could happen to me that I'm not prepared for, and lots of things I could improvise a solution for.

That Stanley pot isn't double-walled, right?

I wouldn't make any expensive changes until you've done a few trips, even if you just go for three days at a time initially. You'll figure out what you like and don't like as you go. And I wouldn't make any major changes based on one guy's opinion on the interweb either. What works for me may not work for you, and vice versa. Hopefully you'll get some more feedback. Good luck this season!

 

[Wumbo]

This is the sharpener I use. Looks like it's out of production, but really anything small and light. The trick with these kind of sharpeners is to use them to touch up your blade and never actually let it get dull. You should be able to get something adequate at BassPro or Walmart for less than $10.

The med kit is totally your call. If you know how to use what you're packing, and confident you can use it on yourself, then go for it. I have a little training from the military and about all I care to pack along is a compression bandage, a few bandaids, and some basic pills (Ibuprofen, Aspirin, Pepto chews, Benadryl, and Unisom (not for 1st aid)). There are lots of things that could happen to me that I'm not prepared for, and lots of things I could improvise a solution for.

That Stanley pot isn't double-walled, right?

I wouldn't make any expensive changes until you've done a few trips, even if you just go for three days at a time initially. You'll figure out what you like and don't like as you go. And I wouldn't make any major changes based on one guy's opinion on the interweb either. What works for me may not work for you, and vice versa. Hopefully you'll get some more feedback. Good luck this season!

Yea its a tough judgement call w the med supplies, i'll have to ponder it some more.

It's a single walled stainless steel pot

I appreciate your feedback, thank you

 

[Cahunter805]

Very good suggestions already given and I for one would keep your med kit as is.
If you are taking 2 smart water bottles what is the Nalgene bottle for?

 

[Wumbo]

Very good suggestions already given and I for one would keep your med kit as is.
If you are taking 2 smart water bottles what is the Nalgene bottle for?

the plan was to have the nalgene to put hot water into to keep in my sleeping bag at night if its cold.

I've got a good idea where some perennial streams are in the area, but have never been so wanted the ability to have 3L of water capacity in case its sparser than I anticipate

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

the plan was to have the nalgene to put hot water into to keep in my sleeping bag at night if its cold.

I've got a good idea where some perennial streams are in the area, but have never been so wanted the ability to have 3L of water capacity in case its sparser than I anticipate

Been a very very dry year so you may want to have a backup plan for water. Also, where in AZ is your hunt? You may need to adjust clothing and/or sleeping gear.

 

[Wumbo]

Been a very very dry year so you may want to have a backup plan for water. Also, where in AZ is your hunt? You may need to adjust clothing and/or sleeping gear.

Good looking out. I'll bring some extra water at the truck and backtrack if I can't find any out there. If possible I'll scout it out in advance. It's one of the units just south of the rim

 

[Adammn]

It looks like you have a pretty good gear list and there isn't a whole lot I would change to make it lighter. However, I second AZ Hunter 2000 in regards to water and clothing.

I personally would have a larger water capacity. Springs, water tanks, and small streams you find on a map are often dry in the winter. Which will be even more likely this December/January due to the very dry year. I usually carry two days water capacity to keep from having to get water every day. Which for me, means 8 liters. Now, that doesn't mean I am carrying 8 liters for the pack-in. It just means that if I go filter water, I want to only have to do it every 2 to 3 days. I am not sure how far you will be from the truck. But hiking to the truck every day to get water will get old pretty quick if you are more than a couple miles away.

AZ often has great weather during the December/January hunts. With that being said, I recommend being prepared for a wide range of temps and weather conditions. Last December we were hunting at 4500-5000 feet. Daytime temps were in the 40s, night time temps were in the 20s, with some strong winds. Other years day time temps are 80+. So, I usually bring a pretty wide range of clothing and just leave what I don't need in the truck. Because being cold and wet has a way of kicking guys off the mountain in a hurry. Best of luck on your hunt, you will have a blast!

 

[Wumbo]

Update: I removed the inner from the tent and am gonna pitch it tarp only w/ a ground cloth that could double as a tarp for meat.


Replaced my heavy fleece jacket with a jacket half the weight


I tried on some shoes at REI and replaced my boots with some much lighter Altra’s


Replacing my pot with a smaller titanium toaks


I’m gonna leave my nalgene on the list for now to try heating water up in it at night and putting it in my sleeping bag, but can remove that for later trips to save weight.


Replacing my paracord with some lighter dyneema cord


Removed the heavy multi tool and switched to the two victorinox classic and little vicky paring knife


Haven’t cut down the medkit yet, but plan to

Also, need to reweigh sawyer kit without the extras


Overall approx savings of 7 pounds

 

[BBob]

Been backpack hunting AZ for a really long time. IMO opinion you could cut some weight on the med kit. I second the water issue. Super dry this year and even if it's not water is never reliable unless you've been there and know it's currently good. There are tons of springs on maps that haven't been any good in decades. Lots of cattle ponds are dried up this year too. Most of my areas I have to either pre-haul water and or shuttle in and out from the truck. Me personally I would never sleep on the ground out here without some sort of bug barrier. Too many friken scorpions, centipede's, tarantula's, etc... crawling around at night. I used to do it but damn creepy crawlies always woke me up crawling over my face. It's almost never cold enough even in January to need a hot water bottle at night. I can think of maybe two years out of decades where that might have been nice but I made it through without it just fine. I'll bet over 90% of the time I'm in a 40° bag with a good pad and I'm good.

 

[Wumbo]

Been backpack hunting AZ for a really long time. IMO opinion you could cut some weight on the med kit. I second the water issue. Super dry this year and even if it's not water is never reliable unless you've been there and know it's currently good. There are tons of springs on maps that haven't been any good in decades. Lots of cattle ponds are dried up this year too. Most of my areas I have to either pre-haul water and or shuttle in and out from the truck. Me personally I would never sleep on the ground out here without some sort of bug barrier. Too many friken scorpions, centipede's, tarantula's, etc... crawling around at night. I used to do it but damn creepy crawlies always woke me up crawling over my face. It's almost never cold enough even in January to need a hot water bottle at night. I can think of maybe two years out of decades where that might have been nice but I made it through without it just fine. I'll bet over 90% of the time I'm in a 40° bag with a good pad and I'm good.

Do you notice alot of insects out even during the colder months dec/jan?

 

[Nomadx2]

This is the Sharpener, had coarse & fine along with a diamond rod for serrated edge.

 

[BBob]

Do you notice alot of insects out even during the colder months dec/jan?

Absolutely. I spend most of my time out in the January archery season. Scorps, centipede's are out even when it gets down pretty chilly to cold. I do a lot of moving at night and that's where I mostly see them. I don't know how many times a scorpion has been crawling around me when I'm sitting eating dinner. If you ever take a black light out in this country you'd be amazed how many scorpions there are all over the place even in the middle of winter. It can vary on locale but I just count on them being out. My buddy still sleeps in his bag on the ground at times but I can't do it anymore, I need at least a light bivy. It's a lot mental for sure but I sleep better at night.

 

[Wumbo]

Absolutely. I spend most of my time out in the January archery season. Scorps, centipede's are out even when it gets down pretty chilly to cold. I do a lot of moving at night and that's where I mostly see them. I don't know how many times a scorpion has been crawling around me when I'm sitting eating dinner. If you ever take a black light out in this country you'd be amazed how many scorpions there are all over the place even in the middle of winter. It can vary on locale but I just count on them being out. My buddy still sleeps in his bag on the ground at times but I can't do it anymore, I need at least a light bivy. It's a lot mental for sure but I sleep better at night.

do you usually notice this in some of the lowland desert areas? I'll be around 6000ft in mixed juniper/pinyon and interspersed pine area

 

[BBob]

You'd be far less likely to have an issue in the JP's @ 6K. More of a problem lower in the oak woodland & mesquite areas.

 

[allenk]

Something to look at for water storage is the Hydrapak Seekers. Used my sawyer squeeze to fill it up on a goat hunt this year. Packs down real small when not full.

Seeker™ 3 L

The high-capacity Seeker 3L is a durable, ultra-light water storage bag backpacking, camping, and bikepacking.

hydrapak.com