Weighing In

[Pilgrim]

Many health and fitness professionals agree that one of the best things you can do to help get your daily caloric intake in check is to record everything you put into your mouth. If you've never done this, it works.

Have you ever itemized and weighed everything in your pack?

I'd say a large number of the folks reading this have done this before or include it as part of your 6 Ps (Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance). Three nights ago, I sat down on the living room floor while my wife, Becky, watched one of her shows and committed to this endeavor. If you have never taken up this task, it is meticulous and somewhat time-consuming. I even took the opportunity to weigh different pack/frame combos. Becky took the opportunity to candidly point out, "Your packs are no different than my purses." Dang... pretty sure she got me there.

I'm not an 'ounce-counter,' per se, but HOLY CRAP, BATMAN! I realized just how easy it is to get all packed up, throw your bow on, maybe a little camera gear, and come in on the scale at 50-60lb for a 3 day hunt, very easy. It is also very easy to stand there, look at your pack and think, "Well, that's as light as I can get." Both of those instances have been me for about five years. Performing this weigh-in has shown me how easy it is to be wrong. Until you physically inventory and weigh everything you put in your pack, you don't actually know as well as you might think.

I don't go so far as to weigh each battery and tylenol but, for instance, I pack my first aid and survival gear in a red Walmart ditty sack. This came in at 17.8oz. I questioned myself, "WTF did I put in there?!" I swapped out the extra alkaline AA batteries for lithium (meant to do that a long time ago), trimmed where I was comfortable trimming, and got it down to 15oz. Wait, does that make me an ounce counter? Crap, what kind of habit have I developed here? Also, just seeing it on paper helps differentiate the 'wants' from the 'needs.' It's fine to take some wants, but having that distinct knowledge can be useful.

I leave my home in the Missouri Ozarks in one week bound for the Colorado Rockies to execute OPORD 2015 DIY OTC elk. White Wizard and Bear are coming with me and we will meet up with my long-time friend armyjoe. There's a decent chance plans will FRAGO and I will need to be able to adapt accordingly for various factors - known or unknown. Readily knowing off-hand what's in my pack that I can ditch without actually impacting the hunt is a GREAT feeling. Also, knowing I've applied personally unprecedented effort in my 6 Ps is a confidence boost.

I thought this personal epiphany was worth sharing. If you've never taken the time for this, I do recommend without hesitation. Good luck in your pursuits! Wear the title, 'Hunter,' proudly and remember to always convey a positive example of us in all your endeavors!

Happy trails,
-Casey

 

[Archerm]

I never really did till I hit the big 50. I really never cared when I was younger. Once I hit 50 I FELT in my BONES , it was time to do some revamping including food and all the junk I was packing and not ever using. I also finally broke down and slowly traded in all the heavy gear for some better lighter gear. Since then I have been a bean counter and have dropped over 12 lbs from my 7 day total pack weight. I am still finding ways to drop ounces from the over all weight. I dropped 8 ounces alone this year by switching all my kit pouches, stuff sacks etc to Cuben fiber stuff sacks. I know it doesn't sound like much but I am sure the 50+ crowd appreciates a 8 oz loss!!
Now every year when season is over I dump everything in my pack on floor and ask myself what can I get rid of or change before next year. Lots of stuff goes in the dungeon never to be seen again!!

 

[Pilgrim]

Well, Archerm, it's all guys like me can do to capitalize on such wisdom. I've gathered that a great way to drop another few pounds is to graduate to traditional archery equipment. That'll be a few years down the road for me though!

 

[MuleyFever]

I'm not an 'ounce-counter,' per se, but HOLY CRAP, BATMAN! I realized just how easy it is to get all packed up, throw your bow on, maybe a little camera gear, and come in on the scale at 50-60lb for a 3 day hunt, very easy.

I think some of us are just wired different. For a 3 day hunt I cant even think of what I would have to pack to be at 50 lbs let alone 60.

 

[William Hanson (live2hunt)]

Never counted ounces. Never weighed everything. I need to just haven't bothered. My pack weight came in at 54 lbs w/ water but not my bow for 6 days last year. My biggest weight cut will probably be food, I came back with 6+ lbs as I have no appetite at altitude.

 

[Pilgrim]

Indeed, MuleyFever, we are all different. Those figures include: my bow is attached, camera gear stowed, and dependent upon how much water I need to pack. I once had to pack 10 liters because I couldn't count on water being there. My base load with 2 liters of water and food (no bow on pack, no camera gear packed) is about 38lb. I could definitely go for a couple key upgrades.

 

[Eagle]

I'm currently going through this myself. I've been on many backpacking trips up to 10 days in length in the Rockies and never had a pack over 35 pounds, all up including all consumables, and I'm generally in the 25-30 pound range. My pack weight for my upcoming Wyoming Mule Deer Hunt is currently sitting at just over 46 pounds with 8 days worth of food and weapon included, and then I'll have another 6 pounds of gear and clothing on myself for the hike in.

I was already a minimalist, ounce/gram counter from my backpacking days, but there is a great deal of specialized gear that goes into a hunt that isn't required on a fishing/backpacking trip that it adds up quickly. My kill kit, weapon and optics are the biggest differences in weight, and there's just not much I can do with those areas to cut weight, especially optics (11-33 razor spotter, 10x42 zeiss binos and a sirui t-025x tripod).

 

[gelton]

This is my fourth year backpack hunting and the first year to weigh my pack and I came in at 54lbs for 7 days including food and water. With my bow I expect to be right above 60lbs.

 

[gmajor]

Like many of you I came from a backpacking background, so weight is something I'm always paying attention to. Hunting trips certainly add more weight with game bags, contractor bag(s), saw, fixed blade, extra batteries for headlamp and gps and a tiny backup headlamp, seasonings, citric acid, etc etc...things I often wouldn't bother with on a backpacking trip.

Last year for an 8 day trip I was at 37lbs with 3 liters of water and w/o weapon. I expect to be around that this year. Going to only carry two liters on the way in (plenty of water) but added a tripod and panhead (it was a touch decision weight wise but I think it will really pay off).

 

[elkyinzer]

I weigh total pack, but not individual items. My base spike camp pack for archery elk is around 35 pounds and then I figure about 1.5-2 pounds of food/comfort items/day.

I don't have much premium gear and generally don't like the flimsy design of much of the ultralight stuff anyway not to mention the prices. What always throws my pack from the realm of comfort is that I always try to keep at least 4-6 liters of water because I'm rather paranoid of dehydration due to getting migraines. The water adds up fast at 2.2 lbs/liter.

 

[Pilgrim]

I don't have much premium gear and generally don't like the flimsy design of much of the ultralight stuff anyway..

I hear that.

 

[Dos Perros]

I created a itemized list/spreadsheet in Google Docs. From my basic list I created other sheets and prioritized what gear to buy by analyzing increased functionality and $/oz saved. It was pretty great to see how much stuff I could get that would come in less than $5/oz saved. The items that are higher than that are big ticket type items like sleeping bag, sleeping pad, etc. I also have lists for things I might not absolutely need, like an extra tent stake or two (heck my tarp could probably work missing a few stakes anyway). I have lists of contingency items based on weather reports. If cold, pack this...if wet, pack this, if gone for more than 4 days, pack this, ...etc etc. I have prioritized which meals to eat first, consuming the heavier ones (calories per ounce) first and the lighter ones last. I have estimated and calculated my battery needs, analyzed the utility of a solar charger, and the most weight efficient way of keeping equipment running.

If you couldn't tell, I'm an engineer.

 

[tttoadman]

I created a itemized list/spreadsheet in Google Docs. From my basic list I created other sheets and prioritized what gear to buy by analyzing increased functionality and $/oz saved. It was pretty great to see how much stuff I could get that would come in less than $5/oz saved. The items that are higher than that are big ticket type items like sleeping bag, sleeping pad, etc. I also have lists for things I might not absolutely need, like an extra tent stake or two (heck my tarp could probably work missing a few stakes anyway). I have lists of contingency items based on weather reports. If cold, pack this...if wet, pack this, if gone for more than 4 days, pack this, ...etc etc. I have prioritized which meals to eat first, consuming the heavier ones (calories per ounce) first and the lighter ones last. I have estimated and calculated my battery needs, analyzed the utility of a solar charger, and the most weight efficient way of keeping equipment running.

If you couldn't tell, I'm an engineer.

That's funny. I just thinking we have so much in common in our thought process. One of my most interesting checks was to put a wt burden /day for the stove fuel and utensils. It is easy to see that packing a stove loses alot of efficiency the fewer days in the field, thus driving my cal/oz down for my food load.

I love using my list. My weights are accurate to where I hit the actual on my back within a pound most times. It really just helps me choose for the conditions, and not miss anything.

 

[twall13]

I created a spreadsheet and did this a couple of years ago for the first time and it was eye opening. I've always weighed my end pack weight and thought I couldn't easily get it much lower than that. Weighing individual items not only helped me see a few things that might not be necessary, but really showed me some of the items that needed to be upgraded. First was my sleeping system as I was using an old military sleep system that I dropped about 4 pounds from by switching to a down quilt (which actually fits my body better anyway). Next was the realization that the old modified ALICE pack I had been using for years weighed over 9 pounds. Sure that thing is pretty bomb proof but when I switched to an EXO 3500 I dropped over 4 Lbs. and have a MUCH more comfortable pack now. Those two items were the biggest weight savers for me, over 8 lbs savings in 2 items... It seems to be a never ending process now and I've become something of a gear addict trying to get the lightest, best gear I can. Sometimes I have to give myself a reality check and remember that I hunted for years with my old, heavy stuff, and while I'm more comfortable with my new gear, I can still have a lot of fun with the old stuff as long as it gets me in the field.

 

[IChaseCoues]

Wow, a few of you have taken the once counting to a new level of analysis! Care to share your spreadsheets? I'm curious how my stuff does as I'm just getting done with the latest gear revamp and will be weighing a bunch of it in the next couple days for a week fly in hunt.

 

[tttoadman]

Wow, a few of you have taken the once counting to a new level of analysis! Care to share your spreadsheets? I'm curious how my stuff does as I'm just getting done with the latest gear revamp and will be weighing a bunch of it in the next couple days for a week fly in hunt.

PM me with an email address, and I will send you mine.
I just happened to sitting here in my office surfing Rokslide instead of working.

 

[sodaksooner]

Most of my stuff is reasonably light so I don't worry about it. I am not an ounce, or even a lb counter, but I do look at Manufacturers weights when I buy and try and pick the lighter options.

I am certainly not cutting the handle off my toothbrush, but I will take a travel size tube of toothpaste.

 

[tttoadman]

Most of my stuff is reasonably light so I don't worry about it. I am not an ounce, or even a lb counter, but I do look at Manufacturers weights when I buy and try and pick the lighter options.

I am certainly not cutting the handle off my toothbrush, but I will take a travel size tube of toothpaste.

So these things would be weird?
1. File the ridges down on the toothpaste cap.
2. Squeeze all of it out except just enough to brush for the number of days you are going to gone?

These are the first 2 thoughts that went through my mind when you said travel size toothpaste. I think I need help.
Don't get carried away with it. A functional sheet is just a gear list with some added info. I think everyone should work from a gear list no matter what.

Crap.......someone's coming.......I need to get back to work.

 

[Pilgrim]

Crap.......someone's coming.......I need to get back to work.

This has been me for the last two weeks... Who am I kidding, two months!

 

[Manosteel]

I weight all my gear. Have a spread sheet that has everything I own. When I go scouting or hunting I just click on what I am taking in the appropriate category and get my wieghts , total and for each sub category. I use the list to make sure I take what I need for each trip. I don't always take the lightest options, my pad is wider than most and is 22oz but sure is comfy. I always take a micro Lantern on trips longer than 2 nights and will sometimes double up on items to test (scouting trips).

So for me weighing my gear is more than just trying to get light, it helps me track my usage, reminds me to bring what I need for that particular trip and keeps track of what I have.