[at-l] Re: what do you carry in your pack

[krk@speakeasy.org (Kenneth Knight)]

i've got a feeling you'll be needing some custom gear. The backpack may be the toughest to get to
fit well. GVPGear <www.gvpgear.com> will do custom work. ULA <http://www.ula-equipment.com/> will
also do special orders. I've not tried the ULA gear but it's getting tested by people on
BackpackingGearTest (a yahoo hosted group - <groups.yahoo.com>) and inital reports are quite
positive for the P1 pack. The GVP G4 packs, if you can get one to fit you (remember torso length is
the important thing), can be quite comfortable too.

For sleeping bags your choices could be limited. There are certainly child sleeping bags out there,
but I'm not sure how good they are. The best bags from people like Western Mountaineer, Feathered
Friends, and more recently Nunatak are all very good. WM doesn't really do speacialty work, but they
do make som 5'6" bags that'd be more than ample. However, if I were you I'd get in touch with
Nunatak <www.nunatakusa.com> and talk with them. The Arc Alpinst is a quilt that you secure to your
sleeping pad with straps and it is exceptionally warm. You could get a short model (say 5' though
maybe a bit longer wouldn't hurt) that'd be more than warm enough and even if you got lots of
overfill it'd only weigh 16-18 ounces (I'd suggest 5" baffles instead of the standard 10"). 

For a stove consider one of the very efficicent alchol stoves like Don Johnston's Photon Stove. It's
among the lightest and most efficient out there.

Clothing. There are many good companies out there these days. Some of the smaller places will do
custom work. 

I've discussed some gear choices on my website (address in signature).

  ** Ken **
  
On 1/26/02 at 1:55 PM, Rhw1214@aol.com wrote:

> i am planning my first thru hike in 2003.  as i try to figure everything out, 
> i want to know what other people's gear lists look like.  i am on the very 
> small side ( 4 ft. 10 inch, about 87 lbs.).  so i obviously need to keep my 
> pack light.  very very light!  any advice appreciated.  thanks!----regan

**  Kenneth Knight    Web Design, IT Consultant, Software Engineer  **
**       krk@speakeasy.org        http://www.speakeasy.org/~krk     **