Intro

Part survival, part comfort, and part showing off to your buddies, these are the backpacking essentials you will need for your next overnight backpacking trip into the wilderness. This list encompasses 2 major categories: base gear and consumables that you will need on a typical backpacking trip.

We will go over each category, some gear options within that category, why you need it, and my personal recommendation for gear that I have found to work best for me (some of those may be affiliate links, affiliate links mean that if you click it and purchase an item, I may get a small portion of the sale to help support the content on the website, any support you can give is much appreciated). This will already be a very long post so I will also post separate ‘how to’ articles on each category/item that I will link to as soon as they are done.

There are likely hundreds of options for each gear category listed below and equally as many exceptions depending on how long your adventure is, how many are in your party, the season, location of your trip, and any wild card personal items you may need such as prescription medications.

I am always happy to discuss and help you plan out if you have questions - reach out to me and we'll figure it out together.

Base Gear

Backpack

Item: Backpack

Used for: Carrying all of your gear

Big Guy Recommendation: Osprey Exos 48L, Osprey Aether 70L

If you want to go backpacking, you are going to need a backpack. This pack needs to do 2 things: hold all of your equipment and fit you body fit reasonably well. For your general backpacking needs, you should look for a basic pack that is not designed for any specific niche such as 'climbing' or 'ultralight backpacking'.

Click HERE to Read More About What Backpack You Should Buy

Requirement 1 - hold your stuff - Before you go and buy a pack, read the rest of this list fully and gather all the equipment that you will need, measure how much space it takes up, and then go purchase a pack that will fit the gear that you have. If you buy the pack first you will fill it up, no matter how big it is or worse find out that it is not big enough to carry all your essentials.

Most backpacks, like soda bottles, use liters as a measure of volume. For 3 season backpacking (spring-fall) I use a 48L pack and for the winter I use a 70L pack.

BGB Tip: In this example, when measuring, include the most equipment you plan on bringing and buy the larger pack if you can only get one. you can always take items out of your load in warmer months.

In addition to gross volume of the pack, you should consider the size of your largest items (likely you shelter or sleeping insulation). Even if they should fit based on total volume, depending on their packed dimensions they may not and a different size or different design of pack may suit your needs best.

Requirement 2 - fit your body and be comfortable - Comfort may seem like a luxury though it is the key to an enjoyable backpacking experience. Packs, like other clothing items, come in different designs and sizes. The size of your waist, chest, torso, and relative geometry of all three will impact how the pack fits you. It is highly recommended that you go to a store to try on the pack before you purchase it to ensure it fits properly. Even then, shopping at a store like REI with a focus on consumer experience and generous return policy will be helpful because even if it feels good in the store, once on the trail for a few days you may think differently.

Shelter

Item: Hammock, Tent, Tarp, Bivy

Used for: Shelter while resting

Big Guy Recommendation: Hammock: Warbonnet Blackbird XLC, Tent: REI Halfdome series, Tarp: Hyperlite Mountain Gear FLAT TARP; Outdoor Research Alpine Bivy

Your shelter is one of the most important pieces of gear that you will carry. You can go without food for weeks, without water for days, but one night of exposure is enough to kill you. There are generally four kinds of shelters that you can carry with you while backpacking: a tent, a hammock, a bivy, or a tarp. In addition, some longer trails like the Appalachian Trail may have lean-to shelters available for use at various way points though if you plan on using them, you should still bring a bivy or tarp just in case they are full, not in good condition, or you get stuck somewhere between them for reasons unforeseen.

Tents

A tent is the most common and recognizable camping/backpacking shelter that people know about. A full tent setup will include the tent itself, a rain fly if it is a 2 piece tent (recommended for best ventilation), a footprint, guy lines, tent poles, and stakes.

BGB Tip: Unless you are mountaineering or plan on setting up camp in an exposed area with high wind, you can likely leave the guy lines and stakes at home.

Tents are generally sized by the number of people you can fit in them. This number literally means people so if you want to keep your gear in the tent with you, look up the actual square footage of the tent to determine the size you will need. Backpacking tents, unlike car camping or base camping tents are designed for maximum protection and the minimum of weight so you likely won't be able to fully stand up or even change clothes inside them very easily.

Pros: Max protection against rain and wind, easier to setup and breakdown, better value, can accommodate more than 1 person

Cons: Heavier than other options, requires flat ground, requires larger area/footprint

Gear Recommendation: REI Half Dome series

Hammocks

Hammock camping has gained a lot of popularity in the last several years. In fact, it is my preferred shelter type. A complete hammock setup will include the hammock itself, a suspension system, a bugnet, a tarp, a top cover or sock, a ridgeline, guylines, and stakes. Like the tent, depending on where you are going, you can likely leave the stakes at home and instead tie off the guy lines to trees or nearby rocks.

When looking into different hammocks you should consider a few things. Unlike tents, almost all hammocks are designed for 1 person with the height and weight of that person in mind. When shopping around, ensure that you are looking at a hammock and suspension system that will support your height and weight. If you are smaller or lighter, you should still look into height and weight ratings as the lower the rating usually means the system will be lighter (and lighter is better when backpacking). You should also look into the design of the hammock, mostly whether it is asymmetrical or not.

BGB tip: Believe it or not, there is a technique to sleeping in a hammock. When laying in it, you should not align the center of you body to the center line of the tarp but rather lie slightly askew to one side. This will prevent you from sliding into the middle of the hammock at night provide a ‘flatter’ lay.

I recommend asymmetrical hammocks as they are designed with this technique in mind and make the experience much more comfortable. You can purchase good, complete hammock kits from companies link ENO but for most asymmetrical setups you will need to purchase each item separately.

When building out a kit yourself, always start with the hammock/suspension system first. It should fit your height and weight and since you'll likely be posting it to instagram, a color/pattern you like as well.

Next, look to see if the hammock has an integrated bugnet/top cover or not. Unless you like waking up with mosquito and fly bites all over, I suggest you bring one with you when you are in an area with a lot of flying insect activity.

BGB tip: if you are hiking somewhere with enough trees to use your hammock, there will likely be flying insect activity

If the hammock has an integrated bug net then you are all set, if not you can get one that will hang on your ridge-line (will explain what this is shortly) and surround your hammock separately. A top cover or sock is similar to the integrated bug net/bug net for colder weather conditions. These replace the bug net and are not used for insect protection but rather for helping conserve heat. The top cover will integrate (likely zip) into your hammock and replace the bug net that was zipped in but only the area by your face will have mesh to allow proper ventilation (yes, you can get CO poisoning while camping). The sock, like the non-integral bug net will surround the entire hammock with only mesh by your face. Both offer additional protection from the wind and help the other insulation you have work even better.

There are pros and cons to an integrated vs. not. Integrated is that an integrated system is easier to setup and take down though when not needed it adds extra weight and makes it harder to use the hammock to just hang out in. Overall I prefer an integrated system.

After you have your hammock picked out, you will need to decide on a suspension system. There are 3 types of suspension systems: whoopie slings, cinch buckles, or atlas straps. Whoopie slings are the lightest weight option though have the lowest weight rating (I do not use them). Cinch buckles (what I use) offer a balance of adjust ability and strength. Atlas straps are the most resilient and idiot proof suspension option they are the hardest to setup/take down and adjust the angle of your hammock. I won’t go into detail here but having the proper hammock angle is critical to a comfortable night's sleep.

Once you have your hammock and decided on a suspension system you will need a tarp. As with everything backpacking, they come in several varieties that mostly trade between: protection, weight, and cost. They range in style from ‘house’ type tarps that surround the hammock completely and offer the most protection at the expense of weight to bikini style tarps that are lighter weight and easy to setup but don’t offer as much protection if there is a lot of weather and/or the wind direction is changing constantly.

The yellow line above the tarp is the ridge-line

The other factor in addition to style and size that you need to consider is tarp material. The most common material used in tarps is nylon (Silnylon - Silicone Impregnated Nylon, Ripstop Nylon, PU coated Ripstop Nylon, etc) in various weights or denier such as 30D, 70D. Depending on the denier and specific nylon type, the tarp will provide more (more material at a higher Denier) or less protection (less material at a lower Denier), generally at the expense of being lighter or heavier.

There is another popular tarp material Cuben Fiber also known as Dyneema Composite Fabric (DCF) that offers a high level of protection at a very low weight, but at the cost of being significantly more expensive. If you are just starting out, there are much cheaper ways to lower the weight of you pack and I don’t recommend investing in a DCF tarp unlit you have the rest of your system dialed in and you are committed to using a hammock as your primary shelter option.

The nature of the trips you plan on going on will determine the tarp you choose. If you are just starting out I recommend a general style tarp (not a full ‘house’ nor ‘bikini’) made of Silnylon that can be used well enough in most situations and is not overly heavy or expensive.

Lastly, in order to hold up and keep your tarp, bugnet, and/or sock in place over your hammock, you will need a ridgeline, guylines, and some stakes. A ridgeline is a line that goes between the 2 trees your hammock is also attached to and holds the tarp above your hammock like an A frame.

BGB Tip: Any rope can work though I recommend a continuous ridgeline like this one to make setup as easy as possible.

Once your ridgeline is setup and tarp attached, you will need as many guy lines (yes they are called ‘guy lines’ not guidelines) as you have tie out points and as many stakes as you have guy lines. These, working together, will keep the tarp open and prevent you from touching it during bad weather. Touching a wet tarp from the inside can cause the water to more easily saturate the tarp and leach through.

Pros: Don’t need flat ground, more comfortable

Cons: Harder to set up, requires trees, more expensive

Gear Recommendation: Warbonnet Blackbird XLC, cinch buckles, continuous ridgeline, Warbonnet Thunderfly Tarp

Bivy

If this is the first time you have heard of a bivy, don’t worry, most people have not before getting into backpacking. A bivy is very similar to a test but is designed to be as small and light as possible as only provide a protective outer layer to your sleeping insulation. A full bivy set up usually only has 2 components: the bivy itself and 1 small pole to keep the bivy off of your face. Bivys are used as backup shelters for hikers who plan on using pre-made shelters such as AT lean-to’s or those who are looking to be as light as possible on shorter trips. They are generally not used by through hikers as primary shelter or for longer trips because when there are days that you need to stay sheltered or want to stay sheltered, cos-playing a mummy all day long is not the most fun thing in the world. When picking up a bivy, you should look into its weather ratings (how waterproof, wind proof etc. and size to ensure you sleep system and you can fit inside.

Pros: Lightweight, Wasy to set up

Cons: No shelter for gear, Can really only sleep in them

Gear Recommendation: Outdoor Research Alpine Bivy

Tarp

Most people think of tarps as the large blue things that they use to cover the boat they don't use or a stack of firewood. Tarps, in fact, are essentially just the rainfly from your tent or Hammock, designed to be used as shelter on its own. Many are made from the ultralight Dyneema Composite Fabric (DCF) I referenced earlier and use trekking poles rather than free standing poles for support. Tarps are popular with ultralight and through hikers as they are lightweight, fast to set up AND offer enough room to hang out, cook, and take shelter when resting.

BGB tip: There’s nothing worse than having to cook in the rain.

While it may seem like the ideal solution, many weekend warriors shun them because they do not offer full protection from the wind, weather, or bugs and require you to sleep directly on the ground but for your sleeping pad. After several trips this will not seem as outrageous as it might right now if you are just getting started but for many who are looking for at least some feeling of comfort and security at night in the dark woods, the benefits of lightweight tarp shelters do not outweigh the costs and relative lack of protection. That said, if you do use one, fellow backpackers will be sure to acknowledge your badassness.

Pros: Lightweight, easy to set up, takes up very little pack space, more room to chill

Cons: Less protection from nature, expensive

Gear Recommendation: Hyperlite Mountain Gear Flat Tarp

Sleeping Insulation

Item: sleeping bag, sleeping pad, underquilt, topquilt

Used for: insulation while sleeping/resting

Big Guy Recommendation: Hammock: Warbonnet Wooki® Underquilt 20, Warbonnet Stock Diamondback Topquilt (Zip Footbox) 20, Tent: REI Co-op Igneo 25 Sleeping Bag, Pad: NEMO Tensor Alpine Air Pad

The ability to get a good night's sleep on the trail will depend a lot on the sleeping insulation that you are using. Too much, too little or not the right kind and you will find yourself wishing for the sun to come up. The 2 types of sleeping insulation you will need are ‘Top’ insulation in the form of a sleeping bag or top quilt and bottom insulation in the form of a bottom quilt or sleeping pad to compensate for the compressed or nonexistent insulation you are laying on.

BGB Tip: Sleeping bags keep you warm by trapping air that your body then heats up. This trapped hot air then helps maintain your body temperature. Because of this, if you compress the insulation, there is no room to trap air and that part of the insulation is useless.

First, you should select the appropriate insulation types. If you are in a tent, bivy, or tarp, you should select either a top quilt or sleeping bag and a sleeping pad. If you are in a hammock, you can use any combination of sleeping bag or top quilt and sleeping pad or underquilt. If you only have 1 setup and you plan on tent/bivy/tarp and hammock camping: a sleeping bag and sleeping pad is the best choice as it will be the most flexible setup. A top quilt and bottom quilt setup will provide the most comfortable and lightest option for hammock sleeping but will provide no bottom insulation if you are not suspended.

Regardless of whether you go sleeping bag or top quilt, both are rated by temperature, size, and gender.

BGB tip: women's bags are cut to allow more room in the hips and mens are cut to have more room at the shoulders though pick they bag that fits you best regardless of whether it is marketed as a mens or womens bag.

Lastly, sleeping insulation is usually made from 1 of 2 kinds of insulating material. Synthetic polyester insulation or natural goose down. Synthetic insulation does not pack down as much so it takes up more space in your pack but it also usually maintains most of its insulating properties when wet. It is also cheaper than goose down bags. Down bags compress much further and when dry offer greater insulating value/weight. Though, as will most everything else backpacking related, lighter weight = more money.

Sleeping Bag

Generally a 40F degree bag is good for warmer seasons like the end of spring, summer and the beginning of fall, a 20F degree bag will mostly for spring, summer, or fall and a 0F degree or lower rated bag will be necessary for winter (but will be too warm for much else). If you can only have 1 bag, I recommend a 20F degree bag. If it is too warm, you can always open it up to vent but will also allow you to be comfortable in the colder early spring and late fall nights. When looking at temperature ratings, be sure that the number you are looking at is the comfort rating not the limit rating. Some bags will advertise the lower limit rating which means it will keep you alive at that temperature but you won't be comfortable.

Pros: Many options, wide variety of price points, stays put with active sleepers

Cons: heavier, hard to get into in hammock/small tent

Gear Recommendation: REI Co-op Igneo 25 Sleeping Bag

Top Quilt

A top quilt, as the name suggests, goes on top of you when sleeping. It is essentially a sleeping bag with the bottom part cut out where a zipper would normally go. The end is still sewn together to help keep you feet warm in what is known as a ‘foot box’ The advantage of a top quilt when sleeping in any of the shelters I’ve described is weight reduction. Even in a sleeping bag, the part of the bag that you are sleeping on has almost no insulting properties, so by removing that insulation, the top quilt reduces weight while still retaining all the effective insulation. Since the bottom is removed, they often do not come with a mummy style head cover so bring a hat if your head gets cold at night.

So, why don’t more people use top quilts? I am not sure other than the major manufacturers and retail outlets do not carry them. If you want one you will likely have to buy from a specialist shop and pay a premium. The only person who should not use one is a very active sleeper. The bag will contain you but the quilt will not so you may wake often at night to fix it.

Pros: Lighter, more freedom of movement

Cons: expensive, no head insulation, does not contain active sleepers

Gear Recommendation: Warbonnet Stock Diamondback Topquilt (Zip Footbox) 20

Under-Quilt

Bottom quilts are the counterpart to the top quilt and provide bottom insulation for you when sleeping in a hammock. Instead of being rigid or inflatable to not compress under your body weight like a pad, they go on the underside of your hammock. So it goes top quilt, you, hammock, bottom quilt. Since you are laying on the hammock, the bottom quilt is not compressed and therefore can pride insulation.

Bottom quilts are also rated like sleeping bags and top quilts. You should look to match the temperature rating of the top quilt or bag you are using. When looking at bottom quits, especially for asymmetrical hammocks, ensure that the cut of the under quilt will fit the design of your hammock for the quilt to work optimally. For example, my recommended hammock and underquilt are made by the same manufacturer to be perfectly compatible with each other if you use the hammock as intended with ‘head left, feet right’ while sleeping.

If you plan on only having 1 setup for sleeping insulation and you won’t be exclusively hammock camping, sleeping pads in hammocks also work for bottom insulation and also for other shelter types. You should start with the pad and when you have the funds, get a bottom quilt as well.

Pros: Best hammock insulation option

Cons: Hammock specific, more expensive than sleeping pad

Gear Recommendation: Warbonnet Wooki® Underquilt 20

Sleeping Pad

Sleeping pads are also used for bottom insulation and unlike bottom quilts will work in almost any situation. Sleeping pads come in 2 main varieties, closed cell foam and inflatable. Closed cell foam pads are cheaper and more reliable since they can't pop. Inflatable pads can pack down smaller while still offering a higher R value (how insulating the pad is, the higher the number, the more insulating) and can sometimes be more comfortable. If you are going to do mostly fair weather hiking, save your money and go closed cell foam. If you want greater flexibility and higher performance, look into an inflatable pad. Personally, I use an inflatable pad as I think, in my opinion, it works better in the hammock and on the ground.

Pros: Universal bottom insulation, cheaper

Cons: Inflatables can pop, closed cell foam take up more space

Gear Recommendation: Nemo Tensor Alpine Mountaineering Sleeping Pad, Long Wide

Clothing

Item: Base Layer, wicking layer, insulating layer, shell/waterproof layer, pants, rain paints, shorts, socks, gloves, hat, sweatband, shirt

Used for: Protection from the elements, protection from getting arrested for indecent exposure

Big Guy Recommendation: See Below - Too many to list here

Everything in this article is included for a purpose and clothing is no exception. Each article of clothing you wear and bring with you serves a purpose. With that, we will go over what I think are the essential pieces of backpacking clothing that you will need. This list is likely necessary but not sufficient for you depending on the climate and season of the area you are going into.

YOU SHOULD NEVER WEAR COTTON BASE LAYERS

When cotton gets wet, it does not insulate you because all of the air pockets in the cotton fill up with water and are no longer able to trap air (the same way a sleeping bag insulates). Cotton also does not wick water away from your skin but rather just absorbs it like a sponge. Wicking fabrics will absorb the moisture near your skin and transport it through the clothing to the other layers where it can be more easily evaporated away. There are also other fabric types that behave similarly to cotton so if you are unsure, check the wicking and insulting properties of the garment before wearing it on a trip.

Working from the inside out, top to bottom but in no particular order:

Base Layer

The base layer is somewhat self explanatory, it is the bottom most layer that you will wear. This layer is responsible for your first layer of insulation and wicking moisture (sweat) away from your skin. I also include underwear in my base layer group with some base layer underwear also making claims about odor reduction. Base layers come in synthetic materials like Capilene and natural materials like Merino Wool. Synthetic fibers are usually more flexible, tighter fitting, and cheaper than natural fibers. Natural Fibers like merino wool generally have better insulating properties when wet and are more comfortable. I personally prefer Merino Wool as a base layer but the best way to figure out which you prefer is to go try both on and choose the one that fits best within your budget. For Underwear, since I am a bigger guy, I generally wear compression type shorts. They wick moisture well, help support your leg muscles on long days, and prevent rashes/chafing better than other types of underwear.

Unless you are going backpacking during the dog days of summer, I recommend that you wear or bring a base layer with you

Gear recommendation: REI Co-op Merino Midweight Base Layer Half-Zip Top, REI Co-op Merino Midweight Base Layer Boot-Length Bottoms

Shirt

When not wearing a base layer, your shirt will act as a base layer and when you are and decide to also wear a shirt should support your base layer. Insulation is less important since it's probably hot out if your not wear a base layer but wicking moisture and drying quickly are essential. As long as the shirt is made from a fabric that is both wicking and maintains its insulating properties when wet, you are good to go. Getting one with a cool design doesn't hurt either.

Bottoms Pants/Shorts

For your bottoms, either pants or shorts work well depending on you and the conditions. For me, unless I am literally at risk of frostbite, will wear shorts. I run hot and sweat a lot so during the day on the go I prefer the ventilation of shorts and layer up on top if I need to.

If are are in an area with lots of biting insects (ticks, flies, mosquitoes), are very sensitive to sunburn, or usually have a problem of being too cold rather than too hot, then pants are the way to go.

Gear recommendation: Patagonia Nine Trails Shorts - Men's 8" Inseam

Socks

The last layer that will be touching your skin directly is your socks. I can not stress how important a good pair of socks are to preventing blisters and keeping your feet healthy while hiking. I do not recommend synthetic socks. Spend the money and get a few pairs of good merino wool high socks.

Gear recommendation: Darn Tough Micro Crew Cushion Hiking Socks

Wicking Layer

The next layer that is essential to a proper layering system is a wicking layer. This layer will help provide some insulation but is mainly there to help your base layer wick any moisture as far away from your skin as possible. Fleece jackets and vests work well as wicking when worn above your base layer. Any fleece wicking layer that fits should work.

Gear recommendation: Patagonia Better Sweater Fleece Jacket

Insulating Layer

The next layer to consider is the insulating layer. While both the base layer and wicking layer can help provide insulation, this layers job is to be as breathable and insulating as possible. Any puffy jacket you have seen is an insulating layer. As will sleeping bags, there are both natural and synthetic options with the same weight, cost, packability trade offs. The difference here is that down jackets are usually measured in fill power not temperature rating. Fill power is a number that indicates the relative quality of down in the jacket. This number comes from standardized test that measures how many cubic inches of loft one ounce of the down fill produces. The more loft, the more air you can trap, and the higher quality and warmer the jacket will be. Since synthetic insulation varies by manufacturer, synthetic jackets will have varying ways of describing how warm they will be for you.

Gear recommendation: Patagonia Nano Puff Insulated Hoodie

Here I am wearing the Patagonia Shorts, Mission Enduracool Headband, and my black Patagonia insulating layer

Shell/Waterproof layer

To recap, if you are wearing a full load out, you have on: base layer, shirt, wicking layer, and insulating layer. To this point, all of your clothes are there to keep you warm and vent as much moisture coming from your body, away from it. The last layer, the shell, is not responsible for any of this, it is responsible for preventing wind and water from getting to you or the rest of your layers. Without this outer shell layer, if it is very cold, the wind will reduce the amount of insulation the insulating layer can provide because the hot layer of air your body generators is being cooled down again by the wind than your body can heat it back up again. It is also responsible for keeping all of the other layers you are wearing dry from moisture, usually in the form of rain/snow/sleet.

Gear recommendation: REI Co-op Groundbreaker Rain Jacket

Rain Pants

Rain pants, yes they are called that, are pants that you wear in the rain. Waterproof boots and a waterproof shell won’t do much If you are getting soaked from the waist to the ankles. Rain paints are lightweight, mostly waterproof pants that help keep you dry on the days you have to put in miles in the rain. The caveat to this is if it is warmer outside, then you likely won’t need rain pants because you will sweat too much and you legs will get wet anyway. You should bring them with you if there may be rain and the temperature may get below 50 degrees F at some point.

Gear recommendation: REI Co-op Essential Rain Pants

Gloves

Gloves are important to keep your hands warm and available to catch yourself if you trip. Putting your hands in your packets while moving reduces you ability to balance and increase the chances of a severe injury if you trip and fall. Taking a header on the top of a mountain in the cold is not a good idea. I recommended have 2 pairs, one lighter set that you can still do most things while wearing and a larger set of down mittens to really keep your hand warm when it gets very cold. Needless to say, you likely won't need these during the summer months.

Gear recommendation: Dakine Men's Element Wind Pro Glove, REI Co-op Switchback GTX Mittens

Hat

In the summer a baseball hat, in the winter a beanie. This will keep the sun off of your face and sweat out of your eyes in the summer and keep you head and ears warm in the winter.

Sweatband

Alternatively, if you don’t want to bring a hat, a sweatband will work to keep the sweat out of your eyes. It is not a good idea to rub your eyes with hands you probably haven’t washed in a while.

Gear recommendation: Mission Enduracool Lockdown Cooling Headband

Leg Gaiters

When wearing shorts, leg gaiters are designed to keep the little bits of debris from getting into your boots and causing problems. You can either trust me and wear the gaitors or spend you next trip stopping every hour to dump the rocks, twigs, and pine needles out of your boots.

Gear recommendation: Altra Trail Gaiters

Footwear

Item: Boots, Trail Runners, Insoles

Used for: Protecting your feet, supporting your body

Big Guy Recommendation: Salomon Men's Quest 4D 3 GTX Backpacking Boots, Orange Superfeet

I put footwear in a separate section as clothing because investing in good clothing can last years, even decades, but even the best footwear on the market will need to be replaced more periodically. If the trail is well maintained, you can wear any footwear designed for physical activity to go for a day hike without much problem. When backpacking, the trails are longer, more technical, and less maintained. You will be hiking, likely up and down hill for 8+ hours at a time and you will be carrying 15lbs-35lbs extra on your back depending on the season and the length of the hike. I have seen people do this in standard cross trainers but it is not advised. Backing footwear is purpose built to be able to support you and your pack over rough terrain for long distances. The two types of footwear that are widely used are boots and trail runners.

You may not have heard of trail runners before, they are like cross trainers, but with beefed up insoles to be able to run on pointy rocks without breaking bones in your foot and offer greater traction for muddy and wet conditions you won't find while road running. They are lighter than hiking boots but offer less ankle support and not generally waterproof.

Hiking boots come in 3 styles, low rise, mid rise, and high rise. These refer to how high up your leg they lace up. If you are interested in low rise boots then also look into trail runners as they can offer as many if not more benefits. I find mid rise boots to be the sweet spot for those not looking into trail runners or trying to invade a foreign country.

Lastly when it comes to hiking footwear, the insole in your choice footwear can improve the standard boot. They do this by providing better arch support for your particular foot and greater impact absorption in the heel. When breaking in your new backpacking footwear, if you find your feet are still fatiguing quickly, a better insole may be a good solution. This again is where REI is a good retailer to shop from since you can return boots, even after you have used them on a trip, if they are not working out for you.

There is one more piece of footwear that you may consider - camp shoes. These are ultra lightweight sandals that you can wear at camp to let you feet breathe and give your trail footwear and sock a longer chance to air out and dry. Crocs or simple thong sandals are the most chosen options here. Camp shoes also come in handy if you need to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and if you ever need to do a river crossing.

Water

Item: Water Bottle, Water Bladder, Water Filter, Water Treatment Tablets

Used for: Staying Hydrated

Big Guy Recommendation: Platypus Hoser™ Reservoir, nalgene 32oz, Sawyer Squeeze, Potable Aqua

No matter the length of the hike you are on, water will be a part of your kit. You will need it to drink and if you are eating freeze dried meals, to cook with as well. You will need a way to store water for consumption and a way to gather and make

freeze dried meals, to cook with as well. You will need a way to store water for consumption and a way to gather and make potable more while on the trail.

There other, lighter ways to carry water, but I prefer using 1 3L water bladder that I can drink through a hose on the go and 1 32oz (about 1L) water bottle that I can both drink from and use to rehydrate my food for a total of 4L of water that I am able to carry with me. In most cases, I do not have 4L of water in may pack, closer to 2L. Though, I like the option to carry more if there are sections of trail with limited water sources.

Once you run out of water, you will need to visit one of these water sources to refill your containers. Even if the water is moving, you should still at least filter it before drinking. You don;t know what animal has died or defecated in that water source upstream that you are about to drink. If the water is standing or looks to be very dirty, you should filter the water and chemically treat it to ensure you don’t get sick.

First Aid Kit

Item: First aid kit

Used for: treating injuries and illness

Big Guy Recommendation: Ibuprofen, anti-diarrhea, allergy meds, benadryl, bandaids, burn gel, athletic tape, tums, rehydration tablets, quik clot, small ace bandage, eye drops, RX meds, Epipen, duct tape

It is your responsibility to stay safe on the trail and to get yourself to safety if needed. Your first aid kit should include all the items you need to be able to get yourself out of the woods and to a doctor or hospital.

You can purchase complete first aid kits though I do not recommend that you simply buy one and put it in your pack. Rather, start with the list of items I have above and buy a kit with most of them and fill in the gaps or buy each individually and put together a kit yourself. I have ming in a gallon ziplock bag.

This list includes items to relieve pain, prevent dehydration if you do drink a bad batch of water, antihistamines to quell allergic reactions, calm an upset stomach, stop minor to medium bleeding temporarily, and support injured joints long enough to get to help. It is not built to treat every ailment but rather keep you in a state that gives you a chance to get to help.

Cooking

Item: stove, pot/pan, utensil, fuel, fire starter

Used for: cooking and eating

Big Guy Recommendation: Jetboil® Flash Personal Cooking System, MSR WhisperLite Universal, MSR Liquid Fuel Bottle, 30 Ounce, Esbit Ultralight Folding Pocket Stove with Solid Fuel Tablets, Solo Stove Alcohol Burner Stove, Vargo Outdoors Aluminum Windscreen, Solo Stove Lite Stove, Snow Peak Trek 900 Titanium Cookset, TOAKS Titanium Long Handle Spoon

Part survival, part morale, a food preparation kit is another essential item in your backpacking kit. There are ways to only bring ready to eat food options but there is nothing better for morale than a hot meal after a hard day's hike. For a complete cook kit you will need a stove (many trails ban open fires), fuel, a pot/pan, a utensil, a wind screen, and a fire starter to light the stove.

Stove and Fuel

Gas Canister traditional

A traditional gas backpacking stove is essentially a miniature version of a 1 burner gas range. You connect the stove to a gas canister, open the regulator, light the gas coming out of the top and use it to cook your food. This setup is usually the fastest and easiest cooking system to set up and can be one of the fastest to get water from ambient temperature to boil. For your first cook kit, I recommend you start with this system to boil water for rehydrating meals. In additional to easy and fast setup, not actually cooking in the pot meals no clean-up. Gas cook system like those from Jetboil are designed to heat water as quickly and efficiently as possible. With all in one systems like these, wind screens are only necessary if you are cooking out in the open, such as above tree line, when there are high winds.

Pros: Easy to set up, heats quickly, adjustable temperature

Cons: Heavy, hard to know how much fuel you have left

Gear Recommendation: Jetboil® Flash Personal Cooking System

Gas Canister Inverted/Gas refillable

Inverted gas cooking set ups can use the same fuel source as traditional canister set ups or a refillable gas bottle but instead of attaching the fuel directly to the stove it uses a hose to connect the two with the stove needing a separate stand to remain upright. The advantage of this system is not weight savings but rather the ability to cook in very cold temperatures. In cold temperatures, the gas mixtures in the canisters or refillable bottle (usually an 80/20 blend of isobutane and propane) has a hard time mixing and evaporating upwards to be able to be ignited through the burner on the stove. By inverting the gas can, this problem is mitigated. In this system the burner is more exposed and a windscreen is much more useful. Additionally, lighting this design of stove involves more than turning on the gas and lighting it. You generally must first prime a priming pan, light that, then light the burner. A few practice runs and it becomes easy though it is another step between you and a warm meal. If you plan on cooking in temperatures below 40F, you should consider an inverted gas system instead of a traditional one.

Pros: Heats quickly, adjustable temperature, works in cold weather

Cons: Heavy, hard to know how much fuel you have left, harder to setup and light

Gear Recommendation: MSR WhisperLite Universal, MSR Liquid Fuel Bottle, 30 Ounce

Solid Fuel Stove

A solid fuel stove, as the name suggests uses solid fuel cubes to cook with. The Actual stove consists of a small metal frame that acts as a pot support and helps feed enough air to the burning fuel. These stoves are much lighter than gas stoves but offer similar levels are reliability when it comes to ignition of the fuel source. The fuel source is also packaged in discrete cubes so you can truly bring only the amount of fuel you will need. The downside with solid fuel stoves are that there is no way to control how hot fuel will burn and it is harder to store cubes that are not completely used that day. Solid fuel is also more susceptible to wind and takes longer to get a pot of water to boil than a gas stove. If you use solid fuel, a windscreen is highly recommended.

Pros: Smaller and lighter, easy to light

Cons: No regulation, longer to get to boil

Gear Recommendation: Esbit Ultralight Folding Pocket Stove with Solid Fuel Tablets

Alcohol

Alcohol stoves offer the lightweight benefits of a solid fuel stove with flexibility in terms of fuel usage of a gas stove. An alcohol stove consists of a small metal stove that hold liquid fuel in the form of alcohol, ethanol, methylated spirits, marine stove fuel, methanol or similar fuels. These stoves do not often have an integrated pot stand like the other options and require a windscreen for optimal use. Therefore, a combo windscreen/pot stand is best to include with this set up.

Pros: Smaller and lighter, easy to light, flexible fuel use

Cons: required pot stand and windscreen

Gear Recommendation: Solo Stove Alcohol Burner Stove, Vargo Outdoors Aluminum Windscreen

Biofuel

Biofuel stoves are designed to use fuels that you can find on the trail so that you do not need to bring fuel with you such as twigs and branches. They offer the advantage of an unlimited fuel supply so long that you are in an area with available fuel to use. Some stoves, like the Biolite stoves, even integrate thermoelectric generators to turn excess heat from the biofuel into electricity (at the cost of a very heavy stove since it has the extra components and a battery). The downsides to using a biofuel stove is that it is not certain you will always have available fuel, especially above tree line. Even if there is fuel, it may be wet and difficult to light. You can bring you own biofuel as a backup but if you are going to bring fuel, solid or gas sources have a much higher heat to weight density negating the main selling point of not needing to carry heavy fuel around with you.

Pros: Lightweight stove, no need to carry fuel with you

Cons: May be hard to light in bad weather, fuel source uncertain in many areas

Gear Recommendation: Solo Stove Lite Stove

Pot/Pan

Once your stove is set up and ready to cook, you will need something to cook and/or boil water in. If you go with me recommendation of a jetboil system, then you can skip this section. If you are going with any other option, then you will need a pot and maybe a pan. Even some dehydrated backpacking foods require a pot and pan to cook so check the instructions before heading out into the woods to bring the right gear to cook it.

Most backpacking pots come in steel, aluminum, or titanium. That is the order they go in from heaviest to lightest as well as from least to most expensive. If you can afford it, I highly recommend investing in titanium cookware as it is much lighter than the alternatives.

Gear Recommendation: Snow Peak Trek 900 Titanium Cookset

Utensil

If by the time you have gotten to this point your budget is already busted, then any fork or spoon from your kitchen will work just fine. When eating dehydrated meals, there is a benefit to having a purpose built, lightweight long spoon. So if you can, get one and enjoy dinner!

Gear Recommendation: TOAKS Titanium Long Handle Spoon

Bear Protection

Item: bear canister, bear bag/line, bear spray

Used for: avoiding and deterring bears

Big Guy Recommendation: Garcia Bear-Resistant Container, Counter Assault Bear Deterrent Spray - 8.1 fl. oz.

The “4 w’s” that you need to worry about in the woods are weather, water, widow makers (half fallen over trees) and wildlife. In North America, having a bear encounter in the wilderness is a real possibility.

Avoiding Bears

On the east coast, you only need to concern yourself with black bears looking for a meal. Non nuisance bears are afraid of humans and will run away if they see, hear, or smell you coming. You only need to take avoidance precautions at night when you're asleep in the form of properly stored food (and anything that smells like deodorant, sunscreen, etc) using a bear line or stored in a bear canister at least 100 yards away from your campsite. In some places, like the adirondack mountain in NY, a qualified bear canister is required by law for those overnighting.

Deterring Bears

West of the Mississippi river, you must also worry about brown bears also known as grizzly bears. These bears are much larger than their black bear cousins. In addition to avoidance, you may need to bring a bear deterrent when venturing into brown bear country in case you run into one. Bear mace is the most common deterrent widely available to most everyone. Guides and outdoors people who spend a lot of time in the woods may also bring a firearm as a deterrent but I will not go into that here as the laws, regulations, and weight of firearms often makes them a poor choice to take on backpacking trips. There are some places, like with the bear canisters, that a firearm is required. Always be sure to check the rules and regulations for the areas you will be backpacking in to be in compliance and prevent unnecessary emergency situations.

Way-finding

Item: map, compass, GPS, Sat Tracker

Used for: Knowing where you are and how to get to where you want to be

Big Guy Recommendation: Brunton TruArc 3 Compass, Garmin eTrex 22x Handheld GPS, SPOT Gen3

You have more computing power in your cell phone than NASA had to get men to the moon and back. GPS technology allows you to carry not just a map in your pocket but all the maps in your pocket. When backpacking, using a GPS can make life a lot easier for day to day wayfinding. But, when in the backcountry, you should not trust you life to something that runs on batteries. A map of the general area, a compass, and basic wayfinding skills should also be in your backpacking essentials kit.

Lastly, when hiking solo or in remote areas with very few other hiking parties, a satellite tracker should also be in your loadout. These trackers are able to ping your GPS location every 10 minutes and offer an SOS beacon if you find yourself in a life threatening situation. These trackers require a monthly or annual subscription. In my opinion, when it is you life on the line, a small monthly fee is worth the peace of mind to you and your family that someone will come find you if you get lost or seriously injured.

Edged Tool

Item: Knife

Used for: Various tasks that require a sharp edge

Big Guy Recommendation: Benchmade Bugout

From opening your dinner to cutting an extra shirt into a tourniquet for a bad wound, a knife is an essential, required item in your backpacking kit. Any 2-4 inch folding knife will work.

Other Tools

Item: Multi-tool

Used for: Various Tasks often involving fixing or mending malfunctioning gear

Big Guy Recommendation: Leatherman Squirt ES4 Keychain Multitool

In addition to an edged tool, you should also bring a multi tool with pliers. You do not need a complete snap-on tool set (at least not to bring with you) but a small multi tool will serve as a back-up edged tool and useful for tasks that your fingers are too weak or not precise enough to accomplish.

Fire Starter

Item: Lighter, Fire Steel, Matches

Used for: Lighting stove, lighting fire

Bug Guy Recommendation: Bic 5pk Classic Lighters, Light My Fire Swedish FireSteel 2.0, Pocket Bellows

99% of the time you will need your fire starter to light your cooking stove. It is the 1% of the time though that you should always have a fire starter with you when you are looking to light a fire to prevent hypothermia or stay warm for a night if a hike goes wrong. I suggest that you carry a Bic lighter and a fire steel with you. Similar to the GPS and map, the lighter will be most useful most of the time, the steel is just there in case the lighter breaks or runs out of fluid.

In addition, a pocket bellows is very useful for starting fires by increasing the focus and amount of air you can get into a fire that is just starting. Especially if you are in a larger group, add this item to your shared gear list.

Light

Item: Flashlight. Headlamp

Used for: Being able to see things in the dark

Big Guy Recommendation: Black Diamond SPOT325 HEADLAMP, Streamlight 66601 Microstream

When it gets dark in the woods, it gets DARK in the woods. Treecover will block out any light you may get from the stars and moon and without a light source, you will have a very hard time doing anything besides sleeping. Like with the fire starters, you should have 2 light sources with you. I recommend 1 standard flashlight and one headlamp so you can work more easily at night with both of your hands.

Click HERE to Read More About Headlights

Garbage Bag

Item: Garbage bag

Used for: Putting trash in to pack out

Big Guy Recommendation: 1 gallon ziplock freezer bag

Everything that you take into the woods you need to take out of the woods. A 1 gallon Ziploc bag will be large enough to handle all the garbage that you produce while backpacking. It also seals and unseals quickly and strongly so that you don't get open food containers over the rest of the gear in your pack. I generally keep my garage bag in an exterior pocket as well for easy access and just in case it does break open.

Trekking Poles

Item: Trekking Poles

Used for: Stabilization while hiking

Big Guy Recommendation: Black Diamond Trail Trekking Poles - Pair

Trekking poles, in my opinion, are not an option but an essential piece of backpacking equipment. They will help stabilizing you on rocky, uneven trails and help save your knees when going back down hill. Collapsible poles are preferred as you can adjust the height to fit your needs and easily strap them to your pack when they are not needed.

My Father very happy to have trekking poles descending this section of the AT

If you have gotten this far, congratulations, we have gone through all of the base, non consumable essential backpacking gear that you will need in you backpacking kit. Next we will go through the items that you will need but are consumable in your kit. These include items like your food, sun block, and toilet paper.

Consumables

Food

Item: 2-3meals/day, 1 snack per day, 1 pick me up per day (bring +1 day worth of food)

Used for: Morale, Sustenance

Big Guy Recommendation: Mountain House, Packit Gourmet, Sour Patch Kids, CLIF Bars

I am a fan of food and backpacking food is no exception. When first starting out, I recommend brining 3 meals, 1 snack, and 1 morale booster per day of your planning trip and then bring 1 extra day of food just in case. It will be on the heavy side but just starting out you’ll be burning more calories than you are used to and having enough food will not only help you physically but mentally as well.

For meals, dehydrated food offers a high calorie to weight ratio and decent flavor as well. Mountain House is widely available in most outdoor stores as well as on Amazon. They come in standard pouches, pro-paks that are also vacuum sealed to reduce the volume of the pouch as much as possible, and in large multi serve buckets.

Favorite Mountain House Meals:

Breakfast - Breakfast Skillet

Lunch - Chicken Teriyaki with Rice

Dinner - Beef Stroganoff

Packit Gourmet is a small manufacturer but offer high quality, more interesting meals. They come in similarly styles pouches as mountain house but many of the meals require more preparation than simply pouring hot water into the pouch and waiting. For this effort you are rewarded with better tasting food and a larger variety of meal options. AS i mentioned in the cooking section, check the instructions on your meals before leaving to ensure you have the appropriate kit to be able to prepare them on the trail.

Favorite Packit Gourmet Meals:

Breakfast - Diner Deluxe Eggs With Sausage

Lunch - Cajun Ranch Chicken Salad

Dinner - Shepherd's Cottage Pie

In addition to meals, you should carry at least 1 snack with you per day that is ready to consume. There may be times that you need to eat something but don’t have time or space to cook a full meal. The snack will keep you going until the next meal. I bring a variety of cliff bars (except for in the winter - they freeze solid) but any ready to eat bar or snack that has at least 200 calories will work. \

The last item in your meal kit that I find essential is a morale booster. Keeping your emotions and mental health in check on the trail is an often overlooked need of backpackers. Keeping a positive outlook and will to keep going when it is cold, raining, and you are still 10 miles from camp is essential. For this, I bring Sour Patch Kids. They are small and all sugar so in addition to the flavor you will get a brief sugar kick as well. Since they come in many small pieces you can have a few when you are feeling down to help boost your mood quickly and easily. Any treat item you like that you can get or make into bite sized pieces.

Sanitation

Item: Purell, Toilet Paper, Wet Wipes, Bathroom Trowel, Tooth Brush, tooth Paste

Used for: Hygiene

Big Guy Recommendation: Purell, Toilet Paper, Wet Wipes, Bathroom Trowel, Tooth Brush, Tooth Paste

You are in the woods, there are no showers, you will get dirty and eventually start to smell. This however does not mean that there is no hygiene on the trail. You should aim to keep a basic level of sanitation on the tail to avoid illness, infection, rashes, and protect the wilderness that you are visiting.

Number 2

At some point, you will need to poop in the woods. Sometimes you will be lucky and there will be a privy that you can use which will make things much easier. A privy is basically an outhouse in the middle of the woods. They are placed by high traffic campsites to help protect the wilderness from humans trampling low lying vegetation off trail in the search for a private spot to do your business. Even so, you need to bring your own toilet paper and yes you should pack it out with you in your garbage bag. Since you are going to pack it out, I bring a full roll of the regular toilet paper that I use at home. I also suggest bring wet wipes to get things really clean down there. This will help prevent chafing and rashes from forming and getting infected.

Hands

Your hands will get dirty. Those same hands will also being the hands you use to eat with. For this reason, a small bottle of hand sanitizer will help prevent you falling ill to a stomach bug or cold from eating with dirty hands. It's not perfect, but over a long hike I think it helps. The wet wipes are also useful in cleaning your hand if that become exceptionally dirty.

Teeth

You should still brush your teeth while hiking. It will help keep you healthy and in my opinion sleep better at night. Just remember to spit far enough away from your camp and put the toothpaste in your bear kit before going to sleep.

Insect Repellent

Item: Bug Dope, Permethrin

Used for: Preventing insect bites

Big Guy Recommendation: Repel 100 Insect Repellent; Sawyer Permethrin

Preparation

Before going into the woods, you should treat all the clothes (including your socks) with permethrin. Biting insects like flies and mosquitoes as well as ticks can bite through clothes or jump onto you and crawl around until they find their way to your skin. Permethrin is a synthetic insecticide that will help prevent you from getting bitten, especially by ticks that could carry lyme and other diseases. One treatment will last up to 6 washings or 6 weeks before clothing has to be treated again. Read the instructions on the bottle for proper application.

On Trail

On the trail, you will also need to bring bug dope also known as bug spray or insect repellent. Highly concentrated, high deet sprays work the best. There are low to no deet more natural options that work okay but nothing can replace deet if you want maximum protection.

Sun Protection

Item: Sun Block, Hat

Used for: Preventing SunBurn

Big Guy Recommendation: Thinksport Sunscreen SPF 50

Your face, neck, arms, hands, calves, knees, and any other exposed skin is susceptible to burning. Any time you are in an area with low foliage such as a trail that has extensive stretches above treeline, you should apply sunblock. In addition, a baseball hat can also help keep the sun off of your head and face and provide additional protection.

Hydration

Item: Water, Liquid IV

Used for: Staying hydrated

Big Guy Recommendation: Liquid IV

In order to stay hydrated, you need water and the essentials minerals and salts you lose through sweat and urination. If you sweat a lot like I do, I recommend bringing one hydration supplement per day in your essential gear. I prefer Liquid I.V. but be sure to try a few kinds on day hikes or after workouts to see what works best for you.

Read more about staying hydrated here: Dehydration on The Trail Can Be Deadly – Here’s How To Prevent It

Chafing Prevention

Item: Body Glide

Used for: Preventing Chafing

In addition to the essential clothing that you will need that I mentioned above and in 4 Easy Ways to Prevent CHAFING While Hiking, I suggest that you bring Body Glide. It helps reduce friction on your skin so that even if it is rubbing against something, chafing or a rash does not form.

Conclusion

This list may seem long and extensive but remember, when you are backpacking you are essentially taking your house and everything in your house with you everywhere you go. That said, depending on the trip adventures you are going on, the number of people in your party, the environmental conditions in the area you are going, and the laws/regulations in that area you may not need all of this equipment or you may need to replace certain items with more specialized gear. If you start with this basic load out - you should be able to handle most hikes that most people attempt in North America.

If you have any questions or thoughts - I am happy to help you out just reach out and we can figure it out together.

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