Kacy’s Gear List – 2019 Appalachian Trial Section Hike

I’ve been asked what I’m taking along for the 9 days that I’ll be joining Paul at the start of the Appalachian Trail (If you haven’t seen his gear review, check it out here). Take a look at the video – I’ll show you what I have and how it will all fit into my pack. Below is more discussion of the big items and my personal opinions about them. Also check out my LighterPack for weights on all of the items I’m taking.

Sleep Gear: 

My sleeping bag is the REI Joule 21 – Long. I purchased it during an REI sale right before a camping trip, I needed a sleeping bag and there wasn’t much stock – I don’t recommend following my example. The bag has performed well, I’ve never been cold camping down on 30 deg (F) nights. However, I’ve learned that I really don’t enjoy the mummy bag style. I need to be able to twist and pop my hips and sleeping in a straight line just isn’t for me.

I think next time around I will investigate camping quilts, they have a foot box to keep your feet warm but allow full range of motion. The insulation in sleeping bags works by trapping air. Based on that, the part of the sleeping bag that is compressed when slept on isn’t insulating effectively. A lot of weight can be saved by carrying the quilt that insulates from above and have a sleeping pad that has high insulation value to insulate from below.

My sleeping pad is a  Big Agnes Insulated Double Z – Regular. It’s also mummy shaped, but maintains width far enough along the length that I’m able to sleep on my side without falling off. This was a Steep & Cheap buy and from that standpoint I got lucky and it’s been a decent pad. However, it is fairly heavy (1.3 lb) and is on my upgrade list when the time comes around.

My absolute favorite part of my sleeping gear is my Sea to Summit Aeros Pillow Ultralight Regular. I can’t say enough to compliment this pillow, it packs down into a tiny bag that would fit into any crevice and only weighs 2 ounces. Absolutely worth the weight for the added comfort it provides.

Clothes:

I’ll cover clothing from outer layers in, top to bottom. Starting with the Patagonia Nano Puff Jacket, I’ve had this jacket for a couple of years now and love it for my everyday jacket and hiking jacket. It also doubles as my knee pillow when stored in its pocket stuff sack. The Patagonia Better Sweater Fleece Jacket is my true warm layer. I wear this sweater almost daily, camping and at work. It is such a warm and cozy layer, especially under the Nano Puff jacket that all my fears of being too cold are warded off. For the really cold nights, I’m also taking the Patagonia Capilene heavy-weight and mid-weight base layers. I probably only need one of these, but I’m still afraid of being cold at night. I foresee changing out of my sweaty hiking shirt and into the long-sleeved mid-weight base layer to avoid the chills as I cool down post-hike. For hiking, I’ll be wearing the Patagonia Capilene Daily T-Shirt and I’m taking two of these since I expect them to get fairly sweaty during the hiking. Lastly for tops, the Brooks Hot Shot Sports Bra. This was a hard find for me, the balance between a bra comfortable enough to sit under the pack straps and hike all day but also be supportive enough to not be sore at the end of the day is not easy to strike. I don’t know if I’ve found the right answer, but it’s the best REI had to offer and I’m cautiously optimistic based on the wide flat shoulder straps and comfortable fit.

For pants I’m taking the REI Sahara Convertible Pants. I’m still partial to hiking in pants, never willing to commit to shorts and risk being cold. The convertible pants are the compromise, I can still start off with pants and still easily remove the lower part over my shoes in the case of overheating or a heavy downpour (more on rain gear below). My pants base layer is a pair of Warm Essentials that I’ve had for long enough to be unable to provide a link. I find myself wearing them as a second layer in camp or as a sleeping layer if it’s particularly cold. For underwear I’m taking two pairs of Patagonia Active Briefs. They’re soft, moisture wicking, and have Polygiene® odor control to help them last between washings.

I’ve purchased Salomon X Ultra 3 Mid Aero Hiking Boots with Superfeet Trailblazer Insoles to be my AT hiking shoe. Leaving behind my much loved and trusted Lowa Renegades was a tough decision, they’ve served me well for the past 7 years through a lot of hikes. However, I’m worried about trudging through rain in them. The consensus is that hiking through rain in waterproof boots will inevitably lead to water inside the boot, which being waterproof is designed to keep water out but doesn’t allow water to escape very effectively once inside.  Waking up to cold, wet boots that I then have to hike in is a fear second only to being cold. I know that my socks and feet will get wet along with the Ultra 3s. My hope is that the Ultra 3’s will dry out overnight in the vestibule and I’ll have a dry pair of socks to change into. In the meantime, I’ve got to break in the new shoes before we hit the trail. For socks, I’m taking both the Smartwool PhD Outdoor Light Mini Socks and the Darn Tough Hiker Quarter Cushion Socks. I’m not sure which I’ll like better, they both seem like great socks with the Darn Tough socks being a little thicker and warmer.

Now to rain gear. After much searching, I found the Montane Minimus Stretch Jacket. It’s the lightest weight jacket I’ve found that maintains hand pockets. This compromise was essential to me as this is also my everyday rain jacket. The MLD Rain Kilt will be my bottom waterproof layer. This covers to mid-shin, so depending on temperature I will probably convert my pants to shorts to keep the lower portions dry. The REI Co-op Minimalist GTX Mittens are the waterproof layer that coordinates with the warmth layer of the REI Co-op Polartec Power Stretch Gloves.

I’m also packing along a Buff and Smartwool Straightline Hat. I expect to use the hat in camp when things cool down. The buff is a great all around bandanna to have on hand.

Pack & Poles:

The Gregory Deva 60 Pack is the one I found that fit me best after ~60 min of walking around an REI store with it. I tried a few of the other packs, but I’ve found that you know the one that fits you best as soon as you put it on. I chose the REI Co-op Flash Carbon Trekking Poles simply based on them being the lightest weight poles that I found.

Cookware:

I’m taking only the pot portion of the MSR WindBurner and a Titanium Spork for cookware, Paul and I will share his camp stove. I will be able to add to our water supply with a Platypus GravityWorks Water Filter, but while hiking I plan to carry only 2.5L in my Osprey Hydraulics LT Reservoir. In camp I’ll drink out of a SmartWater bottle, I find the reservoir cumbersome to carry around camp with me. I also expect to carry about 8 lbs of food, but I’m still determining what will be on the menu – that’ll be another blog post later on.