Ultralight hiking stuff sacks online shopping and hiking guides. If you have an experienced backpacking friend who knows you well, invite them along and they can be your guide. But you can also do this backpacking thing on your own—that’s the focus of this article. We advise you to bring a friend regardless of their backpacking knowledge, though, because that makes any trip safer and more fun. Just a few miles roundtrip is fine: Plan on shorter distances than your typical day hike because walking with a heavier pack is slower and more difficult. Aim for a few hundred feet of elevation gain: If you’ve hiked much, then you know that mileage alone doesn’t tell the full story. So also choose a trail with less elevation gain than your typical day hike.

Lowering backpack weight advice : Analyze everything. Do you really need it? Is there a lighter version of it? Can it be shaved or cut down? I spent months preparing my Appalachian Trail gear to keep it as light as possible. Even five months into the hike, I was still cutting off things that I was not using. Go primitive (or electronic-less). Goodbye cellphones, watches, iPods, kindles, GPS, chargers, etc. This is the trail. Enjoy the solitude. If you’re worried about safety – tell someone ahead of time where exactly you are going and when to expect your return. Razor blade for knife. Very rarely do I ever miss my knife and I certainly have never needed my knife. A razor blade can be great an ultralight alternative. Read extra details at Ultralight Hiking Gear Online Store.

If you do find yourself in an emergency situation or get lost, your general workflow will be: Stop and calm down. Use your navigation tools to figure out where you are and try to get to where you need to be. If you are injured or are lost, find a safe spot of land to wait. Ideally it’s in the clear so you can signal rescuers. Sart signaling rescuers. Use your hiking essentials to build a shelter, take care of your body, and get comfortable. Wait for rescuers. Don’t move. Wait where you are. The hiking gear that’s in your emergency bucket can change based on your outdoors skills. If you’re an experienced outdoorsman who knows primitive skills, you might be able to survive with nothing. Check out the show Naked and Afraid to see what this looks like in practice. If you’re not adapt at outdoors skills, it’s easy enough just to pack the hiking gear that will make surviving in the outdoors possible. I know some primitive skills, but I still bring lots of gear. The more survival tools you have, the better your chances of survival.

Who is Hilltop Packs? We are a family owned business. You can find more info about us here. Does Hilltop Packs have an affiliate program? Yes! Earn 5% on every order you refer to us. Sign up here. What is the current lead time from when I place my order? While we do keep many items in stock a lot of our products are made to order. Current lead times can be found here. Where is Hilltop Packs located? Waynesburg PA. We share space with the photography studio that our family owns downtown. However we make a lot of our products off-site in a shop we built in our home. We currently do not have a shop open to walk-ins. However, that may change in the future. See extra info on hilltoppacks.com.