Continental Divide Gear list

Backpack: ULA Circuit 68l

The PCT was littered with these packs in 2013, they have quickly become a favourite on all the long distance trails.
There aren’t many packs out there that at 1.16kg, can compare to the load carrying capabilities, comfort, and durability of the Circuit. On recent hikes this has proven to be super comfortable, with:

• Internal Suspension Hoop
• Padded Backpanel
• Contoured Shoulder Straps
• Front Shock Cord
• Front Mesh Pocket
• Dual Hipbelt Pockets
• 400 Robic Adjustable Side Pockets
• Rolltop Closure
• Side/Top Compression Straps
• Ice Axe/Pole Retention Loops
• Bear Canister Capable
• ULA  400 Robic
• 400 Robic Bottom Panel
• Hydration Sleeve (1.4 oz)
• Internal Stash Pocket (1.1 oz)
• Water Bottle Holsters (0.8 oz)
• Handloops (0.8 oz)
• Single Aluminum Stay (2.0 oz)

I’ve removed the hydration sleve and internal stash pocket to lighten the load to 1.09kg.

Cost £185.88

 (Less if, as we did, you ask about cosmetic seconds!)

Pad: Thermarest Z Lite Sol

Not the warmest (R-Value 2.6), not the lightest (396g), not the most compressible or compactable (183cm x 51cm). Not, therefore, like the one everyone recommends, and like the one I own and that I took on the PCT….

BUT

Thank the lord, this does not require inflation. One whole agonising minute of every day, for six months which I would totally despise – avoided.

PLUS

I can use it wherever, whenever without fear of puncture wounds.  It is the best foam pad on the market for warmth to weight ratio…

Convincing? I’ll let you know if it was worth it.

Cost: £37 – £39

Sleeping bag: Zpacks Classic 900 fill

I’d had my Mountain Equipment Titan 650 for about 7 years it completed the PCT and a ridiculous amount of hikes all over the world. Its warmth had reduced dramatically and while this in turn reduced the weight from it 1.25kg to…..something less heavy, because of this it was also like sleeping inside a lumpy tissue. It has absolutely done it’s time and retired at a respectable age.

I was excited to receive the ZPacks Classic. This, again, came highly recommended. I’ve yet to test it out overnight but…. My initial impressions are positive. It compresses extremely well into an impressive 15cm x 30cm dry bag (included with the bag, which adds 25.5 g to the overall weight which is 545g). I was really impressed also, with the amount of loft which sprang at me as we opened out the bag. It feels like god quality- (I’m going to keep that spelling error).

Extra weight is saved by not including a hood, sewn into the bag. This is a bit of a bubbling craze in the US. The idea being, that your warm winter hat doubles up as your hood. I like this idea, though Zpacks do make down hoods which you can buy as an extra, and maybe, use as your warm hat? Clever stuff.

Cost £283 Discounts possible on bigger purchases, we bought two, you see.

Tent: Motrail Tarptent

Again, we wanted a lighter tent than anything currently being offered on the UK market for two people, which would endure the rigors of a long distance hike.

There are, like any item above, many to choose from. When we balanced price, with weight, and with sacrifices we were, or were not prepared to make (space, durability, bug protection, comfort, water/wind proofing) we landed on this…

MoTrail by Tarptent (They do make a one man version called a ‘ProTrail’) this came closest to the format we are used to. We replace the weight of usual tent poles, with our own trekking poles. The inner and the outer are one, with a built in bug protection. The vestibule is super roomy for two, when considering the weight (1.020kg).

It takes some getting used to, when staking it out. It can be pitched with 5 pegs only, but, we’ve opted to take 10 for extra structural integrity in the winds and rain as the design does allow for a rain puddle to form in the middle if the tent is not taught front to back. We’ve also added a guy line on the back of the tent, to pull front and back taught against each other. Like most lightweight tents, it does require an initial seam sealing. It held up well in continuous overnight rain, but we’ve yet to pitch it in wind. With some consideration given to wind direction, I think we’ll make it through with this just fine…

Cost: £204.82 (Less if, as we did, you ask about a cosmetic second)

Pegs: MSR Mini Groundhog

We’ve just bought these to replace a set of Terra Nova 1g pegs which proved to be less useful than cotton buds. These are 10g each and we’ll take the six that come with the pack plus 4 more of something else (I’ve misplaced the stakes that came with the MoTrail, but I’m 87% sure I’ll find them before April). The Y-beam design on these are supposed to be mega for any ground type.

Cost: £ £16.99 (6pk)

Rain resistors: Mountain Equipment Mansalu

Mountain Equipment have a notoriously good customer service. After the wire in the hood of my ME Morpheus jacket broke, about 5 or 6 years after I bought it, they replaced the entire jacket, even though the Morpheus had been discontinued. My email to them was humorously pathetic, and theirs humourlessly hard-faced, but nonetheless, pretty great of them really.

Nothing can ever really be waterproof. There is a big hole right through this jacket in which one puts oneself – thus leaving it open to penetration. However, ME do a good job at attempting it.

This is a good jacket, It does the trick and although heavy (460g), I’m going to take it. I think the colour looks nice.

These jackets are expensive. I’ve previously vowed never to spend more than about £150 ish on my next jacket as I don’t believe it’s truly worth it. They all have a lifespan, none of which are very long and ultimately if it’s really, really raining, you’re going to get wet.

Cost £370 – well, free actually. 

Berghaus GoreTex Packlite over trousers

I’ve had a few pairs of these. They remain pretty effective after a few years use. Fairly lightweight, even by international standards at 185g. We could go lighter, but I have already spent a lot on gear and I don’t feel the need to replace these trusty friends of mine.

Cost £95.5

Puff: Montbell Superior

Montbell products are held in pretty high esteem. Another US product, unbeaten by anything in the UK for it’s warmth to weight ratio, bar one exception.

I shopped around a lot in the UK and nothing is coming close to this 217g jacket with 800 fill down.

It’s super warm and it not a crappy pink or purple colour like so many womens products.

I love this jacket.

A lot of people are using the Mountain Hardware Ghost Whisperer on long distance hikes. Dubbed: “The world’s lightest full-featured hooded down jacket”. It’s lighter than the superior at 219g (so not by much) also with 800 fill down. Some people LOVE this jacket. I bought and tried two, but found it had a really, really weird fit – resulting in a terribly unflattering blob shaped version of myself. This was a common review from a lot of women.

Cost: £165.32

Thermals: Helly Hansen Warm Ice Crew

Its warm, it’s merino, it looks nice. Heavy, but I sleep cold so good quality thermals is a must.

215g

Cost: £60

Shorts: Montane Claw

Where oh where they get some of these names from I know not.

I had a similar pair of shorts on the PCT, I havent tried these ones yet. I managed to get a price match on them (found them cheaper online) in Go Outdoors, then the woman at the till got frustrated at how long she was taking to make all the machines work, so when it rung up at £16, rather than £36 – I thought it was my destiny to buy these.

Montane say:
lightweight (69g) loose fit mountain trail shorts, which delivers wind and sun protection, together with extreme light weight and fast drying properties. Featuring an inner mesh brief treated with POLYGIENE® permanent odour control, these shorts are perfect for all types of trail adventure. 

Cost: £40 new, or, go and stress the cashiers at Go Outdoors for a better deal.

Shirt: Columbia Bahama PFG shirt

I wanted this shirt in Royal Blue, but, no such luck; so I went for this odd vomit colour which I quite like. It’s new for the CDT, I know little else about it other than: it fits and there are pockets.

Amazon says:

• 100% Other Fibers (What does this mean?)
• Omni-Shade UPF 30 sun protection (What the hell is ‘Omni -Shade’?)
• Omni-Shade UPF 30 sun protection and can be Quick dry (Can be quick dry? And can also not? – What?)
• Omni-Shade UPF 30 sun protection and can be Quick dry, Vented (Why do you keep repeating yourself Amazon?!)
• Roll-up sleeve (OK, I know what that means)
• Rod holde (WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN?!)

Cost: £17 on Amazon but the price keeps reducing as they rid themselves of old stock -Columbia make a lot of PFG shirts.

Socks: Darn Tough Shorty

Merino, smell proof, cushioned, seamless, durable, fast action wicking, guaranteed for life.

Worldwide hikers are, as I type, going mental for this life changing sock, which, in theory, you only have to buy once.

I have three pairs, one like the picture here and one longer pair. You can also get shorter ‘ankle’ versions…

I like the patterns.

Cost: £18-£20

Shoes: Altra Lone Peak 3.0

I bought a pair of these as they were recommended by a friend, I planned to hike for 5 days in them, and if I liked them, put them away to keep ready for the CDT. Well, after that week, I never took them off. I ran, hiked, worked and socialised in them until they died.

I really rate these shoes. The 0 drop (no heel) takes some getting used to for your calves, but reduces impact so it’s beneficial long-term. By jolly do your feet feel looked after. I love the square (special looking) wide toe box, which increases room for your splaying feet.

I immediately bought another pair and stowed these away ready for the CDT. I can’t find anymore Altra 3.0’s except on eBay as the Altra Lone Peak 3.5 and 4.0 is now available… I’m guessing ill use about 4 pairs on the CDT, and intend to stick with Altras throughout. I’m a size 6 and a wear a 7 in these.

Cost £69.99 (This is for the end of the line 3.0 – you can expect to pay a bit more for the 3.5 and more still for the 4.0)

Gaiters: Dirty Girls

I didn’t wear gaiters on the PCT, I did get blisters, not badly, and no more than expected…

In order to further reduce the likelihood of acquiring blisters in the sandy desert section, and in order to keep my feet a little cleaner from all the dust and grit, I’ve invested in a pair of these bad boys.

They come in thousands of different designs, (the picture opposite is not the pattern I bought) and are widely acknowledged as being A. cool and B. effective. The company is owned by an Ultramarathon runner who delivers all profits to non-profit organisations, charity based ultramarathons and trail events and athletes.

You can buy them from about two stores in the UK, both were out of stock when I wanted to purchase them.

Cost £15.74

Gloves: Sealskinz Winter Cycling Gloves

• Totally waterproof, breathable and windproof
• Soft, durable synthetic palm with gel padding for increased grip and comfort
• Added insulation & extended stretch cuffs for additional warmth
• Feature on index finger & thumb allows use of touchscreen 

Cost: RRP £40 / £19.99

Hat: Quicksilver Beanie

Actrylic hat, it’s warm….

Cost £15 ish

I’m not sure I’ll be taking this as, having just weighed it, its pretty heavy – you can expect an adjustment here.

Sun hat: Kuhl Uberkuhl cap

• The lightweight comfort and breathability of cotton blends with the added durability of nylon
• Multipaneled, anatomically correct design conforms to your head on the front, back and sides for a great fit
• UPF 50+ sun protection
• 1-handed, quick-adjust strap system allows easy fit-tuning
• One size fits most heads
• Quick drying
• UPF 50
• Moisture wicking fabric

Cost £20

Sungalsses: B’Twin Roackrider

These sun glasses are really cheap.

Cost: £3.99

Pot: AlptKit 900ml

This titanium pot is a small pot for two, or a big pot for one, I’m using it solo! 900ml titanium (lightweight and strong)
It is super inert – this is a benefit environmentally as it is recyclable plus its resistance to corrosion means it doesn’t pollute air, land and oceans.  But it also makes for superb cookware as there’s no metallic taste – Hoorah!

Weight: 94 g (+26g with the lid which I think i’ll replace with some tinfoil).

Cost: £27

Spoon: Sea to Summit titanium spork

Another titanium, lightweight, strong product. This spoon has been in my life for a while, and does the trick!

12g

Cost £11:00

Water filter: Sawyer Squeeze

This little filter is all the rage in the US currently.

Weighing a mere 85g it is lightweight, the most time efficient water treatment system, inexpensive and both easy and versatile. You can fill up your hydration bladder or water bottle, screw this filter on the top, and drink straight from it. Alternatively, fill a bottle or bladder and filter water through the filter into another container for use later on. It comes with two additional water pouches, and a syringe to backwash the filter to keep it clean and particle free.

Rated to 0.1 micron absolute filtration, it removes 99.99999% of all bacteria, such as salmonella, leptospirosis, cholera and E.coli, and removes 99.9999% of all protozoa (such as giardia and cryptosporidium).

To top it all off, it comes with a lifetime warranty! I’m looking forward to using this on the trail…

Cost : Around £40ish

Stove and fuel: MSR Pocket Rocket w/gas

I’ve had this Pocket Rocket for years. It’s reliable, lightweight and fast. It seems silly to replace it, but, MSR have bought out the lighter Pocket Rocket 2 (the old model is no longer available) – so, we’ll see if this gets upgraded nearer the time. 85g

Gas canisters seem pretty easy to come by on the CDT, we can always cold soak dehydrated food and go without gas if we get desperate.

Cost: £28

Smart water bottle 1L x 2

These are the more popular water bottles to carry on any long distance trail at 37.5g (empty obviously) they are a much lighter than Nalgene bottles. I’ll carry 2 of these most of the time, and with the 2L bladder this gives a max capacity of 4L. I can always add more bottle on particularly dry stretches.

Cost: Who cares

Headnet: Sea to Summit

This is 60% lighter that their last model. Am I boring you yet?

11g.

Bugs are probably in the top three most annoying things that might happen on the CDT. Yes, we may only end up using it a handful of times, but, it may well prevent us killing ourselves so I think it’s probably worth it. But only probably.

Phone: Honor 7x

This phone is HUGE, but I own it, so it’s coming.

It has a dual camera, which takes pretty nice pictures at 16mp.

It makes calls, and free ones from abroad.

We’ll run the CDT map ap off it.

I’ll take pictures on it.

I’ll listen to iTunes on it.

215g

Cost £229.99

Battery: Anker Power Core

I like this power pack. Mostly because it has been impact tested. Anyone who knows me, knows most things I own end up impact tested. I’m no fairy when it comes to looking after things I own. It’s also extreme temperature tested and comes with an 18 month warranty. I bought this specifically because my Pebble power pack just wasn’t offering enough charges, we’ll see how this ones goes. 220g with the protective bag and cable.

Cost £21.99

Wallet: Zpacks Passport Zip Pouch

9.4g to keep all the essentials waterproof and secure. I do enjoy a tiny bag.

Cost £7.88

Blister Care: Leukotape

Some amazing human on a blog years ago gave me this incredible advice. I’m not madly prone to blisters, but I do have abnormally soft feet and they inevitably happen. I’ve never gotten on too well with blister specific plasters. This tape is designed for sports injuries, which, I suppose is a blister? It’s mega sticky, zinc oxidey, breathable and super strong. Weight depends on how much you take, I wrap a length of it around something (small pen?) and send more in a resupply box up the trail.

Cost £9.80

Repair tape: Spinnaker tape

This tape is terrific. Another tip, from chap in a van somewhere near reading. It’s used in sailing for sail repair, supposedly temporarily but I’ve used this on sleeping pads, waterproof and down jackets, tents and ALL SORTS – it’s super-duper sticky and really strong. As long as the surface is clean and dry. I’ll take a small length of this for just in cases.

Cost £6.48 for 4.5m – mega deal

Dry bags: Osprey / Sea to Summit

Sea to Summit are the lightest dry bags I’ve found in the UK. Contractor bags or plastic bags would be lighter, but less reliable. I’m still determining which I’m going to take but I already had some Osprey dry bags (pretty light) so it’ll be a mix. It’s looking like a Sea to summit 13L (£12.34 / 40g) for my tent an Osprey 3L (£5.59 / 20g) for my ditty bag of electrical, repair, med kit and toiletries and an Osprey 6L (£7.00 / 30g) for my clothes.

Shade: Euroschrim Liteflex Trekking Umbrella

I think we can all agree, this umbrella has a stupid name. However, it’s 213g (not sure if this is with or without the case – I need to check) it seems really durable and offers a good circumfrance shelter. Yes, quite a bit to spend on an umbrella, but, this will be an essential bit of kit to survive the scary hot deserts and wet weather too.

Cost £38.99

Water: Platypus 3L

Pros – It’s over 100g lighter than the Wide Pac at 109g, it made it through the entire PCT and is still going strong, so must be durable enough.

Cons – There isn’t the wide mouth feature on this model, which makes filling from difficult access or low level flow water sources harder. It doesn’t come with a dust cap for the mouth piece, but you can purchase these separately for around £7 adding 10g.

UPDATE: I’m considering not taking the hose.

Cost: £19.79

Poles: Leki Sherpa XL Speed Lock

My poles on the PCT were heavy, that said, it’s a good work out on your arms, which can be a benefit when, otherwise, you’re doing very little with your arms for 6 months! They had a pretty uncomfortable rubber grip, which at times, caused blisters. I’ve replaced these with the Leki Sherpa . They offer a thermal grip, which has proven to be most comfortable and warm too. As long as they remain clean and free of grit, the weather should not affect the ability to adjust the poles with the speed lock mechanism. 181g each.

ANTI CHAFE: BODY GLIDE

I’ve never suffered majorly with chafe, but the thing with cafe is, that even minor suffering is enough to want to do something about it. I bought this as the solution. supposedly it can help with blisters too. 22g

COST: £9.99

REHYDRATION: NUNN SALTS

This is mostly to avoid dying. Especially in the desert. These were ranked as one of the top ten hydration salts by some guy on some website I found. That’s the kind of hard evidence I like to work from.

COST 9.99 x 20 tablets

POOP SPOON: THE DEUCE #2

In order to save the 17g weight of this little essential, people will profess that digging a hole (to poop in) with a pole, shoe, rock or other completely inappropriate object would be the way to do it…. If someone made a bet, (and why the hell would they on this increasingly boring topic) I would place real money on anyone not carrying one of these not dealing with their waste correctly. the hole should be 6′ and wide enough to house your turd, no matter where you sit on the Bristol Stool Chart.

Cost 20.99

SOS: SPOT GEN 1

The SPOT GEN 1 is the most basic tracker offered (in fact no longer offered) by SPOT. It will notify the SOS center of our GPS location in the event of an emergency. It will send either ‘OK’ or ‘HELP’ messages to our p reinstalled contacts (our Mum’s) . It will save way-points to allow tracking of our route.

It’s pretty much a ‘when the shit hits the fan’ back up to our phones. It only has one way communication, and only works when it has a clear view of the sky. So, if we need ‘HELP’ no one can communicate to ascertain what kind of help we might need. And if we fall off a cliff in the woods, the trees will prevent the messages from sending. We will therefore just avoid trees for 6 months.

For what we need, I think this will do just fine – as it did for me on the PCT.

Cost: £60 on eBay in 2012 – no longer manufactured but still supported by SPOT additional service plans must be purchased for around £170