Pacific Crest Trail Thru Hike Gear List

Written By Shawn

OVERVIEW

For my 2018 Pacific Crest Trail thru hike gear list I tried to stay pretty lightweight but not ultra-lightweight. Originally I was shooting for a base weight of 14-15lbs and I started at just under 14.  A lot of the gear I already owned from a couple of mountaineering expeditions and our 15 month around the world trip, but some of it I bought specifically to bring the weight down a bit for the thru hike.

My gear changed throughout the thru hike as I learned more about what I did and didn’t need.  I have added some post hike notes below each section such as things I ditched, things I swapped, and (gasp!) things I added.  I’ve also included some information on gear that failed, and stuff I lost along the way.

I finished a true thru with a few pounds less gear and 30 pounds less body weight!

THE BIG 3 (4)

I include the sleeping pad in this category. Butters and I split the tent weight (I took tent and fly, she took poles and stakes)

Total for Big 3: 6lbs 3oz

Gear Ditched

TYVEK Footprint. Only used this once in the first 2 months. Finally just tossed it to save weight.

Gear Failed

Thermarest Neo Air X Lite.  Had 4 baffles blow out in my pad after about 3 months of use. It created a large uncomfortable bubble in the center of my pad.

Thankfully I got ahold of Thermarest and they forward replaced me a new one on the trail! Thanks Thermarest!

Other Notes

My pack, tent, and quilt all took a beating and held up perfect.  I wouldn’t hesitate to use any of these again in the future!

A tent with 2 doors and 2 vestibules is key to a happy marriage

PACKED CLOTHES

In addition to a warm jacket and rain jacket, I originally planned for one extra set of hiking clothes that could double as sleep clothes and one pair thermal bottoms which I’d put on under my shorts if I got cold. But that changed.

  • Rain Shell: Outdoor Research Helium (6.4oz) SEE AT REI

  • Warm Jacket: Mountain Hardware Ghost Whisperer (7.7oz) SEE AT REI

  • Warm Hat: Outdoor Research Down Beanie (0.8oz) SEE AT REI

  • Gloves: Rab Xenon (1.5oz) SEE AT REI

  • Thermal Bottom: Smartwool NTS 250 (6.3oz) BUY AT REI

  • Camp Shoes: Generic Flippy Floppies (6oz)

Total for Packed Clothes: 2lbs 6.8oz

GEAR DITCHED

All of my “extra” hiking clothes. Turns out I don’t mind just sleeping in my hiking clothes and wearing the same thing every day. I got rid of any extra I was carrying and completed the trail with 1 shirt, 1 pair of running shorts, and 1 pair of socks (listed below).

I almost ditched my thermal bottoms too, but was nervous I would need them in WA. I only wore them twice on the entire trail.

GEAR ADDED

I added rain pants (OR Helium) and rain glove shell (OR Revel Shell Mitts) at Kennedy Meadows South heading into the Sierra and carried them the rest of the way.  I never used my rain pants for actual rain, but they were invaluable for protecting against mosquitoes. I only used my rain gloves one time when we climbed Mt. Whitney and it was mostly to protect for wind.

WATER/COOKING

Some people choose to go stove-less for the Pacific Crest Trail thru hike, I planned to at least start with a stove (spoiler alert, I ended up cold soaking). The whole system was still pretty light. I planned to have 6L of water capacity to start for the desert stretches.

  • Water Bottles: Two Smartwater 1L Bottles (2.8oz)

  • Water Filter: Sawyer Sqeeze (3.1oz) SEE AT REI

  • Dirty Water Reservoir: CNOC 2L (3oz) SEE AT CNOC

  • Food Bag: Z-Packs Bear Bag (1.6oz) SEE AT ZPACKS

  • Cook Stove: BRS Titanium (0.9oz) SEE AT AMAZON

  • Cook Pot: Snow Peak 700 Ti (4.5oz) SEE AT REI

  • Utensil: Toaks Titanium Spork (0.4oz) SEE AT REI

  • Small Personal Towel: REI Multi Towel Mini (0.5oz) SEE AT REI

  • Lighter: Mini Bic (0.8oz) SEE AT AMAZON

  • Cook Gear Stuff Sack: Z-Packs Dyneema Sack (0.14oz)

Total for Cooking Gear and Water: 1lb 1.69oz

GEAR DITCHED

The gravity part of my Sawyer Squeeze. Never used it.

GEAR SWAPPED

I swapped out my entire cook system by the end of California. I got rid of cook stove, cook pot, stuff sack, and lighter. I replaced it all with a plastic Telanti jar to cold soak both lunch and dinner with. See my post on what to eat on a PCT thru hike for more info on what I ate.

I also swapped out my dirty water reservoirs for 1.5L Smartwater bottles after the desert effectively reducing my capacity from 6L to 5L. At PCT days I was finally able to obtain one of the coveted 2L CNOC water bags which is what I used for the remainder of the hike.

My Zpacks personal towel literally disintegrated and I can’t recommend it. Instead I picked up an ultra small REI pack towel which was awesome.

Replaced my entire cook system for this little plastic jar and pretty much ate Ramen Bombs (Ramen noodles + Instant Mash) for the remainder of the trail.

ELECTRONICS

Admittedly I am a bit of a techie but I tried my best to not bring much. I planned to use my iPhone for most everything (pictures/video, GPS/apps, podcasts/music, Instagram/Facebook etc.) and just back up to the cloud. The two port charger and dual USB cables allowed charging of phone and battery pack at the same time in town.

  • Camera/Do Everything Device: iPhone 8 w/case (5.6oz)

  • Battery Pack: Anger Powercore 10k (6.3oz) SEE AT AMAZON

  • Wall Charger: Anker Nano (3.5oz) SEE AT AMAZON

  • USB Charging Cables: iPhone & Anker (1.7oz)

  • Headlamp: Petzl Actik Core (3.1oz) SEE AT REI

  • Headphones: Apple Wired (0.5oz) SEE AT AMAZON

  • Save Me Device: Garmin InReach Mini (3.5oz) SEE AT REI

Total for Electronics: 1lb 8.3oz

GEAR LOST

I lost my iPhone8 doing a river crossing in the Sierra mountains. Replaced with a new one when we got to Bishop.

ESSENTIALS

Everyone brings their own luxury items. For me, having something to sit/lay on during breaks and having a good pillow were essential for morale.

Total for Essentials: 11.87oz

GEAR DITCHED

I ditched my bear bag hang kit as I just didn’t use it. I only had to hang a bag twice on the whole trail and it was just for precaution. Instead of carrying a poop trowel, I just used a rock to dig. I started with a food koozie pouch was a nice idea but again I never used it and it became obsolete anyway when I switched to cold soaking. Same with the stick pic, a nice idea but I never took the time to actually use it.

GEAR SWAPPED

I swapped my sit pad for a full length Thermarest Z-Lite and am so glad I did. Yes it weighs a bit more, but it was so great to be able to lay out a full length pad and get out of the dirt for breaks. Yes I carried both this pad and my inflatable. I tried scaling down to just the Z-lite but never found it comfortable enough to sleep on.

GEAR ADDED (for the Sierra)

I added an Ice Ax, Microspikes, and the required bear can for the Sierra section starting in Kennedy Meadows South. I never used my Ice Ax and only used my spikes twice just because I had them. Got rid of the ax and spikes in Mammoth and sent the bear can home in Kennedy Meadows North.

GEAR LOST

I left my credit card at the brewery in Mammoth and didn’t realize it for a couple hundred miles. I ordered a new one and had it sent to Tahoe.

Full length pad was crucial for end of the day tanning sessions

TOILETRIES

Not much to say here, just a few things to keep relatively clean, groomed, and protected from the sun.

  • Small Toothbrush: Colgate Travel (0.5oz)

  • Toothpaste: Crest Pro Health .85oz (1oz)

  • Hand Sanitizer: Purell (1.2oz)

  • Sunscreen: Sunbum SPF50 3oz (2.7oz)

  • Lip Balm: Sunbum Mango SPF30 (0.4oz)

  • Bug Spray: Repel Lemon Eucalyptus (1.9oz)

  • Nail Clippers: Basic Lightweight Clippers (0.9oz)

  • Medical Kit: Bandaids | Leukotape | Tylenol | Antibiotic/Chaff Creams (1.4oz)

Total For Toiletries: 10oz

GEAR DITCHED

I ditched the sunscreen and anti-chaff cream in the desert when I realized I wouldn’t need them.

WHAT I WORE

Here’s what I originally started with for everyday wear while thru hiking the PCT and the changes I made. Items here not included in base weight.

GEAR DITCHED

I ditched my Dirty Girl gaiters after about 1k miles only because I wore holes in them and they didn’t really work anymore.  I also sent one trekking pole home in Tahoe and hiked with one for the rest of the way.

GEAR SWAPPED

I swapped my hat, buff, sun sleeves, and t-shirt for a single Arc’Teryx long sleeve sun hoody which was awesome. The sun hoody was still super light and the sleeves and hood protected from sun and mosquitoes.  I would highly recommend a long sleeve sun hoody for anyone planning a thru hike.

GEAR FAILED

I wore through 3 pairs of Darn Tough socks along the trail. However, true to their word, they carry a lifetime warranty and I had them replaced 3 times for free.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Wow when I write this out it seems like I carried a lot, but I really didn’t. I tried to be as minimal as possible while not sacrificing comfort in some areas. It’s a delicate balance!

I was able to finish a true thru in 146 days with this kit which is pretty respectable for a first ultra long thru hike if you ask me!

Shawn

explorer | photo taker

https://wanderinthru.com
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What To Eat on a PCT Thru Hike
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Life Off the Trail: Eating all the Things