7.2 lb Continental Divide Trail Gear List

Trip Details

Length: 2500ish miles
Time Frame: April 4th-August 3rd, 2022
Where: The CDT. Antelope Wells-East Glacier.
I’m not a “red line”(official route) kinda guy. I took a lot of alternate routes. Most of these routes made the hike more interesting. Some of the routes made the hike a lot harder and/or longer, most of the routes made the hike shorter and/or easier.
Temperature: 5°F-95°F (-15°C-35°C)
Ending Baseweight: 7.2 lbs (3.25 kg) (From Rawlins, WY to the end)
Heaviest Pack Weight: 60ish lbs (27 kg)
Resupply Points: Lordsburg, Silver City, Doc Campbells, Top of the World Store, Grants, Cuba, Chama, South Fork, Buena Vista, Silverthorne, Grand Lake, Steamboat Springs, Rawlins, Dubois, Old Faithful, Twin Bridges, Butte, Helena, Lincoln
I tried to walk through most of my resupply points but I hitched <10 miles to Dubois and Lincoln
Longest Food Carry: 16 days (Rawlins-Dubois)
Average Food Carry: 5.7 Days
Average Speed: My average speed comes out to about 20 miles per day. I was slowed down a lot though. I took a zero in Silver City because of joint problems. I waited in Chama for 4 days for my snowshoes to be delivered to the post office (I gave up on them and they ended up being 12 days late). There were a bunch of days in Northern NM, CO, and the Winds where I could only hike 5-8 miles in a full day because of the snow. I took 2 zeros in Buena Vista to wait out a big snow storm. I had bad knee and hip joint problems N CO and S WY. I got ridiculously sick from vaccines that I got in Butte and Helena and took 5 zeros and a bunch of neros

List Notes

*I wasn’t able to get the weights of everything when I was putting this together. For the items I don't have weights for, I estimated the weights of the items and added them to my total base weight but I did not add the weight estimations to the totals for each category.

The links to Amazon and Ripstop by the Roll are affiliate links. At no cost to you, I’ll get a small commission on purchases made through these links. There were a few items where I couldn’t find and a link to my exact item so I used links to items that are basically the same thing.

This gear list is still a work in progress. There are a ton more details that I’d like to add to this page when I get a chance.

LIST

Packing + Shelter

Packing + Shelter Total*: 3.42 lbs (1.55 kg)

Packed Clothing

Packed Clothing Total*: 0.91 lbs (0.41 kg)

Electronics

Electronics Total: 1.1 lbs (0.5 kg)

Camera Gear

Camera Gear Total: 0.61 lbs (0.27 kg)

Other
Temporary Gear
Worn



DETAILS

Packing + Shelter
(17 oz) 45 Liter Pack

(482g) frameless, roll-top, webbing hipbelt
The pack has an undersized torso to make it possible to carry smaller loads. To carry large, heavy loads, it has load lifters.
The seams are taped with DCF seam tape. When the tape is in good condition, the pack is waterproof enough for me to be able to swim across a river with it.
I really loved using the 2” webbing hipbelt on this thing. For me personally, a 2” webbing hipbelt is very comfortable, even with 50+ lb loads. I feel like that’s saying a lot cause I’m skinny and I don’t have hips. With very light loads, the hipbelt can be tucked into the pockets and the pack can be worn hipbeltless.
My favorite pack fabric is DCF Hybrid fabric but at $51-$56 a yard it’s pretty expensive for something that’s inevitably going to wear out after hiking with it for ~100-300 days. I used X-Pac V15 for this pack which on paper is basically the same thing as DCF Hybrid fabric, just without the UHMWPE fibers. It’s definitely overall a lower quality fabric and it will wear out quicker than DCF Hybrid but it’s only $32 a yard. As I’m writing this, I’m realizing it’s not THAT much cheaper but it’s still almost half the price of DCF.
For most of the external pockets I used a lightweight stretch mesh material from Joann. Huge mistake. My pockets got shredded up. For the pockets on my next pack, I’ll probably use the type material that Hyperlite Mountain Gear uses on their Windrider packs (basically this).
Built with a dark colored fabric (originally black) to prevent it from looking too dirty and to allow it to dry quick in the sun.
Materials

(5.5 oz) CCF Sleeping Pads

(2.9oz, 82g) 3/8” closed cell foam pad cut to shoulder to thigh length
(2.6 oz, 74g) 1/8” closed cell foam pad cut to shoulder to feet length
My sleeping pads acted as a “frame” for my pack during the day and as insulation from the ground at night.
Inflatable pads are really popular on trail but I personally couldn’t imagine browing up a pad every single night, stressing about every single twig on the ground underneath my pad, and constantly repairing leaks. My goal with all of my gear is to make it as simple as possible so I wouldn’t want to add that much complexity to my set up.
I’ve been using aerogel sleeping pads for the past few years (fiberglass blankets infused with silica aerogel dust, sealed in an abrasion resistant waterproof fabric). Inflatable pads are great because they have a really good warmth to packed volume ratio but aerogel pads have an even higher warmth to packed volume ratio while still retaining the same simplicity that using a foam pad has.
On this trip, I wanted to reduce weight from my sleep system as much as possible so taking closed cell foam pads was an obvious choice. Closed cell foam has the best warmth to weight ratio out of any other sleeping pad material (at least in mild conditions, I’m not sure if that’s true for <0F).
In the past, I’ve experimented with some of the fancy shmancy closed cell foam pads like the Termarest Ridgerest, Z-lite, and knockoffs of the Z-lite. I’ve found that the shapes of these pads don’t boost the insulative value as much as you’d think. In my experience, I feel like simple CCF pads without fancy shapes have the same warmth to weight ratio as CCF pads made in fancy shapes. I know that’s a big statement but I think that shaped pads use a heavier foam. Definitely take this statement with a grain of salt. I still need to find a way to test this.

(8.5 oz) Essentialist Tent

(241g) floorless, 1 person, asymmetrical pyramid shelter with guylines
Probably my favorite piece of gear. It’s an extremely simple piece of gear but a whole lot of thought went into designing it.
Built with green fabric for stealth camping. This was only useful a few nights of the trip.
Check out this page to see my thinking behind the tent’s design:
Build the Essentialist Tent
There’s not much to say about this tent on top of what I mentioned in the above link. The tent worked almost flawlessly. The only hicups it had were the Lineloc V adjusters did wear out and one of the zipper sliders wore out. The tent itself though was perfect.


Materials

(0.22 oz x6) Carbon Fiber Stakes

(6.2g) 6.4” carbon fiber stakes from Zpacks
I started the hike with 6 stakes. I broke a stake in Colorodo while improperly prying it out of ice and I broke 2 stakes in the Great Basin cause the ground is extremely hard there.
Round carbon fiber stakes definitely weren’t ideal for every single type of ground but they were a pretty good stakes overall. If this trip was in a sightly rockier environment, I would've gone with titanium V stakes.
Really, tent stakes are one of my least important pieces of gear. Tent guy outs can almost always be improvised with sticks or rocks.

(19 oz) ~20°F Down Quilt

(539g) Down quilt with wide karo step baffling
I built my quilt to be as simple as possible so there’s not too much to say about it.
I used cheap Amazon down which worked well. I absolutely loved the Argon 0.49 oz/sqyd 7D calendered nylon that I used for the shell. I don’t think I had a single tear in it.
Built with a dark colored fabric for fast drying in the sun.
The karo step baffling worked fine but it was very finicky to use. I would’ve much prefered using a vertical baffled quilt.


I have a page with some info on karo step quilts:
BUILD IT


Materials

(0.77 oz) "Bug Sock"

(22g) Large mesh “sock” to cover my head and the upper part of my quilt
Made from tulle

(1.48 oz) Polycryo Groundsheet

(42g) light, simple, but still incredibly effective
It’s sold as window insulation film

(0.8 oz) Silnylon Food Bag

(23g) This nylon to be specific
Seams sealed with silicone
Velcro closure
Built to fit perfectly in my slightly tapered pack, on top of my quilt
I like to make my food bags as “waterproof” as practically possible in order to reduce the smell of my food and to be prepared for a possible oil leak.
I wasn’t able to fit all of my food in here, all of the time but it held most of my food.
I sleep with my food but if I ever needed to do a bear hang, I could with this.

(0.3 oz) DCF Ditty Bag

(9g) Made from: 1 oz/sqyd Dyneema Composite Fabric

Tote Bag

Decided last minute (literally) to take a cheap tote bag to stay organized

Packed Clothing
(4.7 oz) Shell Jacket

(133g) I designed my shell jacket to be able to handle consistent light-medium rainfall but still be ultralight and breathable enough to wear indefinitely during strenuous hiking.
It’s made with waterproof fabric in the hood, torso, and shoulders (it’s got a raglan pattern sort of), and it’s sleeves are made with waterproof breathable fabric.
The jacket is oversized to allow for airflow through the interior of the jacket and give the waterproof breathable fabric more surface area.
It only has a 1/2 zip. This reduces leaks, cuts weight, and greatly reduces the chances of a zipper failiure
The hood, cuffs, and waist don’t have and fancy velcro, fixed elastic, or hardware that can wear out or be excessively heavy. They all simply synch up with shockcord and cordlocks.
I taped the seams but looking back on it, using Seam Grip might have been better.
Made with black fabric so it dries faster in the sun and it “absorbs” more heat in cold and sunny conditions.

Materials

(2 oz) Shell Pants

(57g) Yeah, exactly 2 oz.
I don’t think you can buy it anymore but it’s made from 1.2 oz/sqyd Waterproof Breathable Dyneema Composite Fabric. If you are able to find it, this fabric is the HOLY GRAIL of shell fabrics.
A brand new pair of WPB DCF pants has an unbelievable combination of breathability, water resistance, packability, durability, and weight.
Unfortunately, just like every other waterproof breathable fabric, the WPB DCF does wear out from stretching, body oil, and abrasion. Re-applying a DWR (durable water repellant) finish to the fabric does help to re-”waterproof” it but just barely. All of the WPB DCF pants I’ve made have worn out (lost their water resistance) in the crotch pretty quickly (because of stretching). I’ve made a pair without a gusset and I’ve made 2 pairs with 2 different types of gussets. They all wore out at the same rate.
That being said, I still love my WPB DCF pants enough to use them. I’ve worn them all day, for days at a time on past hikes and I’ve never had a problem with them holding in excessive moisture. I can’t say that about most of the other rain pant materials I’ve tried.

(4.1 oz) Fleece Shirt

(28g) Just a simple shirt made with:
Polartec Alpha Direct 4004
Black for fast drying in the sun.
You’d be amazed at how well this lightweight fleece fabric insulates underneath a wind blocking layer.
Alpha Direct fabric is marketed as “active insulation”. “Active insulation” is just a marketing term and can mean different things but in the case of Polartec Alpha it means that the insulation is EXTREMELY breathable, both in terms of wind and perspiration being able to pass through it.
I use an “airy”, “active insulation”, fleece-like layer on the majority of my trips. Before I started wearing Alpha Direct, I wore a Patagonia Capilene Air Hoody. This type of layer is lightweight, warm, and dries quickly.
An “airy” fleece-like layer is generally impractical though to wear in the mountains as a stand alone piece. When the wind speed and temperature is constantly fluctuating, this type of layer will be uncomfortable and make you feel exposed. By layering a zippered, wind blocking shirt on top of your “airy” fleece, you’ll be able to regulate how much body heat you want to be retaining extremely effectively.
With this setup, I’m able to stay comfortable in an expansive range of temperatures and wind conditions.
Alpha Direct 4004 is one of the lightest weights of Alpha Direct fabric. I’ve experimented with using pieces made from heavier weights of Alpha Direct fabric but I’ve found the heavier heavier fabric to be impractical for my personal use. They’re ridiculously warm and have a way higher loft/warmth to weight ratio than the lightweight Alpha but it wouldn’t make sense to take a heavy Alpha Direct shirt instead of a puffy jacket.

(1.6 oz) Fleece Gloves

(45g) Nothin’ special about these. They’re just a cheap pair of fleece gloves.
Simple, warm, and relatively durable.
Black for fast drying in the sun and to absorb heat in the sun.
For “liner gloves” i actually prefer wool gloves but wool gloves wear out faster and are more expensive (for a good pair) which makes them less practical on long trips. Fleece gloves aren’t as warm and are generally heavier but they’re durable and cheap.
I carried these throughout my entire CDT section hike. This would be silly for most people to do but I have bad blood circulation in my fingers, plus I’m a wimp so I needed them.

(2.1 oz) Shell Gloves

(60g) Showa 282 Gloves with the liners cut out.
They’re extremely durable, lightweight, waterproof, and supposedly breathable.
For some reason, I can never find the Showa 281 gloves (the ones without the liners) so I always get the 282s and cut the liners out.
I LOVE these gloves. They’re really nothing special. They’re so simple but I think thats why I love them.
I’ve used these very successfully for more “traditional” cold and wet applications like fishing, trapping, paddling, and sailing, but I find where these really shine is when I’m using them to scale icy cliffs, fighting through blizzards, and speeding through downpours.

Headnet

I have no clue where I got this but a headnet is a headnet.
This isn’t a piece of gear I used often but it was absolutely worth carrying for those times when I really needed it.
I like having the protection of noseeum mesh for a headnet but for my next trip to a super buggy environment, I might take a headnet made from tulle to cut weight, improve breathability, and improve visibility.

Extra Pair of Socks

By the end of the trip, I was using 2 pairs of socks.
My Injinji Socks were great for preventing blisters.
My Darntough Socks lasted much longer than the Injinjis so they were nice to rotate with the Injinjis.
For a lot the trip I used 2 pairs of Injinjis and a pair of Darn Toughs

Electronics
(3.22 oz x2) USB Solar Panels

(91g x2) “10W” Lixada Solar Panels
trimmed to save weight
rigged to my pack with shock cord

(1.05 oz) USB Power Enhancer

(30g) USB Power Enhancer

(~3 oz) Miscellaneous Cables

Micro USBs, USB Cs

(2.1 oz) 4 Port Wall Adapter

(60g) USB Wall Charger Block,Aioneus 40W 4-Port Charging Block,QC 3.0

(4 oz) 5000 mah Power Bank
(0.45 oz) Earbuds

Wired of course

(0.6 oz) Flashlight

(17g) RovyVon Aurora A5

Camera Gear
(6.4 oz) Canon G9X
(0.79 oz x2) Camera Batteries
(0.07 oz) 128 GB SD Card
(1.49 oz) Bendy Tripod
(0.93 oz) Lav Mic
Other
Carbon Fiber Trekking Poles

Cascade Mountain Tech Carbon Fiber Cork Grip Trekking Poles
I didn’t finish my hike with these but I did have at least one trekking pole for the majority of the trip.
I NEEDED a trekking pole to pitch my tent and to ford rivers in Colorado and the Winds. They were nice to use for hiking in the beginning of the trip but I eventually stopped using them. One of my poles broke right when I got into Colorado (it was my fault, not the trekking poles) and I ditched the 2nd one when I got to Montana.
When I need trekking poles, I really love these ones. I’ve been using the CMT CF trekking poles for like 6 years and I’ve never had one fail on me while I was using them properly. If you bend them excessively or over extend them, they’re pretty easy to break.
I carried the snow cups for these up until Rawlins, WY.

(1.2 oz) 1 L Smart Water Bottle
(0.69 oz) Compass

Cut down Silva Starter
I only used this a few times (literally) but it was a solid compass.
Even if my phone failed, I’d be fine navigating to a town without a compass on the CDT but I feel like the .69 oz is worth carrying.

(0.45 oz) Folding Knife

SOG keychain knife
A solid, robust little knife for repairs, cutting food, starting fires, opening packaging, etc.

Toothbrush + Toothpaste

You already know it’s cut in half

Chapstick
Caffeine + a Pain Killer
Lighter
Repair Kit
Flash Drive

durable samsung flash drive

Wallet
Journal + Pen
Passport
Cold Soaking Jar + Spoon

I really like the 40 oz (weight) size peanut butter jars for this.
I used a reusable plastic spoon for the majority of the trip but it eventually broke and I ended up just using “disposable” spoons

Temporary Gear
(11 oz) Bearspray and Holster

(312g) I originally planned on hiking the entire length of the Rocky Mountains on this trip which would’ve taken me up through some really remote parts of British Columbia. I definitely would have needed bear spray for that so I picked up a can of spray in Rawlins, WY because I figured if I’m gonna get bear spray anyways, I might as well get it early, in the start of grizzly country. To be honest, if I knew I’d be hiking just the CDT I would not have bought bear spray. I definitely CAN NOT recommend that YOU go hiking in grizzly country without bear spray though.

(12 oz) Down Jacket

(57g) Down jacket with wide baffles and box baffling in the torso

Materials

(7.4 oz) Aluminum Ice Axe

(210g) 50 cm Camp Corsa Ice Axe
I could’ve got by without this but it was nice to have, especially as a safety measure.

(15 oz) Microspikes

(425g) a cheap pair of microspikes
I lost one of these in the San Juans while post holing through deep snow. I didn’t get a new pair because I really didn’t NEED them.

Water Bottles

In the desert I had an extra 1 L Smartwater bottle and a 2 L Platypus bottle.
That brought my water capacity to 4 Liters which I felt was perfect.

Sawyer Mini Water Filter

I lost the O-ring for this within the first 100 miles so I just ditched it.
I generally don’t filter my water on hikes but whenever I’m hiking through areas (like any desert) where I might come across sketchy water, I usually bring a small dropper bottle filled with bleach. That’s what I should have done for this trip but I never got sick from bad water (I don’t think).

Thick Wool Socks

for Colorado

Snow Gaiters

for Colorado
OR Helium Gaiters
I really wasn’t impressed with these or anything like that but they got the job done without giving me any problems.

Worn
Nylon Hiking Shirt

My sun/wind/bug shirt
Has a hood and a full zipper
Patagonia Houdini Air “Jacket”
I definitely wouldn’t get another one of these from Patagonia because it’s ridiculously expensive (even when it’s on sale) but I loved this piece while it lasted. I’ve used a Patagonia Airshed in the past for the same purpose and loved that too. I’m 95% sure both of these pieces use variations of Pertex Quantum Air fabric.
Pertex Quantum Air Fabric has an amazing balance of wind resistance and breathability. It also dries fast, is mosquito bite proof, doesn’t get too hot, and is relatively durable when it’s new.
Unfortunately, by the time I finished the CDT it was in beyond bad shape. I had worn the shirt a whole lot before the CDT so by the end of the trip, after so much time being exposed to sun, sweat, and constant abrasion, it completely wore out. You have to expect that though considering how light the fabric is.
It’s a light colored shirt to help reflect the sun.
This was my next to skin layer for 95% of the time I was hiking.
The zipper allowed me to vent my body heat and stay comfortable in a wide range of temperatures and wind conditions while still protecting me from the sun.

Nylon Hiking Pants

Durable sun/wind/bug pants
Exofficio Sandfly Pants
I’m pretty sure I bought these cause Andrew Skurka recommended them on his site and they were on sale.
They held up extremely well considering what I put them through.
Their light color and mesh vents meant I could wear these in hot weather without being hot.

Trail Runners

La Sportiva Akyras

Sun Hat

just a simple nylon sun hat

Sun Glasses

cheap sun glasses

Sun Gloves

OR sun gloves

Trail Gaiters

worn from Dubois, WY to the end

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