Kept Items

Cook:

  • 100g Propane/Isobutane Fuel Mix (1) – 6.8 oz
    • No issues other than not being able to tell when close to empty. Most of my trip, I carried two of these because I did not want to take the risk of not having fuel or having it malfunction on me.
  • Smart Water/LIFE WTR 1 Liter bottles Filled (2) – 34 oz
    • No, I did not keep the same water bottle for the entire journey. Same type of bottle though.
  • JetBoil Zip Cooking System (1) – 11.75 oz
    • No issues. May be my most favorite piece of gear. It is extremely efficient and worth every ounce if you are interested in no problem hot meals.
  • Plastic Spoon/Spork – .2 oz
    • Lasted entire way. No issues.
  • Sawyer Water Filter System (Personal) (1) – 4.3 oz
    • This filtration system worked for me the entire way, though the liter bag did not. I went through two of them. The first one broke in it a little before Boiling Springs, PA and the second one broke the day before I climbed Katahdin. This was the most common filter I saw on the trail. I switched the cap to a smart water bottle cap and removed items from the filtration kit I thought were unnecessary. All you really need is a bag to catch the water and the filter. You can even consider the cap as unnecessary, but it is nice to have for aim.
  • Small Partition of sponge (1/3 of a sponge) – .2 oz
    • Used to clean my pot only when in town, never once on the trail. I should have, but made it a habit to include my pot in my food bag. I didn’t mind the remnants of food from the previous day, as long as I cleaned the pot in town.
  • Ursack Major S29.3 AllWhite (1) – 8.7 oz
    • No issues. Saved the stress and time of having to worry about hanging my food every night. I did not hang this bag once, well unless there were bear cables or a bear pole where I decided to sleep.
  • Waterproof Matches (1) – .6 oz
    • Kept always just in case. Never used. Fit perfectly in my Jet Boil on the bottom.

Clothing:

  • Darn Tough Micro Crew Cushion Hiking Socks (2) – 5.4 oz
    • No holes in socks the entire way.
  • Dirty Girl Gaiters (1) – 1.5 oz
    • The metal on my shoes put holes in these, but did their job for the entire trail.  I needed to re-attach/re-glue the Velcro strip to my shoe though 5-7 times.
  • Hanes Men’s X-Temp Performance Cool Boxer Briefs – Long (1) – 3.3 oz
    • Did not use often, but for when I needed a swim suit or an extra layer for those days when the chafing was just too much to handle.
  • Injinji Liner Crew Socks (2) – 2.4 oz
    • No holes, lasted the entire way.
  • Knit Hat (1) – 3.7 oz
    • Nothing special about this item, other than I used it in cold weather and at night.
  • North Face Summit Series Fall 08 – 100% Polyester | RN#61661
    • Lasted the entire way, though I have had this coat since 2008.
    • Sent home in Virginia and retrieved back in New Hamshire.
    • Little on the heavy side.
  • Thin Long Sleeve Kenneth Cole Reaction shirt – 60% cotton | 40% Polyester | RN# 15741
    • Did not wear on trail unless it was very cold. Used mainly as a town garment.
  • Men’s Light Long-Sleeve Crew Neck (1) – 7.3 oz
    • Base layer. No issues.
  • Merrell Men’s Moab Mid Gore-Tex Hiking Boots (1) – 33.3 oz
    • No issues. Got around 700+ miles on each pair. I had three pairs total for this trip of the same model. It would have been best to have 4 pairs.
  • Nike Dri-fit Shorts (1) – 5 oz
    • Very comfortable shorts with a liner. No issues. Big enough zip up pocket for my wallet.
  • Nike Dri-Fit T-shirt (1) – 5.2 oz
    • Very comfortable. No issues.
  • Under Armour HeatGear Leggings (1) – __ oz
    • Breathable for hiking and worked very well in cooler temperatures without discomfort.  When shopping for these, I initially was going to buy their ColdGear Leggings, for the extra warmth, but with such little difference and the extra weight of the ColdGear, I went with the HeatGear leggings and post-trail, very happy with that decision.
  • XERO Umara Z-Trail (1) – 5.3 oz
    • Bought as a light weight camp and fording shoe, but used it mainly as a town shoe.
    • Super comfortable.
  • Manzella All Elements 3.0 Touchtip Gloves – (1) – 3.3 oz
    • Certainly not water proof, but served their purpose in cold weather as well as good grip to climb on those steep descents.

Miscellaneous:

  • Zpacks™ Backpack Belt Pouches (2) – 1.5 oz
    • Large pockets. The strings extensions to the metal zips fell off. Little annoying at first, but generally no issue.
  • Zpacks™ Arc Haul Backpack (62 L) (1) – 24 oz
    • Held up for the entirety of the hike. Main issue I had with the pack were that the weight loaders would not lock into place. Despite the issue with the weight loader, this pack was one of my favorite pieces of gear.
  • Svelte Wallet (ID/Credit/<$100/Health Insurance) (1) – 1.8 oz
    • I did not buy the wallet for this hike, but it held up and fit perfectly as mentioned before, in that one zip pocket in my Nike Dri-Fit Shorts.
    • Super light
  • Trash Bag (Not scented) (1) – 1.4 oz
    • Used as a pack liner on really wet days. Always carried, but exchanged trash bags throughout the hike. Do not have any recommendations for any one trash bag.
  • Sharp Scissors (1) -.7 oz
    • Used these for everything. 2 inches long. Great for opening avocados! Lasted. No complaints. I believe I got these scissors out of a sewing kit.
  • Rubber Bands (6) – .2 oz
    • Never used. Carried them the entire way. Likely forgot about them.
  • REI Co-op Flash Carbon Trekking Poles – Pair (1) – 14.8 oz
    • These poles lasted the entire way, but with issue. The tip on one of my poles broke after I made it through the Whites. The other pole, in Vermont the bottom clamp broke so I had to super glue it together to prevent it popping out every time it got stuck in the ground. I would still recommend a clamped trekking pole, for they are extremely reliable, especially if you are using these to set up your tent every night, however, not with a sleeve the way this pole was designed. I very much enjoyed the weight of the poles, the foam handles, and the return policy. REI replaced these when I got back from my hike. REI gave me store credit in exchange of my broken poles, so I could have bought ones with better design, but I did not. I choose familiarity over design. I very much liked my trekking poles despite these apparent issues.
  • Glasses with hard case (1) – 1.9 oz
    • Never used and carried the entire way.
  • Z-Packs Medium-Plus Pillow Dry Bag (1) – 2 oz
    • Worked very well. No issues.
  • Zpacks™ Backpack Shoulder Pouch (1) – .5 oz
    • Worked very well. No issues.
  • Zpacks Multi-Pack – 4 in 1 (Chest Pouch) (1) – 2 oz
    • One of the zippers broke towards the end of the trail so I could only zip one direction. Do not put anything in this pocket that isn’t waterproof or water resistant. This pocket, whether zipped up or not will fill with water when raining. Even with this inconvenience, it was outweighed by its usefulness.

Sleep:

  • Zpacks™ Duplex Ultralight Two Person Tent (1) – 21 oz
    • One of my most favorite pieces of gear for the weight and the amount of space. If you set up on a decline, even if slight, be sure to set up the tent with one of the doors towards the downhill. Based on the way the bug net is designed, one could slide into the netting, pushing it past the cuben fiber (dyneema composite fabic), letting in rain, flooding the tent over time. If you happen to set up the tent incorrectly for whatever reason on a hill, you can sleep corner to corner to avoid potentially sliding into the netting.
  • Tent Stake Sack (1) – .09 oz
    • No issues. I recommend storing this not in the same place as the tent to avoid potential rips.
  • 6.5 inch Titanium V Stakes – For Wind / Snow / Sand (4) – 1.32 oz
    • For how helpful these were, I wished they would have lasted longer. I broke two of these along the way in half. While I am generally very careful with my gear, some nights I had been impatient setting up my tent, which is how I broke these two stakes, forcing them into the ground where they should have not been forced.
  • 6 inch Orange Ultralight Titanium Tent Stakes (4) – .76 oz
    • Held up. No issues. Lost one of these along the way on a beach on one of Maine’s many lakes.
  • Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite Sleeping Pad (1) – 12 oz
    • Lasted the entire way. One of my most favorite pieces of gear. Perfect for side sleepers!
  • Thermarest NeoAir Pump Sack (1) – 2.7 oz
    • Great pack liner. Works as intended. Lasted the entire way.
  • REI Co-op Igneo Sleeping Bag (19 F) (1) – 31 oz
    • No issues and very light. Be sure to keep this dry.

Electronic:

Medical:

  • Tincture of Benzoin (2) – .2 oz
    • Never used, but carried the entire way. I have no comments on its usefulness based on my lack of experience with blisters on the trail.
  • Krazy Glue All Purpose Skin Guard Formula 0.07 oz (1) – .3 oz
    • Never used on myself, but carried the entire way.
  • Burt’s Bees Lip Balm (1) – .4 oz
    • Never used as intended. Used as a substitute for Body Glide out of access convenience.
  • Krazy Glue All Purpose Skin Guard Formula 0.07 oz (1) – .3 oz
    • Went through a number of these along the trail. Meant to bring as last resort medical treatment, but used instead for the miscellaneous such as gluing back on the Velcro strips associated with my Dirty Girl Gaiters on my boots.
  • Idodine tablets (6) – .2 oz
    • Carried and never used. Carried as a last resort for water treatment in case my water filter broke.
  • Ibprofen (10) – .2 oz
    • Ran out of the 10 in Maine I packed for this trip. I take these sparingly only when the pain was too much for me to handle.
  • Dynarex Alcohol Prep Pad (10) – .4 oz
    • Carried these, but never used on myself.
  • 2nd Skin Gel Squares (in smaller container) (1) – 2 oz
    • Carried these, but never used on myself.
  • Bodyglide Liquified Powder Skin Lubricant – 1.6 fl. oz.(1) – 2.2 oz
    • Used once. This was useful, but no convenient for when I needed it, on the trail.
  • Leukotape (1) – 4 oz
    • Used early on the trail as a second skin for hotspots on my feet. This tape will not ball up on your feet and is super breathable. This may be the best medical tape that exists.

Toiletries:

  • Trowel (1) – .08 oz
    • Lightweight Titanium Trowel that I purchased from the seller, “okshawn” from Ebay, and simply works.
  • Toob Toothbrush w/ Tooth Paste (1) – 1.4 oz
    • Worked as intended. No issues.
  • Invisalign
    • Personal item along for the ride. Stored in plastic bag to cut back on weight.
  • Hand Sanitizer (1) – 1.5 oz
    • No issues. Carried travel size and went through four of these.
  • Contacts – Dailies (20) – 2 oz
    • Personal item along for the ride. I wore dailies.
  • Biodegradable unscented wet wipes (20) – 4.5 oz
    • I used them and even buried them, however to my knowledge now, these wipes are not to be used in out houses or buried for they are not 100% biodegradable as advertised. Super nice when chaffing, but be sure to pack these out.

 

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