Sea to Summit Ultralight

John Muir Trail Thru Hike: Day Ten

Tyndall Creek to tarn above Guitar Lake: 13.5 Miles

Sept. 21st, 2011.

This was a relaxing day with low mileage and easy terrain. I stopped to clean up a bit at the Tyndall Creek crossing and made my way through some lightly forested areas toward the Big Horn Plateau. The amazing views of the Kaweah mountain range started to open up through the trees. . .

and soon I was on the plateau. . .

Lightweight Summer Quilt

This is a simple summer quilt with 1" baffles. After fooling around with a lot of different designs, dimensions and materials this final version of the summer quilt seems to be perfect (or whatever perfect is today).

Materials:

Momentum50 Black for the liner and Aegean Blue for the outer/shell. This is the latest and lightest breathable material from Thru-Hiker.com
30% overstuffed with 6.3 ozs 900 f/p down from Thru-Hiker.com
1" baffles spaced every 5" using 0.34 oz/sqyd cuben from Zpacks.com.
1/16" shock cord for the adjustable neck from Zpacks.com.
1/2" plastic D-Rings (questoutfitters.com)
Small metal eyelits (questoutfitters.com)

Dimensions:

50" at the neck end tapering to 56" for the 2nd to 9th baffles, then tapering down to 40" at the foot end. The total length is 78".

The loft seems to have come out over 1 1/2" probably due to the 30% overstuff. I think this should be good down to 40 degrees easily, and probably into the 30's with a silk base layer/puffy jacket/wind shirt/sleep socks etc.

Total weight is 12.48 ozs.

Here are a few photos:

2012 Sierra High Route 9 Day Gear List

I will be doing the first section of the Sierra High Route this September with my backpacking buddy Dan.

Although this portion of the SHR is usually finished in less time, I have allowed extra time for some possible side trips (Mt. Sill or Agassiz) or for continuing on over Snow Tongue Pass into Humphreys Basin.

This list is similar to the gear I used on the JMT last summer, with a few new custom pieces of gear. Much of my gear is homemade (MYOG/'make your own gear'). For details of some of my custom gear projects check out the The Custom Shop.

So here is my initial gear list. Dig it!

Click for full size.

Cuben Kindle Dry Bag

Some good ideas are simple. The first time her Kindle gets dropped in a stream my wife will be hoping this was one of those good simple ideas.

The Cuben Kindle Dry Bag is made from 0.51 oz/sqyd cuben fiber and is made to fit a Kindle. All of the seams are taped with double sided cuben tape. The roll top is water tight and is attached to the body of the dry bag using hook and loop (velcro).

The total weight barely registers on my scale, but it looks like 0.1 oz (2 grams). . . and at that weight how can any of us leave home again safely without a custom Cuben Kindle Dry Bag?

The Cuben Kindle Dry Bag.

Ryan Jordan would approve!

0.1 oz.

Half Ounce Cuben Roll Top Dry Bag

Most of the lightest dry bags and pack liners that I've found are around 2 ozs, and that just seems way too heavy. So I made a simple roll top dry bag that weighs a half ounce using 0.51 oz/sqyd that is large enough to hold a 20 degree winter quilt and a puffy jacket. To some people it may seem a little extreme to go to all this trouble to save 1.5 ozs, but in this case the weight savings is 75% over the lightest alternatives.

This roll top dry bag is 26" x 18" and is made using a triple stitched flat felled seam that is taped on the inside. I used small 1/2" clasps attached to the bag using 1/2" gross grain webbing. The attachment points are reinforced with 0.51 oz/sqyd cuben fiber and cuben tape.

Cuben Fiber Roll Top Dry Bag.

Cuben iPhone Shoulder Pouch

The Cuben Fiber iPhone Shoulder Pouch is essentially a slimmer version of the popular shoulder pouches already offered by some cottage manufacturers. The size is perfect for an iPhone or slim camera (like a Canon Powershot ELPH 300HS). I included an adjustable exterior mesh pocket for smaller items and the whole package is easily mounted onto a backpack shoulder strap. . . and it's lightweight. At 0.2 ozs is it the lightest iPhone shoulder pouch available?

The pouches are made using 1.43 oz/sqyd cuben fiber from Zpacks.com. I used one on the JMT last summer and it made it easy to access my camera, stickpick, aquamira and other small items while still being super lightweight.

Cuben Fiber iPhone Shoulder Pouch.

The Cuben Wedge

The Cuben Wedge is a simple tarp shelter design borrowed from the groundbreaking ultralight backpacker Glen Van Peski of Gossamer Gear. I have spent countless hours reading Glen Van Peski's gear lists and trip reports and I have purchased lots of gear from Gossamer Gear. I noticed he was using a very lightweight shelter called the Cuben Wedge, so I decided to make one for myself.

This tarp shelter is made using 0.51 oz/sqyd cuben fiber from Zpacks.com. Due to the simple design there is no need for a ridge line, which saves weight and simplifies the entire process. The tie outs with heavier 1.43 oz/sqyd cuben fiber material. The guy lines are lightweight Z-line also from Zpacks.

The first time I used this shelter was on a trip in the Anza Borrego Desert in winter. While camping on a large flat plateau we had heavy winds all night with gusts up to 50 mph starting at 3:00 am. Although all of the other shelters were blown down and damaged during the night, the Cuben Wedge made it through (I did have to lower the pitch into storm mode during the night).

The final weight: 3.5 ozs including guylines.

Here are a few pictures:

The tarp is 9 feet long before the side tapers, which allow for even more space to store gear.

Ultralight Bivy

After reading many of the MYOG posts on BPL I started to get comfortable making most of my gear last summer. This is my humble attempt to give back a little to the online BPL community.

My goal was to make a bivy with a half length side zipper that weighed under 4 ozs while still having plenty of room for my shoulders/elbows and an inflatable sleeping pad inside the bivy. I also wanted something waterproof on the bottom with material that was durable enough to use without a groundsheet. My polycryo groundsheet was about 1.5 ozs anyway so if I could do all of this and keep it under 4 ozs I figured it was worth the effort.

I used 0.51 oz/sqyd cuben for the bottom and 0.75 oz/sqyd Momentum 55 for the top. The cuben is available from Zpacks (http://zpacks.com/materials.shtml) and the Momentum 55 was available at Thru-hiker (http://thru-hiker.com/materials/breathable.php). Thru-hiker only carries Momentum 50 or 90 now so ymmv with the newer material. I would probably use their lighter stuff today (Momentum 50). The zippers and other hardware are available at Quest Outfitters (http://questoutfitters.com/).

The bottom has an 8 inch bathtub floor all around. The idea with the tall sides is to use as much of the lighter weight cuben as possible and to provide some side protection from rain spray. The top has a slight 2 inch inverted bath tub (for lack of a better term) and there is an increase in height in the middle down by the foot end. The 10 inch total height seems to work for me.

All of the seams are sewed using a french seam except the net/zipper area which has a double stitched flat felled seam.

I used this bivy on a JMT thru hike last summer. Unfortunately there were storms during first four days. I slept under a 5.5’ x 8.5’ tarp and it worked out great. I sewed a small tab to the head end so I could attach a cord and lift it off my face, but I found it really wasn’t necessary. The net area seemed to be located just right and the material was kept off my face by my hat.

I used an xl Kookabay inflatable pillow, GG torso pad along with a Kookabay Taperlite inflatable pad on top and a GG sitpad for my feet. This all fit inside with plenty of room for me and a puffy jacket. There is not enough room to fit a larger 2 ½ inch deep inflatable pad like a Neo-Air inside, although if needed I would just put it on the outside. I have tried the small, medium and large Neo-Air’s and finally found the ccf torso pad/Taperlite combo works best for me.

The 0.51 oz/sqyd cuben seems to work fine as a ground sheet. I haven’t had any problems with leakage or unusual wear and tear.

The Momentum 55 is breathable and did shed some rain spray. Condensation was only a problem when I slept on the shore of Cathedral Lake with the cold wind blowing toward me off the lake. There was ice on the outside by my feet in the morning, but I was warm (and dry) inside.

When it wasn’t raining I just slept under the stars. On the last night I slept on the west side of Whitney (by the tarn above Guitar Lake) and there were some heavy winds. I could feel my legs and feet being moved by something, but I couldn’t feel any change in temperature inside.

I was a little unsure about using a bivy before the trip, but now I’m completely sold. I used an 18 oz quilt and slept warm and toasty (I wore an upper base layer, a windshirt and sometimes a puffy jacket, but only shorts/socks and no lower base layer to sleep).

The dimensions are about 22” at the head tapering to 32” at the shoulders then tapering down to 24” at the foot end (all with the 10 inch height). To give some perspective I am 6 feet/190 lbs. Having enough shoulder/elbow room was important and it seems to have worked fine.

Camping above Palisade Creek on the John Muir Trail.

Wearable Quilt

The quilt described below can be used as a sleeping bag or a warm puffy jacket, which is nice!

I am new to making my own gear and just recently started sewing on an old 1930's era Singer. I have learned a lot and been encouraged by the posts on Backpackinglight.com. Although I added some stuff myself for this quilt I mainly followed the directions on Thru-Hiker and Jamie Shorts website. For any other new-b MYOG people out there I would definitely encourage you to give it a shot.

Some basics on the materials: The shell material is SevenD from TiGoat, the baffles are 0.31 oz/sqyd cuben from Zpacks and the Omni-tape and plastic hardware are from Quest or Zpacks. The down is 900 f/p from Thru Hiker.

The baffles are 1.5". I overstuffed by 30% much like the Zpacks quilts. The loft turned out to be about 1.75".

The quilt is 78" long and is tapered to 50" at the top/neck, 56" at the widest and 38" at the foot. There is 1/16" shock cord with mini cord locks around the collar to gather the quilt around the neck without being too tight or uncomfortable. The top baffle is overstuffed to about 2.75" of loft.

The footbox is created using omni-tape along the ends and about 24" along the sides. I tapered the foot end to create a trapezoidal footbox similar to a Katabatic quilt.

The head hole is sewn into the middle baffle using 0.31 oz/sqyd cuben and omni-tape.

The total weight is 16 ozs and includes 9.9 ozs of down without the removable trapezoidal footbox. With the removable trapezoidal footbox the total weight is 16.7 ozs which includes an additional 6 grams of 900 f/p down. I have used this quilt down to 25 degrees in the High Sierra and slept like a baby. I was wearing silk long johns and a lightweight Black Rock down vest.

The quilt layed out without the omintape used to make the footbox.

Quilt mode.

Head hole for use in puffy jacket mode.

Making the head hole baffle.

Tapered foot end ready for trapezoidal footbox.

Tapered trapezoidal footbox.

Tapered trapezoidal footbox (quilt is layed out upside down).

Removable footbox.

1.75" of single layer loft.

Quilt in puffy jacket mode (underpaid model).

Cuben Fiber Hybrid Backpack with Removable Internal Frame

After seeing some of the cuben hybrid material used on the Zpacks Exo backpacks, I decided to try some on my own version of a cuben pack.

The idea with this pack is to make something big enough to hold a Bearikade Weekender or Expedition bear canister plus some winter gear, but still keep it around 8 ozs. I made one out of just cuben and used it on the JMT last summer, but calling it a 'prototype' would be pushing it. People usually passed me and said, "hey, homemade pack heh?". To make things worse it was made out of some bright blue cuben I got on sale on gearswap.

I also wanted something that would hold up to 35 - 40 lbs if I needed to carry extra stuff for a few miles to our favorite Sierra waterslides this summer. I added channels for a removeable internal frame (taken from a GG Gorilla) to handle heavier loads.

Plus, I wanted something that could take some serious abuse on the Sierra High Route this summer.

The material is all available at Zpacks.com. The cuben hybrid is made from 1.43 oz black cuben on the inside and 50 denier polyester on the outside. It feels strong and tear resistent.

For the pack design I borrowed generously from the Blast and Gorilla packs. For the shape of the shoulder straps I traced a North Face daypack. Some of the more original things added are adjustable elastic cords at the top of all the exterior pockets and adjustable pad straps. I like having two medium sized rear pockets instead of one large pocket. It makes it easier to find stuff after a long day.

The cuben hybrid material is attached to the bottom 3" of the pack and side pockets using a triple stitched flat felled seam. All of the attachment places are reinforced with cuben bonded to the main material at a 45 degree angle. The area where the shoulder straps attach to the main pack is triple reinforced. The internal channel for the removeable frame is made from the heavier cuben hybrid material. I noticed that the ends of the frame cut through the channel made from 1.43 oz cuben in the earlier prototype, but the hybrid doesn't rip.

The total pack size is about 3,250 c/i. The main pack bag is 2,500 c/i, side pockets 300 c/i, rear pockets 450 c/i. The main pack is 6" deep, 12" wide and about 34" tall.

The total weight is 9 ozs (without the internal frame). The heavier cuben hyrid material added about 2.5 ozs compared to a similar pack I made with just cuben. The removeable internal frame adds 3 ozs.