Backpacking Gear List
This is Domonick’s (Co-owner, Operator, and Guide at Hiawatha Hiking Company) current backpacking gear list for East Coast/ Mid-West 3-season backpacking, which emphasizes rain protection, bug protection and mild to cool temperatures. This list is provided to give a general idea of what kind of gear Domonick is currently using. Gear often changes depending on location, season and the purpose of our trips. This complete backpacking gear list usually results in a pack-weight of roughly 7-10 pounds depending on the exact items (this weight does not include consumables like food, water and fuel which fluctuate greatly during a trip). This pack list has been used extensively on thousands of miles of trail and Domonick can personally attest to the quality of each piece of gear listed. This backpacking gear list may differ in many ways from other backpackers, so you are encouraged to research all available options to find the items that would work best for you and your needs. To learn more about what you should bring on our overnight trips, please visit our information page. It is hoped that the below lists are informational and will give you a sense of the gear needed for an overnight backpacking trip. If you do decide to book a trip with us, we will help you every step of the way and also have trail tested gear to rent.
*We are not affiliated with any of these companies and will receive no commission if you choose to purchase an item through a provided link
Backpack
- Granite Gear Crown VC 60L (this exact pack is currently discontinued by Granite Gear, but they have replaced it with the Crown 2 which now has hip-belt pockets. Sweet!)
- Trash compactor bag as a pack liner for water protection
Tent
- Big Agnes Copper Spur UL 2 (2-person tent) (Domonick and Carolyn use this when backpacking together- we have the old model, but Big Agnes has since updated to this version of their tent)
- Zpacks Duplex (1 or 2 person tent) (We use this tent when reducing weight is a priority, such as for long thru-hikes)
- Tyvek ground cloth cut to tent footprint size (grab leftover Tyvek from a construction site after asking permission or Zpacks also sells it)
Sleeping System
- Warbonnet Down Quilt 30 Degree F Rating (For night-time temperatures above freezing. Domonick bought this quilt ten years ago and has used it on every long trip he’s been on. The model he purchased is discontinued but Warbonnet is a great company. Click here to see their current version of this bag. If you are not familiar with quilts, they are like a sleeping bag but without the back and offer the same temperature rating at a lower weight than similar sleeping bags)
- Western Mountaineering 0 Degree F Sleeping bag (Used when night-time temperatures will be below freezing)
- Sea-to-Summit Silk sleeping bag liner (Primarily used to keep down bags clean)
- Thermarest Neo Air
Clothing
- Lightweight running shorts
- Marmot adventure pant (May leave these at home in warmer weather if bugs aren’t going to be too bad)
- Columbia long sleeve adventure shirt
- Long johns (For Spring and Fall cooler weather)
- Mid-weight fleece pullover (I have no idea where I got my pullover, but it is similar to this)
- Western Mountaineering Down jacket w/ hood (For Spring and Fall cooler weather)
- Fleece hat
- Thin gloves
- Baseball cap
Rain Gear
- Rain pants (only for colder spring and fall weather – any kind of lightweight rain pant will do)
- Outdoor Research Helium II lightweight Rain jacket (used primarily for extra warmth/ wind protection; Outdoor Research has a lifetime warranty and Domonick has replaced this jacket twice when the fabric began to wet-out. This is an okay rain jacket (very light and compresses down to the size of a baseball), but in cold weather with heavy rain it will not perform well. I pair this often with a poncho.)
- Frogg Togg lightweight poncho (big enough to cover a backpack, offers excellent rain protection, and it’s dirt cheap!)
Footwear
- Altra Lone Peak trail running shoes
- 2-pair Darn Tough medium weight hiking socks (Darn Tough has a lifetime warranty on socks! Never buy socks again!)
Cooking
- Snowpeak 700 ml titanium pot
- Snowpeak stove w/ iso-butane canister fuel
- Long handle titanium spoon
- Ursack Major sack to hold food (Bear resistant Kevlar sack, no need to hang food, just secure to base of a tree or thick branch)
*A lot of the time Domonick and Carolyn do not take a stove and pot and prefer to eat stove-less meals. For this we use a re-purposed peanut butter jar where we cold-soak food like couscous, ramen and instant mashed potatoes – sounds great, right! Don’t worry, on our guided hikes, Domonick and Carolyn will be your chefs, cooking your meals and carrying the stoves and fuel.
Water
- At least two 1L water bottles. These long Life water bottles are great (we also have collapsible Platypus 2L water reservoirs we take depending on our carrying needs).
- Sawyer squeeze 0.1 micron water filter
First Aide Supplies
- Variety of small and large band aides
- Ibuprofen
- Pepto-Bismol
- Several alcohol swabs
- Lighter
- Safety pin
- Antibacterial cream
- Athletic tape
*This brief first aid kit is meant to manage small medical issues in the woods. For larger medical issues the goal is to find your way out of the woods safely and seek appropriate medical treatment. We bring a much larger first aid kit on all of our guided hikes and overnight trips. This enlarged first aid kit includes benadryl, itch relief cream, CPR mask, wound dressings, disposable gloves, etc.
Miscellaneous
- Bug head net (this comes in handy in the UP where there can be a lot of black flies and mosquitoes)
- Small microfiber towel
- Black Diamond Trekking Poles
- Bug dope (>90% deet)
- Black Diamond Storm Headlamp (You don’t really need something this bright, but Domonick also uses this to run trail races in the dark)
- Toothbrush
- Travel size toothpaste
- iPhone SE
- Sony RX100 IV Camera (All the pictures on this site are from this camera. Here are some other pictures)
- Anker 10,000 mAh battery bank (To recharge the phone and camera)
- 3x Sea-to-Summit water resistant stuff sacks for clothes, sleeping bag, miscellaneous items
- Compass/ maps
- Toilet Paper
- The Deuce #2 lightweight Trowel (Dig your hole at least 6-8 inches and pack out your TP!)
- Hand sanitizer
- Dynema Rope 20ft
- Small roll of Gorilla or Duct Tape, 10ft or so
- Spot Device (GPS and Satellite Messenger, Call for help)
Carolyn is working on her personal backpacking gear list and will post it soon!