Alaska Backpacking Gear: A List

Hey Folks,

OK, here’s a (slightly outdated) list of my backpacking gear I thought I might put together, and have taken WAY too long to get it online. I would like to preface this post with a comment about gear; backpacking is NOT about gear, and I’m not a big advocate of the all too common push to make it about that.

Who Am I

I’d also like to remind you I’ve been backpacking in Alaska for nearly 30 years as I write this. I’ve done solo trips for 6 weeks in remote parts of Alaska, and walked in most of the larger wilderness regions of this state. I’ve got a ton of experience here (as well as outside Alaska), and I’ve dealt with plenty of gear that worked well and not so well.

Feel free to disagree with my choices, of course. Much of this is subjective. But here are my thoughts on what works well.

Backpacking Gear – Let’s Get Started

Backpacking is about being ‘there‘. The gear can help facilitate doing that comfortably, but don’t think that this piece of gear or that piece of gear will magically turn a disastrous trip into a glorious one. And don’t think your pack will suddenly become unbelievably light because you buy an expensive down sleeping bag, and that you’ll now start prancing up over those mountains. Everything is part of a SYSTEM, and learning how to manage that system (including carrying it) is integral to having a good kit.

That said, here it is; hopefully, this list might be useful to someone wanting to look at what gear I use, or what backpacking gear they might want to look into if they’re heading to Alaska. It’s not at all a list of ALL the gear I have/use, but a general list of the gear I typically bring on just about any Alaska backpacking trip.

That list varies from trip to trip, depending on a number of factors, but it’s rare that I don’t bring at least something close to this.

Backpacking Essentials

Backpack

1. Mystery Ranch G5000, or
2. My alternative pack is a Dana Designs Alpine pack.
   • Guides are also loving some of the new packs by Hyperlite. Check them out.

Backpacking Tent

1. Mountain Hardwear Skyledge 2 Aspect 2, or, depending on the trip, a
2. Big Agnes Seedhouse SL1, or
3. Sierra Designs Tiros Assault CD Hilleberg Keron or Mountain Hardwear Tango 2 (winter)

Sleeping Pad

1. usually a 3/4 length Thermarest (the little yellow ones they no longer make), Exped Downmat 7 or
2. EXPED Downmat 9 (winter)

Sleeping Bag

1. Western Mountaineering Ultralite 20degF down bag
2. Mountain Hardwear Ghost -40degF down bag (winter)
   • NB: I now use a lightweight cotton bag liner, as well; saves on cleaning those down sleeping bags.

Backpacking Clothing

Rain Shell

1. REI Shuksan jacket (or whatever similar, overpriced, waterproof “breathable” jacket I happen to have this season – currently an Arcteryx Beta I found on sale)
2. Arcteryx Alpha SL pant

Insulating Layers

1. Patagonia Merino Wool 3 Crew (or similar).
2. Patagonia Merino Wool 2 Bottoms (or similar)
3. Patagonia R1 full-zip jacket
4. Montbell Ex Light Down jacket
5. Patagonia capilene 4 pants (optional)

Hiking clothes

1. 1 pair Arcteryx Palisade Pants
2. 1 Long-sleeve nylon shirt (no particular brand/model) 🙂
3. 1 pair Patagonia Baggies shorts (optional – if I think I’ll score lucky weather)
4. 1 polyester or cotton t-shirt (optional)

Socks 

Typically, I bring 2 pair of silk liners, and 2 pair of hiking/backpacking socks and 1 pair of thick, warm “camp socks”. That includes what I wear on Day 1. Eg;

• 2 x REI wool expedition or hiking socks, or similar (expedition trekking) by Smart Wool
• 2 x Any silk (or similar)  liner socks
• 1 x Patagonia Ultra Heavyweight Mountaineering socks for camp.

Underwear

• For hiking, some kind of lightweight lycra athletic/running short (Nike or similar)
• 1 x cotton boxers for camp/bedtime.

Backpacking Boots

1. Depending on terrain, I’ll wear either a pair of the Moran GTX and a pair of Powermatic 200GVs. I’ve also worn, and like, Asolo FSN 95 GTX, Fugitive GTX, Flame GTX, Revenge GTX, etc. I prefer Goretex lined, synthetic boots.
2. Worn various and sundry other boot models, some fit me well, some don’t. Find what works for YOU.
   • Yes, I’ve worn my fair share of trail runners for backpacking. IMO they’re not the best choice for most folks.

Campshoe or River Crossing Shoe

1. Vivo Barefoot Ultra Bloom (or similar, such as …
   1. Crocs Trailbreaker model, or
   2. Home-modified regular crocs (add a short cord to help fasten more securely).

Backpacking Gear Kitchen Items

Dinner and Meal Stuff

• Either MSR Dragonfly (w/ 1 REI 0.9l Ti Ware pot), or
• MSR Reactor, w/ appropriate fuel/canister/s
• Antigravitygear 3-cup insulated bowl or GSI Shareware bowl
• REI insulated mug
• Lexan knife, fork and spoon
• Some kind of Gerber lightweight sharp knife (which I currently have no idea where it is)
  • When we’re guiding and doing food for a group of guests, we prefer a Frybake pan, and 1 or 2 large GSI pots. Size depends on # of people.
  • We also love the Cascade Designs Pan Handler

Sundry Items

• 1 wool beanie (or, my ever faithful, near legendary, Lowe Alpine Mountain Cap)
• 1 pair of OR PL 400 gloves
• 1 cotton baseball cap
• 1 pair sunglasses (no particular brand – I found most of the glasses I own), attached via croakies
• 1 cotton bandana
• 1 small pack towel (optional)
• 1 Integral Designs sylnylon  8’x10′ tarp and MSR Groundhog stakes
• Some kind of teepee style cook tent
• 1 Leki Makalu trekking pole (I use one pole, not the pair) I prefer the Black Diamond cork handle fliplock poles.
• 1 REI Duck’s Back Rain Cover 100L (rain cover for my pack)
• 1 Bear Vault BV500 (Bear resistant food canister)
• 1 or more Ursacks as necessary

More Sundry Stuff

• Iridium 9500 satellite phone
• Garmin inReach or Zoleo
• 1 x BLS medical kit (assorted whatnots to keep you alive)
• 1 x small first aid kit (assorted whatnots to keep me alive)
• 1 x small roll of duct tape
• Depending on time of year, a Petzl Tikka Plus headlamp (much of the Alaskan summer I don’t carry a headlamp)
• 1 Nalgene water bottle
• 1 canister of Counter Assault Bear Spray
• 2 x some kinda small 2-way radios
• U-Dig-It Stainless Steel trowel and roll of toilet paper
• 1 x Silva compass
• 1 x leatherman tool (or similar)
• Nat Geo/USGS topo map/s
• Decent book to read (my next one = “The Voice of the Earth”, by Theodore Roszak)

Camera Equipment for an Alaska Backpacking Trip

• 1 x camera body (either a Nikon D300s or D2x z9 or z8) w/ attached Arca-Swiss QR plate
• various lenses – depends of the trip (could be anything from 12mm to 500mm)
• Singh Ray GND filters, HOYA polarizer
• Gitzo G1058 tripod, and a small ballhead, w/ Arca-Swiss QR system
• SanDisk CF cards
• spare camera batteries
• Nikon Trailbreaker binocs

Optional

1 x Thermarest pad chair kit, usually referred to as ‘the throne’

I think that covers it all. I’ll have to check next trip, but it seems about right. Next up, is how the heck does all this fit in a pack? 🙂

Cheers

Carl