My gear is wearing out, not everything, but it seems it is time to review what works and what has stayed with me for over 6,000-miles along the UK’s National Trails. I have swapped kit in/out according to the accommodation schedule and weather, but as I look at a pile of tattered and worn tents, boots, sleeping bags and backpacks, I am asking myself if I have learnt anything, and if obsessing over equipment is really healthy for you bank balance.
Footwear
Meindl’s Bhutan MFS (memory foam) GTX (Gore-Tex) boots fit me perfectly, although I have had to increase an astonishing size and half since I started wearing them in 2006 (something to do with walking too much), when I recall paying £90 a pair. They are now £300, unless you can find discounts. If I am plugging through bog or rough ground, climbing in The Lakes or Scotland, and conditions are wet, this is what I’ll be wearing. Paired with Darn Tough socks, I am comfortable and my feet are dry, yet they do weigh a couple of kilos and it is noticeable how tired I feel after a 25 mile day wearing them. If there is road walking involved, they will wear quickly, so I only use them for the roughest conditions, such as the last 100-miles of the John o’Groats Trail, where my feet remained warm and my ankles untwisted for 5 days of challenging coastal terrain.
I used to wear boots all of the time, even in 30C conditions of the North Downs Way one summer. But now, this would not be my decision. My ankles, legs and feet are strong now, and my propreoception (ability of the body to know its position in space) has developed to a level where foot placement is natural on most paths. So now, I almost always use trail shoes, together with walking poles, and appropriate nutrition (more of that later). I am far less tired, and can endure mulitple long days when the conditions are predominantly dry. I have been using Brooks Cascadia 13, 14, 15 trail shoes almost exclusively, without Gore-Tex lining. These can be found for £80 or less in end of season sales, if you don’t mind garish colours and older versions. I have my eyes on Hoka Speed Goats 5,6 now, and need to find the right size so I can order online with confidence.
Pound per mile, I think boots vs. trail shoes are about the same cost. Meindl’s will last 2,000-miles plus, and trail shoes perhaps 700, but it depends heavily on the terrain. Roads really do eat away at the rubber soles, and I have a collection of boots whose uppers are still good. I have looked into repairs costing £100 and will try this option, and would welcome any comments from those who have had this done. With the Brooks, the heel fabric normally goes first, and I rotate pairs for local walking, and take new ones for longer thru-hikes. I have yet to use Gore-Tex versions, for my experience has been that even when soaked by heavy morning dew, or deep puddles, they dry very quickly.
Gore-Tex is waterproof, but in both directions, so this inhibits water egress. I can be seen splashing with abandon through salty beach puddles or river crossings, and asked why my shoes are dry after a couple of miles of promenade walking. The water just pumps out of the fabric and if you wear thin socks, this helps them dry fast. If I were to wade a river in my boots, then they are really wet for several hours, and may not dry until morning, and wool socks remain damp for ages. Trail shoes are much cooler (temperature not fashion) which helps with blister prevention too.
A Gurkha maxim states that 1lb saved on footwear weight, is 4lbs saved in the backpack. So factor this in too. My happy medium is to use trail shoes with poles to provide stability – an evolution towards fastpacking, or lightweight backpacking, that applies to your boots as much as what you carry. Maybe I should think about boots that operate between these options.
Poles
I use LEKI poles, 135cm (70% of your height), non adjustable, foldable, usually carbon fibre. They have saved me from deep mud, bog, and falls more times than I remember, and have arrested twisted ankles on collapsing rock and mud regularly. I can’t image walking without them now, even if benign conditions. Their advantages and uses are endless, listed like a 101 uses for a paper clip, but the main advantages follow: your walking posture improves, you remain upright, eyes ahead, back straight. You engage your upper body too, so no aching shoulders from heavy packs. Your balance improves, although you can come to depend on having poles and find yourself unbalanced without them. Overall, I am less tired at the end of the day, and this is very noticable when I forget to pack them.
Think of this as 4×4 four wheel drive, where you add your triceps to the walking power equation. If you develop the right technique, it becomes muscle memory. I have a few cadence styles – poles placed level with foot placement, and poles placed ahead for ascents and so on. Sometimes, I alternate left foot forward, right pole forward, and sometimes it is a 2 / 3 rhythm of foot and arm. It is difficult to describe, so I suggest a few YouTube videos to get this right early, so you do not become one of the clattering masses, who do not use the poles for power or balance. It is worth studying how to use the web loops too, for it is not immediately obvious that you should bring your hand up and through the loop, so the wrist takes the weight and not the hand. In this way the the poles release properly to allow the hand to arrest a fall. If you put your hand through top/down, you might break a wrist.
The non-adjustable, foldable poles are lighter and stronger in my view. I cannot believe how they bend when they stop a fall. My first pair, with twist locks, failed on the Wales Coast Path as a result of fatigue fractures along worn lines of the connectors,. The later sheathed poles (with inner elastic tension cable), have endured, but even those have come to the end of their life, as the tungsten tip is worn round and no longer grips on hard rock, and the durable handle foam has detached from the upper pole. I am not complaining, they have lasted a lot longer than expected after the abuse I have metered out.
They can also be used to pick fruit, ward off aggressive dogs (who sometimes get spooked by poles), make cattle wary, used as clothes hangers, push gates closed, test bog and river depth, part nettles and gorse, poke odd objects you wouldn’t touch, wave for attention, and lastly used as air guitars, if that is the mood you are in at the time. I thoroughly recommend using and mastering poles. I am sure my knees and hips have benefited, as I have no ailments in that regard, where many of my peers are approaching, or have had replacements joints fitted. I have just order a new pair, a set of LEKI Sherpa FX.One Carbon Trekking Poles for £120 in a sale, to replace the LEKI RCM Nordic Walking Sticks I bought in 2021, for £109, which replaced the LEKI Carbonlite XL 2’s I bought in 2014 – all of them worth every single penny.
Backpacks
I wore out my GoLite JAM 50 backpack several years ago (purchased 2014). The stitching let go for the outpockets, and the straps looked as if they might separate. This was my lightweight pack for the majority of my National Trail walks –slightly too small at 50 litres, but supremely comfortable. My current backpack is an Atompacks ‘The Mo’ 50, bought in 2020, which looks like it will outlast me. I love it, because I haven’t had to think about it on my back, it fits perfectly, causes no aches and pains and is just about the right size, with a possibility to strap a further bag to the top, for extra food or a soggy tent. I like the simple fuss free, zip free design, encouraging me to pack thougthfully.
The sleeping bag and mat go at the bottom, then the clothes bag, followed by stove, tent, first aid, food, water and gadgets, snuggled in with rain gear and fleeces – all in colour coded stuff sacks which could do with replacement as they are no longer waterproof. When I predict rain, I use thick garden sacks to wrap those bags in compartments. Poles are straped for travel outside, the right pocket holds a foam mat stuffed into a plastic mug, and the left holds a Nalgene bottle usually, or a Platypus bladder if I carry water for a wildcamp. The bottom pouch is used for rubbish, gloves and waterproof trousers.
The sholder straps have an elastic pocket for a solid glass case, and I have tied a smartphone neoprene pocket to the other, so that magic device is available for photos and maps at all times. The back pouch is stuffed with anything I am too lazy to open the pack for, as it takes a few moments to do. This is the only weakness of the design, although some would argue it is an advantage. It takes a few moments to unclip the press connectors and unfold the top.
For ‘no camping’ mode I use a Patagonia Altvia 28 litre daypack (no longer made), which carries enough clothing and food, and is likewise comfortable and more convienient with zipped compartments and pockets. With both packs, I have chosen the long frame versions for fit, and this is the most important consideration. It doesn’t need to be precise, but I have carried short packs and it hurts.
Tents
I have only carried one tent, a Terra Nova Laser Photon 1, which I bought as a second from the factory in 2014 for £250. I just can’t wear it out, although a pole broke from a fatigue fracture on the first day of my walk around the coast of England (2021), which I replaced with a thicker pole for £70 while the sheath I carried held the broken pole together for a few weeks. I have purchased a Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL1 for future use, which has an advantage of greater headroom, length, and a free standing design. Yet it was the Photon 1 I choose recently for my journey from Berwick to John o’Groats. I know it will do the job, and it is silly light and tough. The Big Agnes is for summer.
Often overlooked in a tent choice are the important accessories. I always use a footprint (a second ground sheet, as this protects your built in floor from damage and contributes significantly to its lifespan. Then there are pegs: rock pegs, sand pegs, curved pegs, aluminium, titanium, steel, plastic – the choice is endless. Consider the terrain you are likely to camp in and select the best pegs. My tent needs 10, but I carry 14, usually all strong aluminium, with the extra 4 varied for soft sand to hard ground. Lastly, don’t forget that pole repair sheath, and consider sands pegs, which double as mini-spades to dig cat holes.
I am taller than most, so I could do with more legroom in the Photon, but it does a good job of keeping me dry and standing up to wind in remote locations. It is not a true 4 season tent, and would probably suffer in the mountains, but it is the right combination of weight, durability, and cost. It has easily paid for itself and is one of the longest surviving items I carry. This is item number two on the top three under a kilogram list. If you spend money on a good quality tent, backpack and sleeping bag to get weight down, you will have achieved 80% of the weight saving potential. It is where you should spend your cash first, if you want to travel light. The remaining items are relatively inexpensive.
Sleeping Bag and Mats
I thought my tent would be my favourite, measured by the length of time in use, its durability, and the fuss free way it delivers – but my Feathered Friends UL 30 Sleeping Quilt wins this race. I am lucky that I am a warm sleeper, and even luckier that I have relations in Seattle, Washington to visit sometimes, where I came across their products some 15 years ago. This is not a sleeping bag, but a quilt that can be zipped up as a tube (although the foot end can be cinched closed).
This bag, together with a silk sleeping liner (a New Zealand JagBag at first, now an Austrian Cocoon MummyLiner, keeps me warm with an outside tempreture as low a 5C. If it is colder I just wear clothes, but usual sleep in the buff. I have the UL 20 version too, that keeps me warm in winter months. The UL stands for ultralight, and the number is the temperate in Fahrenheit at which it is comfortable (so -7C for the UL 20, and -1C for the UL30). I recommend a liner as it keeps the sleep quilts clean.
What I like about these quilts is the flexibility to use them as quilts, or as bags for a range of conditions. I am sure there are equivalent European or UK bags of similar quality, but the shell material and down are superb. They don’t seem to get dirty, keep their loft, and pack down into a very small space. If there is one area where more money makes a difference, it is the sleeping bag and these have easily paid for themselves over the years. I am a convert now to down bags, having used synthetic bags in the distance past.
My mat is a Thermarest Neo, of indeterminant age, which has yet to have a puncture. I augment this short version with a closed cell mat, which doubles as a sitting mat, and tent pole protector and is straped to the outside of my pack. Lastly, I have only just recently purchased a Sea to Summit Sleeping Pillow, which makes a huge difference to head comfort and promotes a good nights sleep.
Stove and Food
For the past 5 years, I carry an MSR Windburner 1 litre butane/propane stove. It works in strong wind, it is very efficient, meaning you carry less fuel (therefore weight). It boils water quickly, which is all I need to make porridge, coffee, tea, and prepare freeze dried food. I carry a 1 litre insulated plastic mug (bucket more like) without a handle that came into my world probably in my teens. It is big enough for porridge, and keeps the contents warm for longer and is larger than any Travelodge china for a proper mug of tea at the end of the day. I use a steel to light the stove, and don’t carry a lighter.
This equipment is geared towards freeze-dried food, which over the years, gets better and better. I use Firepot products, when I can get them, as they taste delicous. I even use them in B&B’s, Hostels and Hotels, to get away from the monotonous options available from villages and town supermarkets and generic cafes. I have had one or two cases of food poisoning, so carrying these gives me some reassurance. I augment these meals with the usual staples of bread, vegetables and fruit eaten raw and they help with costs compared to eaten out meals.
I carry energy bars, muesli bars, and whatever I can find and follow a 2 hour refuel rule. Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner is 8 hours. I shouldn’t forget water, in a Nalgene narrow-neck bottle (wide necks spill contents easily and your lightweight plastic supermarket bottle will split if you fall), and a Platypus bladder to carry up to 3.5 litres, depending on conditions. A football performance coach friend suggested I take one electrolyte tablet per litre a day, to stave off cramps and muscle tiredness. I use SiS, Zero, ORS or Hydro without caffiene – they have made a significant difference to the way I feel during the walk and at the end of the day. I up the dose in hot weather, so that every other litre has a tablet popped in after filling. Tastes good too.
I forgot the spork – finally finding one that doesn’t break.
Other stuff
A first aid kit, with the usual blister, tick hooks, pain relief, cuts and creams various. The most useful item being a pair of small scissors. This is home to hypafix and kinetic tape, which gets a lot of use to prevent blisters. It also is the home of repair kits for mats and tents.
Next is the gadget bag, with Anker USB chargers, battery packs and cables for phone and watch. Torch, compass and whistle, journal, pens and bug nets, earplugs and lots of other items that find their way in, and somehow live there rent free. I give it a good audit most weeks to remove things. I carry the minimum of toiletries, usually keeping toothbrush and small tubes of paste outside the pack to save me hunting for it at night and in the morning.
My watch is usually a cheap G-Shock, which is indestructable and tells the time accurately. Recently I have started to use a Garmin Instinct 2 (non-solar), after I bought one at a low price (£180) a year ago. Now I have mastered its configuration, I use it to record tracks, measure performance, health and sleep for later analysis with their Connect App on my phone. It is set to vibrate every 10km, which is approximately the same as refuel time, and charges quickly via USB every 2 days.
I have been a Google Pixel fan since Google launched the Nexus One in 2008, when I gave a corporate presentation to 200 executives, to tell them their Blackberries were old hat. They laughed, but they all swapped them within a year.
Clothing
There is plenty of good quality outdoor clothing available, even from the fashion stores, using materials that wick moisture and dry quickly. When backpacking I will carry one duplicate set of clothing only, and rarely anything for a smart occasion. I do not dress for dinner.
Starting from the skin, any polyamide stretch boxers are superb, drying quickly and supremely comfortable. For the upper body I use Icebreaker merino wool long-sleeve 200 grade tops with a collar to protect the neck from the sun. I can pull the sleeves up for temprature control easily, and you can wear these items for days without them stinking. How that works I do not know, all I do know is that if I wear synthetic materials, you had better keep a 5-metre radius from me after a day.
Socks I have mentioned above. Add to this a decent Buff neck tube (winter or summer versions, or both for a warm hat too) and a peaked cap (waterproof and/or ventilated) with an adjustable strap to prevent it flying off your head in strong wind. This is usually topped with a pair of cheap sunglasses, mainly used to keep sand out of my eyes on windy beaches. Light gloves live somewhere in my pack, but I can’t find them.
If the clocks are reading British Summer Time, then it is shorts (football shorts or Rohan are good), no matter the weather. If it gets too cold, or I have to brush through nettles, I wear my lightweight Alpkit Parallax waterproof leggings as trousers. I have stopped using convertible trousers, as I found the leg sections remained in the pack more often than not. If I cover my legs I use Ron Hill Tracksters running trousers for comfort and warmth, which double as night clothes if necessary.
For waterproofs, I have been using a Paramo Velez jacket for a couple of years, mainly in the shoulder seasons, where it tends to stay on as a windproof over the merino baselayer. It is very comfortable, with a great hood and ventilation zips and somehow keeps me dry, even though it doesn’t seem to be waterproof. Like non gore-tex trail shoes, it breathes out too, so any sweat or damp is soon gone. It is heavy, but it lasts. I just wash it often, and re-proof it with the Nikwax solutions, making sure I dry it in heat to reactivate its protective layer. This is an item of clothing that is a life time product, whereas my gore-text jackets seem to last a couple of seasons before delaminating, or failing to perform. In the long summer, I have a cheap waterproof, which tends to stay at the bottom of the pack.
Lastly, depending on the temperature, I wear a thin gilet (fleece or windproof) and take a lightweight hoodie fleece for the evenings or emergency warmth. If I must, I carry a lightweight shirt for travel, but other than the items listed, that is all, for one way for weight to creep into your pack is too much clothing. Just wash and rotate regularly when you can, as these items usually dry overnight indoors, or on the pack during the day.
It has taken years of experience to choose what works for me. It may not work for you, but what I have found is that the good quaility items, built to be durable and lightweight, have stayed with me and become reliable friends. It doesn’t take long to forget the price you paid, as the quality shines through with use. Please add to the comments below, as I would love to know what you value most in your kit.