What Makes My Backpack Lightweight Cont.
Moving on from the big three for my backpacking equipment things get interesting. The additional gear one takes along on their trips is where most of the weight comes from. This is the one place that most people think they need something to be comfortable in the backcountry. On my first trip, I wasn’t exactly sure what I would need and this is how I came to the list of gear below.
Cooking 
| Ounces | Pounds | |
| Homemade Foam Cozy | 1.6 | 0.1 |
| Titanium Long Handled Spoon | 0.3 | 0.01875 |
| Total | 1.9 | 0.119 |
My husband and I are big fans of freezer bag cooking so we don’t have to do dishes or carry extra pots and pans for cooking. Our inspiration was Freezer Bag Cooking: Trail Food Made Simple by Sarah Svien Kirkconnell. We have since made many of our own recipes and love this method for a hot meal after a long day of hiking.
Water Containers 
| Ounces | Pounds | |
| 10-liter Sea to Summit bucket | 2.8 | 0.175 |
| 1 Liter Nalgene | 4 | 0.25 |
| 2 Liter Platypus (w/ clip, w/camelback valve) | 3.5 | 0.21875 |
| Platypus 2 Liter | 1.2 | 0.075 |
| 1 Ziploc Bag | 0.1 | 0.00625 |
| Total | 11.6 | 0.725 |
The various containers we have in our packs helps store water at camp since we use a gravity flow filtration system. I use the 10-liter bucket to stay clean it works great for bathing away from water sources and washing socks and underwear. The Nalgene is useful to have water with a flavor packet so help there is some variety from the normal water. I enjoy Crystal Light packets especially lemonade.
Misc
| Ounces | Pounds | |
| Solio with Charge Cord and USB Tip | 6.4 | 0.4 |
| Crocs – Camp Shoes | 8.3 | 0.51875 |
| Black Diamond Storm headlamp | 2.9 | 0.18125 |
| purple pack cover | 3 | 0.1875 |
| Money – $100 in $20’s | 0.1 | 0.00625 |
| Glasses with Hard Case | 4.1 | 0.25625 |
| iPod Nano – purple | 1.4 | 0.0875 |
| iPod earphones | 0.4 | 0.025 |
| Spyderco knife | 1.5 | 0.09375 |
| sunglasses | 0.8 | 0.05 |
| Journal w/ pencil | 5.3 | 0.33125 |
| book | 10.7 | 0.66875 |
| collapsible cup | 1.8 | 0.1125 |
| Ground cover for 2 | 4.6 | 0.2875 |
| Go Lite umbrella | 7.9 | 0.49375 |
| Total Weigh correction | 0.2 | 0.0125 |
| Total | 59.4 | 3.713 |
The Misc. category is a tricky one and is the one that has added almost 4 pounds to my pack. These are the items I “think” I can’t survive without. The interesting thing about this category is my first backpack is only an overnight and this is one of the categories that as I backpack more will see the most change.
Survival Sack/ Toiletries 
| Ounces | Pounds | |
| Vaseline | 0.3 | 0.01875 |
| Wet ones | 2.6 | 0.1625 |
| Spare contact lens | 0.1 | 0.00625 |
| Dental floss | 0.3 | 0.01875 |
| Sunblock | 4.2 | 0.2625 |
| cotton balls/ Q-tips | 0.5 | 0.03125 |
| Lotion | 0.9 | 0.05625 |
| Saline solution | 2.3 | 0.14375 |
| Toothbrush | 0.4 | 0.025 |
| Hairbrush w/ mirror | 1.5 | 0.09375 |
| Contact lens case | 0.3 | 0.01875 |
| toothpaste | 1 | 0.0625 |
| fingernail clippers | 0.4 | 0.025 |
| Purell | 1.3 | 0.08125 |
| hair bands | 0.1 | 0.00625 |
| Imodium | 0.7 | 0.04375 |
| One a day multivitamin | 2.2 | 0.1375 |
| Iron pills | 1.9 | 0.11875 |
| Advil / Tylenol | 1.5 | 0.09375 |
| Band-Aids | 0.4 | 0.025 |
| Water purifying drops | 1.1 | 0.06875 |
| Camp suds | 1.9 | 0.11875 |
| Kleenex | 0.8 | 0.05 |
| 3 AAA batteries | 1.2 | 0.075 |
| Rolaids | 0.6 | 0.0375 |
| Body Glide | 1.1 | 0.06875 |
| Buck knife | 2.1 | 0.13125 |
| Total Weight Correction | 0.3 | 0.01875 |
| Total | 32 | 2 |
This category looks like a lot but actually is quite a small stuff sack in my pack and has some items that have come in very useful over my many trips.
Clothes
| Ounces | Pounds | |
| REI Fleece Jacket – Dark gray | 12 | 0.75 |
| OR wide brim hat | 2.6 | 0.1625 |
| Waterproof Pants | 7.8 | 0.4875 |
| Columbia Waterproof coat | 15.1 | 0.94375 |
| stuff sack for rain gear | 0.4 | 0.025 |
| gloves | 3.3 | 0.20625 |
| Fleece pants | 11.3 | 0.70625 |
| REI women’s polyester shirt | 5 | 0.3125 |
| REI wool hiking socks | 2.1 | 0.13125 |
| sports bra | 2.4 | 0.15 |
| Underwear | 1.2 | 0.075 |
| Smart wool socks | 1.5 | 0.09375 |
| Buff | 1.2 | 0.075 |
| Turtle Fur hat | 3.6 | 0.225 |
| Total | 69.5 | 4.344 |
The clothing category is everything I carried for at camp. I wanted dry clothes to change into after a sweaty hike. My fear was getting chilled from the sweat. Hiking in Colorado also called for rain gear and we did end up using it on this trip. We got hit by light showers on our hike in and by a thunderstorm in the afternoon.
Digital Camera
| Ounces | Pounds | |
| Samsung Digital camera/video camera | 8.6 | 0.5375 |
| (2) spare batteries | 1.4 | 0.0875 |
| Spare SD Memory Card w/ Case | 0.1 | 0.00625 |
| Camera case | 2.8 | 0.175 |
| Total | 12.9 | 0.80625 |
The camera as state of the art in 2009 and also shot video and it was our goal to make a short movie about our whole trip. Ironically it turned out to be cumbersome to do video and I only used the camera for photos.
Consumables
| Ounces | Pounds | |
| Toilet Paper, cleaning cloths, purell, extra Ziploc | 2.9 | 0.18125 |
| Total | 2.9 | 0.18125 |
Consumables was a very tiny category but a necessity for me, backpacking for me then and now is a no go without toilet paper. Over the years, I have read many different takes on this and in the end, it is light and you can never take too much. I do plan to explore backcountry hygiene for women in a future blog post.
Conclusion 
There it is, all the gear I took on my very first overnight backpacking trip. My big three came in at 7.23 pounds and all the extras added up to 11.89 pounds for a grand total base pack weight of 19.12.
I was lightweight but just barely and since 2009 I have changed and learned so much. The number one thing that I can state now is you need way less than you think. It will be ok if you forget a small/larger item you thought you would not survive without.
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