5 Lightweight Backpacking Mistakes (And How to Fix Them)

Purchasing tailor-made equipment may be one of the oldest lightweight backpacking mistakes I’ve been complaining about I think we all are guilty of in one form or another. I’ll explain it with a short story.

One of my first backpacking trips was a spring break journey in high school. A buddy and I set out across Northern Michigan for a few days knowing almost nothing and carrying tons of gear! It was a near-disaster trip that turned into one of my fondest memories of the “trail”.

On that journey, we left our wallets behind because, “it’s what hikers do, right?” Instead, we carried a debit card, ID, and a couple of bucks in cash using just a rubber band. I think I commandeered my rubber band off a head of broccoli that was sitting on my parents counter at the time.

This improvised rubber band wallet stuck with me for years. After the trip, I kept carrying my “wallet” as a simple rubber band even in everyday life.

Later, as I learned more about the ultralight backpacking scene I started finding people talking about wallets and seeking the lightest backpacking wallet. Usually, a forum commenter would point others to a cuben fiber wallet made by some cottage industry company like MLD or Zpacks.

That inspired me to check the weight and cost of my rubber band wallet against the commercial ultralight wallets being offered. Suffice it to say that the rubber band was free (courtesy of the veggies) and the weight was 3-4 grams which worked out to a fraction of the weight of even the lightest commercial wallets.

There are many other areas where this holds true such as spending thousands of dollars to create an ultralight hammock setup when a lightweight tarp may be as light or lighter and a fraction of the cost. That’s not to say you can’t spend top dollar on whatever you want, but just stop and ask yourself if it’s the right move for you.

All this is just to say that you might not need the latest materials, company, or designs to find the “best” solution to your lightweight backpacking needs. Get creative and question the status quo.

We all get used to front-country life eventually and it’s hard to leave it behind. In the search for a lighter pack, however, it’s pretty easy to shed ounces by just being willing to step outside of your comfort zone.

Shaving 2-3 ounces off an ultralight tent, sleeping bag, or pack can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars to find the next lightest piece of gear on the market. Leaving 2 pair of underwear at home, however, costs nothing and immediately saves 5-10 ounces without too much effort.

This same principle holds true for a lot of backpacking comforts. Many of these examples have been beaten to death – such as using a ​stuff sack​ full of clothes instead of a dedicated pillow.

In the case of ditching underwear, I personally just use running shorts with a built-in mesh liner which serves the same purpose as underwear. These mesh running shorts are my shorts, underwear, and part of my layering system all in one so it’s lightweight and efficient for me.

One way to step outside your comfort zone and save weight is to leave the TP at home. Toilet paper and the ziplock bag to carry it usually weighs 1-3 ounces depending on how much you’re carrying (tell me you’re not carrying a whole roll – right???).

Instead of carrying TP try getting comfortable using stones or sticks to do the wiping (it’s not as bad as it sounds). I haven’t carried TP on a backpacking trip in years.

Not only is it lighter weight to leave the TP at home, but it’s also actually better for Leave No Trace practices and is especially important in concentrated high-use areas such as the AT where shelters may get thousands of catholes dug each spring and the corresponding toilet paper litter.

Interestingly, if using toilet paper you should actually be carrying used toilet paper out with you. If that’s not enough motivation to leave the TP at home, I don’t know what is!

When you start leaving behind gear in the name of lighter packs and faster hiking you may eventually run the risk of danger. More gear means more options, more safety nets, and more redundancies. At some point you don’t need any more of certain things and, by the same token, at some point, you don’t have enough of certain things.

In search of going lightweight, you’d do well to leave behind the 4th pair of pants. You may be doing ill by leaving behind the med kit, however.

This is a fluid concept and is highly subjective so it’s impossible to outline steadfast rules of what to bring or leave for safety purposes.

If you’re amazing with a map and compass you can probably take a lightweight ​fire starter as a backup and be just fine for navigation. Those with minimal navigation skills, however, may be safer carrying a map, a phone with GPS mapping, and a handheld GPS for backup. Even the same person may choose to carry different types or amounts of navigation equipment depending on the location, time of year, the difficulty of terrain, or other factors.

As you can already tell the waters are muddy. What it really comes down to is being true to your skill and comfort level. Risk management is, perhaps, the most important skill a backcountry traveler can develop. Be wary of overestimating your skill level – cockiness can be deadly out there.

Maybe the best way to reduce your weight on the trail when it comes to safety is to increase your knowledge and skills. For instance, you could reasonably leave behind a backup fire starter if you are 100% confident in your survival fire starting skills.

Again, don’t fool yourself. Just because you watched an episode of Survivorman doesn’t make you an expert. Get out there and start fires in every weather condition and then, maybe, graduate to leaving behind the backup ​fire starter​.

This one ties in pretty closely with skipping safety. Instead of safety, though, skipping necessary items in the name of lighter packs is also a no-no.

These little mistakes aren’t necessarily life-threatening, but they will piss everyone off around you.

For instance, maybe you leave behind nail clippers on a month-long hike of the AT. Two weeks in, of course, you need to cut your nails because they’re rubbing against your shoes and causing blisters.

You could ask around the shelter and see who has some you could borrow. Some might loan you a pair. Soon, however, you’ll earn the trail name Yogi because you’re that lightweight hiker who left behind things and instead mooches off others.

Yogi the Bear was famous for stealing hiker’s lunches – don’t be like Yogi.

Now, on the other hand, there’s nothing wrong with sharing. If another hiker offers to share their mustard with you to spice up a meal, for instance, or they offer to loan you something you genuinely didn’t anticipate needing in good faith then that’s fine.

Don’t be afraid to leave things out of the pack. Just remember, it’s never okay to leave things at home expecting that you can borrow it from other hikers. That’s called being a dick.

I stand here guilty as charged so hopefully, I can save some of you from making similar mistakes. Shaving ounces is an admirable endeavor. Just don’t forget to actually enjoy the hike.

I spent more time preparing for hikes, reading forum posts, researching gear, and making lists of gear weights (and checking them twice) than I did actually enjoying the woods.

With caution, I encourage all of you to avoid spending too much time tweaking your gear lest we get too far from the reason we’re really out there – to relax and recharge.

Unless you’re looking to set a new ultra-athlete speed record there’s probably little to be gained by shaving one more ounce off of a 9-pound pack. Just leave well enough alone. Spend more time hiking and less time shopping.