CHECKLIST IN PACK: CLOTHING TO WEAR: Pack T-shirt * Tent Shirt Sleeping bag and liner Underwear * Ensolite pad Pants * Thermal blanket Socks (2 pair) Cook kit (*1) Hiking boots Sierra cup Hat Food (*2) * Grill Saw CLOTHING TO CARRY: * Stove Shirts * Fuel bottle & pour top Thermal Water bottle Turtleneck Swiss Army knife T-shirt Trowel Canvas longsleeve First aid kit (*3) Light wool Personal kit (*4) Heavy wool Flashlight Nylon Poncho Underwear Pack rain cover Cotton Rope--100'nylon Thermal * Axe Socks * Water jug or bag Heavy (2 pair) * Camera (*5) Light (2 pair) Pants Hiking shorts IN POCKETS: Jeans Match case & matches Cotton chinos Compass Wool Map Down vest Watch Down jacket Bandana 60/40 shell Sunglasses Thinsulate/Gore-tex Whistle jacket and liner Notebook & pen Gloves Insect repellent Insulated boots * Exposure meter Thermal boots Felt boot liners FISHING GEAR: Rod & case Reel Fly boxes or lures Leaders & tippets Line flotant License * Thermometer HUNTING GEAR: Rifle or handgun Ammunition License & tags Hunting knife Hot Seat Day pack NOTES: * = Item is optional. (*1) = Cook kit: Svea 123 with fuel in Sigg Tourist Kit with stove cleaner device, pot grabber, P38 can opener, 6 to 8 10" squares of aluminum foil, 2 or 3 extra ziploc bags. (*2) = Food: Lightweight, dry food packed in ziploc bags; stored in red stuff bags. Color-coding stuff bags makes life much easier. Any red bag = food. Food flexs every trip. (*3) = First Aid Kit: Standard Sierra Club list; hiking alone, I include an extra Ace bandage to stoutly wrap an ankle in case of a sprain in blue stuff bag. (*4) = Personal kit: Toothbrush, paste, soap, toilet paper, 2 candles, 2 wet towelettes, lip balm, film can of pack clevis pins (2) and one D-ring in green stuff bag. (*5) = Camera: Nikon F w/55mm Macro lens, exposure meter, film, lens cleaner and paper. Extra lenses and film if a photo trip. Also C-clamp tripod or full tripod. *Thermometer: (Stream Thermometer; found at most fishing stores.) May be optional for you, never for me. This is my toy; I'm continually taking temp of everything and recording it in notebook. Useful, maybe, in gear testing. My summer sleeping bag is comfy to 25F, but not on 22F morning at Mud Lake lean-to. Fascinating! Items, of course, flex with length of hike, seasons, and purpose of trip. During Spring and Fall total pack weight for 3-day, 2-night hike will not exceed 45 lbs. when hiking alone; with a companion, total weight will be in area of 38 lbs., not over 40 lbs. In summer weight drops to 40 lbs. because clothing has less and lighter items. Fall hunting trips may see pack go to 60 lbs.+ for additional, heavy clothing, more food, guns and ammo, extra fuel; however, we rarely hike more than three miles to get to campsite. As I am a former pro photographer, I tend to take more photo gear than the average hiker and could drop these weights another 2 lbs. Also I hike to go someplace to do something like hunting, fishing, or photography rather than hiking for its own sake. I have to try that sometime! Stove and fuel are listed as optional item, since the areas I hike allow open fires year round. In many parts of US this is not permitted, so saw, grill, firestarters, and axe become optional. On short overnights, particularly to fishing sites, I will take a Coleman Peak 1 lantern and fuel (not often, it's heavy!). I'm not spartan, and I'm not falsely macho either; I take what's necessary to enjoy the trip and then work on getting the pack as light as possible for that gear. People who try to impress you with the "I carried 65 lbs. twenty miles a day for a week" routines are usually nuts or lying or both. Send them to their room! David Watt 71460,1702