Author Topic: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?  (Read 17544 times)

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Offline CACyclist

Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #15 on: November 18, 2020, 01:59:19 pm »
Thanks to all for the advice and perspective.  Sounds like I'm aiming for 6 - 7 pounds, maybe a touch more. 

Offline David W Pratt

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Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #16 on: November 30, 2020, 07:15:47 pm »
Have not weighed my tent and sleeping stuff separately, but I can recommend the Sea to Summit inflatable mattress.  It is very light and packs up to about the size of beer can.  It inflates with fewer than 10 breaths, and is quite comfortable.
My tent is a NEMO Hornet, nominally two person, but they had better be interested in each other physically.  For one person, it has nice sitting head room, and room for gear.  It has two side entrances, and lots of mesh.  I would not choose it for Winter, or late Fall, or early Spring.

Offline hikerjer

Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #17 on: December 09, 2020, 01:42:18 am »
I've been meaning to answer this for a while and just now got around to weighing the specific gear..

Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL 2 person tent, footprint & stuff sack:  3lb, 9 oz

Marmot Arete 40 degree sleeping bag & stuff sack: 1 lb, 13 oz

Thermarest NeoAir sleeping pad & stuff sack:  14 oz

Exped inflatable pillow & stuff sack: 3.3 oz

Total: 6 lbs, 2.46 oz

I prefer the room of a two person tent rather than being cramped in a one person tent. The footprint saves a lot of wear and tear on the tent floor in those gravel pad sites in some campgrouds.  Worth the small weight penalty to me. I've found a 40 degree sleeping bag sufficiently warm for summer touring. On those colder than usual nights, I just wear some clothes to bed.  I wouldn't even consider camping without my pillow.  It makes the night so much more restful.
« Last Edit: December 14, 2020, 12:30:04 pm by hikerjer »

Offline HikeBikeCook

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Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #18 on: December 09, 2020, 06:35:36 am »
The less you carry the easier it is to bike, the more you carry the more comfortable you are when you camp. I spent almost 6 months hiking (174 nights) and we bike camp as well. I am in my late 60's and I want a good night's sleep. I use Big Agnes Air Core Sleeping pads because they are thick, but very light and as a company their warranty and customer service is incredible. Their new pads come with a stuff sack that also acts as an air pump.

I also like to have everything inside my tent if possible and do not want to be rolling into the sides of a wet tent in the rain. I analyzed 30 different tents before my hike and went with the lightest tent per square inch in floor and vestibule space. You can cook in the rain under your vestibule with the right stove set up - not advised in bear country. That being said, I use a two man tent for solo camping and a three man tent when I camp with my wife. The two man worked okay for the two of us, but was a little too cozy. Again, Big Agnes won out here. I have a Seedhouse SL-2 and camped over 100 nights on the trail, the tent is over 10 years old and still going strong. I also bought a three person Big Agnes Copper Spur HV-SL for the two of us.

I use down bags and invested in a Feathered Friends 30 degree after my hike, because the REI sub-kilo was a total waste. Again, comfort matters. You are looking for length, but for me shoulder width in a tapered bag is the most important. A mummy bag saves weight, but I upgraded to one with a wider shoulder width. The REI bag was too narrow in the shoulders and I froze below 40 and I am a "hot" sleeper. I also use a bag liner as well - easy to wash and keeps the stench out of your bag.

I like to eat well also, so I opted for a Jet Boil but carried the group cooking pot for a lot more options. You have to pick what fits your budget but I would read a lot of reviews and invest in quality and comfort. I have not weighed my stuff recently I usually look at weight at the time of purchase on a per item basis. For a long trip, pack, repack, go on a short trip, repack and trim down, another trip and a repack, and you will almost be ready.
« Last Edit: December 09, 2020, 08:02:00 am by HikeBikeCook »
Surly Disc Trucker, Lightspeed Classic, Scott Scale, Klein Mantra Comp. First touring bike Peugeot U08 - 1966

Offline staehpj1

Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #19 on: December 09, 2020, 08:01:39 am »
The less you carry the easier it is to bike, the more you carry the more comfortable you are when you camp.
I think we all balance that differently  I agree with the first half of that.  The second half less so.  I find that for me there are two kinds of comfort that are most critical, comfort while riding and comfort while sleeping.  For me the latter doesn't require most of the extra weight and volume that folks carry for comfort.  Sprawling space, extra gear,  a lot of extra paraphernalia don't add much to sleeping comfort, but for me at least, do take away from riding comfort.

The sweet spot comfort wise will vary pretty widely with rider, locale, and season.  I really enjoyed my 14# load on my old 1990 vintage Crit race bike for a winter Southern Tier ride and was quite comfortable.  If I were to do it again I'd make some adjustments, but I wouldn't be carrying more.  To me riding a light relatively unencumbered bike and sleeping in a real nice sleeping bag with just enough space to sleep was great.  Someone at the other extreme may find that carrying more stuff actually is worth it to them to the extent that they may be happy carrying a huge tent that allows them to bring in all their stuff and still sprawl out, tarp, chairs, a table, and large amounts of other stuff.

Offline John Nettles

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Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #20 on: December 09, 2020, 08:12:24 am »
I use down bags and invested in a Feathered Friends 30 degree...
The Feathered Friends bags are very nice but very pricey.  We have one and it is the second one.  The first was replaced for free and even upgraded after THIRTY years because the Gore-Tex had de-laminated.

We also like Western Mountaineering bags.  They too have a great customer service attitude so much so that they will repair or replace a bag even if you bought it used on eBay.

Offline HikeBikeCook

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Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #21 on: December 09, 2020, 08:16:32 am »
I totally agree that there is a sensible limit. We towed a trailer one year ,before I wife had panniers, and we filled that thing and I suffered. It was the first long bike trip the two of us had done together and we were camping some nights. Since then we both have only rear panniers and do fine. I would probably add front panniers to mine for cross country just to carry extra water and food.

I have watched videos of the TA with solo riders with full front and rear panniers, gear on their racks, and big handle bar bags and wonder what they heck they have in there. I hiked for around 6 months with a 28 pound pack (less food and water) and that was with a 2 person tent and cold weather gear and I was very comfortable. Water weighs 8.4 pounds a gallon and is essential for survival. Resupply on the TA is way easier than hiking the AT, where you can go 5 days in the mountains without resupply.

Western Mountaineering is on a par with Feathered Friends. I think I went with Feathered Friends because I could get a bag wider in the shoulders. Yss, they are $$$, but a life time investment - at least at my age. :)
Surly Disc Trucker, Lightspeed Classic, Scott Scale, Klein Mantra Comp. First touring bike Peugeot U08 - 1966

Offline John Nettles

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Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #22 on: December 09, 2020, 08:21:12 am »
To me riding a light relatively unencumbered bike and sleeping in a real nice sleeping bag with just enough space to sleep was great.
Pete, I just noticed you must have an older photo as part of your profile as that is definitely not a unencumbered bike  ;) .

Tailwinds, John

Offline staehpj1

Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #23 on: December 09, 2020, 08:24:48 am »
To me riding a light relatively unencumbered bike and sleeping in a real nice sleeping bag with just enough space to sleep was great.
Pete, I just noticed you must have an older photo as part of your profile as that is definitely not a unencumbered bike  ;) .

Tailwinds, John
Yep, my first tour.  That was from the Trans America in 2007 and the bike was quite heavily loaded.  I trimmed the load in steps from there.

Offline hikerjer

Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #24 on: December 09, 2020, 05:38:00 pm »
"The less you carry the easier it is to bike, the more you carry the more comfortable you are when you camp"

Ah, this is the delimma, isn't it?  It's a quandry to be sure.  I like both the comfort that a low weight brings while riding but I like to be comfortable in camp as well.  As I age, and I am, that lower riding weight is quite desirable but it belies the comfort in camp. And then there is the safety issue that enough adequate gear insures. Seems I can't have them all - safety, lightweight and comfort. Sure you can go with expensive superlight gear, but that's only going to save you a certain amount and I find that super light weight gear is not always that duarble. So, I guess I'll continue to tour with my front and back panniers and small handlebar bag which weigh out loaded at about 31 lbs without consumables.

I'd really being interested in seeing a gear list from folks who summer tour cross country and camp with just rear panniers and a handlebar bag. I'm sure I could learn somehing.

Thanks much.
« Last Edit: January 11, 2021, 11:09:46 pm by hikerjer »

Offline John Nettles

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Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #25 on: December 09, 2020, 05:44:22 pm »
If possible be sure to have every item do double duty, i.e. use your sleeping pad (or bandana) as a "chair"; have only shirts you would ride in and wear post-ride, limit clothes to no more than 3 days worth, etc.

Obviously, certain items like spare tubes or medicine are basically dedicated use but you get the idea.  Also, if you are carrying a jacket for when you get into the mountains in 40 days, just mail that ahead care of general delivery to just before the mountains begin.  Or just go to a thrift store and buy a $2 jacket and trash it afterwards.

Offline TCS

Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #26 on: December 10, 2020, 07:49:50 pm »
Resupply on the TA is way easier than hiking the AT, where you can go 5 days in the mountains without resupply.

Hikers on the AT carry five days of water?  Whoa.  Or is this just a definitional difference between hiking 'resupply' and cycletouring 'resupply'?

Depending on how many miles one covers in a day, of course, but there are stretches on the ST and WE where one could be advised to head out with two days supply of water for all uses.
"My name is Pither.  I am at present on a cycling tour of the North Cornwall area taking in Bude and..."

Offline HikeBikeCook

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Re: How much does your sleeping gear weigh?
« Reply #27 on: December 11, 2020, 07:07:54 am »
Resupply on the TA is way easier than hiking the AT, where you can go 5 days in the mountains without resupply.

Hikers on the AT carry five days of water?  Whoa.  Or is this just a definitional difference between hiking 'resupply' and cycletouring 'resupply'?

Typically AT hikers find water each day, but have to carry food for up to 5 days in certain areas. Roughly 2 to 3 lbs. of food per day. I hiked in 2007, which was a drought year, and trail angels often left gallons of water at road crossings. I typically carried 3 liters of water to start out the day (6.5 pounds) and planned 6 liters for camping - cooking, rehydrate, and water to start the next day. On a hot day I went through 24 pounds of water, which you pump from streams or get from springs. Road cycling offers more resupply opportunities for the most part. Although calculations vary by weight and load, my estimate is that I burn about 1,000 calories more a day on average back packing over cycling. 4,480 versus 5,600. I lost around 40 pounds hiking the AT over 174 days. My wife and I have been watching biker's videos of the TA and my wife commented that the riders did not look like they lost much weight compared to hiking. I reminded her that I was not eating in dinners every day hiking and stopping for ice cream at least once a day like you can on the road. :)
Surly Disc Trucker, Lightspeed Classic, Scott Scale, Klein Mantra Comp. First touring bike Peugeot U08 - 1966