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BACKPACKING & HIKING
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PHILOSOPHY
  Backpacking Light!
  Ethics
  Oxymora
  Relativity

GEAR, GEAR, GEAR!
  Knowledge Nuggets!
  Gear Planning
   - Part 1
   - Part 2
  Walking Stick
  Make Your Own Gear

BACKPACKING GEAR TIPS
  Internal Frame Backpack Tips
  Sleeping Bag & Pad Tips
  Backpacking Tent & Bivy Tips
  Backpacking Cookware Tips
  Backpacking Food Tips


  Reduce Backpack Weight Tips
  Backpacking Gear Shopping Tips
  Backpacking Trip Planning Tips

GEAR CHECKLISTS
  Hiking Essentials
  Gear List (1)
  Gear List (2)
  Seasonal Gear Lists
  18Lb, 3-Day Pack
  27Lb, 7-Day Pack
  The Day Hiking Pack

SPECIAL INTEREST
  Beginning Backpacker
  Hiking with KIDS
  Ultralight Backpacking
  Winter Backpacking
  Bad Back

MISC.WRITINGS
  Featured Article
  A Gear Freak Speaks!
  Traveling Light
  Trekking Poles
  Winter Tips

COMMUNITY
  Backcountry Forums
  Make Your Own Gear

TLB STORES
  Outdoor GEAR Store
  Backpacking BOOKs
  Backpacking FOOD

URLs we call our own:
- backpacking.net
- backpacking.biz
- litebackpacker.com
- hiking.biz

Ultralight Gear Store:
- Ultralight Backpacks
- Ultralight Shelters
- Ultralight Tarps
- Ultralight Tents
- Ultralight Down Sleeping Bags
- Ultralight Synthetic Bags
- Ultralight Kitchen
- Ultralight Raingear
- Ultralight Apparel


- WM Extremelite Sleeping Bags
- the Titanium Page

 

  The Lightweight Backpacker Welcomes You!

If you engage in backpacking, at some point, you may consider packing a lighter load. That consideration was the main reason that Backpacking Lightweight was created in 1996, and it continues to be its primary focus. Since then, however, the Lightweight Backpacking & Hiking website has grown to include a vast repository of resources useful for year-round backcountry safety & enjoyment. While it is true that Backpacking Lightweight promotes ultralight backpacking & hiking, featuring lightweight backpacking equipment, it is a also a proven resource - for all backcountry travelers - for researching and purchasing quality outdoor gear!!  We welcome you, and we hope you will enjoy traversing the Lightweight Backpacking & Hiking website.

Shop Hiking Gear !
Ultralight Hiking Trekking Light
Backcountry
Winter Backpacking Snowshoeing
This n' That
 

 

Economical Gear Shopping

For our convenience & yours, we've compiled several listings of Outdoor Gear Deals -- a listing of all known "Daily Deals", a listing of Outlets, Clearances, Bargains, & Sales and finally an Outdoor Gear Product Index. We hope you can make use of this service.

Outdoor Gear Daily Deals
Outdoor Gear Outlets, Sales, Clearances, Bargains
Outdoor Gear Outlets, Sales, Clearances, Bargains
 


BACKPACKING LIGHT GEAR SUGGESTIONS !
 
We LOVE Western Mountaineering Sleeping Bags !
Western Mountaineering Ultralite Sleeping Bag the UltraliteWestern Mountaineering Ultralite Sleeping Bag
  Western Mountaineering Ultralite Sleeping Bag weighs 1 lb 10 oz (737 grams), rated 20 F / -7 C, 14 oz (397 grams) of 850-fill goose down, down-filled draft tube with stiffener along full zipper track. Awesome ultralight sleeping bag !
Western Mountaineering Versalite Sleeping Bag the VersaliteWestern Mountaineering Versalite Sleeping Bag
  Western Mountaineering Versalite Sleeping Bag weighs 2 lb (907 grams), rated 10 F / -12 C, 20 oz (567 grams) of 850-fill goose down, down-filled draft tube with stiffener along full zipper track with split-full down-filled collar. This is an amazing lightweight sleeping bag !
Western Mountaineering Antelope Micro Fiber the Antelope MFWestern Mountaineering Antelope Super Micro Fiber
 Western Mountaineering Antelope Micro Fiber weighs 2 lb 7 oz (1106 grams), rated 5 F / -15 C, 26 oz (737 grams) of 850-fill goose down, down-filled draft tube with stiffener along full zipper track with split-full down-filled collar. Water repellant and wind proof 20 Denier MicroLite microfiber shell covering. Excellent foul-weather sleeping bag !

More Western Mountaineering Sleeping Bags


 

ultralight backpacking gear

 



Outdoor clothing you can depend on again and again. Holds it's value very well also, and someday you can sell on eBay! :)


Therm-a-Rest Mattresses

Complement Your lightest, warmest WM bag with the lightest, warmest mattress!! - from Therm-a-Rest
Therm-a-Rest NeoAir All Season 
Light, Warm, Compact, Durable - The NeoAir All-Season Mattress and the NeoAir Seat are the world's lightest, most advanced 3-season air mattress. The top choice for people who have strict weight and space limitations on everything from high-mileage journeys to fast and light weekends.

More Therm-a-Rest Sleeping Pads


Outdoor Gear    
Backpacking Forums


Popular Backpacking &
Hiking Community

ENTER HERE!
Not just discussion, but a backpacking and hiking community! One of the best places on the planet to interact with backpacking gear experts!! Get answers to your questions, share your expertise, or just hang out with a knowledgable and fun community of backcountry travelers & outdoor gear connoisseurs.
Hiking & Backpacking Forums
Hiking & Backpacking Forums


 

Our collective backpacking & hiking experiences have made this website a wealth of backcountry information. Here we share our experiences via articles, short stories, gear reviews, gear-making instructions, knowledge nuggets, gear lists, etc. All contributions are published and periodically one is selected and FEATURED on this page.
 
Featured Article
 
Lightening the Load
( by Greg Cope (aka trailblazer) )

Hiking Lightweight:
 
Hiking lightweight is not a new concept. Since the advent of what we consider backcountry hiking, there have been those who have headed into the backcountry with little more to accompany them than a blanket and a little food. Indeed, anyone who has hiked for an extended period of time knows the value of lightening the weight one carries. A lighter backpack can not only help propel one up that hill, or help ones knees on the backside of that hill, but also can help one enjoy the overall venture even more. Before I began my lightweight change, I would hike just to get there. Now - with less weight - I can actually hike just to hike.
 
As I look back several years ago, my backpack must have weighed in at over 50lbs. It was an all too familiar feeling for me....hike a few minutes, rest. Hike a few minutes, rest. With my heart beating so hard and my head reeling in exhaustion, I had a hard time enjoying what should have been solitude and serenity, but was only downright punishment......It was during one of these moments several years ago when the ray of "light" .... dawned ...

Complete Article HERE ! )


 

Stay Healthy--Eat Well

MARY JANES FARM ORGANIC MEALS

Mary Janes Farm Organic Backcountry Meals

NATURAL HIGH GOURMET MEALS

Natural High
 


Sleeping Bags  


Free "MS Word" Downloads:
( click title, to download )
Traveling Light Philosophy & PracticeThe Philosophy & Practice of Traveling Light in the Backcountry
Winter TipsWinter Camping Tips
Camping with Sherlock HolmesSherlock Holmes goes Camping
Hiking Fourteen EssentialsBackpacking 14 Essentials
Outdoor Gear ChecklistBackpacking Gear Checklist

Make Your Own Gear
Your newest projects published at the Make Your Own Outdoor Gear website:

Homemade camp stovethe FireLight Stove - a soda can stove - by Ray Prince
Homemade BackpackInstructions for Making Your Own Backpack - by DJ)
Outdoor Gear ChecklistInstructions for Making Your Own Bike Panniers - by Scott Shurlow
Lightweight BackpacksTHE KD5IVP Backpacker Yagi - by Paul Dryer, KD5IVP
Ultralight TentJones Tent II - Two Person, Two Pound Tent - by Phil Jones

Submit YOUR Projects !!



 

Ultralight Backpacks

Big Sky Outdoor Gear



Montbell Light & Fast Gear


More Lightweight Backpacking Gear

 Shelters
 BackPacks
 Sleeping Bags
 Water Treatment
 Kitchen
 Hydration
 Climbing


Backpacking Tips


 

 
Powerful LED flashlights, the brightest LED keychain micro-lights & more

Backpacking.net TM Recommended Reading

'Search' for "backpacking" or other items below:
 
Leatherman multi-tools: new keychain tools from Leatherman

Backpacking Experiences

" Not all those who
   wander are lost ! "

J.R.R. Tolkien

TLB in THE TIMES
TLB in Backpacker
Backpacking Lightweight in The New York Times

 
TLB in BACKPACKER TM
Day Hiking Equipment List
Hiking Light in Backpacker Magazine