Backpacking Gear I Should Have Bought Sooner - 2020 Edition

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Backpacking gear I need. I should buy. What to get backpacking
how to backpack. Gear for backpacking. This is the gear I should have bought first. Gear I won't hike without.

[Feverish_Pitch]

Alternate advice: as a beginner, focus more on getting out than buying gear. Use what you already have and go with friends who are experienced hikers or join a hiking meetup group. YouTube hiking is about buying stuff rather than exploring. There’s a time for buying gear but I wouldn’t let that come in the way of getting out.

[mattbundt]

Gear I should have bought sooner: Trekking poles!! For whatever reason I was worried about looking like an old man with them, but boy do they help in many different situations! Love the videos Dan, Keep it up!

[sarahswanray]

I wish I had bought LESS gear sooner. I went all out buying gear before I had experience to know what I liked and what worked for me.

[MagisterCobb]

Love the “I’m going to take a paper bag, some dental floss and I’m gonna whittle a tent” HA!

[ashleykbarks]

The wider sleeping pad! I thought "oh no! It's 6 ounces heavier!" and then when I tested it out in my house, I wasn't falling off and waking up (I'm a side sleeper that tosses and turns). So happy with my new pad, (aside from the fact I didn't realize it wasn't the insulated version, my Now I just have that extra pad for anybody who wants to go with me and has no gear.

[kristymoore]

Hey Dan, I love your videos and have learned a lot from them. I’ve always been a forest/
Outdoor gal, but only recent, y started backpacking 3 years ago. My first trip was with a $50 pack, $30 bag, $20 pad, etc., from amazon and then of course, packed with too much stuff. I not only survived that trip, I was hooked, and quickly started getting “real gear”. Of course I was influenced by the ultralight stuff and have my fair share of those accessories, some useful, some, not so much. It is difficult to justify spending $500+ on major items like the tent and pack, when I love mine, but they are not light. I’m 57, or 58, or 57...can’t recall, but anyway, I would LOVE to see you interview some older female hikers and their views on light vs. comfort, etc. I can’t find many out there. Heck, I may do my own review sometime, but at my age, I worry about the support some of these lighter packs have.

[backpacker]

When the Xlite came out, it was the best, and it continued to be for a year or maybe more. Nobody else was making an inflatable pad that good. But then the competition caught up and now there are several inflatables just as good, and a couple that are better. I've got a collection of them now, constantly looking for the "one" that will let me sleep comfortably through the night when I tent camp. The Nemo Tensor wide was the first that got there for me, so I think my days of pad collecting are finally over.

[Gryle]

My primary reason for using a tent is mosquito protection. If you're somewhere with a heavy mosquito population, having somewhere to shelter while you're changing clothes or taking a babywipe bath is a godsend.

[michaelsapienza]

I went through a long evolution of different packs and finally settled on the HMG Windrider. For me, the most comfortable lightweight pack that I’ve found. Simplistic and versatile. Love it!

[TomyHovingtonHiking]

Nemo Tensor insulated! Just wait till you get to camp and get it ready in a minute or less without even having to blow directly in it. Plus it’s really quiet and comfortable. 🤙

[BenRangel]

The intro is so insightful. Just looked at 2 hiking channels on youtube and both of them had different recommendations yeach year.
2017 - ”this is the best tent and why I don’t use a stove!” 2019 - ”this is why a bivak is better than a tent and why I use a stove”

There IS bad gear and good gear (for example when it comes to battery packs) but sometimes it’s just about taste, and your taste may vary from year to year.
Sometimes you gotta go through a journey for yourself and try X before you switch to Y

[komalley]

I love love love the idea of a hammock. Hate sleeping in them though. As a stomach sleeper just cannot get comfortable.

[SummitSeeker]

I love going through a busy back country campground to see the variety of old and new tents. Love the old ones. I refuse to replace my 20 year old REI QuarterDome 3p tent. For its size I’m amazed it comes in at 3 pounds. I love that tent and the memories I’ve had using it!

[donaldpang]

This video should have been out 3 years ago when I started out 😆 has sea to summit ultralight and Neo air slight and finally the Nemo Tensor non insulated, never look back since. Thanks for sharing and your natural humour !

[mtadams]

I am older now, well into my 60s. I regularity hike the White Mountains of NH and the trails are steep and have no switch back so light gear is important. When I started, I had rubber rain gear and all my gear was heavy. Today even average gear from REI, EMS etc. will do. If your new just get out and do it. See if you like it. There is plenty of time for 400.00 backpacks and 700.00 tents. Yes, I have all that costly gear but at this point I need them. If you are young and fit with no knee injuries you will be fine. You can always just walk back out if things are not good. I have done this a couple of times and never regretted it.

[oroyplataman]

Quilts and Long Spoons have been the biggest game changers for me.

[margaretfrey]

Rich here- the badder half. For me, just getting into backpacking again at 66 I realize I cant do the 40-50# I did 20 years ago, but also have come to realize I need some comfort for sleeping. So going light on some things like using a North Star Bivy tent allowed me to cut weight, but now everything is the trade-off for something else- dialing in the lightest possible pack with the most comfort for sleeping. The challenge continues! Looking next at a 2# pack instead of the Ospery Silhouette 6#

[warrenmeerestomei]

As someone who has recently started backpacking, your videos have been a massive help in pointing me in the right direction! Keep up the great work!

[richardanderson]

Mors Kochanski recommended the biggest spoon you could get for going into the bush. I got a sterling silver spoon from a set of silverware that had been sold piecemeal secondhand, and this cook spoon looked like it had been barely used. It was long and large. Silver helps knock down bacteria should cleanliness be a factor in the field, but it is a perfect size at 9 inches long, and won't melt in the fire by accident. Excellent spoon though the end is a bit large at 3 1/4 by 2 1/4 inches within the 9 inches overall. It provides utility and function for a lifetime of use.

[NavsterHikes]

Amen on the spoon. And I would add, a spoon is so much better than a spork. Sporks just don’t get deep into those corners of the bag to get those last morsels.