AVOID UNCOMFORTABLE BACKPACKING TRIPS! // Ultra Comfort Gear List 2023

I've suffered and been uncomfortable on a lot of backpacking trips as I'm sure a lot of you have as well but it doesn't have to be that way whether it's sore feet at the end of the day not being able to fall asleep on an uncomfortable sleeping pad or any number of things that might be keeping you from really enjoying your backpacking trips today I have you covered with an ultra Comfort backpacking gearless I've carefully picked gear for every aspect of a backpacking trip in order to keep you smiling and comfortable out on trail normally I start with talking about the pack but with this pack the new 2023 REI flash 55 it's a lot easier to show you all the awesome features it has as we unpack it and it starts with the water bottle Pockets so REI does something really unique with the flash55 pack and that's it they put a separate water bottle pocket in front of the side pocket if you have ever had troubles trying to reach back and grab your water bottle from the side pocket this pack is going to solve that issue for you I have really inflexible shoulders short little T-Rex arms but it's still easy for me to reach back grab my water take a drink and then put it back this is is probably one of the best features on a pack ever in the side pockets I'll keep things like tent Stakes tent pools or a little snack like these Pringles in the front hip belt Pockets I keep some pretty important things in the right hand side I keep my side light Communicator this is the Garmin inreach messenger so if I get into trouble I can use the SOS button to call for help and then I can also use it to check in with loved ones back at home as well as coordinate and communicate with other people that have inreaches in the left hip belt pocket I have another really important item and that snacks I usually have some bars or some cookies different Stacks to get me going throughout the day but instead of using a ton of little Ziploc bags I like to use these pumpkin bags they're reusable dishwasher safe and I like to store things like cashews almonds or other nuts in here with the 2023 version of The Flash 55 REI got away from the waterproof brand I really like that feature on the old version you could store things in here that you didn't want getting wet so it's a really nice feature but in here I have my first aid kit with just kind of standard first aid kit stuff and then a flex tail tiny pump this is a really cool little device you can use it to inflate your sleeping pad as well it has a lantern on it so I use this to stick up in a pocket of my tent illuminate the tent as well as put out if I'm just sitting around Camp it's a nice way to get light without having to use a headlamp in the Ditty bag I keep a bunch of pretty essential items I have a little thermometer so I use this to keep track of the temperatures throughout the day and at night it's a good way to see how well your sleep system is keeping you warm throughout the night I also have some lip chap in here I have a little power bank so this is a power bank that's really affordable with this gearless I not only wanted it to be comfortable on your body but also comfortable on your wallet and this is a 10 000 milliamp battery Bank really lightweight and then really affordable I have my toothbrush in here so this is just a little folding toothbrush and then paired with that I use toothpaste tabs so I don't like those little travel toothpaste bottles I find them really annoying you never know how much you have left but with toothpaste tabs you can just take as many as you need for the trip and it's just a nice easy convenient way while also still being really effective to brush your teeth I have a little flashlight light in here so most of the time I'm using the lamp on the flex tail pump but this is just a 14 gram Roe vivibon flashlight that if I do need to get up in the middle of the night to pee or just get some spot illumination then I can use this I also have earplugs I like to sleep with ear plugs because middle of the night there's a bunch of little sounds and a lot of the time I'll think a bear is trying to invade my camper attack me when really it's just a squirrel or a mouse walking by my tent in the front pocket of the pack I have a lot of really important items as well this is a cooler cloth that's part of my poop kit we'll get into that in a second here for my poop kit bag I keep it in this Bumpkin poop emoji bag and in here I start off with a trowel so this is to dig my cat hole this is the Bargo dig trowel it's a super robust effective trowel but I also really like the bogler trial for being a little bit more lightweight while also still being effective once I'm done going number two that's where the fun really begins I don't use toilet paper anymore I use a back country bidets I like to give a good initial spray to get off any really loose items and then after that I'll take my left hand lather it up with some soap and then get down there and give myself a good little bath it's really effective at cleaning things up and then afterwards you can use the soap to wash your hands and then finish off with some hand sanitizer just to make sure that everything's nice and clean the Kula cloth comes in for drying so after using the soap and water my butt is nice and clean just like after having a shower and I use the cooler clean just like a towel to dry up I also have my water filtration system in here so I like to use the Platypus quick draw water filter it's very quick it's effective and it has two watertight ends so if it is getting down below freezing you can just stick this in your sleeping bag or quilt and it's not going to freeze overnight I pair it with a c knock water bladder so it has a nice wide end at the top here in order to fill up water and then you attach the filter to the narrow end and you can push water through it into your water bottle really easily the last items I keep in the front pocket are games so if you're with other people or even by yourself it's nice to have some games where to pass the time at camp this is Back Country Bocce so you throw a little white bowl and you try and get the other balls as close to it as possible I've played this with friends on trail and it's a lot of fun if I'm with just one other person then sometimes I'll bring cards or a crib that brings us to what I keep inside the pack you can see that I already have my tent set up here but normally that'd be right at the top just so that when I get to Camp I can get my tent set up right away and then after that I keep my food so this is a Hilltop Pax Food Bag in here a lot of really cool items I keep my cook kit so this is the MSR wind burner kit this is an all-in-one cooket that boils water really fast the wind burner uses some really cool technology including a radiative burner in order to be really effective in wind and heat up the water really quickly if I want a hot drink on trail or even just want some wine or something like that then I bring this collapsible mug from sea to Summit it has some ridges on the side here in order to keep your hand from burning when you have hot water in there but it's just nice to have a little mug and this one's collapsible and really lightweight so it doesn't really take up much space in the pack I also have my spoon for eating meals this is a pink titanium spoon it's one of the most comfortable spoons that you can ever use it's super ergonomic and it kind of just makes food taste better A lot of the time when I'm on trail especially if I'm on a comfort trip I just want things that are easy so I'll bring freeze-dried meals to eat for dinner and then for breakfast I make my own meals because there's not a lot of of good breakfast options out there so I'll bring oatmeal with some chocolate chips and fruit in it and I put them in these rugby bags Rosemary bags are also reusable dishwasher safe bags but they have a curved bottom to them so they're kind of like little bowls and they're just really nice for breakfast these are the snack size ones which are great for bowls of oatmeal but they also have medium sized ones which you can use for homemade dehydrated dinners then we have everything that I want to stay dry inside the pack so in order to keep things dry I don't use a pack cover I use a pack liner this is a trash compactor bag you can also use Nylo Flume pack liners if you want something a little bit more lightweight as well as clear so I just take this put everything I want dry inside of it twist up the top and then squeeze out all the air and then push it down the side and it's a very effective way to keep your gear dry I've used this kind of system in days of rain and had no problems right in the top here I have some Camp slippers so these are really nice lightweight slippers that I use around Camp it's really nice at the end of the day to take off your hiking shoes and put your feet in is something comfortable but if these are too heavy for you another option are the mayfly sandals these are really lightweight but still super comfortable and effective you're not going to be doing big long walks in these but if you just want something just for around Camp then they're a really good option as well all the links to the description to all the gear we're talking about if you're interested in going and checking it out after that I have my clothing system so right at the top here I have my down jacket this is the the decathlon Trek 100 down jacket really affordable super warm probably one of the best buys that you can get out there and then I have my clothing system just a bunch of different clothing depending on the season I'll bring different items in order to be comfortable out on trail and then I have my sleep system so I already have my sleeping pads set up in there but then I have my sleeping insulation and a lot of you might be thinking that if you're going to be comfortable you probably want a nice sleeping bag but that's not the case you want something else and we're going to get into that right now at the base of the Sleep System we have the sleeping pad and for a long time the seat of summit etherlite XT has been the king for Comfort when it comes to sleeping pads but I've been testing out a whole bunch of new pads in 2023 here and I've come to the conclusion that the REI Helix is the most comfortable sleeping pad out there now for a couple different reasons first of all it has the same sort of quilted baffling pattern that the etherlite XT has so it has these dimples and then grooves that really relieve pressure especially if you're a side sleeper on your shoulder and your hip I've never had any body parts fall asleep when sleeping on this pad and I've slept through the night multiple times which is not the case with most pads out there it's only really been the case with the etholite XT and the Big Agnes Q core Deluxe but what sets this pad apart from the etherlite XT is its warmth it has an R value of 4.9 so it's rated very highly but R value isn't always the best indicator of real world performance but with the Helix I've tested it out a bunch already in really cold conditions I've taken it down below freezing on cold ground and been very comfortable it starts to hit its limit once you get onto frozen ground or snow but in any other conditions the Helix is going to be plenty warm for you for a long time the Nemo filo was the king of comfort pillows but for this year the exped mega pillow has replaced it for me and there's a couple different reasons for that first of all like the phyllo it has two loops on either side so you can attach a piece of shock cord in order to attach the pillow to your pad as you toss and turn in the night if you don't have a pad strap your pillow is probably just going to fly away and you're going to be chasing it over the course of night the other two things that I really like about it are that it's a very wide pillow so it covers the entire width of a 25 inch wide sleeping pad which is awesome it's just like your pillow at home but then coupled with that it's very supportive so does it feel like you're laying on a balloon so you can just toss and turn and never feel like you're running out of pillow space it also has a really soft kind of cushioned top to it so just an all-around great pillow but that width really brings a lot to the table it's not the lightest pillow if you want a light pillow that's still comfortable check out the trekology 2.0 pillow and then the Nemo feel like I mentioned is still a super comfortable pillow if you want a really thick foam top upper I don't really need that thick foam topper but for some people it's going to be essential for them for insulation I like to use a quilt instead of a sleeping bag for a few different reasons first of all with a sleeping bag as I toss and turn I find I get all tangled up in it my face is facing into the hood and it's just not comfortable with a quilt you can toss and turn and you're not going to get tangled up in it and that's because it doesn't have a bottom to it and attaches to the sleeping pad with pad straps a lot of people feel like they might get drafts with a quilt but if you use the pad straps effectively you're not going to get drops I've used quilts down to below zero degrees Fahrenheit and be plenty comfortable what's really nice about the quilt in addition to that tossing and turning factor is its versatility if it's really cold out you can button it up at the top here cinch it up so you're not getting any drafts around your neck lock it onto the sleeping pad with those pad straps and then be toasty warm but if it warms up you can unsnap everything loosen off use it like a blanket and you're not going to overheat over the course of the night I have three different recommendations for quilts for you if you want a really affordable all about quality one then check out the hammock gear Econo Boro if you want a really high end customizable quilt then the Enlightened Equipment Enigma quilt or the Revelation are going to be really good options for you and then if you just want something that you can pick up at the store then the REI magma might be a good way to go as well before we talk about the tent which is really kind of the linchpin of this entire Ultra Comfort System we have to talk about a chair if you're going to be going on an ultra Comfort backpacking trip then you need a chair this is the helinox chair zero high back so while being a chair it's still very lightweight at 690 grams what's nice about the high back relative to the original chair zero is that it has this higher back to it so as you're sitting in it you're getting a lot more support throughout your lower back your middle back and then around your shoulders it also sits you a little bit more upright which I kind of like I find myself sitting more upright than I do lounging but if you do need a lounge you can still do that but then the high back gives you a little bit of a head rest as well so kind of win-win and win with this chair it's not gonna be as late as the chair zero and it's also a little bit narrower so if you're on the wider side it's probably not going to fit you for the tent we have the seat of summit Telos three-person tent this tent has a lot going for it a lot of things that people probably don't realize first of all it's a three-person tent but it still weighs under two kilograms which is phenomenal you can fit two wide 25 inch wide sleeping pads in here and still have tons of space there's a lot of Headroom due to the brow poles that kind of curve up and these brow poles also make it really easy to get in and out I lent this tent to my parents when we went on a trip last summer they're not getting any younger so being able to get in and out of a tent easily is a nice feature for them the Telos also has a fast fly pitch mode which is something that I want on all my tents moving forward what that means is that you can pitch the fly first before pitching the inner and then come back and Pitch the inner inside of the fly this is a really nice feature if it's raining you're not getting the inner all wet as you're trying to set up the tent the Telos isn't the most storm-worthy tent due to its kind of boxy name sure but it's gonna be able to handle light Wind and Rain no problem if you want to see some gear that I think is super underrated go check out this video right up here it's gear that no one is talking about and I'm not really sure why it's kind of crazy so go check that video it's some really cool awesome gear items and we'll see you later

Channel: Justin Outdoors

Views: 51,420

Keywords: Backpacking, Hiking, Camping, ultralight, backpacking gear, backpacking gear list, camping gear, hiking gear, ultralight gear, best backpacking gear, best hiking gear, Appalachian Trail, ultralight backpacking, hiking trails, gear review

Id: UbmWkNaKD2o

Length: 13min 39sec (819 seconds)

Published: Fri May 19 2023