Here’s the list of all the gear I finished the trail with – since it mostly closely reflects what I carried for most of my journey. If you scroll down to the bottom, you’ll can see what items I dumped entirely, what items I swapped out, and what I added along the way.
BACKPACK SET-UP
- Backpack – Gossamer Gear Mariposa (60L pack)
- Accessories – Gossamer Gear hip belt pocket (used as a fanny pack) & shoulder strap pocket
- Pack Liner – Therm-a-rest NeoAir pump sack (also used to inflate air mattress)
- Emergency ID – Road ID attached to my pack
SHELTER & SLEEP SYSTEM
- Tent – Nemo Hornet 2P tent w/ footprint
- Sleeping Bag – Enlightened Equipment Revelation Quilt (30 degree/regular wide)
- Air Mattress – Therm-a-rest NeoAir XLite (size: regular)
COOKING ITEMS
- Stove – MSR PocketRocket2 + 4 oz. fuel canister/mini lighter
- Cook Pot – MSR Titan Kettle (0.85L) + homemade reflectix pot koozy
- Spoon – Toaks long handle titanium spoon (w/ polished bowl)
- Cup – Sea to Summit collapsable cup
- Knife – Gerber Air Ranger Black G-10
- Food Bag – Zpacks ultralight DCF food bag w/ rock bag and lightweight line to hang as a bear bag
HYDRATION
- Water filter – Sawyer Micro Squeeze & CNOC Outdoor Vecto 2L bladder
- Water bottles – 1L & 0.7L Smartwater/Lifewater plastic bottles
ELECTRONICS
- Phone/camera – iPhone 7 w/ earbuds
- External battery – Anker Power Core 10000 mAh
- Power cables – iPhone & Anker power cables & 2 USB port Aukey wall charger w/ foldable plug
- Navigation – Guthook App for the AT on iPhone
- Headlamp – Petzel e+lite headlamp w/ extra battery
- Electronics Storage – Sea to summit Ultra-Sil Dry Sack (size: XXS)
HIKING ACCESSORIES
- Trekking Poles – Leki Cressida Thermo women’s poles
- Umbrella – Liteflex hiking umbrella (for rain)
- Sit Pad – Therm-a-rest Z sitting pad
HIKING CLOTHING (WORN)
- Hiking Shorts – Patagonia Baggies (5″ length)
- Hiking Shirt – Club Ride Bandera short sleeve snap front shirt
- Undergarments – Patagonia Barely sports bra & underwear
- Hat – Headsweats Performance Supervisor visor
- Watch – Timex Ironman waterproof watch
- Wallet – Chums Marsupial wallet (w/ ID, cash, debit card only)
FOOTWEAR
- Shoes – Altra Lone Peak 4 trail running shoes
- Hiking Socks – Injinji socks
- Gaiters – Dirty Girl gaiters
OUTERWEAR
- Hat/Gloves – Lightweight beanie hat & Sporthill running gloves
- Rain Gear – OR Helium II jacket & Columbia rain pants
- Puffy coat – North Face Thermoball hooded jacket
- Head net – Ben’s Invisinet headnet
EXTRA CLOTHES/CAMP ITEMS
- Socks – Injinji socks (extra pair)
- Underwear – Patagonia Barely underwear (3 extras)
- Headband – Buff UV+ headband
- Sleep clothes – Icebreaker merino leggings (150) & 1/2 zip long sleeve merino wool shirt (150)
- Sleep socks – Farm to Feet 1/4 crew wool socks
- Storage bag – Sea to Summit Ultra-Sil stuff sack (9L)
- Camp Shoes – Crocs Swiftwater sandals
- Massage ball – MobiPoint Massage Ball
- Journal – Leuchtturm1917 A6 softcover dotted journal
HYGIENE ITEMS
- Toiletry Storage – OPSAK odor proof bag (9″x10″)
- Dental Care – Travel toothbrush/toothpaste + floss
- Vision – Glasses, contact lenses, travel size saline
- First Aid Kit – KT tape, Body Glide (0.8 oz), bandaids, ibuprofen
- Knife – Swiss Army knife (w/ mini scissors)
- Cleaning – Wet Ones (Travel size/20 wipes)
- Bug Spray – Travel size Sawyer picaridin
- Potty – Deuce of Spades #2 trowel, TP in ziplock bag, & 1/2 bandana (pee rag) on outside of pack
- Hand Sanitizer – Always on my shoulder strap!
- Trash – Large ziplock bag + 3 doggie poop bags (to carry out any used TP/feminine hygiene items)
Gear Swaps
Few thru-hikers arrive on the trail with all their gear dialed in perfectly. That’s because every trail is so very different, and even if 90% of your hiking set-up stays exactly the same, there’s always the unknown factors that you didn’t expect.
The AT was my longest backcountry hike ever, and the weather would change considerably during the 18 weeks that I was on the trail. Freezing temperatures, torrential rain, heatwaves that blasted above the 100°F for days, wind… I experienced it all. So it’s no surprise that I dumped gear, swapped gear, and added some unexpected items.
In the end, I did four major shakedowns/gear swaps during my hike at Fontana Dam, Grayson Highlands, Port Clinton, PA, and Cheshire, MA.
SO WHAT ITEMS DID I DITCH?
- Sunglasses. I carried my sunglasses for the first 500 miles on the trail before sending them home. I never regretted ditching them either. The combination of the green tunnel on the AT and my sun visor was more than enough sun protection. In fact, the only time I wore them during that first month on trail was while I was in town. And that’s not reason enough to carry something in my opinion!
- Extra Clothes. Initially I packed more clothes than I really needed for this hike. By the time I reached Fontana Dam, I’d realized the error of my ways. In the end, I really only needed 2 set of clothes: one shirt/shorts for hiking, and one pair of dry clothes for the sleeping. However, I still choose to carry 3 extra sets of underwear, because nothing feels as nice as a pair of clean, dry undies after your meager wet wipe bath at the end of the day.
- Bulky first aid items. After tearing up my feet on the Lone Star Trail during a shakedown hike, I worried about being unprepared. So, I initially packed way too many bandaids, pain meds, and ‘just in case’ medical items. I eventually scaled back at Fontana Dam and mailed some of these extras down the trail. That said, I’m glad re-assessed my first aid kit toward the end of my hike. As luck would have it, I added an Ace bandage and more pain meds back into my kit right before fell and busted up my kneecap in Southern Maine. So, there’s that!
- Pillow. I used an Sea to Summit inflatable pillow for 2/3 of my hike. Although I liked this item, by the time I got to Massachusetts, it developed a slow leak that kept forcing me to wake up in the middle of the night to re-inflate it. Despite multiple patch jobs, I couldn’t seem to repair it completely. I eventually switched back to using my puffy coat as a pillow and don’t think I’ll go back to the inflatable pillow again.
WHAT ITEMS DID I SWAP DURING MY HIKE?
- My shorts. I began the trail in traditional running shorts with a liner. These shorts were warm enough for hiking, but they had one drawback. When the torrential rains began near the Georgia/North Carolina border, the material started chafing the inside of my thighs. I swapped my running shorts out for a pair of Patagonia Baggies and never looked back. I love these shorts!
- My socks. When I began my thru-hike, I had two pair of injinji trail running toe socks (for hiking) and a lightweight pair of regular socks (for sleeping). I continued to hike in the Injinji toe socks for the entire AT, but I upgraded from the ‘no-show’ length to the slightly longer crew length so I didn’t have to worry as much about ticks. I also opted for some warmer wool sleep socks in New England.
- Shoes. I used 5 pairs of shoes on the AT, and tried to swap them out every 500 miles. I began in the Altra Lone Peak 3.5 model. I switched to the Altra Timp 1.5 model for my second pair, but got weird blisters on the outside of my heels. So, I went back to the Lone Peak 3.5 model for my third and fourth pairs (which I got on clearance – yeah!), and then ended in a pair of Lone Peak 4.0 shoes that I bought in Monson, ME.
- Sleeping Bag – I began the trail with my Western Mountaineering Alpinline (20°F) sleeping bag. This was definitely the correct choice for warmth as the temps got down below freezing in the Smokies. However, as I hiked further north, it was too hot and bulky. When I got to Grayson Highlands on May 29th, I decided to swap out my sleeping bag for my Army poncho liner to save weight. Unfortunately, this item turned out to be less than I needed on some cooler nights, so it was back to the drawing board. I eventually ordered an Enlightened Equipment Revelation 30°F quilt. This was the perfect solution. I could open it up to a flat blanket during the warmer temperatures, or zip it up and cinch down the footbox to use it as a sleeping bag when I needed extra warmth. This item was my favorite gear swap of the trail!!
- Sleeping Clothes. Once I figured out that I only needed one set of extra (aka sleep/town) clothes, I was good. But, I still needed to modify those items throughout my hike based on the nighttime temperatures. My bottom layer transitioned from wool leggings to shorts, and then back again. And my top layer similarly shifted between long-sleeved and short-sleeve shirts.
- External Battery. I was worried about not being able to charge my phone for extended stretches of time and splurged on the Anker PowerCore 20100mAh because it could charge my iPhone 8 full times. As it turns out, this was overkill. It was way too heavy at 12.5 oz. When I got to Virginia, I swapped it our for a more appropriately-sized Anker 10000 mAh battery, which only weighs 6.35 oz.
- My cook kit – This was less of a gear swap than a temporary drop. When I got to Port Clinton, PA, I decided it was just too hot to cook and decided to try out going stoveless for the upcoming 360 miles until I got to Cheshire, MA. I enjoyed the simplicity of no-cook meals, but I was definitely glad to have it back when I got to Vermont as the nights and mornings started getting chilly again.
WHAT NEW ITEMS DID I ADD?
- Tenacious Tape. The state of Pennsylvania was not kind to my tent. During the stretch between Boiling Springs and Delaware Water Gap, I discovered 9 holes in my tent and rain fly. I don’t know if this was from items brushing up against my tent or if it was just wear and tear over time. Regardless, this issue is why I ended up at the Cabela’s in Hamburg, PA buying some Tenacious Tape to make some much-needed repairs.
- Permethrin. After I discovered a tick embedded in my hip in Maryland, I knew it was time to treat my clothes. When I got to the outfitter in Duncannon, PA, I purchased a bottle of Sawyer Permethrin Spray and used it to treat my shoes, gaiters, hiking clothes, and pack. It is supposed to last up to 6 weeks or 6 washings, so I only ended up needing to treat my items once.
- Massage ball. I have pretty bad plantar fasciitis, and it only got worse on the AT. Somewhere in Virginia, Keith picked me up an awesome lightweight, spike massage ball made by MobiPoint. I used this little gem the rest of the trail and loved it!
WHAT 3 ITEMS DID I ACCIDENTALLY LOSE ON THE TRAIL?
- 1 set of trekking poles. I mistakenly left my trekking poles behind at Devil’s Backbone Brewery when I was meeting up with a local friend. The loss wasn’t the end of the world though, as my poles were 6 years old and one of the locking mechanisms was failing. I ended up replacing them the following day at Rockfish Gap Outfitters in Waynesboro, VA.
- Sit pad. I’d arranged for Keith to meet up with me up at a random trailhead near Andover, Maine. As I sat there in the rain waiting for him to arrive, I pulled out my sit pad, put it on a fallen log, and hunkered under my umbrella to stay warm. When he approached in the car about 15 minutes later, I worried he might not see me at the barely visible trail crossing. So I jumped up, grabbed my pack and made off for the road – accidentally leaving my foam sit pad behind on the tree. When I returned to trail the following day, it was gone, so I hiked the last 2 weeks on the AT without a sit pad.
- My cherished sun visor. Of all the losses, this one hurt the most. I wore the same visor from Amicalola Falls up to the 100-mile Wilderness and truly loved this hat. It kept the sun off my face, but still let my head breathe. It was lightweight and never looked dirty or dingy. It was awesome! However, when I nabbed a ride back from Monson back to the trail, I accidentally left my hat in the back of the truck that dropped me off. I realized my error just as the guy was driving off, and he didn’t see me flagging him down. So, if anyone sees a worn out, gray visor with ‘Hikertrash’ silkscreened on it, drop me a line 🙂
So there you have it. That’s my entire AT gear list.
I didn’t include prices or base weights or all that jazz. I’m not the most ultralight hiker (my base weight was around 15 lbs.) and I didn’t go for the most expensive (or cheapest) gear options.
This thru-hike taught me a lot about my hiking style and what I need to be comfortable. Some things that work for me, may not work for you. But, I’ve always appreciated seeing how other people (especially other female hikers) built their gear set-ups, so I thought I’d add mine to the mix too.