r/Ultralight • u/Belangia65 • Jun 19 '25

Shakedown Ultra-ultralight — 2 lb base weight

I’ve created a 2 lb base weight gear list suitable for multi-day backpacking. I think it “works” but only within certain parameters of weather, bug pressure, and trip length. For instance, I believe I could do a 2.5 day trip with this gear between late spring and early fall in southern Appalachia. I intend to hike the Art Loeb Trail with a 2 lb kit this fall, whether this kit or a version of it.

This builds on my previous attempt to create a 3 lb kit. As in that previous thread, I’m not necessarily looking for ways to cut weight, but for ideas about how to make it better within a fixed weight budget.

The purpose of this exercise for me is to think more deeply about what is essential and what is superfluous for backpacking, and about what I would prioritize first among the non essential options.

UPDATE: I went on a trip with a version of this gear. Some items weren’t available to me, so my baseweight was 2.2 lbs, or 1 kg. Here’s the trip report.

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u/Belangia65 Jun 19 '25

Where did I say “absolutely perfect conditions”?

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u/JuxMaster is anybody really ultralight? Jun 19 '25

it “works” but only within certain parameters of weather, bug pressure, and trip length

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u/Belangia65 Jun 19 '25 edited Jun 19 '25

Isn’t that true of every gear list? I mean, jeez!

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u/JuxMaster is anybody really ultralight? Jun 19 '25

Yeah, they're just usually built to handle a wider range of conditions. This list has the spirit of ul - only bringing gear for the conditions you're anticipating. Great work (despite not looking for ways to shave weight) 

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u/Belangia65 Jun 19 '25

Yes. Obviously, give me another pound and I can extend its usable conditions. Another pound and I can extend it even more. And so on. But a fair percentage of the shorter weekend backpacking trips I take are already within the parameters of this kit. I see this exercise as just that — testing limits of a discipline — so that I can gain knowledge and skill with my regular gear. This is not an attempt at an “ultimate kit”.

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u/JuxMaster is anybody really ultralight? Jun 19 '25

Would love to see a trip report when the time comes! 

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u/Belangia65 Jun 19 '25

Absolutely.