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its contents. An excellent way to
ensure some of your smaller contents stay perfectly dry is to bring about
8 to 9 gallon size Ziploc bags as well as some smaller Ziplocs. These
handled the rain perfectly and I saved valuable gear from getting wet,
such as my camera, passport, gloves etc.
Aside from your
waterproof outside layers, bring layers of fleece. All my inside layers
were fleece. DO NOT BRING COTTON. It will get wet and never dry on the
mountain and you will be cold. At least with fleece if it gets cold, it
still retains its warmth.
All food, tents,
sleeping bags, sleeping pads, and other assorted gear was packed and
carried for us. Because I was traveling around eastern Africa for 3 weeks
before the climb and for some time after, I did not bring a sleeping bag
or pad. I rented these items from Mountain Madness.
Waterproof items more
than heavy warm items were very important at the lower elevations where it
rained more. At the higher elevations the fleece and other warmth became
of utmost importance. The coldest night was Crater Camp where it was –5
degrees Farenheight.
Here is what I packed
for warmth. Note: I get very cold very easily. I have a –45 degree
sleeping bag with 800+ fill down (not used on this particular trip), but I use this bag where
most people use +10 degree bags!
Upper Body:
1 base layer fleece
1 expedition layer fleece
1 vest layer fleece
1 vest layer down
1 outside layer fleece/windproof
1 shell breathable waterproof jacket
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Lower Body:
1 base layer fleece pants
2 expedition layer fleece pants
1 breathable waterproof shell pants
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Miscellaneous Gear
for Warmth:
1 pair waterproof mid weight
hiking shoes
1 base layer fleece socks
1 expedition thick layer fleece socks
1 pair waterproof gloves with inside liner for warmth
1 baklava (covering for the head – only the eyes and nose show)
For me, the baklava
and gloves were some of the most important items I had. My fingers and
head get extremely cold very easily and both of these items protected me
very well from the sub zero temperatures at the higher elevations.
Keep in mind that
this gear is not cheap. Wait for sales on fleece. Review the “travel
supply” companies listed on Dave’s Travel Corner under the links
section for more information.
There are several
items I wish I had but did not. One was a thick down jacket that extended
down past the waist. This would have been ideal to put on after hiking to
camp. Down is great for keeping you warm after you stop hiking. Another
would have been a change of base layer socks.
Fleece or Down?
On a wet trip like
this we recommend fleece. Take a large down jacket with you if you have
one, but only use it once you are in the security of the campsite, unless
it is not raining.
Other Gear
(1) Backpack about 5500 cubic inches
(2)
Trekking poles (a
must!!!) These were great on the downhill sections.
(1) Cheap sunglasses
(2) water bottles
– Use Nalgene water bottles or something equivalent. The main point is
that they are made of hard plastic. They may be thrown about so they need
to be able to take some abuse. They also can be filled with boiled water
and then put into your sleeping bag on the cold nights. Thin plastic will
not stand up to the boiling water and it will melt.
Water was high priority on this hike. Have water with you at all
times and drink even if you are not thirsty. I was drinking 8 to 10 liters
of water per day. That is a lot of water! If you are not on Diamox you
want to drink a lot of water.
1 head lamp (this was
extremely useful for walking around the camp sites at night)
First Aid Kit
Advil (great
for the headaches)
A prescription of Codeine
and Tylenol combination (this will help all ailments – up to a point!)
Diamox assuming you
have tested it on your self previously and you know you are not allergic
to it
Chapstick
Razor
Band-Aids
Immodium
Pepto Bismol
Cough Drops
Gauze
Moleskin
Superglue
Rubber bands
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For Dave's general climbing gear visit his "gear
section" listed in the Mt. Shasta California article or view
our General
Travel List
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