Pre-Trail: REI!
Thursday I jumped on the bandwagon and went to REI in Framingham, MA. IT WAS THE BEST DECISION I'VE MADE YET. I walked in and was greeted by an employee who directed me to a guy named Chuck. Chuck had personally hiked the Appalachian Trail, is a product tester for REI, and teaches courses on backpacking and beginner thru-hiking. I think I learned more in the hour that I spent with Chuck than I have in the many hours I've spent researching. First we talked packs. He measured my torso and I tried on a few 60L packs. He put weighted pillows inside the pack so that I could see how the pack will feel fully loaded. He helped me adjust all of the straps and showed me in a mirror how each part of the pack should look when it is fitted properly. We talked about the pro's and cons of designs, brands, and yearly updates. After all of this we settled on the Deuter ACT Lite 60 + 10 SL Pack for Women. I also nabbed a pack cover from Sea to Summit from the REI Garage for 30% off!
Next we moved on to sleeping bags and sleeping pads. We talked about DownTek (treated down) vs. Synthetic and settled on the better quality warmth, lighter weight, and breathe ability of down. I picked up a Women's Marmot AngelFire 20 Degree Mummy Bag. They let me try it out at the store and I loved it. With it I bought a Therm-A-Rest ProLite Sleeping Pad.
Lastly we moved on to Tents! We decided that I would prefer and side door one person or one person high volume tent. Chuck showed me the REI Quarter Dome 1, the Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL 1, the MSR Hubba NX Solo and the Nemo Hornet 1p. After holding each tent to feel the weight differences and watching videos on setup and features at home, I ordered an older version of the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL 1 off of the REI Garage online. I saved more than $200 combined on the tent and the footprint! Although I can't return it (all Garage item sales are final) I think the that amount of money I saved on my most expensive piece of gear was worth it.
My Essential Gear:
All told this REI Expedition cost me roughly $900. In addition to this I spent $20 on an REI Co-Op Membership! This one time $20 fee lasts your entire lifetime and they were doing a promotion, so I got a free $20 gift card to REI! So essentially I got my membership for free. The membership gives me 10% back on most REI items at the end of the year. I highly recommend spending the money on a membership. The advice and help I got at the store was amazing and definitely worth more than $20. I am also attending a class on August 29, 2017 on the topic of Thru-Hiking Basics which Chuck himself is teaching. Overall my REI experience was amazing and I definitely recommend visiting your local store before your hike.
Now that I've bought all of this gear, I am not positive I will be keeping all of it because my Aunt and Uncle are donating their old backpacking gear to me. So if that free gear is useful to me some of this may be going back. But the budget I got all of this base gear on is pretty great!
Other important advice from Chuck:
Aim for light colored gear.
Light colored gear is easier to find and organize in dimly lit situations.
Ticks and other small, harmful bugs are easier to see on light colors.
Put your heaviest items near the middle/top of your pack against your back.
This helps the pack distribute the load across your shoulders, hips, and back.
Weight will not rest only on your hips, reducing bruising.
Learn where to be frugal.
The pack that fit me best and most comfortably was actually my cheapest option even though it wasn't the pack I originally went into REI to look for.
The tent I decided on was the most expensive option, which Chuck recommended splurging on.
All I can say for sure is GO TO REI!!
Safe Trekking,
Rachel (trail name to be determined)
Disclaimers:
Featured photo of REI Framingham is from This is Framingham because I forgot to take a picture of the store! (Thanks TIF)
Although this advice and gear worked for me, it may not work for you so keep an open mind!