REI Mars 80 Pack- All Season

I love this pack.  It's large capacity swallows gear and opens from the top and middle.  It has a sleeping bag compartment and is hydration compatible.  Padding is awesome on the back and hips and it really is comfortable with 30-70lbs in it (I think I could get this packed to 100lbs no problem).  Suspension is great and I love that it is waterproofed, zippers and all.  Frame and mainstays are aluminum so its got some serious backing for weight.  I got this pack on sale at REI for $130, retails at $220, so I am stoked.

Specs:
Weight: 5lb 14oz
Capacity (ci/L): 5200 cubic inches/ 85L
Material: Nylon

Fenix HL21 Headlamp

This headlamp is lightweight, waterproof, and rugged.  Should hold up over the trek, will power its 1 AA battery with the Ground Zero Nomad 7.

Medical Kit

Total Weight: 10 oz

Ibuprofen: 1 sm. bottle- for those beginning aches and pains
Benadryl:  10 pills- in the emergency of allergic reaction from a snake bite or any other reaction...
Imodium: 10 pills- just in case we ingest something that does not settle right, water, food...
Neosporin: small tube- for use on scrapes or wounds, and to fight off topical infection
Zinc Oxide: small tube- for use on sunburns, monkey butt, and/or chaffing
Sting Relief pad: 3 1x1" light weight pads for obvious use, bees, mosquitoes...
Alcohol prep pad:  4 1x1" light weight pads for disinfection purposes for cleaning cuts...
Cleansing Towel: 2 6x6"- for cleaning large areas
Durapore Tape- 15' roll for wrapping and adhering gauze/combine pad...
Wound Closure Strips: 5 .25"x4" strips in case of large cut...
Sprain/pressure Wrap: 1 roll- the cloth type roll used to wrap up sprains or to reduce swelling
Bandaids: 8, 4 each x 2 weeks
Combine Pad: 2 5"x9" pad for blood/wound absorption
Gauze Wrap: 1 4.1yd roll for wrapping combine pad...
Moleskin: 6 sq.in.- this is a given for blisters or irritating areas, more moleskin???
Close Pins: x4

Music

Remember to check the music bar, I update new music often!

Great Gear: Samsung Galaxy S2 Epic Touch 4G

     So we have been posting our badass gear as we get it in.  Yes, we have been trying to stay on budget (of course we cannot stick to that). there's just to much radical gear out there.  We will continue to post as we receive gear in the mail.  Here's the deal, I think that my cell phone deserves a spot on this wall because it may be one of the most versatile, functional, and badass pieces of gear that we are bringing with us. Cheese? Perhaps, but really, this devise is amazing and it cost me a pretty penny.  I never really understood how powerful smart phones are, simply amazing!  I know what your thinking, "your supposed to get outdoors to get away from technology", but we will use it sparingly and keep it powered up by lightweight and compact solar panels (hopefully this will keep my phone charged and on 24/7 for the two week trip (have not tested the solar yet, still waiting on it's arrival).  Any additional apps that we should consider, we would appreciate the heads up.  This is all I have found and/or thought of, hope I can find even more app ideas.

Apps we will be using (simple to complex):

• Flashlight
• Games- chess, checkers, card games...
• Camera (see below for specs- I will be using my phone as my sole camera, it's 8MP with 4x zoom)
• Kindle- for reading as many books as I want, because the display is nearly 5" its easy to read on it
• Podcasts- listen on interesting topics from survival, philosophy, to politics...
• Blogger of course we will be blogging all the way down the trail.  I have been testing my phone in some "drop zones" or areas I should not get service but... when I summit high passes, my phone gets service for some reason, even in far off places.
• Sports Tracker- to track calories burned, for me because I love to dork out on that kind of stuff
• Altimeter- very accurate using assisted GPS (uses military satellites and cell towers for speed and accuracy)
• Backpacker GPS Trails- this is awesome, works when you have no cell coverage, this is the main reason we are brining this phone, great app once you use it and get used to it.  has a built in magnetic and true north compass, trail maps in multiple views (topo, hybrid...), shows distance- accurate up to 10', elevation gain/loss... and many other functions.
• PeakAR- another awesome app, point at any mountain range in the world and this handy app will tell you the name of each mountain in a picture format.
• U.S. Army Survival Guide- just in case, we wont need that... delete!

Interested in the specs:  see the full capability of this phone, bet it's more powerful than the average computer.
http://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/cell-phones/SPH-D710ZKASPR-specs

Our TRT Gear List

Our Tahoe Rim Trail Gear List

Clothes                                     $                    #    

·      +Marmot Safari Hat                     29                       1oz  

·      +Shemagh/wash cloth                  12                       1oz

·      +Sunglasses                                0                         2oz

·      +Dry Fit Shirt X2                          9                         2oz

·      +Dry Fit Long Sleeve                   10                       2oz

·      +REI Fleece                                   11                       1lb 4oz

·      +Cold Storage Rain jacket                  30                       12oz

·      +Convertible Pants X2                 26                       1lb 12oz

·      +Wigwam Socks X2                       14                       6oz

·      +Bennie Cap                                  6                         3oz

·      +Dry Fit Boxer Briefs X3             16                       6oz

·      +Solomon Quest 4D GTX Boots   125                     3lb 2o

·       

Gear

·      +Nomad 7M Solar Panel             50                       13oz

o   +Guide 10 sleeve                 5                         3.2oz

·      +CamelBak 3L Bladder                22                       8oz

·      +CamelBak Tactical Pump            24                       4oz

·      +Aquiamira FP H20 Filter X2       48                       4oz

o   (150L/ Inline Filter)

·      +Ontario SP1 Knife + Sheath     0                         10oz

·      Big Agnes Sleeping Pad               50                       1lb 9oz

·      LaFuma Mummy Bag                       46                       3lb 5oz

·      Solo Stove                                    40                       9oz

·      5200 SqIN Back Pack                           140                    5lb 14oz

·      +Wetzel Mess Kit                          10                       7oz

·      +Spork X2                                             3                         0

·      +7X7 Tent                                     37                       5lb

·      + Tarp 8x10                                  12                       10oz

·      +Galaxy S2 Hercules                   0                         5.4oz

o   Ballistic cover                     18                       3oz

·      +Skullcandy Ear Buds                0                         -                

·      +TRT Guide Book                           12                       1.2oz

·      Topo Map                                       10                       1oz

·      +Kinivo Mini Portable Speaker     18                       6.4oz

o   (Built In Battery)

·      +Fenix HL21 Headlamp- black     30                       1.4oz

·      +Duct Tape- 10 feet                     0

·      +Compass                                     0

·      +Mesquite netting                         8

·      +Paracord 10’                             0

·      +Leatherman Multi tool               0

·      Dry Bag X3                                    10

·      REI Ditty Bag                                 8

·      Bear Bag                                       18

·      Ultralight Leki Trek Poles           0

·      First Aid Kit

·      Hygiene Kit

·      12oz Nalgene Flask                     8                         3oz

·      Moleskin Sketchbook/Journal

Solo Stove

-weight: 9oz
-efficiency: boils 34oz H20 in <8min (impressive), tested at 90% efficiency
-construction: 304 stainless steel, 12 pieces, only 20 spot welds= super tough construction.
-Best of all, we will not have to haul fuel for the stove because it runs on biomass (pine needles, natural tinder, twigs, branches, pine cones, or anything that will burn in nature).

Price: Originally $120... on sale for $80... but I got mine for 40 bones, yeah!

FYI: you can look up and build your own but because of time constraints I went ahead and purchased one, I will take down dimensions, design, and specs and create a blueprint so I can make my own stove in the future for probably less than $5, I'll let you know on that one ASAP.  I was also worried about the construction holding up on the DIY solo stove since we don't have the time to test the DIY solo stove extensively to ensure it will last up to 3 weeks using it 2x/day.  However, I will do these tests soon after I build my own in the future.

Concept-
The design is simple, compact and efficient.  Basically, this stove sucks air up through the holes in the bottom feeding the fire through the holes in the top of the inner stove which creates a jet-like effect, which vaporizes the alcohol in the wood and is 90% efficient which is insane!

We got the Esbit stove yesterday and Ry and I agreed that although it was cool and light, the stove and fuel was inefficient- basically it sucked.  We will take a couple Esbit fuel tabs just in case we get stuck in the alpine or a major rain storm.


Weight Savings-
Esbit Pocket Stove + fuel(28 tabs): 17.25 oz
MSR Whisper Light Stove + Fuel (just for comparison): 16.25oz and thats with only one fuel can.
Solo Stove: 9oz- this is a no-brainer in my opinion, and it fits tightly in my cooking pot, nice and compact.


Check out the videos:
 http://youtu.be/Ym7sIWgrvpY
http://youtu.be/6ntXdl-gv-0
http://youtu.be/EYzGLy0TZGU


Pic: