How Much Gear for Day Walks

[under10kg]

A friend was walking at Frenchmans Cap last week doing the climb with a day pack fron the top hut.
The track was icy and the weather was cold, windy and cloudy.
He was solo and slipped on the decent. Fortunately he was OK and continued on fine.
This made me think about what sort of gear I would have had in a similar situation.
How much gear would you take in the above situation for those that do solo walks?
Do you take a sleeping bag and tent in case you break a leg and have a night out as it is too windy or too late for any rescue?

[forest]

Normally on a day walk I wouldn't take a shelter or sleeping bag.
Just waterproof shell clothing and a down jacket. Maybe a small lite torso ccf thin pad that doubles as my seat.
Probably some extra food like musili bars, chocolate etc.
Always the first aid kit.

[taswegian]

Beside normal gear including a warm top.
First aid kit, navigation gear (map, compass, GPS),whistle, wet weather gear, some spare tucker but mainly muesli bar and chocolate type, spare socks and a fleece top.
But also a lightweight but tough large ground sheet that I can draw around me in event of an 'event'.
Never taken a tent or sleeping bag.

Not supposed to talk about 'bush shelters' but one can improvise pretty well if one knows how. In many cases ie.
If my life depended on that I would imagine that would be 'the commended thing to do'.

[stepbystep]

This is of course when a bush shelter is absolutely needed if benighted I used to carry a tarp but stopped a cpl of years ago and never carry a sleeping bag.

In general I carry the basics, warm dry gloves, fleece top and beanie even in summer, comprehensive first aid kit, navigational gear, mobile phone, cpl of bits of extra food etc

I've been guilty more than once of forgetting one or two of these items though...

[under10kg]

Normally on a day walk I wouldn't take a shelter or sleeping bag.
Just waterproof shell clothing and a down jacket. Maybe a small lite torso ccf thin pad that doubles as my seat.
Probably some extra food like musili bars, chocolate etc.
Always the first aid kit.

Yes this is what I take but if the conditions look bad and icy and there is a higher chance of an event!I am thinking it might be a good idea of taking extra.
My tent and bag ony weigh 1.3 kg together which is not heavy.
A bush shelter would be difficult above the tree line.

[TerraMer]

Learnt from experience during a summer walk that 1 space blanket is good but 2 are great.
Another 1st aid kit essential is a strip of water purification tabs. You never know what kind of water you'll need to resort to using if your walk doesn't go to plan.
Not sure how fast the weather down there changes but in the NSW/VIC Alps I always carry a dry set of base layers, change of socks, gloves, beanie, even in summer.
Extra energy snacks, like a box of sultanas and a bar of dark choc, don't take up much room in the pack.
Used to carry an UL fly and fleece sleeping bag liner too but don't worry about it now. Used to carry a lot of stuff in case I came across someone needing help but have drastically minimised lately so I can carry more water.

[MrWalker]

I always carry enough spare gear that will allow me to stay out overnight if necessary. I might be uncomfortable but I should survive. My pack usually inlcudes gloves, beanie, sox, change of underwear in case I fall in a stream (again), space blanket, nibbles, first aid kit , beacon, phone, waterproof top and pants, woolly jumper, whistle.

I based my pack contents on the list of gear required for those who run the OLT, since they are not planning to stay out overnight but must be prepared in case they do.

The actual contents of my pack can vary a bit if the forecast for the night and next day is really good, for example if no rain is forecast anywhere in Tasmania and the min temperature will be above 15 then I might leave out some items but only after specifically deciding to take it out, not because I forget to pack it.

[ninjapuppet]

The issue of a space blanket vs a space bivy has been discussed before in an earlier post.
space bivies are superior than space blankets in a survival situation due to wind not getting through flapping the material around.
the bivy can be cut into a blanket, but a blanket is not easily turned into a bivy. The alternative is a heavy duty trash bag.

But seriously I recommend people actually TRY out their emergency space blankets this winter in the cold, and compare it with the alternative. You might like the blanket,
...or you might find that the thin plastic space sheet gets cold immediatly when any small breeze blows gently.

[Lizzy]

Yeah I like the space blanket bivvy idea- bought one of these
http://www.basegear.com/amk-heat-sheet- ... bivvy.html
when I last had an order from o/s. Actually I bought one for all the family- figured it is something light and easy to stash in everyone- especially the kids packs just in case......
Other than that I am pretty similar to everyone else for a day walk;
first aid (includes lighter & water purification tabs)
PLB
water
snacks
rain jacket
fleece
buff or beanie
map/guide
compass/whistle

[wayno]

varies with the time of year and weather, if there's a chance that something goes wrong and you'll be out over night you want enough to keep you warm for the conditions and the forecast overnight.
in summer all I''ll have is a warm top and windbreaker or coat , in winter full storm gear thermals, warm hat, gloves.

[Moondog55]

Like Wayno my answer is very situational dependent.
In snow it can be quite a load, it may include the Megamid and a bivvy sac, it may also include a small( sub 1 kilo ) sleeping bag as well.
Normally tho, it has at the minimum a few extras and a waterproof as well as food and water. my daypack is 40 litres, and comfortable to about 15 kilos but better at 10

[wayno]

some of the ultralight crowd like skimping on as much gear as possible but some take it too far if they get caught by bad weather. i just remember by goal is not to end up with exposure if i'm left sitting around overnight...

[icemancometh]

I remember pulling into that last hut in the arvo. We then decided there was time to get to the top and back during the remaining daylight hours. I put on my shell just in case and stuck a water bottle in my pocket. That was all I took up the top of the Cap. Most of my party took their packs though.

[wayno]

recent story in nz about 16 trampers on the tongariro crossing who came to grief and nearly died on a day walk.... due to inadequate gear, the weather continued to get colder over the folllowing days and snow fell.
hte crossing climbs to 1800m on hte exposed craters of tongariro, there is no shelter for the majority of the trip... it's well inland and the air is often already cold at this time of year before any wind forces it over the peaks...

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/6833193/Tongariro-trampers-close-to-dying

Tongariro trampers 'close to dying'
MIKE WATSON AND JODY O'CALLAGHAN


Four trampers were said to be confused, hysterical and close to dying from hypothermia, after their 16-member group became trapped in icy conditions on the Tongariro Crossing.

[wayno]

i'm more likely to use lightweight gear on day walks as well. ep storm gear, unless the weather is guaranteed to be stormy.
its the age old argument, takes lots of havy gear or lightweight gear, light gear means you can move faster to get out of the exposed areas faster, but more borderline for surviving if you can't move for any reason, seasoned trampers can go either way in their philosophy. they are more experienced traversing difficult country and less likely to get injured or loss so use those as reasons for mitigating the risks of taking less and or lighter gear.... but experienced people still die from lack of gear in the outdoors.
to determine how well equipped i'll be i look at various factors
the area i'm going in,
how exposed is it
what are the weather extremes in the area for that time of year.
weater forecast
how rough is the track,
whats the risk of injury on the track,
whats the risk of getting lost
how long will i have to wait for help if i can't move

i like to go reasonably light, small pack if possible, i've got a range of gear and select whats appropriate without going mad.
i always used to take a 30 litre pack crammed full of clothes. and food.
in summer i might end up with a bumb bag in good conditions, with a forecast that looks iffy then i'll end up filling up a 13 litre backpack with clothes ,
in a particularly bad forecast i'll be filling a pack over 20 litres. with storm gear waiting at he ready stuffed into a large pocket on the outside of my pack...
i have a 30 litre pack ready if the conditions look so bad a 20 litre pack won'thold my gear......