Backcountry Beacon

For many backpackers, having the lightest, newest, most technical gear is simply a given. However, some of us are still using the same tents, sleeping bags, and backpacks that we’ve had since the ’90s, and we don’t understand the commotion over newfangled gear. So what exactly are these big improvements, and is it really worth it to update your equipment?

Tech New Backpacks

Today’s cutting-edge backpacks have the hiker’s comfort as the topmost priority. They’re designed to help you maneuver easily, distribute weight correctly, and adjust to a vast variety of body shapes. If you’re going to pick one piece of your ancient gear to replace, make it your backpack. A great-fitting pack won’t chafe, restrict, or cause uncomfortable pressure. It will increase your stamina, letting you take in more of the backcountry’s beauty.

Backpacks have come further than any other piece of multi-day camping gear. Backpackers no longer have to squash their spines under sweaty, frameless rucksacks and wrestle with ill-fitting external frames that snag branches and bang elbows.

Case in point: Black Diamond Active Form Design technology. BD focused on all aspects of its packs to ensure an ideal fit and great performance.

Pretty much every manufacturer now offers specialized hiking, climbing, and backpacking backpacks. For example, Arc’teryx has three backpack series for everything from light day hikes to multi-day expeditions.

Lightweight Backpacking Tents

Until relatively recently, most backcountry tents were made of polyethylene-coated nylon and a vinyl-coated floor. These tents offered good water protection but were not breathable, and they usually weighed around eight pounds for a 2-person tent. If you wanted ventilation, your options were either a double-wall tent, or a waterproof tarp that was useless against bugs, wind, and slanting rain.

If you’re still sleeping in a stanky, decaying nylon and vinyl tent, it’s time for an upgrade. Highly breathable, lightweight mesh and nylon fabrics are now the norm. Most tents weigh about two pounds per person. Seam sealing, tent-specific rain flies, and waterproof fabrics mean that water leaks are practically non-existent—no more floating around on your sleeping pad. These new fabrics are lightweight and incredibly durable, as are the aluminum poles that have replaced heavier, less-resilient fiberglass.

Not sure what kind of tent to buy? Check out the Tent Buyer’s Guide.

Lightweight Sleeping Bags

In the forgiving temperatures of late spring, summer, and early fall, an ultra-warm sleeping bag is not a priority; a 32F sleeping bag is usually plenty warm. Old down sleeping bags can weigh up to eight pounds, and they take a ton of room in your pack. New warm weather sleeping bags are highly compressible and lightweight. If you plan on hiking in rainy weather, go with a synthetic since it dries quickly and will insulate when wet. In most conditions, down is the way to go since it’s more compressible and lighter than synthetics. In the dead of summer you needn’t worry too much if your bag is old and rectangular. However, if it weighs more than two pounds, replacing it with a lightweight sleeping bag can make a huge difference in your carry weight.

It’s OK to Be a Packrat

Even with all this said, there’s no need to completely revamp your gear closet. You can get away with using your old sleeping pad, stove, and hiking attire until they fall apart. There’s something to be said for stubborn backpackers who refuse to replace their antiquated gear. Carrying a tent that feels like an anvil in a big, awkward backpack definitely puts the rough in “roughing it.” But up-to-date outdoor gear can help you rough it a little further into the backcountry, and preserve your gear as well as its vehicle—your body—for many more backpacking trips to come.