Looking to slim down your pack and dive into the world of ultralight backpacking? From weight savings to what gear you actually need, here’s a beginner’s guide to ultralight backpacking!

Why this blog? Hi there! My name is Maddy and I’m an outdoor guide and writer. I’ve been working in the outdoors since 2018, but didn’t dive into the ultralight backpacking world until 2024. Up until that point, I was lukewarm on the overall suffering of backpacking but really enjoyed the outdoors and the feeling of slimming my world down to just a pack. I decided to start flirting with ultralight backpacking then, and haven’t gone back since. Here’s what all I’ve learned:

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How to Ultralight Backpack:

Ultimately Ultralight backpacking comes down to minimalist gear, gear with multiple uses, and weight savings. Contrary to popular opinion, I actually don’t think that an ultralight setup means sacrificing comfort. I have had all of my most comfortable nights in the backcountry since implementing an ultralight setup and I think this comes down to two main reasons: ultralight is easier on your body, so you just feel better and a dialed in kit (as is required for ultralight) means comfort that works for you. The more time, and inevitably money, you spend on your backpacking kit, the more comfortable it becomes.

Ultimately, there isn’t one right way to do ultralight, and you don’t (and shouldn’t) go buy all new backpacking gear all at once. Instead, a series of choices on gear and packing can get you lighter and lighter while you slowly build out a kit that works for you.

Why go ultralight?

You might be looking to go ultralight if you find backpacking uncomfortable, are looking to tackle longer miles more comfortably, or are just overall curious about a lighter setup and minimalism. For me, the draw was a mix of curiosity about slimming my outdoor experience down to the bare essentials and looking for a more comfortable setup.

Big Disclaimer!!! I am super not an expert in ultralight backpacking. I’m writing this as a beginner-friendly resource to help you get started figuring out a system that works for you based on my years of experience guiding and mistakes I’ve made BUT I still don’t have the lightest pack out there (nor do I aspire to). This article is a great and realistic place to start for sure, but not an end-all be-all resource.

1) Find the balance between comfort and weight savings

For me, this often means ditching a towel, but not a camp pillow. Practice with your backpacking kit will tell you what you need to be more comfortable over time, but keep in mind that the more you go for miles the less time you’ll have at camp and the easier it will be to go without comfort items. This can really help frame the purpose of your backpacking trip.

For example, if you’re planning on hitting less than eight miles a day on relatively low elevation with good footing you’re likely to wind up with a lot of time to hike and a lot of time at camp. In this case, it might make sense to pack a few extra luxury items for time at camp. However if you’re planning on hitting upwards of 12 miles and are a beginner-intermediate backpacker, you can probably start dropping the luxury items in favor of optimizing time hiking and a light pack.

Another good example of this is a camp chair. I don’t pack a camp chair when backpacking, but on my most recent 6-day backpacking trip I brought a Nemo Switchback closed cell foam sleeping pad in addition to my usual ultralight sleeping pad and really loved having the extra comfy sitting option and used it to make my tent pads more flat. Easily worth the extra 10 ish ounces.

“Luxury” backpacking items to cut for weight:

Depending on the environment, there are a lot of things you could potentially cut for weight. Here’s just a quick list of things you might want to consider leaving behind:

• Extra clothes. I pack pants to hike in, a sun hoodie to hike in, shorts for camp, a baselayer top, a thin puffer jacket for camp, a rain coat, and underwear. Sometimes I’ll also pack a midlayer. No other costume change needed. I’ll swim in a sports bra.
• Camp towel, chair, extra blanket, pillow. All of these are optional.
• Toiletries. Leave ’em. A mini-tube of travel toothpaste is all I bring. Contacts, sunscreen. That’s all. Bringing lotions and your full skincare routine is totally fine if that’s what you want, but it’s a lot of weight.
• Stuff sacks. Practice packing your bag logically instead. I put my sleeping bag at the bottom, clothes (minus puffer/raincoat) in the middle with food I don’t need, and then anything I might need during the day near the top or in an outside pocket. I use my tent to pad out my back since I use a frameless pack.
• Camp shoes. I’m actually pro camp shoe myself, but you could cut them, especially if you’re hiking in trail runners instead of boots. I pack a pair of Bedrocks as my camp shoes because you can easily hike in them if needed, and they’re a good river crossing shoe.
• Books, cameras, external batteries, ect. I bring a simple Biolite power bank to juice up my phone and read on that and use it for photos 90% of the time. Another fun weight saving is ditching the big camera for a disposable.

2) Let go of weighing the pack

This is unpopular advice that true ultralighters will balk at, but spend less time concerned about the actual number of pounds on your back and focus instead focus on how the pack feels on your back. Weighing your pack can be a really good tool for understanding how smaller items add up. That said, I’ve found getting bogged down in the numbers themselves to slow me down in the packing and gear process.

For me, it’s been a lot more helpful to focus on minimalism and what feels good rather than the number on a scale.

My packing system for any given backpacking trip is to lay out my essential gear, my potential add-ons, and my food in three separate piles. I pack up my essentials first (sleep system, stove, filter, layers, first aid, toiletries, area-specific needs, + absolutely necessary food). From here, I see how this feels on my back — usually it feels pretty good. Then I add water in the quantity I plan to carry and visit my nonessentials — this would be my pillow, e-reader, extra food, cameras, towel, additional layers, camp shoes, camp chair/sleeping pad, and decide what I’m going to bring of those.

The goal for me is that the weight of the pack feels not just comfortable, but actively light on my back. I’ve also found it really helpful before longer trips to do a short, one-night shakedown trip. This proves to me that everything I have is actually everything I need, and gives me a chance to test my systems in action in a lower stakes environment.

3) Dial In on Essentials

One of the easiest ways to move toward an ultralight setup is simple to dial in on your essentials. Find a sleeping pad that you love, a sleeping bag that works for you. It will likely take a little time (and a lot of reading!) to decide the right system that works for you. Are you a sleeping bag or quilt person? What type of backpacking tent is right for you?

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I recommend making a list of essentials specific to you; not essentials as told by someone else on the internet. For me, this means including a big camera and camera backpack attachment because I work as a writer/photographer and need it for work. If I’m flying with my pack, this includes an airplane pack. On the other hand, I decide a pillow is a non-essential and use my puffer jacket instead.

Bottom line: figure out what your essentials are, and be okay with that they might look different from someone else’s definition of essential. Just remember not to skimp on safety gear like maps, sat communicators, first aid and other safety and leave no trace considerations!

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4) Easy swaps & weight savings

If you’re looking for how to save weight for your next backpacking trip, there are a few logical places to start. Here’s what I would recommend looking into:

• Swap hiking boots for trail runners. This won’t work for everyone, but I used to be a staunch Oboz Bridger Mid user and recently switched to my first trail runner. Unfortunately it did totally change the game and I love it.
• Consider a trekking pole tent. A trekking pole tent lets you cut the weight of tent poles. This is only ideal if you know for sure you’ll be able to stake out your tent. If you’re camping on rocks or sand, a semi-freestanding tent like the Big Agnes Fly Creek might make more sense.
• Ditch the stuff sacks. Just jam that stuff in there. It’ll be fine, I promise.
• Get a budget footprint. Rather than buy a tent footprint, you can literally cut up and use a disposable picnic blanket or make your own Tyvek footprint. To be totally honest, I don’t bring a foot print at all when I’m using a trekking pole tent. I will use one with my Fly Creek because it lets me set up the rainfly and footprint first and tent second inside the fly, keeping everything totally dry.

5) Focus on fitness

If your goal is big milage, regret to inform but shaving off weight from your pack isn’t going to substitute for training for a trip. I feel like there’s a trip every single year where I learn this the hard way — while I regularly guide overnight sea kayaking trips and am in great shape for paddling, I don’t get a lot of leg action in the sea kayak. The first backpacking trip of every year is always a gentle, violent wake up call.

Training for backpacking can be challenging, especially in the winter, but it’s well worth it. Plus, your backpacking trip can act as a motivator to keep you active throughout the year! Backcountry Emily has a really great guide to fitness for backpackers I recommend checking out.

Personally, through out the winter I try and cross country ski twice a week and go to yoga once a week. If I’ve got the time and the weather isn’t horrendous (it often is up on Lake Superior), I’ll go for a longer winter hike too. This is often just enough to maintain baseline physical fitness. I hate the gym, what can I say.

6) If you’re going to spend money (which you probably will have to) spend it in the right spot

If you’re going to drop money to bring your base weight down, you’re going to want to consider a lightweight pack, a lightweight tent, and a lightweight sleeping bag. The ultimate key with the sleeping bag or quilt is to still choose something you’ll find comfortable.

Here are some of my quick ultralight gear recommendations:

• Tents: A ultralight tent makes a huge difference. A trekking pole tent like the Durston X-Mid Pro is like the cadillac of UL (ultralight) backpacking tents, 100% recommend (mine was gifted!). I have also really loved the nine+ years I used the Fly Creek (semi free standing) and also occasionally use my Big Agnes Copperspur, though I mostly use the Durston these days.
• Sleeping bags: You probably want an Enlightened Equipment quilt. I have the Covert quilt in zero degrees, down, and I love it (this was also gifted!). I love a quilt, they’re really comfortable. If you’re married to the bag, you probably want the Sea to Summit Spark (15 degree is a good compromise for most trips). My friend Sarah at Exploren Borgen highly recommends this bag.
• Backpacks: For a while I used a Perimeter 35L pack from Granite Gear, which is around 3 pounds and fully adjustable. This worked really well for shorter trips, but ultimately the 35L capacity is a little bit light on space. I ended up upgrading to a custom Glow Pack from Wild Brush, a cottage pack brand. Julianne at Wild Brush makes absolutely gorgeous and highly-functional packs (you can see my purple Glow pack in a lot of the images above!). The pack is frameless, and the straps are the most comfortable straps I’ve ever used. A custom pack is definitely a splurge, and other more budget-friendly lightweight pack options include the Hyperlite Southwest, REI Flash Air, or the Big Agnes Sweetwater. Zpacks also makes great frameless packs, and I’ve heard really good things about the framed Gossamer Gear Mariposa.

READ: Best Backpacking Tents (Budget & Ultralight!)

7) Plan ahead to understand where you can cut weight

One of the biggest keys to a lightweight backpacking setup is understanding where you can cut weight based on the trip you’re undertaking. For example, if you were backpacking in an area where bear lockers or hangs were provided, you could ditch the bear canister and use the provided systems. If you’re backpacking somewhere with ample water sources, you can carry less water at a time and more dehydrated / just add water food.

Based on the forecast, you might even consider ditching rain pants (I hate bringing rain pants).

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One thing you want to make sure not to skimp on is first aid and safety supplies! Personally, I tend to tailor my first aid kit directly to my anticipated needs and to the trip i’m on. That said, I always carry extra blister patches, glucose packets, and Benadryl for emergencies.

Spend a lot of time outside? Consider taking a Wilderness First Aid course to help keep yourself and others safe on the trail!

READ: Best Backpacking Meals (Dehydrated & Freeze-Dried)

8) Plan food you’ll actually eat and carry only what you need + small emergency supply

The biggest mistake I still make that adds weight on any backpacking trip is overpacking food. I really struggle with estimating how much I’m going to eat, and choosing meals that I’m not going to get the “ick” for. There’s truly nothing worse than having to pack out food you’ve rehydrated (added weight back into).

To combat this, I recommend testing your meals at home, and packing food you know you’ll be stoked to eat. Research different meal plan options in advance. There are plenty of backpacking meal plans available online. Alternately, check out a backcountry cookbook and get started dreaming up your own meal plan.

Looking for your next epic backpacking trip? Get inspired by…

• Tackle America’s shortest thru-hike on an island off the California coast
• Hike to a bright blue waterfall at the bottom of the Grand Canyon
• This challenging 6-10 day Canadian thru-hike belongs on your bucket list!

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