Overland track with an 11 kg baby - food drops, lighter tent
Posted: Sun 18 Jun, 2017 10:06 pm
THE CHALLENGE - WANTING ADVICE:
I am wanting to do the Overland track in late November.
I have a baby who is currently 15 months old (born Feb 2016). So she will be under 2 years old, and based on her current weight and trajectory, she'll likely weigh just under 11 kg.
That's 11 kg of baby PLUS all my equipment. I'm going just her and I.
Obviously I'm going to have to be really smart about equipment and weight. And if there was an option for a food drop service that anyone knows of, that would really aid my predicament. I'd love any advice that hikers can offer on getting my equipment weight as low as possible.
MY WEIGHT:
I am 170 cm tall, 68 kg, fit and have some experience hiking. I have a number of hikes planned between now and the Overland, to improve fitness and strength over distance. My understanding is that hikers should aim for their pack to be under one third of their body weight.
EQUIPMENT:
My equipment set-up so far is here: https://lighterpack.com/r/875egz (I still need to add clothing, nappies, weight of medical supplies, survival kit items, sunscreen, repellant, etc)
I've got a good baby infant carrier by Wilderness Experience, with in-built capacity for 30 L at bottom pocket, and additional velcro-on side compartments which add a further 8 L each side. So although it's heavy due to the sub-structure support frame, I think it's a necessary 3-ish kg.
Where I think I can save weight is:
- TENT - LIGHTER THAN THE ONE I HAVE THAT WILL WORK ON THE OVERLAND TRACK?
Currently: I have a Naturehike Star River 2 person tent, and it weighs about 2.1 kg all up with the pegs, guy ropes and ground sheet, but it is freestanding which I've liked.
What should I move to?
I think the lightest are Cuban Fibre like Zpacks Duplex, but they're super-expensive, and would need to add freight to Australia. I know Naturehike also do a Cloud Up 2, and a Taga 2 person tent which are around 1.2 kg plus pegs, and are inexpensive, but would either of these be suitable on the Overland Track?
- OTHER - MATS, SLEEPING, etc
My existing mat is an Exped SIM UL 5 mat (660 grams, R value: 4.6), which in a discontinued model that I like because my hips get sore after giving birth when I sleep on a thin mat such as a 3.8 cm, and I like SIM mats that aren't crinkly-noisy.
I could upgrade to a lighter weight mat - such as a crinkly noisy NeoAir XLite or XTherm, or the Nemo Tensor 20R which looks interesting but is thin fabric, or a Sea to Summit mat Ultralight. I just wonder if it's worth the $200 to $400 upgrade to a lighter mat and save 200-300 grams, and also be less comfortable and possibly get less sleep.
My baby daughter's on an Exped SIM UL 2.5 XS mat, which is the short version 120 cm x 50 cm and thin at 2.5 cm thick. It packs small, weighs 330 grams, and straps nicely to my rectangular pad so the mats don't go sliding around the tent. It's a low R value (2.1 R) but I add clothing underneath it and have a Space blanket lining the tent floor.
In terms of sleeping, I have an Enlightened Equipment Revelation 20 F quilt custom-made Extra Wide, which weighs 636 grams. My baby will sleep in the Macpac Primaloft onesie which works like a baby sleeping bag, and weighs 256 grams.
- FOOD - I need as ultralight food as possible, and ideally even a food drop part-way in.
I'm much more used to dayhiking than overnighting, and while I've scheduled some planned overnighters before we go do the Overland Track, I'd love any advice on how on earth to keep the food weight as low as possible. Although my daughter's a baby, toddlers actually eat a surprising lot of food for their small size.
And is there any commercial service that does food drops half way in?
Thoughts?
I am wanting to do the Overland track in late November.
I have a baby who is currently 15 months old (born Feb 2016). So she will be under 2 years old, and based on her current weight and trajectory, she'll likely weigh just under 11 kg.
That's 11 kg of baby PLUS all my equipment. I'm going just her and I.
Obviously I'm going to have to be really smart about equipment and weight. And if there was an option for a food drop service that anyone knows of, that would really aid my predicament. I'd love any advice that hikers can offer on getting my equipment weight as low as possible.
MY WEIGHT:
I am 170 cm tall, 68 kg, fit and have some experience hiking. I have a number of hikes planned between now and the Overland, to improve fitness and strength over distance. My understanding is that hikers should aim for their pack to be under one third of their body weight.
EQUIPMENT:
My equipment set-up so far is here: https://lighterpack.com/r/875egz (I still need to add clothing, nappies, weight of medical supplies, survival kit items, sunscreen, repellant, etc)
I've got a good baby infant carrier by Wilderness Experience, with in-built capacity for 30 L at bottom pocket, and additional velcro-on side compartments which add a further 8 L each side. So although it's heavy due to the sub-structure support frame, I think it's a necessary 3-ish kg.
Where I think I can save weight is:
- TENT - LIGHTER THAN THE ONE I HAVE THAT WILL WORK ON THE OVERLAND TRACK?
Currently: I have a Naturehike Star River 2 person tent, and it weighs about 2.1 kg all up with the pegs, guy ropes and ground sheet, but it is freestanding which I've liked.
What should I move to?
I think the lightest are Cuban Fibre like Zpacks Duplex, but they're super-expensive, and would need to add freight to Australia. I know Naturehike also do a Cloud Up 2, and a Taga 2 person tent which are around 1.2 kg plus pegs, and are inexpensive, but would either of these be suitable on the Overland Track?
- OTHER - MATS, SLEEPING, etc
My existing mat is an Exped SIM UL 5 mat (660 grams, R value: 4.6), which in a discontinued model that I like because my hips get sore after giving birth when I sleep on a thin mat such as a 3.8 cm, and I like SIM mats that aren't crinkly-noisy.
I could upgrade to a lighter weight mat - such as a crinkly noisy NeoAir XLite or XTherm, or the Nemo Tensor 20R which looks interesting but is thin fabric, or a Sea to Summit mat Ultralight. I just wonder if it's worth the $200 to $400 upgrade to a lighter mat and save 200-300 grams, and also be less comfortable and possibly get less sleep.
My baby daughter's on an Exped SIM UL 2.5 XS mat, which is the short version 120 cm x 50 cm and thin at 2.5 cm thick. It packs small, weighs 330 grams, and straps nicely to my rectangular pad so the mats don't go sliding around the tent. It's a low R value (2.1 R) but I add clothing underneath it and have a Space blanket lining the tent floor.
In terms of sleeping, I have an Enlightened Equipment Revelation 20 F quilt custom-made Extra Wide, which weighs 636 grams. My baby will sleep in the Macpac Primaloft onesie which works like a baby sleeping bag, and weighs 256 grams.
- FOOD - I need as ultralight food as possible, and ideally even a food drop part-way in.
I'm much more used to dayhiking than overnighting, and while I've scheduled some planned overnighters before we go do the Overland Track, I'd love any advice on how on earth to keep the food weight as low as possible. Although my daughter's a baby, toddlers actually eat a surprising lot of food for their small size.
And is there any commercial service that does food drops half way in?
Thoughts?