Beginner hiking gear

[warriordazza]

Hello all,

First time here but I recently started hiking and really enjoy it. Me and my partner are looking to do more so are wanting to invest into some proper gear.

We live in QLD so we have access to most stores and online of course. We read that Kathmandu was good but also Patagonia or Anaconda. I also found the Mountain Warehouse online as well.

We want gear we can use in multi terrains so something flexible in it's use that would last and maybe you have good experience.

Any recommendations is wanted thanks.
D

[crollsurf]

Hi Warriordazza,

What sort of budget are you looking at approx?
What sort of hiking are you thinking about?
Day walking obviously but are you planning to do more overnight walks, long walks like 4 days or more. You'll get better advice if people know those 2 things.

BTW I don't mind some of Kathmandu stuff @50% off but you'll find a lot of seasoned walkers openly bag the crap out of it.

[ofuros]

Wildearth are online too, down on the Goldie...as crollsurf says above, do yourself a favour & buy gear when it's on sale for 40/50% if you can. Some gear you will have to try on in store.

[Lamont]

I would just say you need to shop at lots of places that get you what you want. And look forward to MUCH experimenting with gear. Crolly is spot on-what are your needs?
Is there a budget thread on here somewhere. This might be the perfect opportunity to start one.
A tried and tested one rather than based on supposition though would be my choice.
Start with a good light 100 weight bashable fleece? MH 20 Decathlon fleece. 180 gms in XL absolutely brilliant. Just enough warmth when active.
Good (excellent) fleecy number when protected -Macpac Nitro. Release your inner Grover!
Hey Crolly where did you put that post of yours about 'starting out' was it?

[crollsurf]

Yeah Lamont, that was for someone moving from traditional gear to ultralight but why not skip the traditonal route and go UL straight up.
http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=58&t=30413&p=382752&hilit=Ultralight#p382638

[Lamont]

Yeah Lamont, that was for someone moving from traditional gear to ultralight but why not skip the traditonal route and go UL straight up.
http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=58&t=30413&p=382752&hilit=Ultralight#p382638

Why not!
Giddee Up.

[Kurisu]

Yeah Lamont, that was for someone moving from traditional gear to ultralight but why not skip the traditonal route and go UL straight up.
http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=58&t=30413&p=382752&hilit=Ultralight#p382638

Why not!
Giddee Up.

Yup. Better to get the right advice from the start. Will save a lot of time and money.

[Gadgetgeek]

A lot of the big makers are moving into ultra-light and light gear, so you can get good light stuff without spending a huge amount. One of the things worth thinking about is how you generally treat stuff. If you tend to wear stuff out, rip buttons, forget about things in the boot of the car, or want to get to places off the trail, then get a heavier duty backpack from an aussie maker, nothing beats canvas for durability, and then make up the weight in the rest of your gear. If you tend to look after stuff and are pretty gentle, then try out some of the Osprey stuff, it won't take the abuse, but then neither will you. There is certainly lighter stuff, but at some point you are sacrificing adaptability if you need to stack your pack a certain way every time, and your sleeping mat is a critical component of your pack. For 50 days out, I get it, but for a "grab and go" weekend, you want to just know its going to work, right?

Cooking, do you like to go all in gourmet, or are you more of a "body fuel" kind of person? Do you want to be able to cook on the side of a glacier, or are you happy with taking your time to set things up right? Lots of stoves, easy to get into a cheap metho and butane stove, see which works best and upgrade later. The fuel burns the same pretty much no matter how much you spent on the stove. Shellite and kero are good, but probably overkill for what you want right now. Same thing with pots, knowing what you want to cook in starts with the materials, order a cheap Ti, aluminum and stainless set (spend as little as possible) then see how they cook and clean up, then get a better set. I like Ti for its weight and durability, but it doesn't conduct heat well, so it tends to get a hotspot really easily. I've burnt rice with water still in the pot.

As for tents, lots of fantastic options out there, its a game all its own. One thing I would do though is get a mid size ultralight tarp from a company like Tier Gear, or TerraRosa, as they are a lifesaver if you need a little more space in the weather for cooking or just lounging about. Nemo is getting more available here. TarpTent is also a company with some good linage, and they know what they are doing, they are also honest about what you are compromising on with their tents. MSR is always highly rated, but you are paying a premium.

When it comes to brands, a lot of brands get slagged pretty hard, Katmandu stuff tends to look nice, but I certainly wouldn't pay retail for it. There are a good number of cottage makers here who can do really good gear, often for near what you'd pay to import. So always keep that in mind.
I just got a chance to look at a new Wilderness Equipment pack and it looks like they have really stepped up their game to try to give OnePlanet a bit of a shake, so if you are looking at canvas, keep both those names in mind.

The exchange here is not the most busy place, but between here, gumtree, and a localized ebay search, used and "scratch and dent" gear can be found. PaddyPallin offloads their demo and style end stuff on ebay a couple times a year. It goes fast, but if you know what you want, you can score a deal.

[Baka Dasai]

I'm also something of a beginner hiker. Rather than recommend gear, I'll recommend some websites that give good advice on gear (and hiking in general):

* https://andrewskurka.com (Start here: https://andrewskurka.com/beginner-first ... resources/ )
* https://www.thehikinglife.com/gear/
* https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC18exd ... WisrnDXiZg (a bit hokey USAian)
* https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQhqmV ... hzqJz4VFcw (also hokey USAian)

That's a deep rabbit hole to go down....

[ChrisJHC]

Also worth keeping an eye on Drop.com. They regularly have good stuff at acceptable prices.
Just make sure you factor in postage, currency conversion and the wait times.

[Moondog55]

The old advice was simply not to buy any specialised gear but raid the cupboards and wardrobes at home, then the Op-Shops and second hand specialty sights like Bushwalks gear swap section first. You don't need great gear or Ultimate gear for the first few walks in good conditions and short distances.
Take familiar and favourite foods that are very easy to cook or that need no cooking at all.
Personally I would caution against jumping straight into Uber-Ultra light as that can be a real money pit, rather aim for "Comfort light" which can be surprisingly affordable now depending on your desired level of comfort.
I would also say that quality is usually always cheaper in the long term where the big 4 are concerned.
Aldi have some rubbish but also some remarkably good cookware at the cheapest price I have found, in fact I often find myself using it rather than the MSR or TOAKS Titanium.

If you like bacon for breakfast use a proper frying pan tho, ditto eggs and grilled cheese and ham, but a tin can makes a decent billy and every supermarket has good cheap [ but heavy ] frying pans. Warning tho about using big pans on small cheap canister gas stoves, that combination is unstable both from a balance perspective and from an explosion hazard point of view, if frying and you want to use a canister stove go straight to a remote unit, the cost difference is worth it

[peregrinator]

I second the advice to begin by taking food that needs no cooking at all. And not only because that means you won't have to carry utensils. Washing up after dining on anything like the the things mentioned in the final sentence is not exactly fun.

[Moondog55]

I second the advice to begin by taking food that needs no cooking at all. And not only because that means you won't have to carry utensils. Washing up after dining on anything like the the things mentioned in the final sentence is not exactly fun.

Well you can lick the grease off or wipe the pan clean with a tortilla.
My standby is peanut butter and honey sandwiches for the first 2 days lunch or a Red Rooster chicken and wraps for my first dinner if I think I will be hungry enough.

[Joynz]

I second the advice to begin by taking food that needs no cooking at all. And not only because that means you won't have to carry utensils. Washing up after dining on anything like the the things mentioned in the final sentence is not exactly fun.

But the hot cups of tea/cocoa on the walk and and hot soup etc are part of the joy of Bushwalking....

[crollsurf]

No cook is a bit hard-core for beginners I think. Plus it's unlikely they are going to put in 20k+ days to start with. Setting up camp, hanging around and cooking dinner is definately part of the fun of getting into bushwalking.

I still miss my Trangia

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