Pennine Way Preparations Part 2 - The Kit

 Wow. I have spent hours and hours researching kit and trying to get my weight down as low as possible and my bag is still way too heavy! Just packed everything in and it weighs a mammoth 14.8kg! This is just touching the 20% rule (You should only carry up to 20% of your body weight) and I know it is too heavy for me to manage if I want to cover more than 6 miles a day....

To be real this weight is not much different from any other trip I have done, in fact it may be the lightest yet. I didn't weigh previous packs. I think maybe because I am older and generally more achy I will struggle with it more this time though. I am trying to think of ways I could reduce my pack weight without compromising too much on comfort.....

After looking through all my gear I have managed to take out a few things, I have decided I don't need my flask, I can manage with a coffee in the morning and then have water during the day, I can stop and buy a coffee in towns. My main saving is with food- I have decided that I only need to carry three days worth,  and as I eat it the weight will reduce! I have also taken out my thermal top, extra lantern (my head torch will suffice) and the sit mat. I did take out my camp shoes but then put them back in! All of this has saved me 1 kilo. This puts my base weight (weight of pack minus the consumables) at approx 8.5 kg.

Food before the cull! I now have three dinners, two lunches and four breakfasts (I have put porridge in ziploc bag to save space)

My pack now weighs 13.8kg, 1kg less might not sound a lot but I can feel the difference, it puts me the right side of the 20% rule, and knowing that as I drink water and eat food the pack will reduce is making me feel better. Ideally I need to reduce this further- not much I can do at this stage but take extra painkillers!

Here is my final list with weights in grams, I don't think I am missing anything and if I am then tough, nothing else is going in this pack now!