5 Days, The Things We'll Carry

We did our shopping, checked out gear and packed our bags. We are ready to go!

Our packs are the heaviest they will probably be on the trail. Our first leg will be 9 days before touching into a town to resupply. Starting at Mt. Katahdin and arriving in Monson, ME, for a total of 117.8 miles on the trail. Monson is 1.6 miles left of the trail, meaning we will either walk there or hitch a ride. (Do not worry, Moms, Ethan's got a pocket knife.) A lot of stores in towns offer rides to and from the trail as well, as a lot of towns are farther from the trail, sometimes 10 miles or more.

So what does one bring for a long walk?

Osprey 65 (Katy) & 68 (Ethan) liter backpacks

Down sleeping bags rated to 19 & 15 degrees 

REI Down pillow

Thermarest pillow

Marmot Lime Lite 2 person tent

Sleeping pads

MSR water filter

3 liter water bladders

Trekking poles

Cord for hanging food at night 

First aid including: sam splint, band aids, ibuprofen, pain reliever and a bag with two white pills labeled "big oh crap moment"

Camp stove 

Camp stove stand

Propane

Cooking pans

Squishy bowls

Mugs

Utensil sets

Nalgenes

Camp towels

Duck backs (rain cover for backpacks)

5 liter dry sack

13 liter dry sacks (hanging food at night)

Compression sack for sleeping bag

Dr. Bronners Magic Soap (soap, shampoo, dishwashing, teeth brushing, you name it -- it cleans it)

Freshette

Small trowel (bet you can guess...)

Toothbrushes 

Hair brush 

Headlamps 

Compass

Tick remover

Clothing: pair of shorts, pair of water resistant pants, short sleeve shirt, long sleeve shirt, rain jacket, lightweight jacket, 2 pairs of socks and a pair of wool underwear

Crocs (for crossing rivers and camp)

Solomon hiking boots
And....a mini Bible
Unnecessary weight