Gear lists

For a day hike


MUST HAVE

  • A fast pack with a filled 100 oz water bladder
  • A shell for wind and/or rain (“shell” = jacket)
  • Sunscreen (preferably 50 SPF with UVA/UVB protection)
  • Digital map: Gaia paid, or AllTrails with your route and surrounding areas downloaded
  • Printed map (IF you have been on the route you’re going out on recently, you can skip the map. However, you may run into other people who don’t know the area and don’t have a map. Be nice and give your map to them.)
  • Electrolytes or gel chews
  • Some kind of high-energy snack (trail mix, dried fruit, chocolate bar, jerky, etc).

NICE TO HAVE

  • Poles
  • Hat (if it’s cold, this belongs on the “must have” list)
  • Sunglasses if you wear them
  • 2-3 tissues for colder weather or to clean your nose/glasses/sunglasses/camera
  • Head lamp (just in case, or if you end out longer than expected)
  • Blister care
  • Extra-large emergency blanket (just in case)
  • Garmin InReach Mini or similar device
  • Mini compass
  • Lip balm
  • Silk or wool neck gaiter

For a one-night overnight


SLEEPING

  • Tent (stakes, footer, rain cover)
  • Sleeping bag. Sleeping bag should be rated for at least 15 degrees below the lowest temp you’re expecting.
  • Sleeping pad. Possibly also a way to lash the sleeping pad or something else to the outside of your pack.
  • Compression sack for sleeping bag.
  • Nice to have: A short roll of tenacious tape for random gear repair.
  • Nice to have: A really tiny flashlight to hang from the inside top of your tent. Get one that uses the same (rechargeable) batteries as your headlamp and other gear.

EATING

  • Stove. (I like alcohol stoves personally)
  • Stove fuel and lighter/matches. If you bring a little extra fuel, you can heat some for bathing. Even half a nalgene a day is nice. Also remember that the colder it gets and the higher you are, the more fuel you’ll need.
  • Backup lighter or matches.
  • Pots, cups, long spoons.
  • Stuff sack to hold all food-related things so you can have a one-bag bear hang.
  • Bear hang (about 50 feet of cord + a carabiner).
  • Breakfast (I like instant oatmeal with shaved almonds and brown sugar).
  • Coffee or tea (and maybe evening herbal tea).
  • Snacks for daytime and lunch. I like shaved almonds, dried dates, chocolate bars, gel chews, akmak crackers, sunflower seeds, etc.
  • Dinner (freeze-dried meals). You could also bring hard cheese and crackers or something, or even bring a pre-made sub sandwich as you’re only going to be out one night.
  • Something fun to eat/drink. Maybe dessert, herbal tea, or a nip of whiskey. Whatever you’re into.
  • Wilderness wash.
  • Water treatment.
  • Water treatment backup.
  • Triple battery backup if either of your water treatment systems require power.
  • 100 oz water bladder.
  • Nalgene.
  • IF you are in an area with unreliable water, a backup foldable water container.
  • Nice to have: someone in your group with a backup mouthpiece for the bladder.

CLOTHES (assuming you are not going to be out in sub 40 degree temps)

  • Backpack (counting this as clothes because you will be, technically, wearing it).
  • Boots that you love and have worn recently.
  • A good shell.
  • Light shirt.
  • Heavy shirt.
  • Down hoody or jacket.
  • Socks and backup socks.
  • Long underwear / yoga pants (to sleep in, or as backup). Alpine weather changes fast. You must be ready for a cold snap, even in summer.
  • Hiking pants with zippable pockets.
  • Neck gaiter (if you’d wear it. Also makes a good sleeping mask).
  • Hat.
  • Underwear.
  • It’s a good idea if someone in your group brings a backup pair of hiking boot laces. 
  • Camp shoes. (I don’t bring camp shoes. But I do bring car shoes, then swap to boots before I get on the trail). Ideally your camp shoes are also river/creek crossing shoes. 

PERSONAL CARE

  • Toothbrush (broken in half to save weight & space).
  • Tiny tin of toothpaste and floss only if you’d use it.
  • Sunscreen.
  • Lip balm.
  • Small hand towel (possibly cut in half or a quarter) to wash the worst of the dust off with.
  • Whatever personal care items you need to feel comfortable. Try to keep them to 6 ounces or less. This is only one night you’ll be out, so… 
  • Something to read or entertain yourself with.
  • Pain killers and/or anti-inflammatories. Whatever you like: Advil, Aleve, etc. Also consider some of the salves/ointments/liniments available.
  • Medicine for whatever you might get. Allergies? Heartburn? Insomnia? Prescribed medications? Also bring something for diarrhea, just in case. 
  • Foot blister care. 
  • Basic medical kit. The meds you want + enough to treat a cut or a burn (including sunburn) or a twisted ankle. To treat a cut, you need to clean it super-thoroughly first, then apply antibiotic or burn ointment, and then protect it with a bandaid that will stay in place. Same treatment for a burn. For the ankle twist, having a rolled-up ace bandage seems like a bulky thing to take, but it can be really helpful for many injuries. If you want, it is not overkill to bring one of the large “trauma” bandages. Especially in hunting season. Having a small water syringe for cleaning and a good pair of tweezers are also nice add-ons. Cardinal rule of wound treatment is to get the wound clean.
  • 1-2 extra-large emergency blankets. If someone gets hurt or sick, the best thing you can do for them is to keep them warm. Also, if you have a surprise temperature drop, put an emergency blanket inside the bottom of your tent (under your sleeping pad) spread out over the floor of your tent. You will be SO much warmer. For 2 extra ounces, emergency blankets are excellent “insurance”. Just get the oversized ones. The regular sized ones aren’t quite big enough to help.
  • For ladies: A small pee rag pinned to the outside of your backpack, where the sun will dry it out fast and keep it mostly germ and odor-free. Wash as necessary. Slightly gross, but the best system.
  • Purell.
  • Wilderness wash (also used for washing pots).
  • Cat hole “shovel”. Optional if you are confident you can find a well-shaped rock or piece of wood.
  • Tissues if your nose runs or you want to clean your glasses or camera.
  • Nice to have: One of the stuff sacks that’s fuzzy/soft on one side so you can put some clothes into it and have a pillow. 
  • Nice to have: A small stuff sack that you attach to the top inside of your backpack, so you can access personal items or water treatment or whatever fast.
  • Nice to have in cold weather: Something to sit on. This will keep you warmer than you’d think. Even one square foot of closed cell foam works great.

COMMUNICATIONS AND NAVIGATION

  • Backup battery for your phone.
  • Your phone (Dare you to not take it.).
  • Headlamp with backup battery.
  • Printed map.
  • GPS device or digital maps, pre-downloaded or available offline. Be familiar with your navigation tools BEFORE you leave. 
  • Mini compass.
  • Garmin InReach Mini or similar device. 
  • A base camp contact. Tell someone reliable where you are going, your basic route, and when you’ll be back. Have them looking out to hear from you when you return. 
  • All the various cables you’ll need to charge things. So 1) phone cable 2) gps device cable 3) headlamp cable 4) …?
  • Bear mace (a sort of communication device). Optional.
  • Emergency whistle. 

For a three-night or overnight or doing the complete thru-hike

Everything listed for the one-night overnight, plus:

  • More food (and varied food).
  • More printed maps or downloaded route maps.
  • More battery power. Or a really reliable solar panel. (Or both).
  • More personal care items – again, whatever you need to be comfortable. Expect blisters and bruises and being sore. Expect that you’ll want to wash clothes. 
  • More gear repair. Like a sleeping pad repair kit.
  • Poles if you weren’t already taking them. 
  • A tiny swiss-army style knife (one that has a good small knife, scissors, and a phillips and flathead screwdriver).
  • River shoes or boots that can handle at least 6 inches of water. Especially if you’re crossing Rio Santa Barbara into Indian Canyon.
  • Possibly a printed notebook and a short pencil if you want to take notes, write a journal entry or an on-trail letter. Or if you want to draw a few things. Or if you want to make personal maps as a way to document your days.  
  • A printed guide book. This is in the works for early 2025. Email me if you’d like to get on the “beta reader” list. Beta readers are people who read a nearly-finished draft of a book and then give feedback so the author can fix issues with the book before it is published. 

The gear list for when you are out longer isn’t all that radically different from a one-night gear list. Obviously, you’re going to need more food, more battery power, and more robust navigation and communication devices and information. You will possibly need more clothes because you may be in different weather conditions. Also, all the “extra” stuff you might or might not need for a one-night trip becomes much more necessary for a multi-overnight trip. Most of the “nice to have” things for a one-nighter become “must haves” for a multi-night trip.

My best recommendation: Go out for at least one night before you do a multi-night trip. A “gear test” night is the best thing you can do to have a good experience on a multi-night trip. It’s also excellent physical training. Doing 12 miles and 3,000 feet elevation with a 30-lb pack is a different experience than doing it with a 10-lb day pack. After hauling a 30-lb pack around for even one day, you may decide you don’t need a whole lot of stuff you thought you would. You may also decide to make a few strategic gear upgrades. A test overnight will tell you if that 2-person tent you thought would work will cut it with you and your 6’2” friend sharing it in a rainstorm. Look on eBay or on any of the used-gear sites if you can’t afford new stuff. Go for quality. Cheap gear can be a downright safety risk. 

Another tip: For every overnight you do, capture a list of the things you had that you didn’t need, or things you didn’t have that you wanted. Or things you wished you had done before you left. This can be recorded as a voice memo on your phone as you’re driving home. 

If you’re doing the complete thru-hike, I highly recommend a two-night overnight to test your gear. 

I realize this is not as extensive a gear list as other long-distance hikes have, but the Santa Fe to Taos Thru-Hike is not 1,000+ miles long. It’s 132 miles long. If you do 10 miles a day, it’s two weeks on the trail. Do 13 miles a day and it’s ten days on the trail. In terms of special gear you’ll need to do the thru-hike, it’s pretty limited. Keep in mind that you’ll be over 10,000 feet pretty much the whole way. Definitely bring and use the best sun-protection you can. Drink lots of water. Also drink electrolytics regularly. I’ve been hiking these mountains for 20 years now (not much time compared to some), but I am still amazed by how much electrolytics help.

IF YOU’RE TAKING A DOG

  • One or two plastic sandwich bags for the dog to drink out of (or one of your cooking pots/bowls). 
  • The dog’s food. (Freeze dried will save you a few pounds of pack weight).
  • Lend your dog a jacket or something to sleep on in the tent. 
  • A bear bell attached to your dog’s collar. An excellent safety precaution. 
  • A leash. Dogs are supposed to be leashed in both the Pecos Wilderness and in Carson National Forest. This is not a strictly enforced rule, until you run into a Forest Ranger. Dogs go missing in these areas. They can get into tangles with wildlife in a split-second. A male bighorn sheep can easily kill even a big dog. So can elk, mountain lions, black bears, and packs of coyotes. Also, if ranchers think your dog is harassing their cows, by law they can shoot your dog. Please – manage your dog.