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Thread: Coyote Gulch

  1. #1

    Coyote Gulch

    April 25th my wife, brother and I arrived at 40 mile ridge trailhead. Our plan was to see Coyote Gulch in two days and one night. I drove through the night and got to the trailhead about 8 am. Double checked our bags to be sure we had everything we needed. The day was beautiful, sunny clear skies and no wind. The forecast had 90% chance of rain Friday night through Saturday. We prepared accordingly for the weather expected. I had read lots of trip reports and studied the map before we came to decided what I thought would be the best way to see Coyote Gulch. I weighed mine and my wife

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  3. #2
    Looks like an awesome trip

  4. #3
    Great trip.!!!!! Looks like a perfect time to be there.

  5. #4
    Sounds like a fun trip. 80 lbs combined weight for a overnight trip is way high. Normally a person's base backpacking weight is under 20 lbs. That would leave 40 lbs for rope, food, water, etc. You might want to take a look at the backpacking light web site to see ways of cutting down what you carry. My wife and I did a 7 day trip in the area, and even with water (4 liters each), our combined weight was never over 70 lbs.

  6. Likes Byron liked this post
  7. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by reverse_dyno View Post
    Sounds like a fun trip. 80 lbs combined weight for a overnight trip is way high. Normally a person's base backpacking weight is under 20 lbs. That would leave 40 lbs for rope, food, water, etc. You might want to take a look at the backpacking light web site to see ways of cutting down what you carry. My wife and I did a 7 day trip in the area, and even with water (4 liters each), our combined weight was never over 70 lbs.
    I’m interested in what you carry to keep your pack so light for a 7 day backpack trip? My pack was not 80 pounds it was 55. I only do 1 to 2 backpacking trips and year so I’m not really hard core backpacker. Most of my trips are just hiking or canyoneering. With that said I’ll list what was in my pack. I’m interested in what people think was unnecessary to carry with me. Weather expected to be in low 30s at night with rain and high wind. This was also my wife’s first backpacking trip ever so I want her to enjoy it. I like to be prepared and when going somewhere unknown. I know I should probably upgrade my sleeping bag and pad.
    In my pack and estimated weight
    Pack REI Flash 65 liter = 3LB
    Old Slumber jack sleeping bag = 5LB
    Old Big Agnes insulated air core pad = 2LB
    Therm -a-rest pillow = 1LB
    REI Passage tent = 5LB
    Marmot Precip jacket and pants = 2Lb
    Marmot down jacket = 1 LB
    Fleece Jacket = 1Lb
    Jetboil with fuel = 2Lb
    HikerPro water pump = 1LB
    REI air core sit pad = 1LB
    Goody Bag = 6LB This has first aid and emergences supplies knife and headlamp batteries ETC. This is not something I’m willing to go will out or lighten.
    GPS and map = 1LB
    Camera and battery’s = 2 LB
    200 foot rope = 8 LB I did not need this and could have left it behind with the route we took.
    4 locking biners 1 tibloc ascender 1 ATS descender 50 ft. of webbing = 4LB Also did not need
    That is around 45 pounds. The rest was food and water. We took Mountain House Freeze dried meals, Power bars and jerky for food. As I see it I could have maybe dropped 12 lb. without rope and such.
    Thoughts

  8. #6
    Howdy Hikster,

    Well that rope really did ya in. So without it, you're down to 30 pounds...you need to get that to 18, either for an overnight or 5 days. I'm talking the base unit...not food, water, extra clothes, camera.

    You don't need two air pads, trust me on that. You will need to upgrade EVERYTHING you carry to the latest and lightest. Yeah, it'll cost some bucks, but that's the only way you're going to get that base under 20lbs.

    I can go out for an overnight with only 10lbs of base weight. And I've got all the comfy stuff, too. See a couple of my trip reports. Pricey stuff, but man is it worth it. See Big Agnes for a tent...and you're sleeping bag should weigh less than two pounds. That's a good start.
    The end of the world for some...
    The foundation of paradise for others.

  9. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Byron View Post
    Howdy Hikster,

    Well that rope really did ya in. So without it, you're down to 30 pounds...you need to get that to 18, either for an overnight or 5 days. I'm talking the base unit...not food, water, extra clothes, camera.

    You don't need two air pads, trust me on that. You will need to upgrade EVERYTHING you carry to the latest and lightest. Yeah, it'll cost some bucks, but that's the only way you're going to get that base under 20lbs.

    I can go out for an overnight with only 10lbs of base weight. And I've got all the comfy stuff, too. See a couple of my trip reports. Pricey stuff, but man is it worth it. See Big Agnes for a tent...and you're sleeping bag should weigh less than two pounds. That's a good start.

    I’m looking at getting a new sleeping bag and pad. The other pad was a sit pad and I realize I did not need it. I had to buy a sleeping bag and pad for my wife. I got her a Big Agnes Bald Mountain Bag = 3LB in stuff sack and a Bid Agnes Q-Core SL pad = 1.1 LB My wife sleeping bag is rated for 18 Deg F. She got cold the last night and it maybe got down to 28 or 30 Deg.
    What Sleeping bag and pad do you suggest? I want a bag with close to a 15 Deg F rating. I get cold at night and don’t believe the rating they give them. Thinking that I would be comfy in 30 Deg F

  10. #8
    Some people sleep cold, some not...including me. Sleeping bags are very subjective. I have Mountain Hardware Phantom bags...they're all ten years old and very light. I can only imagine what awesome stuff they sell these days. This time of year, I'd carry my 32 deg. with a silk liner, made by Cocoon.

    800 fill down or better does a great job...for me that is. The liner helps a lot. $$$
    The end of the world for some...
    The foundation of paradise for others.

  11. Likes Glenn, hikster11 liked this post
  12. #9
    Coyote Gulch was the first canyon I visited/backpack back in 2002. Very special place, I need to visit again.

  13. #10
    Good job fitting all that in a 65 lt bag. My backpack is a 88 liter Osprey Xenith, and it was full for my 7 day trip. The only thing attached to the outside of the pack was my wading shoes.


    My sleeping bag weighs 2lbs with a rating of 30 degrees. The pad I use, NeoAir All-Season weights about 1.3 lbs. In the desert I do not use a tent, as when it gets windy the sand blows under the tent fly and the tent gets filled with sand. Instead, I carry a goretex bivy, which weights 1.5 lbs. For water purification I use Polar Pure, which is iodine. That is a very heavy Goody bag. My first aid kit, head lamp, etc. weighs <2 lbs. If someone gets hurt in the backcountry, there is a limited amount you can do for them, and carrying a heavy fist aid kit isn't going to buy you much. If someone breaks a leg, or has some other big injury, having more bandages isn't going to help. Backcountry first aid kits should focus on injuries that do not require evacs, like burns and small cuts. I do not carry a splint for that reason. I can use a stick to make a splint that will work long enough to get them to a trailhead.


    You are carrying a Fleece and a down jacket, while I carry one or the other. It is amazing how warm a rain jacket is if you put it over a fleece jacket. I also carry long johns. At night, I will be in my sleeping bag anyway, so I generally focus on the day time temps to decide on what cloths to bring. I go to bed early a lot:).


    As far as women's sleeping bags, the Big Agnes Bald Mountain Sleeping Bag is not women's specific. If a men's bag is rated at 15C, it will be rated as a 30C bag for women. My wife's 15C bag is as heavy and puffy as a men's 0C bag by the same company. I would return the Bald Mountain bag and purchase a women's specific bag for her. Women's bags are also shaped differently than men's bags to fit their body shape. The Reg Women's bag is shorter than a men's Reg bag for example.

  14. #11
    I just got back from my week of hiking in Utah for this year, and after checking out your posts and being reminded of all the places in that area still on my list, I'm anxious to start planning my hiking trip to Escalante for next spring!

  15. #12
    Next I will just take my fleece. I didn't use my down jacket though it packs up much smaller. When I went to get a sleeping bag for my wife I had planned on getting a womens down bag with a 0 deg rating. The REI sales person talk me out of getting down my I told him what I was doing. He said that if they get damp at all that they don't insulate. He also said he didn't believe the treated down made much of a difference. He said he had tried many different sleeping bags and that a synthetic bag would be a much be choice. I got the Bald Mountain bag because it was 2.5 pounds with a ok 18 Deg rating. I will definitely get her a different bag. What bag does your wife use that has a 0 Deg rating that is under 2 pounds. I have a huge nice bag for her when we do car camping that we do most of the time. She will maybe use a light weight bag 5-10 times a year so I cant justify spending over $500.

  16. #13
    The sleeping bag I have is 2 lbs. My wife's sleeping bag is 2 lbs 12oz. Her bag would be equivalent to a 0C men's bag, which is why it weights so much, but it does stuff down really small. It looks like Marmot no longer makes the bag that she has, which is a Marmot Pinnacle 15C. My bag is also Marmot and the down is coated with a water repellent finish, i.e. a dry down. When I have used it in my bivy, the down stays nice and dry. I have had other down bags, and after a night in them I always feel a little moist. I have not gotten that feeling from my dry down bag. I am surprised the REI sales person said they did not think dry down works well. In theory, it makes perfect sense that coating the down will prevent it from absorbing water. The coating does make the down a little less "fluffy". Obviously if you are planning on doing a lot of camping in really rainy places, a synthetic bag is better.

    However, I have used a normal down bag in Oregon for +5 years, often in rainy weather and I have never had a problem. My wife has used her normal down bag on many rainy trips and never had an issue. The basic question is this; have you ever or do you known anyone, that has completely soaked their sleeping bag during a trip? I never have, nor do I know anyone that has. A synth bag will still work if you get it really wet, while a normal down bag will not. A dry down bag will still work well, if it gets a little wet.

    For Utah camping, and camping in the West, in general, dry down bags are perfect. If you plan on camping in Oregon, Washington, or other wet forests, then I would think about purchasing a Synth bag. Synth bags degrade much faster than down bags do. A Synth bag will loose much of its warmth after 4 years of medium use. A down bag will last +10 years with little to do loss of warmth. I have a 6 year old 0C synth bag, that is now a very heavy 40C bag.

  17. Likes hikster11 liked this post
  18. #14
    Nice trip report! If I ever get out to GSENM, I'll consider your trip suggestions, especially on the exit route.

    As for your pack weight, $$$ equals less weight, for sure. You'll easily be able to drop 6-7 pounds by upgrading your sleeping bag, pad, and tent. I agree with earlier comments that taking only the fleece or down jacket would be fine; you could use your Marmot Precip jacket as a layer. I also have an REI sitting pad and use it for a pillow also, so you could save another pound by dropping the pillow.

  19. Likes hikster11 liked this post
  20. #15
    I return the bag I got my wife and forked out some $$ and got her a women specific 15 deg down petite bag 2.5LB. I don't think we will get into cold enough temps to really test it out until this fall.

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