Author: Jessie Soo, Valley and Peak
“Thru hiking“; the act of trekking an entire long-distance trail from end to end, appeals to countless adventurers. While the most famous trails are in the United States—the Pacific Crest Trail, the Appalachian Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail—Europe has its own array of iconic routes. Think of the Camino de Santiago, the Via Francigena, the Via Alpina, and the classic Land’s End to John o’Groats in the UK.
From chatting with several thru-hikers recently, I’ve picked up on some common thoughts and feelings. Small luxuries, like a good cup of coffee and dry socks, bring big emotions. Nothing goes to waste, and magic truly exists in the form of unexpected kindness from strangers. Food occupies your mind 80 percent of the time, and the journey itself holds far more significance than reaching any particular destination (often described as the thru-hiking approach or mindset).
While embarking on your first thru hike is an amazing adventure, your limits will undoubtedly be tested multiple times. It requires careful planning, mental and physical resilience, and the right gear. But what can be more challenging than the thru hike itself? Packing for it of course!
Striking the perfect balance is crucial: carry too little, and you might find yourself without essential gear when you need it most; carry too much, and you’ll be weighed down by unnecessary items driven by the pervasive “just in case” mentality that turns your backpack into a black hole of gear.
To help you out, I turned to three experienced thru hikers and Valley + Peak ambassadors to share their expert tips and tricks for packing for your first thru hike. By refining your packing strategy and leveraging their advice, you can ensure a more efficient and enjoyable thru-hiking experience.
Meet Dan
Dan Jones from WildCamping Life UK is a seasoned hiker, having completed numerous long-distance hikes, including the 96 mile West Highland Way and the 109-mile Cleveland Way. Drawing from his extensive experience with long-distance treks in the UK, here are Dan’s seven essentials tips for packing for your first thru-hike:
Using items with multiple uses
Using items with more than one use will help keep your pack weight down. Neck buffs can wipe condensation away from your shelter, serve as a hat on cold mornings, and even double up as a sweat band. A foam pad is another versatile item to take. It can function as a sleep pad, a sit pad, and help with the rigidity of your pack if you’re using a frameless pack.
Packing your fears
Often it’s far too easy to pack more items than you actually need. Packing only what you need saves on weight but also saves you money. Avoid falling into the trap of taking “back up gear”. Avoid taking duplicates of items except socks. Remember, less is more!
The Big 3
Your tent, sleeping bag and rucksack make up the big 3. They are often the heaviest items you will take on a thru hike so ideally you want to save weight in these three key areas. Swapping out a traditional tent with a trekking pole tent, taking a quilt instead of a sleeping bag and using a frameless pack are all ways to lighten the big 3 so you can crush those miles.
Fitness
Building up your endurance is crucial for any thru hike. Going on long day hikes leading up to a thru hike will condition your legs for those long miles over multiple days and also get you into shape.
Taking on water
Carrying a water filter with you will enable you to take on water at various water sources along your route. Plan where these water sources will be and take on as much water as you can. The more hydrated you are, the less water you need to carry. Workout how far the next water source will be and only carry what you will need to get there.
Ditch the hiking boots
For covering longer distances, trail runners are the best option. They are lighter, quicker to dry and often more comfortable than the more traditional hiking boot.
Food
Eating well on a thru hike is crucial. Not taking on enough calories to fuel your miles will lead to fatigue and injury. Packing dehydrated meals, packed with calories will help you keep on top of your calorie intake but also keep your pack light. Make a note of places you can stop to eat such as cafes and shops. These places are also great to re-supply.
Meet Jake
Jake, aka Jake’s Journey Mate, is currently trekking 1950 km on his thru hike of the UK. He opted for Hiiker’s end-to-end trail instead of the Land’s End to John o’Groats (LEJOG) cycling route, which often involves tarmac and footpaths that can quickly demoralise any budding walker. Hiiker’s trail follows existing long-distance routes, providing a more authentic and rewarding experience.
Thru-hikers like Jake often organise “supply boxes” or “drop boxes” filled with food and other necessities prior to their hike. These boxes are then mailed by friends or family to predetermined stops along the trail. In preparation for LEJOG, Jake prepared over 5 weeks’ worth of evening meals, snacks, and oils. His stash included a variety of high-quality backpacking meals from brands like Summit to Eat, Firepot, and Real Turmat, supplied by Valley and Peak.
Here’s some invaluable advice from Jake for packing on your inaugural thru-hike:
There’s definitely a fine line when packing for a thru hike between what you’re willing to take for comfort in camp and what you’re comfortable carrying all day!
It’s easy to get sucked into the ideal packing lists of Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube, adorned with pricey gear tags. But chasing ultralight isn’t everyone’s game! Constantly pushing the limits of what you can go without to shave off a few grams can often result in chilly nights and cold meals.
Shakedown hikes are a frequently used tactic before setting off on a Thru hike to dial in the gear. Just spending 3 or 4 nights testing things out can help you decide what might lighten your pack and make your days more comfortable, without spending too much. See how that feels, and what you’re inspired to get rid of afterward. And hopefully it will also confirm that hiking longer distances is something you really want to do!
‘Can I use my puffy jacket as a pillow and ditch the blow up?’
‘Am I comfortable cold soaking my food so I can drop the stove and gas?’
‘Who’s out here apart from other smelly hikers? Lose the deodorant!’
It’s not about splurging on the flashiest gear; it’s about what you can leave behind. Only you can decide what you’re comfortable hiking with or without for anywhere from a week to 6 months – I really like the saying of ‘take less, do more’.
Losing the camp chair makes you more creative with seating selection and switching the tent for a tarp has you more in tune with your surroundings.
Here are three things I’m undeniably set on:
1. Trail runners are king. Let me explain!
If there’s one thing I have seen a thousand times it’s hot and bothered hikers stomping along in boots. Having spent several years in the military where boots were standard issue for their durability and ankle support, I endured blister after blister and shed toenails like they were going out of fashion! My first thru hike in boots was a painful experience to say the least!
Desperate for a solution, I soon adopted the approach of hiking in trail running sneakers. Light + breathable + cushioned = a lot less blisters!
Do your feet get wet with the morning dew on the grass? Yes! Are they dry 2 hours later? Yes!
I’d never go back to wearing boots, however they do have their place if you’re tackling routes like the PCT during a heavy snow year in the Sierra. But for most of the trail and many others, trail runners will be your go-to footwear.
Again, not for everyone! But if you happen to have a pair of normal running trainers lying around, load up your pack and take them for a lap around the block. You might just be pleasantly surprised!
2. Buy all your gear, then your pack
It’s as simple as this: gather all your backpacking gear in one spot and then you can determine the ideal size pack you need.
If you buy a pack first and it turns out to be too large, it’s likely to end up filled with junk that will inevitably slow you down.
3. Fresh socks every day!
This is so important for having happy feet on the trail! Now, I don’t mean packing 7 pairs of socks and doing laundry once a week – that’s just adding unnecessary weight. Remember, take less and do more, right?
I take 3 pairs: 2 for rotation and 1 as a luxury item. I’ll hike a day in one pair while having yesterday’s pair washed in a creek in the morning, and drying on my pack throughout the day. The 3rd pair is a luxury item – call it my sleeping pair on cold nights, or my town pair when all my gear is drying after a makeshift washing session in a hotel bath!
In summary: take less, do more. Figure out what works best for you and what you can comfortably go without 
Meet Ash
Ash Routen is an internationally published writer with a focus on expeditions, exploration, and adventure travel. His passion lies in traversing the Arctic regions, whether through winter treks or summer backpacking. Here’s what Ash has to share:
1. Know before you go. Gear selection will depend on your background research into the environmental conditions and terrain you will be hiking through. Think rain, temperature, daylight, ground conditions underfoot, vegetation, water availability, wildlife and insects, and natural hazards.
2. A lot of information online is focused on suggested gear for thru hiking and backpacking, rather than the importance of core skills such as navigation and planning. For example, are you able to accurately estimate distances and direction between landmarks? Can you locate water sources and good camp sites? Can you identify safe locations to ford rivers? More general planning skills may be required for transport, resupply drops, estimating dates of arrival, hours of daylight etc.
3. Take trekking poles. They can reduce the forces acting on your knees and ankles, help provide balance on uneven ground, provide you with more power when walking uphill, and if used properly, can boost your walking speed. I always take them when carrying a heavy pack, or when covering rough terrain.
4. Don’t forget to spend time considering the less sexy small essentials, which could actually turn out to be critical for your comfort and progress. Think multitools, insect protection, foot and skin care, repair kit, personal hygiene, journalling stuff, wallet and vital documents etc.
Top Picks for an Ultralight Thru Hike
With ultralight gear, your hikes may still be challenging, but at least you’ll have less weight to carry! In backpacking terms, ‘ultralight’ often clocks in under 5 kg for all of your kit (minus food and water).
Check out our top picks below:
- ENLIGHTENED EQUIPMENT ENIGMA 850 QUILT
The Enigma is an ideal minimal quilt when weight, simplicity, and compressibility are concerned. It has a rounded footbox that is sewn shut. This sewn-closed design creates more footroom while reducing the dead air space that needs to be heated. It’s exceptionally warm (850 fill power) yet extraordinarily light (338g). The Enigma doesn’t have a zipper or a built in hood, saving even more space and weight in your pack.
- BONFUS FASTUS 23L ULTRAX FASTPACKING ULTRALIGHT PACK
Engineered for fastpackers, this 360g ultralight backpack strikes the perfect balance between volume and weight. It features vest-style straps with built-in stretch, breathable mesh fabric and strategically placed 4mm foam over the shoulders for more comfort and flexibility. With five pockets on the vest straps, including a zippered one, a clever bottom pocket for quick double sided access and multiple lashing options for your trekking poles, it’s designed for on-the-go efficiency.
- TOAKS ULTRALIGHT COOKWEAR
From ultralight spoons and pots to a solid fuel cooking system, TOAKS titanium cookware offers the highest grade for adventurers looking to cut weight, fuel waste, and cooking time.
- Evernew Ti Stove DX set
Versatile and efficient, the EVERNEW Ti Stove DX Set is a game-changer for your thru hiking cooking needs. Whether you’re using alcohol or natural fuel sources, this stove system delivers reliable performance in a lightweight package.
If you run out of fuel or prefer true bushcraft, you can use twigs, pine cones, birch bark, dead grass, dead branches, and even scraps of paper to boil up to 400cc of water. It might take some practice, but it’s doable!
- KATADYN BEFREE FILTER SYSTEM 0.6L
Stay hydrated on your first thru hike with the BeFree
0.6L Filter. Just fill up the flask and let the EZ-Clean Membrane
do the work. Gently squeeze the flask for instant refreshment. We have used the Katadyn BeFree Water Filtration system since the launch of the product and find it a fast and reliable way of filtering water when out on backpacking trips where you cannot carry a safe source of water.
- Durston X-Mid 1 Solid
Weighing just 825g, the Durston X-Mid 1 Solid is perfect for winter use and trekking in windy areas like Northern Europe. It’s also a great all-around backpacking tent. Designed using basic geometric principles, this tent is weight-efficient, simple, and storm-worthy, providing a spacious and lightweight shelter.
- Trailbrush
Meet Trailbrush, a 2g toothbrush attachment designed by, and for, long-distance thru hikers. Simply slot it onto your favourite long-handled trail utensils. Will this make a significant difference in your base weight? Not really, but it’s still an awesome omission from your gear list! Compatible with (not an exhaustive list): Toaks: Titanium Long Handle Spoon, Vargo: Titanium Long-Handle Spoon, Vargo Titanium Spork ULV and Sea to Summit: Alpha utensils & Titanium utensils.
- Kula Cloth
Stay clean and eco-friendly with the reusable Kula Cloth—a ‘leave no trace’ alternative to traditional toilet paper. Designed for outdoor enthusiasts, it’s perfect for on-the-go hygiene without the waste. The Kula Cloth snaps to your pack using a durable, hypoallergenic plastic snap.
With the invaluable insights generously shared by our Valley and Peak’s ambassadors, I hope you leave this page feeling more confident and armed with a better plan for packing. Whether you’re opting for multi-purpose gear, embracing ultralight principles, or learning core trail skills, Valley and Peak are committed to providing a thoughtfully curated collection of products spanning leading outdoor brands and innovative cottage gear makers. As an independent, family-owned retailer, we’re here to make sure you’re geared up with everything you need (and a bit of know-how) for a fantastic first thru-hike adventure!
