GR20 with 13Kg....I think I am doing well then as my planned pack weight for same (hopefully this summer with my brother) is about 5Kgs..
But then I do not need to take stuff that you both need for what I might laughingly refer to as 'work' ;-)
My brother had been getting worried about my predilection for weighing my underpants though...
|
 |
 Congrats Ed...
At that weight I guess you'll be using refuges rather than camping, and buying food as you go. Hope you like pork products... and don't forget the water.
You'll see some sorry-looking and immensely overburdened folk along the way, and I've no doubt you could make a fortune giving impromptu trail-side ultra-lightweight backpacking seminars.
So long as you're pretty handy with steep and exposed rock, you needn't worry about your underpants suddenly getting heavy!
|
 |
The water will add I realise quite a bit (I will need three litres)...but those weights are for camping....not keen on refuges..
I used to climb a lot so I doubt there will be any 'weight redistribution'.....
But some nutter has produced this insanely heavy guide....ah well can always take a knife to it eh?
|
 |
 Ed, 5kg sounds pretty impressive. I could have cut a couple of kg off my load - I carried too much food and took a light insulated top I never wore. I have a lighter DSLR now too but the lenses and tripod still weigh the same. Are you and your brother sharing gear? Because we're both basically loners Cameron and I both took tents, stoves and pans.
|
 |
 Ed - The first edition is 98g lighter than the second edition, and you could strip out all the alternatives and side-trips, and the page margins could lose 1cm all round...
Actually, you might be surprised about your water needs. When I first tackled the GR20 I carried a full pack and was laden down with three or four days worth of food at times. I'd fill my 2L Platypus in the morning, and refill it at a handy source in the middle of most days. That was 4L per day while actually walking on most days.
Last time I walked the route, I'd chopped the kit weight down to something under 12kg (maybe even 11kg because that was on the airport scales and there were temporary 'edibles' in the pack). Anyway, walking with a much lighter pack takes a lot less energy, involves a lot less sweating, and therefore a lot less water. If I filled the 2L Platy, it still had lots of water in it at the end of the day. I started packing only one litre, and some days barely took a sip of it. You'll figure out within a couple of days of starting what your requirements are. If you're carrying too much water on the first day, you can get a good price for it off those folks who haven't done their homework!
|
 |
Chris, it will no doubt go up a bit - we will share gear and eat (well we hope - I do like pork as it happens) from refuges....
I am about to get an MSR Hubba Hubba for the trip - a tad lighter than my Hilleberg Staika at about a kilo each.
I generally do not like sharing tents, but in this case it seems worth it...pity my brother; I snore...
|
 |
 Don't go too early... one of the reasons my big pack was a heavyweight one was because I had an ice axe and crampons... and I was using them around the end of May and beginning of June.
|
 |
We were thinking of mid-June so as to avoid that...but I guess it is the mountains that will decide....
|
 |
 Unless it's a particularly bad and prolonged winter, mid-June should be OK. You'll still be walking on snow at some point, but it'll usually be high up and it'll be soft once the sun gets to it. I've encountered a lot of snow over there, but that's because I've also covered some of the 'easier' bits of the GR20 in the middle of winter, and because even in summer I've been much higher than the trail, where snow lasts longer. I think my record for early June was an unbroken 600m climb entirely on snow to get onto the ridge for Monte Cinto. On the other hand, one lingering patch of snow right beside the trail lasted well into August in 2005, and it wasn't particularly high up.
|
 |
I am really looking forward to it; I have been to Corsica twice cycle-touring. Zicavo changed quite a bit in the 10 years between visits!
A 600m snow ridge in June sounds like fun; I doubt it was crowded?
|
 |
 There was only me up on Monte Cinto... all on me lonesome. I think what surprised me most were the deep footprints I left in the snow on the way up... they were absolutely huge when I came back down. In the couple of hours I'd been on the ridge, the sun had melted and expanded every hole!
Last time I was up there, it was early August and there was still snow tucked into some hollows, but the heat in the middle of the day was cruel, and there was no hiding from it. There were a lot more people up there too. My only complaint that time concerned the red paint circles used to waymark the route. They were really faded as I climbed the mountain, and I made a note to mention this in the updated guide. On my way down, they were all freshly painted again... and I never saw whoever did it!
|
 |
 Guys, I've enjoyed reading this thread and when I have a spare moment I'll do a 'Paddy' and take a knife to some of my kit to remove labels and the alike.
BTW there is a great deal of satisfaction to be had out of adapting kit especially if it saves weight. At the weekend I worked out that if I removed the bail handle from my Litech pot and replace it with a whittled down pot lifter I would save 20g - not a lot I know but I can now use the lifter with the titanium bowl I bought that doubles as a sauce/frypan.
|
 |