What’s in my pack: Gear for a 1 month mountaineering expedition

Alastair talks us through what he took on his recent trip to climb all of New Zealand’s 3000m+ peaks in one month.
NZ 3000m peaks expedition report: alpineteam.co.....
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Sections:
Technical equipment: 1:00.
Bivouac gear: 10:50.
Clothing: 16:28.
Miscellaneous items: 22:40.
Food: 27:22.
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Links to items mentioned in the video:
Full gear list here: lighterpack.co...
Toothpaste pellets: www.poppack.nz/
Showa TEMRES 282-02 gloves: www.go2marine....

[@hannahzhang7849]

I wish I watched this before buying mountaineering gears. Great video!

[@TaborPrzemyslaw]

Thanks for the tip about the Nalgene 475ml. Works incredibly well for warming up the quilt at night and holds up heat for extremely long for a translucent bottle. I guess its because it doesnt radiate the heat, but transfers it through direct contact. Anyway, splendid

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

glad it works for you!

[@nickmccardel9032]

This is cool I want to get into mountaineering it’s a whole new world

[@maxjenkins6193]

I'm still processing the existence of the beal escaper lol. It's like the elven rope from Lord of the Rings!

[@howler6490]

Check it out on utube...very shaky at first...

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

its a nifty tool!

[@markusmilne8566]

Damn good video Alastair. Good on you for putting that out there. Excellent advice and tips on so many things. Trimming weight off everything as you become a mature climber/tramper is just as much a mission for shorter duration trips as it is for younger, stronger, and long distance mission trips like yours. Thanks. I'll share this.

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Absolutely, trimming unnecessary weight is a task for everyone not just elites

[@deang.7483]

Thanks Alastair. A treasure trove of hot tips for keeping things light. Great food tips too.

[@Bergur.Palsson]

This is a very useful and thorough "walkthrough" and tips. Did confirm and supply to my ideas/learnings. Nice detail with two types of axes, the coconutmuesli, the different types of waterbottles and the many...many layers. Thanks

[@vanCapere]

Great kit list! Really similar to some of my choices! :) Also amazing to see other mountaineers digging the UL gear instead of sticking with "what always has been used".

[@LukeFrisken]

So many great little tips in there, thanks for sharing! I'd be interested to see something similar for what you would take for a Winter trip

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Good idea perhaps will do another in winter time Gear would be fairly similar to be honest! Perhaps softshell pants instead of lightweight waterproof pants for extra warmth

[@benmcdrury636]

Super interesting and awesome video!!

[@Naafun]

Great vid! Will definitely be referencing for my next trip.

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Great stuff Nathan

[@sheahickman6870]

Loads of gems in there. Thanks Alastair

[@nicmatthews9018]

Great video! Where could I find one of those soft flask holders?

[@MMillan]

nice video, thanks for share. I didn't know that New Zealand had those type of mountains I imagined like jungle style mountains hahaha, greetings from the south of Chile

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

we have plenty of jungle style mountains too! greetings!

[@fsrodeo81]

Nice video!!! Where can we see your trip or the actual list of the peaks you did? I lived in your contry many years ago and still have fantastic memories. Hi from 🇮🇹

[@amcd061]

All the NZ peaks above 3000m, there are 24 of them.

[@s8piral]

Very interesting!

[@raphaelgarcia1217]

Alastair, why not a smaller air mattress (when packed) such as Thermarest Uberlite? (sorry maybe a dumb question, I'm not into mountaineering)

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

That's a personal preference, I prefer the reliability & durability of a foam pad and find I slide around on an air mattress if not perfectly flat slope. 7 panels of thermarest doesn't take up much room on side of pack, and is much quicker setup/pack down

[@carl8568]

5 degree bag, shit that's keen man. Fluoride is nasty stuff, the "Do Not Swallow" warnings appear on all toothpastes that contain fluoride and for good reasons. I use Dr. Bronners or make my own with diatomaceous earth, olive oil and pure peppermint essential oil contained in a small 35ml Sistema dressing tub. Good presentation though, well thought out systems👍 The compostable ziplock bags are a good idea.

[@DrewNorthup]

The amount of sodium flouride toothpaste an adult male would need to consume to poison himself is something like two to three tubes in an hour.....and even that is easily reversible for many hours. The "do not swallow" warning is a much bigger deal with children and important for adults massing fewer than 50kg. Using the dried tabs Alastair chose is perfectly safe and reasonable. (Hydroflouric acid on the other hand is dangerous stuff. You won't feel the "burn" and it will kill you anyway. One should also avoid swallowing too much diatomaceous earth, it can really tear you up.)

[@marinaquintana6822]

such a great video! what was your full glacier kit? can you please give more details? thanks!

[@amcd061]

Standard glacier travel equipment, rope carabiners slings microtraxion etc

[@michaelcawley5419]

Great video, thanks for that. A few questions - 1. were you wearing the G5s the whole time? If so did you manage to avoid getting wet on river crossings every time or sometimes just got to suck it up and dry boots out later? 2. snow stake - was that one per person or for the team? 3. can I ask what pack/capacity?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

1. We wore trail shoes for the approach up copland and for sefton to snowline. Left at douglas rock hut as hut shoes. G5s all the way to tasman glacier, had trail shoes in tasman saddle hut drop. Boots got wet in wet snow but dried out in afternoons. 2. One per team for us 3. Macpac NZAT Pursuit 40L

[@michaelcawley5419]

@@NewZealandAlpineTeam awesome. Thank you. Really insightful vid, cheers.

[@gracefleming9953]

Great video! What make is the single skin tent?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Its the mont bell mighty dome 2, great little tent

[@TonyHobbs]

What was snow steak for I didn't understand your meaning Tent use or something else

[@amcd061]

Snow stake is a v-shape of aluminium used for making an anchor on snow, for use with the rope while climbing.

[@LukeFrisken]

What do you think about the Quark Hammer + Gully Adze combo vs something like a Quark/Sumtec Adze and Gully Hammer? Did you ever wish you had some more weight/length on the adze for chopping?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

I'd say it's more important to have weight on the hammer than the adze for snowstakes, pitons etc. I don't personally use the adze very much. But sure have more weight on the tool which you'll use more.

[@PatrickWoerner]

Which ten was it? 2P with 1,3kg sounds interesting!

[@jakegray1680]

You went with 19g's! Hate those darn things now...

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

You should have to adapt your clipping technique and they are fine!

[@gearjunkie3412]

When you cook inside your tent. Does it create too much moisture?

[@amcd061]

Yes it can do so try vent the steam outside, maybe boil water just outside the tent.

[@TaborPrzemyslaw]

Whats the manufacturer of the soft flask pouch?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Macpac

[@jamesbroadbent3555]

What was the name of those waterproof gloves?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Showa Temres 282-02 www.alpineteam.co.nz/2021/showa-temres-282-glove-review

[@xanderwijninckx858]

This is fantastic! Currently I just do transalpine tramping but the approach to efficient gear selection is super useful. Gives me more free weight to lug a fat camera up a hill... Hope we get to see a video of your crazy month of 3000m peaks!

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Doco is on its way later this year!

[@xanderwijninckx858]

@@NewZealandAlpineTeam epic! Can't wait!!

[@abalone317]

VERY interesting to see this, after watching the documentary! Thanks for sharing, and BIG congrats on the trek (1.5 years later)!!!

[@daviddepodwin4579]

Very informative. I like the 500ml hot water bottle in the boot technique. Have used it in the sleeping bag wrapped in a sock but never in my boots. Also like the heavier parka lighter sleeping bag recommendation. Thanks,

[@amcd061]

Never have frozen boots in the morning again!

[@Th3lliott]

Great video Alastair! Loved the 5 degree sleeping bag hahaha

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

thanks Elliot! its all you need for summer with the right down jacket!

[@alexalexander9434]

Thanks for the vid love how lightweigt your pack is, What do you think of the portable ali express solar panels that you put on the back of your backpack instead of power banks ? I find I don't get much battery if I am making videos

[@amcd061]

in NZ we have solar panels at huts so solar panels were not needed, you would have to calculate which is lighter based on how much power you need for how many days... sounds like an engineering problem.

[@jandab8904]

Very useful video, thanks Alastair, greetings and good luck on the next adventures!

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Thanks Jan!

[@jamese3584]

Not sure if you're still reading comments two years after this trip, but did you have any issues with your goose down (either in jacket or bag) getting saturated & clumpy from body moisture with such frequent use? I know many people who use synthetics if the trip is longer than 1-2 nights, so curious how you managed with down.

[@amcd061]

This is true, but it can be resolved if you have a way to dry it. Either in the sun or in a dry hut will do the trick.

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Hey James. No issues. We have dry down which has some kind of treatment on it in the bags and jackets. It lofts quite well even when wet.

[@insertusernamehere9023]

Yes you'll want to get a jacket that uses hyperdry and pertex quantum if you know you will be getting wet. In general, jackets are not worn often while climbing or hiking, but the macpac alpine Icefall and Pulsar (synthetic and a little colder) will be the best. I'm not sure which down jacket he shows in the video.

[@EireFirst2024]

I'm a hard mudda fooka, although I WILL now stop being freezing cold hiking 😂🤝

[@nuhungemisi-noahsark3216]

BAŞARILAR DİLİYORUM🙏

[@jonmurua]

You changed your axes!!! 😱 What happened to the all-round xdreams?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

X dreams are heavy technical tools for steep terrain, not all round mountaineering tools! Quark & gully saves a lot of weight, maybe 500g

[@Большойчеловек-з6д]

Great video, I'm interested to know what you used for anchor building? also do you find that 3 lockers is enough for crevasse rescue, escaping the system etc?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Good question, forgot to include in video about anchors. 2x 5m 6mm cord for anchors and can also cut for abseils. 4 locking carabiners is better.

[@matteogabaglio2657]

Great effort and athlletic achievement man! One question: did you always rappel on ice or did you bring any material to left behind ? cheers! nz always looks so cool!

[@amcd061]

Mostly ice abseils, but we have 2x 5mx5mm lengths of cord which can be used for anchors, and also cut for abseil anchors, used this several times.

[@howler6490]

That harness looks a wee bit whillanesque.More than capable, I loved my whillans, especially for winter...

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

yes its often suitable to go for quite a light harness for mountaineering, even with a full single rack. can't say I've tried a whillans but seems he was ahead of his time!

[@gregborman6299]

What a great video! Awesome info. Compostable ziplok bags, GAME CHANGER!

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

You feel much less guilty about plastic with the compostable bags! I used compostic brand

[@ansleighhall9457]

If you don’t mind me asking, what do you do for work? It’s awesome that your able to climb as often as you do

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Engineering consulting

[@hamishbrownnz]

Why do you use a Z lite over and neo air or similar inflatable mat? Better comfort and r value. Is it just because the ease of setting up the Z lite?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

I have used neo air xlite before, but in this case we went for the lightest option which was 7 panels (90cm) of zlite mat, considering we were only camping 5 nights, summer conditions, more reliable as no chance of puncturing, easier to set up/pack down. It comes down to personal preference.

[@EpironGaming]

how heavy was ur backpack in total, including the food? and what kind of backpack did u use?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

When fully loaded with 5 days food, Id estimate 18kg, but did not weigh. Macpac Pursuit 40L pack.

[@HeightsChasing]

Hi Alastair. Question about your layering system. How do you deal with your base layer once it’s soaking wet with sweat? I run 100% merino layer next to my skin and find once I sweat into it I get cold very quickly once stopped regardless of how many layers I have to put on once stopped. Can I make an adjustment to my layering system to help this or do I just need to be fitter and sweat less? Thank you

[@amcd061]

Good question, I find merino dries very slowly I never wear it. I wear synthetic tshirt or long sleeve with hood. Wear less clothes to avoid sweating. If you still get sweaty when it gets cold ie above the bushline, take off the tshirt and put on a dry baselayer next to skin and wear the shirt on top to dry it out on the outside.

[@HeightsChasing]

@@amcd061 great advice. Thank you

[@Winterstormadvisory]

Strip layers off until you stop sweating, I’ve had to strip all the way down to may base layer at 0 degrees just cause I’m moving that much and I’m imagining you are too

[@carl8568]

​@@HeightsChasing Yeah I think it's basically just move slower or strip layers. Merino does dry slowly but at least it feels better than plastic against your skin, I can't stand a polyprop base layer.

[@tubefreakmuva]

So did you do the 3000s all by yourselves or did you do this by way of a group expedition?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Only two team members for the trip: Alastair & Hamish

[@Jimmy-bf6bj]

Great vid Alastair. Where can I find those bottle pouches that attach to the shoulder straps?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Macpac will be putting them out as an accessory soon, Inov8 used to make some, its a commodity item, have a search around !

[@c.gtramping]

What was the hardest peak to climb?

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

The hardest peak to climb would be either Torres or Hicks.

[@sebgray1459]

Pretty sweet insight, makes me want to do the same!

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Do it Seb!!

[@andrewluey1050]

Lots of great tips! Thanks for sharing.

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

thanks Andrew!

[@hugh4658]

Curious how you reached your avi approach to transceiver each and one shovel. I'm just over two weeks away from 2 months in Kyrgy and debating the same issue.

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

Its a risk analysis based on the terrain, season & expected snow conditions Shovel is useful for camp setup also.

[@hugh4658]

@@NewZealandAlpineTeam yeah, no I get that. Maybe youtube comments isn't the best place for it. Hopefully i don't appear like a knob arguing on the internet. I meant more specifically. With your chosen approach, if you were to encounter a burial scenario where one climber is fully buried, only 50% of the time could that person be self rescued. Ergo did you decide to take the transceivers because you were taking the shovel anyway? It just seems that you were very much gram counting, so I was puzzled how you reached the 50%, for such a weight penalty. It's not like you would have been stopping to swap the shovel between yourselves in avi terrain. I had thoughts transceiver and shovel each, or just skip it. Trying to understand, not critique 😄

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

@@hugh4658 the person with the shovel can walk at the back. Again, make your own decisions based on the terrain and conditions.

[@hugh4658]

@@NewZealandAlpineTeam gotcha re the system. Makes sense. Cheers for the replies. Always learning.

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

@@hugh4658 as always the best strategy is to avoid getting avalanched in the first place! Summer mountaineering is typically done so early while snow conditions are frozen and ideally you finish the descent before things heat up too much. Also storms in this trip were fortunately all warm rain so we didnt have to worry about waiting long for settling.

[@danielnogueira6365]

Wait.. no peanut butter? Great video mate!

[@NewZealandAlpineTeam]

I would if I was not allergic to peanuts!

[@danielnogueira6365]

@@NewZealandAlpineTeam oh man :(