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 enlarge | Authors: George Cole, Carol Crooker, Alan Dixon, Richard Dreher
Creator: Ryan Jordan
Publisher: Beartooth Mountain Press
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $16.46
You Save: $8.49 (34%)
New (11) Used (4) from $16.46
Avg. Customer Rating:  14 reviews
Sales Rank: 98571
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 436
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6 x 1.1
ISBN: 0974818828
Dewey Decimal Number: 796
EAN: 9780974818825
ASIN: 0974818828
Publication Date: October 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: SHIPS from 5 locations based on your Zip Code and availability! (PA TN IN OR SC) *-* Gift Quality *-* Orders Processed Immediately! - We get your book to you Very Quickly! -L2356.11321
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| Customer Reviews:
 Handy "How To" Guide March 24, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Backpackers who hope to lighten their load will find valuable information in this book. I did. I was impressed with the author's experience, knowledge and research. He clearly offers a unique perspective on the art and science of lightweight backpacking. With the current technology available I am also convinced that the days of 30+ pound backpacks are over when one is heading out for a week on the trail.
 Not for the average Backpacker wanting to pack lighter. January 31, 2007
15 out of 31 found this review helpful
This is not a useful book for the eastern Backpacker, who has been carrying 55-60 lb. on the AT and wants to reduce his pack to a 20-25 lb. pack load, without going to the poor house in the process. The book lacks personality and feelings about why we backpack.
This is a highly analytical book on the technical aspects of Lightweight Backpacking in the west. Be less clinical and enjoy the experience a little more.This book is for those who mainly buy at the high end and at a few select sources. It is also assumes that most backpackers live or pack near or west of the continental divide. It does not mention our many fine supply houses in the east, nor the different environments we encounter in the east.
Ye Tome of Knowledge January 27, 2007
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
After purchasing several books on backpacking, I was starting to come to the conclusion that most books simply were written by an author with the idea of pushing their own ideas of backpacking. Everything had this slant, but I decided to give Lightweight Backpacking and Camping a shot. I'm so glad I did.
First, with all the various authors, you get different perspectives on ultralight backpacking. No one approach is necessarily the right way, and different views and tones in thier writings help to cement that idea.
Second, this isn't necessarily a "gear guide" type book with listings of what gear to buy. While there are suggestions, they comprise a small amount of the text, which instead focuses on the meat of ultralight backpacking.
While it is true that a previous reviewer, Andrew Skurka works for Ryan Jordan, what he says is no less accurate. It is, quite simply, the best book out there for ultralight backpacking. Further, it works well for the beginner backpacker or the advanced hiker like Andrew.
Now, despite the five star rating, it's not without some flaws. First, one company seems to get top billing in most all of the gear suggestions, though admittedly they tend to be the lightest gear out there. Second, as another review said, there is no index, which makes looking up information a bit more difficult. Still, to me these are insufficient to rate this text as less than a five. Style issues in the layout and a brand preference I don't necessarily share are minor things not worth considering in my opinion.
Very technical gear guide November 4, 2006
17 out of 19 found this review helpful
This book is well worth reading. It is not, as the authors assert, the new ultralight hikers bible. It is useful to compare this book to Ray Jardine's classic Beyond Backpacking. I see it as a good update and companion to Jardine's book. This field guide, edited by Ryan Jordan with contributions by himself and several others, certainly has the advantage of a variety of very sound authors. Jardine asserts only one way of doing things. However Jardine's way is much closer to my preferred style of hiking than Jordan, et al. Jordan focusses on finding excellent commercial ultralight gear; Jardine gives instructions for making and improvising gear. On a variety of topics, from water purification to nutrition to pack design, I tend to agree with Jardine over Jordan and his pals. But if the Ray Way doesn't work for you, perhaps this will be your hiking bible.
This book does contain comprehensive and useful information on first aid, a wide range of shelter and sleep systems and apparel, and general hiking styles that are not covered by Jardine. It also gives good information on commercially made, but hard to find, ultralight gear. For this info it is well worth the price.
Jordan can be highly technical. Here is a typical quote:
"..this excercise emphasises the downward force of gravity that exerts itself at the center of gravity of both pack and the body. The horizontal distance between these two distances is called the moment arm. In turn, the force exerted on the body's musculature to remain stable by that moment arm, which I refer to as pack torque (T), is defined as the rotational force exerted by the pack on the body."
You can simply gloss over the many passages like this if you don't want to follow Jordan's math. Jordan uses analysis like this to evaluate gear - very impressive. My only problem with it is that the conclusions he arrives at often don't agree with what works for me in the field.
The new lightweight bible July 26, 2006
2 out of 12 found this review helpful
This is definitely the new bible for
everybody that wants to enjoy the
outdoors with a light pack.
Packed with useful advices how to get
rid of weight, packlists and gear tipps.
Thumbs up
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