John Muir Trail Gear Guide: Class of 2022 Survey

In the second installment of this year’s John Muir Trail Thru-Hiker Survey, we dive into gear for hiking the JMT. John Muir Trail gear lists vary wildly between hikers and (spoiler alert) it’s impossible to find a perfect JMT gear list. That said, we can try.

I’ve organized this in a way that I hope will give a comprehensive picture of what gear JMT thru-hikers are using. This post covers the highest-rated gear, the most common gear, base weights, gear advice, and more.

The gear covered here includes backpacks, shelters, sleeping bags, sleeping pads, insulated jackets, rain jackets, fleeces, shoes, socks, stoves, water treatment, trekking poles, food storage, satellite messengers/PLBs, luxury items, and more.

The goal is for this to be a useful resource for JMT hikers, so if there’s anything that you think is missing, please leave a comment below.

I hope you enjoy this year’s John Muir Trail Gear Guide brought to you by the JMT Class of 2022.

Most Common JMT Gear

I ask each survey respondent about the gear they used during their John Muir Trail hike. With this information, we can easily see what the most popular pieces of gear were on the trail. Here’s what this year’s “Most Common JMT Gear List” backpack had in it – and what that theoretical backpack was.

• Backpack: Gossamer Gear Mariposa (29.8 oz / 846 g | $285)
• Shelter: Zpacks Duplex (1.19 lbs / 539 g | $699)
• Sleeping bag: Enlightened Equipment Revelation (20.9 oz / 593 g | $410)
• Sleeping pad: Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite (12.5 oz / 354 g | $200)
• Insulated jacket: Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer/2 Hoody – Men’s/Women’s (8.8 oz. / 249 g | $350)
• Shell: Outdoor Research Helium – Men’s/Women’s (6.3 oz / 179 g | $159)
• Fleece: Patagonia R1 Pullover – Men’s/Women’s (11.7 oz / 332 g | $139)
• Shoes: Altra Lone Peak – Men’s/Women’s (22 oz / 624 g | $150)
• Socks: Darn Tough Hiker Quarter Midweight – Men’s/Women’s (2 oz / 57 g | $20)
• Stove: MSR PocketRocket 2 (2.4 oz / 68 g | $50)
• Water treatment: Sawyer Squeeze (3 oz / 85 g / $39)
• Food storage: BearVault BV500 (41 oz / 1.16 kg | $93)
• Trekking poles: Black Diamond Alpine Carbon Cork (17.1 oz / 485 g / $200)
• Satellite messenger/PLB: Garmin inReach Mini (3.5 oz / 100 g | $350)

Total weight – Big 3 (pack, shelter, sleeping bag): 4.36 lbs / 1.978 kg
Total weight – Big 4 (Big 3 + sleeping pad): 5.14 lbs / 2.332 kg

All gear: 9.15 lbs / 4.151 kg (this does not include trekking poles, shoes, or socks)

In addition to the items noted above, these total base weights (a backpack’s weight minus food, water, and consumables – like poop paper) are missing a few pieces of gear (headlamp, extra clothing, electronics, etc.). It brings us just under halfway to the year’s average starting base weight of 21.72 lbs / 9.852 kg. Note that the stove included in this list, the MSR PocketRocket 2, does not include the weight of a pot.

The total price of all this gear? $3,154 (with one pair of shoes and one pair of socks). The average thru-hikers spent on gear prior to beginning their hikes? $854 (M = $700 | σ = $759)

In addition to the items noted above, these total base weights (a backpack’s weight minus food, water, and consumables – like poop paper) are missing a few pieces of gear (headlamp, extra clothing, electronics, etc.). It brings us over halfway to the year’s average starting base weight of 21.72 lbs / 9.852 kg. Note that the stove included in this list, the SOTO Windmaster, does not include the weight of a pot.

The total price of all this gear? $2,972 (with one pair of shoes and one pair of socks). The average thru-hikers spent on gear prior to beginning their hikes? $854 (M = $700 | σ = $759)

JMT Hiker Backpacks

The Gossamer Gear Mariposa was the most common backpack on the John Muir Trail this year. It is a 29.8 oz / 846 g pack capable of carrying up to 60 L and 35 lbs / 16 kg of gear.

JMT Hiker Shelters

The Zpacks Duplex was the most common shelter on the JMT this year. It’s a $700, two-person, side-entry, 19 oz / 539 g shelter that requires two trekking poles to set up. It’s made from .51 oz/yd² Dyneema Composite Fabric and required eight stakes to be set up (not included in the $700 price tag).

Is there a generic term for sleeping bags and quilts? Sleeping sacks? Insulation-filled backpacking tortillas? Writing sleeping bags/quilts is a bit excessive/unnecessary feeling (and just annoying). Suggestions welcome.

Quilts have become exceedingly popular in recent years and they have become the unofficial standard in thru-hiker kits; four of the top five most common insulation-filled backpacking tortillas (trying it out) were quilts. That said, many quilts come in a variety of temperature ratings and with a large number of customizable options.

Individual hiker temperature needs can vary greatly. How warm of a sleeper are you? Which sleeping pad do you have? Do you sleep in your clothes? With another person? In a small tent? A big tent? With a dog? Bigfoot?

The typical range for JMT sleeping bags and quilts is between 10°F and 20°F (-12.2°C to -6.7°C). Which bag will be best for you will depend. Here’s what this year’s class had.

Sleeping pads are another must-have item on the John Muir Trail. Hikers essentially have two options: an inflatable sleeping pad or a foam sleeping pad.

There are pros and cons to both. Foam pads can’t pop, can be easily deployed, aren’t noisy when rolled around on, and make acceptable LARPing weapons; inflatable pads pack down small, have higher R-values (i.e. they’re warmer), can (sometimes) be lighter, and make acceptable rafts.

Which sleeping pad is best for you depends on your personal needs and, in some cases, how much durability you’re willing to sacrifice to save weight. The overwhelming majority of JMT hikers used inflatable sleeping pads with nearly a third of all hikers using some version of the Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite (either the regular, small, or women’s version).

The percentage of hikers using each style of sleeping pad on the John Muir Trail this year.

• 93.9% – Inflatable
• 6.1% – Foam

Something to keep the top half of your body warm – whether this is a base layer, a fleece, or an insulated jacket – is something else every John Muir Trail hiker should have with them. Of this year’s class, 83.3% of hikers had an insulated jacket – meaning 16.7% of hikers said they didn’t bring one.

Besides the question of whether to bring an insulated jacket (insulated jacket because “down jacket” isn’t accurate since not all jackets use down insulation and because the word “puffy” isn’t quite official – also I want to spell the plural “puffys” because “puffies” looks weird and I’m never quite sure which to use), hikers need to decide whether they want their jacket to have a hood.

Many of the most popular insulated jackets have both hooded and non-hooded versions available. Typically the hoodless versions are called “jackets” while the hooded versions are called hoodies (e.g. Patagonia Micro Puff Jacket vs. Patagonia Micro Puff Hoody).

The percentage of hikers using hooded and not hooded (unhooded?) jackets on the John Muir Trail this year.

• 72.1% – Hooded
• 27.9% – Not hooded

JMT Hiker Insulated Jackets

The Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer/2 Hoody (Men’s/Women’s) was the most common jacket among John Muir Trail hikers this year. The 8.8 oz / 249 g jacket uses 800-fill RDS-certified down insulation and a 10D nylon shell. There is a version without a hood available as well – the ninth-most-common jacket on the trail this year.

JMT Hiker Shells

The Outdoor Research Helium was the most common rainwear on the John Muir Trail this year. It’s one of the lightest options available at just 6.3 oz/ 179 g, but it’s also one of the lowest rated. There’s a single chest pocket (no hand pockets), an elastic drawcord hem, and elastic cuffs. It has a 30D nylon shell and a 2.5L waterproof laminate.

Many hikers opt to carry a fleece either in addition to or instead of an insulated jacket. They’re typically more comfortable to hike in (if you’re using your extra layers for more than just staying warm at camp) and can offer a bit more versatility than a puffy depending on the situation.

It wasn’t uncommon for hikers to carry a fleece or even a fleece in addition to an insulated jacket; 37.3% of hikers brought a fleece.

The following breakdown shows the percentage of JMT hikers who brought only a fleece, brought only an insulated jacket, and those who brought both.

• 62.1% – Insulated jacket only
• 32.0% – Insulated jacket and fleece
• 3.2% – Fleece only
• 2.8% – Neither an insulated jacket nor a fleece (this is not recommended)

Shoes are perhaps one of the most important gear choices for John Muir Trail hikers as they’re what’s literally moving you up the trail. They’re also one of the most individual-specific pieces of gear.

The shoes that work, which may be the objectively best choice for one person, could easily be the objectively worst choice for another person. Some shoes may be more popular while others may be of higher quality materials, but ultimately the “best shoes” are the ones that work best for the individual.

You shouldn’t be afraid of trying on multiple models from multiple brands to find the most comfortable shoe for your foot. That said, the most common shoes, the Altra Lone Peak (Men’s/Women’s), were used by over a quarter (27.6%) of JMT hikers.

The overwhelming majority (over 96%) of hikers used low-top trail runners; 4% used mid or high-top shoes. Similarly, only 4% of hikers used waterproof shoes.

For more on hiking shoes, check out the Best Shoes for Thru-Hiking.

JMT Hiker Shoes

The Altra Lone Peak (Men’s/Women’s) was the most common shoe on the feet of John Muir Trail hikers this year. They cost $150 per pair, have a 0 mm heel-toe drop, and weigh 22 oz / 624 g per pair. Altra typically releases a new version of the Lone Peak every year; at the time of publication, the latest version is the Lone Peak 7.

Hikers have a wide variety of stoves and fuel sources to choose from when selecting their backpacking stoves. Fuel sources include denatured alcohol/HEET, solid fuel, liquid fuel, isobutane/propane (aka gas canisters), and even old-fashioned wood.

The overwhelming majority (98.8%) of hikers carried stoves that use isobutane/propane gas canisters.

That said, there were still a number of hikers who were stoveless (that is, they did not carry a stove with them on the trail) and others who changed their minds as the trail went on. Here’s a breakdown of what that looked like.

• 95.3% – Carried stove for the entirety of hike
• 3.9% – Stoveless
• 0.8% – Began with stove and then went stoveless

JMT Hiker Stoves

The MSR PocketRocket 2 was the most common stove on the John Muir Trail this year. It’s a 2.6 oz / 74 g canister stove that requires a lighter to ignite (i.e. no push-button ignition). The push-button start version, the MSR PocketRocket Deluxe, was the third-most-common stove. The reported boil time for one liter of water is 3.5 minutes.

JMT Hiker Water Treatment

The Sawyer Squeeze was (by far) the most common John Muir Trail water filter this year. It’s a $39, 3 oz / 85 g hollow fiber filter that rids your drinking water of protozoa and bacteria (and floaties). It can be used with Sawyer bags (included with the filter) or with compatible water bottles (Smartwater is the bottle of choice for many hikers). The Sawyer comes in two smaller sizes as well, the Sawyer Micro and the Sawyer MINI.

To wrap up this portion of the gear breakdown (posts on couples’ gear and gear broken down by gender are on the way), I have advice from this year’s JMT Class on gear choices and gear lists for future JMT hikers.

• Highly recommend a sleeping bag liner; you can tailor it if you’re a hot or cold sleeper and wash it when you’re in town much easier than your full sleeping bag.
• I’m going to get a rain skirt and probably a GORE-TEX rain jacket. When it comes down, it’s good to have. I got caught in the monsoon floods on August 1 and it ended my trip.
• My 10,000 mAh battery was not enough for me even with resupplying everywhere and primarily using it to charge my phone.
• sunglasses are a key piece of gear that I carry and no one ever asks about.
• I picked up a pair of Injinji Sock Liners right before the trip and they are now a must-have item for me.