Choosing hiking gear

So you've settled on the route and the group. Now for the question that nags at everyone: what do I take on the hike? It's one of the most pressing questions in preparing for any trip.

Too often you come home with things you never once used. You want to rest in comfort and pack more of the useful everyday items — but that makes the rucksack heavier. Limit yourself to the bare minimum and you can find yourself on the trail without something genuinely important, whose absence causes no end of trouble.

Start with clothes: they should be strong, light, comfortable and functional. Their main jobs:

to keep you warm while walking and at rest,
to wick sweat when you're working,
to keep out rain and wind.

The first two are partly solved with a set of thermal underwear: the fully synthetic kind wicks moisture well and makes hygienic sense on long routes, while a version with added wool helps keep you warm through the nights.

The third job is handled beautifully by a good membrane suit, which sheds rain and wind at very little weight. For waterproof clothing we recommend a poncho with room for the rucksack: the wide sleeves are more convenient and let you keep the pack's contents out of the weather. If you already have a "membrane" suit and the rucksack has a dry-bag, the question of a raincoat or poncho answers itself.

Generally the choice of clothes depends on the season and the planned route. If the goal is the photo-hunt and the time is autumn or spring, warm layers are a must. The jacket must have a hood with a stiff visor to shed water. If the route runs through tick country in summer, pick a good anti-tick suit and/or special repellents (available at any pharmacy). What to wear on your head — cap, beanie or brimmed hat — is a matter of taste. If the route includes climbs to peaks or treeless summits, a windproof suit is a must. Whatever the route, there should always be a warm hat and spare socks in the kit. For socks, take several pairs of plain cotton and one pair of wool, or go with trekking socks (two pairs for high activity, one for low). They should hug the foot snugly and neither slip nor bunch, even on long days. Don't skimp on socks — the blisters they prevent can otherwise hobble you badly.

Footwear deserves real care, because one mistake can put the whole route in question. Each person should bring good trekking boots (the main hiking footwear) and thick-soled sandals for rest at halts and in camp. The merits and flaws of particular models could be argued forever, so here are the essentials of choosing boots:

For long multi-day hikes, take trekking boots with a membrane, a reinforced sole and a protected toe. A leather upper is better than fabric.
They shouldn't pinch at the fitting, and should sit snugly with a little room to spare; the insole should be dense enough to hold its shape, not bunch up.
If you're going budget — combat boots — choose genuine chrome-tanned leather (made in Belarus), and add anatomical insoles.
Along with the boots, always take gaiters to protect against moisture and the thickets of high-mountain dwarf birch (karagatnik).

Waders aren't for everyone (extra weight), and trainers wear out fast on the trail. Since almost every mountain hike follows rivers, you need to think about how you'll cross them. The simplest option — boots off, trousers rolled, sandals on — only works for small streams; spend longer in cold water (crossing a river 30 m wide with water to the thigh, say) and you'll simply freeze, and a cramp can seize your legs. Carrying rubber boots the whole way makes sense only for anglers, since a pair usually adds 2–3 kg to the load. From our experience the best option is neoprene trousers (3 mm is plenty): two to three times lighter, they keep the cold out and don't restrict your movement. Of course you can also just ford in your boots — but walking any distance in wet footwear (even good trekking boots) is uncomfortable and can injure your feet.

Now for the gear itself. A few tips if you want your own:

When you decide to buy a tent, decide at the same time on a tarp for the whole group. With a good tarp, a tent with a large vestibule isn't necessary. In our experience a 4×6 m tarp is a wonderfully convenient solution for a shared kitchen or for sitting out the rain.
The tent should be double-layer, with a waterproof, rot-resistant floor, a mosquito net, and roomy vestibules in three- and four-person models. Side pockets and a shelf (hook) for a lamp are welcome too.
For a group bigger than five, a combination of two- and three-person tents is better — they weigh less and are usually roomier than a four-person one.
Poles should be aluminum with a cord tie — never telescopic plastic, which won't take the load and can snap easily on the trail or in a strong wind.
A wind skirt is worth having: in the mountains you can pin it down with stones in a gale, and moisture won't be driven in by a side wind.

The mainstay of every hike has always been the rucksack, so choose it with care. Forget what your parents and their friends say about good, quality, practical Soviet canvas rucksacks and tents — that belongs to a bygone era. Buy high-quality rucksacks, modest in volume (no more than 100 liters for men and 80 for women). Here are the essentials of a good pack:

a good suspension system for even load distribution, with adjustable strap height (the pack should adjust to the length of your back),
a wide hip belt with soft padding at the tailbone,
several compartments for tidy packing, and large side pockets,
the ability to lash extra load on vertically and horizontally,
all zippers protected from moisture,
longitudinal and transverse compression straps to hold the load,
a dry-bag.

Don't be put off by the weight of a good rucksack — 2.5–3 kg — it's very functional and thought through to the smallest detail.

When choosing a sleeping bag, keep in mind that nights in the taiga, even in summer, are comfortable only in the warm versions (comfort rating +5 to −5°C), since the high country is usually cool at night. Aim for a weight within two kilograms, a compression sack is a must, and the length should exceed your height by 20–30 cm.

Among the rest of the kit, consider the cookware and dishes. Pots should be rectangular (easier to fit in the pack or hang), nest inside one another if there are several, have lids, and be light. Dishes are best multifunctional and container-style — ideally one set for the whole group.

If the hike includes photo-hunting and hides, a metal thermos is a necessity. Headlamps with spare batteries or accumulators are essential, and it's good to have a camera in the group.

When putting together the field first-aid kit, work from the principle that it treats the illnesses and wounds of the hike, while everyone brings their own medicine for their "own" ailments. The essentials:

something for blood pressure and heart pain, since the load on the cardiovascular system rises in the first days of a hike,
treatment for wounds, burns and cuts: brilliant green, hydrogen peroxide, BF glue,
bandages (sterile and non-sterile), and bactericidal and plain plasters for blisters,
an elastic bandage — ligament sprains do happen on the trail,
remedies for colds and simple antibiotics,
remedies for headache, stomach ache and cramps.

Be sure to slip a list of the medicines and what each is for into the kit, and add repellents against ticks and midges.