What Gear Do I Need?
Category-level gear requirements for your hike — essentials, recommendations and what to leave at home.
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Plan
Plan your trek
Practical hiking tasks — choose a route, pack, get there and stay safe — with guides and tools linked where they exist.
First-hand trek
Tour du Mont Blanc
Lee's 11-day self-guided circuit — documentary, refuges, cost receipts and full planning cluster.
First-hand trek
Laugavegur
Iceland hut-to-hut classic — day-by-day films, huts, weather and what 4–5 days on trail feel like.
First-hand trek
Otter Trail
Five days on the Tsitsikamma coast — SANParks permits, hut nights and coastal logistics.
Build skills
Beginner hut-to-hut ladder
Iseltwald & Sorapis → Laugavegur → AV1 → TMB — Lee's progression path when you are building up.
Choose a trek
Trek Finder
Match season, time, difficulty and style to routes on HikingWithLee.
Choose between routes
Alta Via 1 vs TMB
Lee hiked both self-guided — honest pick advice for Europe's classic hut treks.
Bucket list
European classics not hiked yet
Haute Route, AV2, GR20, Kungsleden — planning snapshots vs Lee's TMB, AV1 and Laugavegur.
Choose by fitness
Hut-to-hut by difficulty
Laugavegur through TMB and Bernina — ranked bands with first-hand nuance.
Compare routes
Trek Comparison
Put 2–3 treks side by side before you commit.
Book ahead
2027 Booking Calendar
Alps huts, FI, SANParks and Inca windows — before Oct–Nov demand.
Post-trail
After the hike
Recovery, lessons from finished treks and honest next-route picks.
Original data
Defensible assets — the moat
Labelled tables from treks Lee actually walked: weighed packs, receipt-level spend, hut booking channels, FI packing rules, and film-to-guide URL pairs. Generic best-of gear lists are not included here.
Trek-specific packing lists
Lee's weighed kits — not generic gear roundups
First-hand lists with base weight, line-item counts and provenance. Generic best-of articles are editorial; these rows are tied to treks Lee hiked.
| Trek | Base | Loaded / notes | Items | Year / season | Units | Source | Verified · links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alta Via 1 | 3.1 kg | ~9.5 kg loaded with food and water | 41 | June/July (on-trail hike) | kg (3,145 g weighed base + loaded estimate) | Lee on-trail pack weigh-in + packing video (YouTube pqS9M_Kmyd8) | |
| Bernina Trek | 1.8 kg | Target under 8 kg base — 30–40 L SAC hut kit | 23 | On-trail SAC hut trek | kg (target under 8 kg base) | Lee Bernina Trek packing list | |
| Laugavegur | 2.3 kg | 40–60 L with 4 days food — no hut electricity | 23 | Summer highland season | kg + ISK cash for hut extras | Lee packing list cross-checked with FI hut FAQ (no electricity) | |
| Otter Trail | 2.3 kg | 40–55 L — self-catered SANParks hut trek | 21 | On-trail SANParks hike | kg (self-catered hut load) | Lee Otter Trail packing list | |
| Skye Trail | 3.9 kg | Wild-camp load — aim lighter than my first hike | 22 | On-trail wild-camp hike | kg (tent + food load) | Lee Skye Trail packing list | |
| Tour du Mont Blanc | 2.3 kg | Target under 7 kg base weight — 10,000 m ascent over 11 days | 29 | September 2024 | kg (partial weigh-in; target under 7 kg base) | Lee packing list + on-trail kit notes |
Stage films
Day-by-day trail films
On-trail YouTube diaries paired to written itinerary guides — labelled for citation.
| Trek | Stage | Film | Guide | Year / season | Source | Last verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alta Via 1 | Alta Via 1 — Day 3 | Watch | Guide | June/July (on-trail) | Lee on-trail YouTube film (_-yjp5l3gsQ) | |
| Alta Via 1 | Alta Via 1 — Day 5 | Watch | Guide | June/July (on-trail) | Lee on-trail YouTube film (b8Kvzhf4ZUk) | |
| Alta Via 1 | Alta Via 1 — Day 6 | Watch | Guide | June/July (on-trail) | Lee on-trail YouTube film (gH-W5s088yE) | |
| Alta Via 1 | Alta Via 1 — Day 7 | Watch | Guide | June/July (on-trail) | Lee on-trail YouTube film (5U49xk7msW0) | |
| Alta Via 1 | Alta Via 1 — Day 8 | Watch | Guide | June/July (on-trail) | Lee on-trail YouTube film (Ao3YlYH2AHA) | |
| Laugavegur | Laugavegur — Day 1: Into the Highlands | Watch | Guide | Summer highland season | Lee on-trail YouTube film (TBgJFVbQReo) | |
| Laugavegur | Laugavegur — Day 2: Through the Mist and Rivers | Watch | Guide | Summer highland season | Lee on-trail YouTube film (8dtnuMleX6w) | |
| Laugavegur | Laugavegur — Day 3: Blue Skies, Black Sands & Showers | Watch | Guide | Summer highland season | Lee on-trail YouTube film (DSupVEBSkDA) | |
| Laugavegur | Laugavegur — Day 4: Finishing Iceland's Most Epic Hike | Watch | Guide | Summer highland season | Lee on-trail YouTube film (flrJYwDzwUg) |
Film + guide pairs
Watch the trail, then plan on-site
Stable URL pairs for citing HikingWithLee — each film links to its matching written guide. Columns include year, source and last verified.
| Trek | Year / season | Film | Written guide | Source | Last verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alta Via 1 | June/July (on-trail) | Ultimate Guide to Alta Via 1 | Alta Via 1 complete guide | Lee YouTube ultimate guide + complete guide article | |
| Alta Via 1 | June/July (on-trail) | What I packed for Alta Via 1 | Alta Via 1 packing list | Lee packing walkthrough video + weighed packing list | |
| Tour du Mont Blanc | September 2024 | Tour du Mont Blanc — 11-day full documentary | TMB self-guided complete guide | Lee 11-day TMB documentary + self-guided guide + Sep 2024 cost ledger | |
| Laugavegur | Summer highland season | Laugavegur + Fimmvörðuháls — 80 km solo film | Laugavegur complete guide | Lee on-trail Iceland film + complete guide | |
| Otter Trail | On-trail SANParks hike | Otter Trail — South Africa coastal hike | Otter Trail planning guide | Lee Otter Trail film + planning guide | |
| Bernina Trek | On-trail SAC hut trek | Bernina Trek silent hike film | Bernina Trek complete guide | Lee silent Via Bernina film + complete guide | |
| Skye Trail | On-trail Scotland hike | Skye Trail ultimate guide video | Skye Trail self-guided guide | Lee Skye Trail film + self-guided guide | |
| Mullerthal Trail | On-trail Luxembourg hike | Mullerthal Trail — 120 km full story | Mullerthal Trail guide | Lee Mullerthal film + complete guide | |
| Rheinsteig | On-trail Germany hike | Rheinsteig trail film | Rheinsteig complete guide | Lee Rheinsteig film + complete guide | |
| Hornstrandir | On-trail Iceland hike | Hornstrandir trail film | Hornstrandir complete guide | Lee Hornstrandir film + complete guide |
Tools
Backpack Size Finder
Find a practical capacity range based on your trip, accommodation and packing style.
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Gear Comparison
Compare 2–4 products with verified specs, trade-offs and context-based guidance.
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Packing List Builder
Build a trek-specific checklist with live pack weight — requirements first, products optional.
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Pack Weight Calculator
Calculate base weight, worn items and consumables — unknown weights stay visible.
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Trek Finder
Find routes that fit your time, fitness and hiking style.
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Trek Comparison
Compare routes side by side before you commit.
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2027 Booking Calendar
When Alps huts, FI Laugavegur, SANParks and Inca permits open for 2027 — before Oct–Nov demand.
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Trek Cost Calculator
Estimate hut, food and transport costs before you go.
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Choose a trek
Trek overview hubs first — then open the complete guide or a satellite (itinerary, cost, packing) for the task you are on.
Trek overview
Tour du Mont Blanc
11-day self-guided circuit — refuges, hotels and Lee's documentary.
Trek overview
Laugavegur
Iceland hut trek — films, huts and shoulder-season weather reality.
Trek overview
Otter Trail
Tsitsikamma coastal permits, hut nights and five-day pacing.
Trek overview
Alta Via 1
8-day Dolomites hut trek — Lee's measured pack weights and rifugio booking channels.
Pack
Navigate
trek navigation guide
Alta Via 1 Navigation: Markers, Maps & Getting Lost
Alta Via 1 · 3 min read
Read guide →
trek navigation guide
Ben Nevis Navigation: Maps, Mist & MWIS
Ben Nevis · 2 min read
Read guide →
trek navigation guide
Bernina Trek Navigation Guide: Maps, GPX & Waymarks
Bernina Trek · 4 min read
Read guide →
Get there
trek transport guide
Getting to Alta Via 1: Venice, Bolzano & Lago di Braies
Alta Via 1 · 3 min read
Read guide →
trek transport guide
Getting to Ben Nevis: Fort William & Glen Nevis
Ben Nevis · 2 min read
Read guide →
trek transport guide
Getting to the Bernina Trek: Trains, Madulain & Poschiavo
Bernina Trek · 3 min read
Read guide →
Stay
trek accommodation guide
Alta Via 1 Refuges: Rifugi & Where to Stay
Alta Via 1 · 4 min read
Read guide →
trek accommodation guide
Ben Nevis Accommodation: Fort William Stays
Ben Nevis · 2 min read
Read guide →
trek accommodation guide
Bernina Trek Huts & Accommodation Guide
Bernina Trek · 3 min read
Read guide →
