Backpacking Kit
Ultralight Curious
Lighten your load without leaving comfort behind.
We talk to a lot of hikers who want to lighten their backpacking load (because really, who doesn’t?). But not everyone is ready to swap a sleeping bag for a quilt or trade a tent for a trekking-pole shelter just to save a few ounces. The Ultralight Curious Backpacking Kit is built for those who want to move farther and faster without giving up the comfort, convenience, and usability of traditional gear. Below you’ll find our recommendations for backpacking gear that hits the best sweet spot between practicality and minimalism.
Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 ($500)
Osprey Exos 58 ($285)
Feathered Friends Hummingbird UL 20 ($639)
Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite NXT ($210)
Merrell Moab Speed 2 GTX ($175)
Arc'teryx Cerium Hoody ($400)
Black Diamond Fineline ($189)
Outdoor Research Ferrosi Shorts 7" ($90)
Black Diamond Distance Z ($180)
Jetboil Flash 1.0L Fast Boil System ($145)
HydraPak Flux 1.5L + Filter ($60)
Helinox Chair Zero ($140)
The Tiger Wall UL2 is packable enough to place it firmly in the ultralight category, yet it retains plenty of quality-of-life features that we appreciate (including two doors and vestibules). However, it’s a mixed bag for weather protection, and it’s on the small side for a two-person tent.
Interior Space
Weight & Packed Size
Weather Protection
Durability
Ease of Use
Sustainability
Splitting the difference between minimalist ultralight models and fully featured haulers, the Exos (women's Eja) is one of the best options for those curious about lightening their load. However, it’s not as durable as many true-blue ultralight packs and is heavier at 2 pounds 13 ounces.
Comfort
Organization
Weight
Durability
Water Resistance
Sustainability
With premium, 950-fill-power down and one of the best warmth-to-weight ratios on the market, the Hummingbird UL easily justifies its steep price for backpackers looking to travel light. Just beware—it’s not as cozy as heavier bags and the cut runs slim.
Warmth / Weight
Comfort
Features
Durability
Water Resistance
A thru-hiker’s dream, this top-shelf pad boasts fantastic warmth for just 13 ounces. The NeoAir XLite NXT is versatile, easy to inflate, and less noisy than its predecessor. Comfort is the only area where it doesn’t excel.
Comfort
Warmth / Weight
Packed Size
Durability
Ease of Use
Sustainability
The Moab Speed 2 combines hiking-shoe-like stability and support with the low weight and rockered style of a trail running shoe. It's comfortable out of the box and adept both on- and off-trail. However, it’s heavier and less agile than a trail runner.
Comfort
Support and Stability
Traction
Durability
Foot Protection
Sustainability
The Cerium offers lightweight and packable warmth for three-season backpacking, thanks to thin fabrics, a trim fit, and a streamlined feature set. It comes with a hefty price tag, but it’s hard to beat Arc’teryx’s premium build quality.
Warmth
Weight & Packability
Comfort
Durability
Weather Resistance
Sustainability
The Fineline is an extra-comfortable and easy-moving rain jacket, thanks to a stretch-woven shell and underarm gussets. With a low weight and packable design, it’s a great pick for backcountry use.
Weather Protection
Comfort
Breathability
Weight & Packability
Durability
Sustainability
The Ferrosi’s lightweight softshell fabric makes it a trail mainstay, offering excellent freedom of movement, quick drying, and impressive abrasion resistance. Just don’t expect top-tier build quality at this price.
With a folding, fixed-length design, the Distance Z aims for a low weight and collapsed size at a reasonable price. You can go 3 ounces lighter with a carbon version, but we’d advise all but the most weight-conscious hikers to stick with this aluminum model. Just make sure you don’t need adjustability.
Comfort
Durability
Weight
Packed Size
Features
Sustainability
One of the most popular backpacking stoves for good reason, the Jetboil Flash sets up quickly and boils a liter of water in just over two minutes. It’s an easy recommendation for simple, just-add-water backcountry cooking.
One of the most refined bottle filters on the market, the HydraPak Flux + Filter Cap is an all-in-one system that makes personal water filtration as simple as filling and squeezing. It’s more compact than the Sawyer Squeeze, and its soft flask is both more durable and easier to handle.
Incredibly light yet surprisingly comfortable, the Camp Zero is a backcountry standout. Considering its diminutive packed size, its stability and toughness also exceed expectations. The chair isn't a multi-hour lounger, but it delivers real luxury at just over one pound.
Comfort
Stability
Durability
Ease of Use
Portability
Sustainability
How We Built the Ultralight Curious Kit
When it comes to backpacking gear, most hikers fall into one of two camps: traditional or ultralight. Traditional backpackers tend to favor comfort and convenience—think spacious tents, 65-liter packs, and yes, even a camp chair. These are the folks who don’t mind carrying a little (or a lot) more for the added luxury.
On the other end of the spectrum are the ultralighters, epitomized by thru-hikers tackling long trails like the Appalachian and Pacific Crest Trails. They’re the ones with 40-liter Dyneema (or similar) packs, trail running shoes on their feet, and a near-religious commitment to keeping their base weight under 10 pounds. (If that sounds like your scene, head straight to our Ultralight Backpacking Kit.)
But between those two worlds lies a wide middle ground. We talk to a lot of folks who want to lighten their load (because, really, who doesn’t?) but aren’t ready to swap their stove for an alcohol burner or their framed pack for a roll-top sack. We call these hikers the ultralight curious—and this kit is built exactly for them.
Most of the gear in our Ultralight Curious Kit follows a simple formula: start with a traditional piece of backpacking gear and pare it down. By using thinner materials and stripping away non-essential features, these items maintain nearly the same performance at a fraction of the weight. It’s the epitome of a “best of both worlds” approach.
Take the Osprey Exos 58, for example. It keeps much of the organization and supportive suspension of a traditional pack but swaps in lighter fabrics and a simpler design. The result is a pack that’s over two pounds lighter than most of Osprey’s backpacking offerings. It’s a perfect bridge—or landing spot—for hikers who want to move farther and faster without giving up the comfort and convenience they’re used to. In fact, this modern class of gear is so functional that we now find ourselves recommending it as a standard choice for most backpackers.
The biggest tradeoffs you’ll make by stepping into the ultralight curious realm are durability and price. This gear is generally built with thinner, lighter materials, which simply aren’t as hardwearing as their heavier counterparts. And to make matters trickier, those lightweight materials typically cost more to produce.
In other words, you’re often paying more for gear that may not last as long—or that requires extra care to keep in your rotation. For some hikers, that’s a dealbreaker, and we tip our hats to those willing to carry a few extra pounds for the sake of longevity and value. But attentive use, regular maintenance, and smart storage can go a long way toward extending the lifespan of ultralight gear. For many hikers, the weight savings and comfort on the trail more than make up for the added cost and care.
Backpacking tents span a wide range, from roughly six pounds for a traditional two-person model to just over a pound (or even lighter for a floorless shelter) at the extreme ultralight end. Ultralight curious tents sit right around three pounds, offering the livability and usability of a standard backpacking model in a lighter, more streamlined package. Most still feature a two-door, two-vestibule, double-wall design, but shave weight with thinner materials, tapered floor plans (wider at the head, narrower at the feet), and—at times—semi-freestanding constructions.
Big Agnes and Nemo lead the charge in the “ultralight curious” space, and Big Agnes’ lineup provides a clear illustration of what you give up as you shed weight. At the more traditional end sits the Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2 ($550), a fully freestanding tent that weighs 3 pounds and offers generous headroom thanks to its large ridge pole and steep walls. This tent offers all the livability of most tents twice its weight, but in a lighter (and more expensive) package.
Stepping down to the Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 cuts about half a pound (2 lb. 8 oz.) by switching to a semi-freestanding design, a shorter ridge pole, thinner fabrics, and more mesh throughout the body. The mere half-pound makes a noticeable difference in livability. Compared to the Copper Spur, the Tiger Wall has reduced headroom, decreased durability, greater vulnerability to wind, and a slightly more involved setup process (for more on the difference between freestanding and semi-freestanding tents, visit the FAQ of our backpacking tent gear guide). This is about as minimalist as we’d recommend the ultralight curious crowd go.
Finally, the Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2 pushes fully into ultralight territory at 2 pounds 4 ounces, with a single door, one vestibule, and a semi-freestanding design, all of which limit overall livability. Fitting two sleepers into the Fly Creek is not for the faint of heart, unless you really want to get cozy with your tentmate. At this point, you’re no longer “ultralight curious”—you’ve got to be pretty bought in. And the lighter you go from here means venturing into Dyneema or trekking-pole shelters, where every ounce saved comes with tradeoffs (often price).
In short, the Goldilocks “ultralight curious” zone for backpacking tents is in the 2.5- to 3.5-pound range. These tents are streamlined enough to shave real weight and bulk from your pack (especially compared to 6-lb. behemoths), but still retain enough comfort and livability for most backcountry travelers. Of course, you’ll need to be a bit more cautious with their thin fabrics and understand the tradeoffs of opting for a semi-freestanding design. And if you’re traveling as a pair and space is a concern, keep in mind that you can always step up to the three-person version.
Similar to tents, most of the backpacks we recommend for the ultralight curious come from familiar names in the traditional backpacking world: Osprey, Gregory, and REI Co-op, to name a few. Unlike true ultralight packs—which often consist of little more than a main compartment, a hipbelt pocket, and minimal suspension—ultralight-curious backpacks retain many of the features most hikers are used to. Expect a removable lid, adjustable torso length, supportive harness and hipbelt, and multiple pockets for organization. The main differences come down to thinner materials and a single top entry to the main compartment, instead of the fancy U-shaped zippers or sleeping bag compartments of more traditional packs. (That, and the fact that these packs are usually capped at around 60 liters in capacity.)
The most important piece of advice when it comes to choosing a lightweight backpacking pack is this: Make it the last item you upgrade. With load limits around 35 pounds, the last thing you want is to overload a lightweight pack with traditional, heavy gear. Grab a lightweight tent and sleep setup, figure out your layering system, pare down your non-essentials—and then start thinking about swapping in a lighter backpack.
Your sleep setup usually comes down to a sleeping pad and bag, with some backpackers opting to add a pillow or liner for extra comfort. If you fall into the ultralight-curious crowd, you’ll probably want to pare that down to just the essentials—a pad and a bag—which is more than enough for a good night’s rest. True ultralight backpackers often go further, using three-quarter-length or foam pads and switching from sleeping bags to zipperless quilts.
For the ultralight curious, we recommend aiming for a sleeping pad under one pound and a sleeping bag under 1.5 pounds. If you primarily get out in summer, you can save weight by choosing lower R-values and temperature ratings. For a true three-season setup, though, expect to pay a bit more for premium materials that balance warmth (typically an R-value over 4) with a minimal weight.
Between the traditional hiking boot and the now-wildly-popular trail running shoe lies an often-overlooked middle ground: the hiking shoe. It’s surprising how many folks we chat with don’t realize this category exists. Low-top hikers deliver the stability and durability of a boot in a lighter, more streamlined package. At the same time, they offer much of the agility and comfort of a trail runner, with added support and protection.
While many ultralight-curious backpackers jump straight to trail runners, we’re casting our vote for the hiking shoe. On overnight outings with a 25- to 30-pound pack, your feet will appreciate the extra structure and support. The sturdier build also translates to a longer lifespan than most trail runners—a bonus if you care about sustainability and/or saving money. The Merrell Moab Speed 2 is one of the most approachable and well-rounded models we’ve tested, but there’s a wide range to explore, from sprightly trail-runner-adjacent shoes like the Topo Athletic Traverse to classic leather designs like the Merrell Moab 3.
Let’s be real: most premium outdoor gear is at least a little ultralight curious. If you’re shopping from core brands like Arc’teryx, Patagonia, or Black Diamond, you’ll find that nearly all of their gear prioritizes weight savings. Still, you’ll want to lean toward the performance side of their lineups rather than the casual one. For example, the 10.5-ounce REI Co-op Magma 850 is a far better match for this kit than the 1-pound, 8.4-ounce REI Co-op Campwell. Likewise, stick with three-season layers that balance warmth and protection—you probably don’t need a winter-weight down parka or an alpine-grade hardshell for most backpacking or shoulder-season trips (nor do you want to carry them).
True ultralighters often take weight savings to the extreme, which brings tradeoffs in durability, warmth, and weather protection. The Rab Mythic G (9.8 oz.), for instance, uses a delicate 7-denier shell compared to the Cerium’s 15-denier fabric, while the Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer (8.8 oz.) offers only about 75% of the Cerium’s insulation. Even ultralight rain shells, like the Montbell Versalite (6.4 oz.), skip a full waterproof membrane to keep weight down, compared to the fully waterproof Black Diamond Fineline (11.3 oz.) in this kit. And don’t forget the ultralight tax—you’ll often pay more for less performance.
By contrast, ultralight-curious gear hits a far more livable balance. It’s functional, durable enough for everyday use, and still light enough to keep your pack weight low—often for just a few ounces more.
We have no qualms recommending a lightweight chair to traditionally minded backpackers. For a small weight penalty, a backpacking chair adds a noticeable boost in comfort, especially if your version of backpacking includes plenty of time lounging around camp. But if you’re ultralight curious, you’ll need to be willing to let go of a few luxuries. Pop a squat on a rock, sit on your pack, or borrow your partner’s foam pad. Chances are, you’ll be hiking a lot more than you’ll be sitting anyway.
But if backcountry lounging is not an area you’re willing to compromise, we don’t blame you. In this case, the Helinox Chair Zero is one of the best ultralight options. It weighs just over a pound and slides easily into the side of your backpack. Or if you just want a bit of warmth beneath you, the 2-ounce Therm-a-Rest Z Seat Pad might do the trick, and is certainly more aligned with the ultralight-curious ethos.
Like most of the gear in this kit, our recommended water filter and stove aren’t just great for the ultralight curious—they’re great, period. The Jetboil Flash 1.0L (13.1 oz.) sets up in seconds and boils water so quickly that we often use it instead of the two-burner stove in our van. The HydraPak Flux + Filter Cap is hands-down the best personal filter we’ve reviewed. The bonus? Both are light and packable enough to earn a spot in this kit.
That said, if you want to do more than just boil water, the Jetboil Flash might not be your best match. It lacks the simmer control needed for real cooking. Staying within the lightweight sphere, the Jetboil MiniMo (14.6 oz.) offers the same all-in-one convenience with much better flame control, while the MSR PocketRocket 2 (2.6 oz.) is a classic ultralight option that pairs well with a small titanium pot (typically 3.5 to 5.5 oz.).
Similarly, the HydraPak Flux + Filter Cap excels at a specific use case. As a personal filtration system, it’s perfect for one person. You can squeeze filtered water into a reservoir or pot, or drink directly from the bottle. For groups, however, it’s less ideal. Larger-capacity options like gravity filters (such as the Platypus GravityWorks) or pump filters (like the Katadyn Hiker) handle bulk filtration far more efficiently but weigh close to a pound and take up much more space (although if you’re sharing the load, that extra weight might not matter). But for solo hikers or pairs, a compact, personal filter like the Flux + Filter Cap strikes the perfect balance of efficiency, simplicity, and weight savings.
We did the math, and the entire Ultralight Curious Kit checked in at 14 pounds 9.8 ounces. That number might not mean much until you see it in context: our Comfort Backpacking Kit and Mid-Ranger Backpacking Kit came in at 22 pounds 2.7 ounces and 20 pounds 6.4 ounces, respectively. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Ultralight Backpacking Kit tipped the scales at just 8 pounds 15 ounces. The main weight offenders in the Ultralight Curious Kit here were the tent, backpack, and stove, which together added almost three pounds compared to the true-blue UL setup. You also don't need to bring a chair, of course.
Here’s the weight breakdown by gear:
- Big Agnes Tiger Wall 2: 2 lb. 8 oz.
- Osprey Exos 58: 2 lb. 13.4 oz.
- Feathered Friends Hummingbird UL 20: 1 lb. 8.2 oz.
- Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite: 13 oz.
- Merrell Moab Speed 2: 1 lb. 8.7 oz.
- Arc'teryx Cerium Hoody: 11.9 oz.
- Black Diamond Fineline Stretch Shell: 11.3 oz.
- Outdoor Research Ferrosi Shorts 7": 13.8 oz.
- Black Diamond Distance Z: 12.9 oz.
- Jetboil Flash: 13.1 oz.
- HydraPak Flux 1.5L + Filter: 5 oz.
- Helinox Chair Zero: 1 lb. 2.5 oz.
Building our kits is always a fun process—but there’s usually some lively debate over what makes the final cut. In the spirit of transparency, here’s a look at some of the other gear we considered for each category:
- Backpacking Tent: Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2
- Backpacking Pack: Gregory Focal 58
- Backpacking Sleeping Bag: Sea to Summit Spark 30F
- Backpacking Sleeping Pad: Nemo Tensor All-Season
- Footwear: Salomon X Ultra 5 GTX
- Down Jacket: Himali Accelerator
- Rain Jacket: REI Co-op XeroCloud 3L
- Trekking Poles: REI Co-op Swiftland TT
Is the Ultralight Curious Backpacking Kit for You?
We built the Ultralight Curious Backpacking Kit for hikers who want to lighten their load without diving headfirst into full-blown ounce-counting territory. This kit is for anyone who’s ever wished their pack felt just a little bit (or a lot) lighter. At Better Trail, we believe that the lighter your load, the more you’ll enjoy your time in the backcountry. And the good news is that most of the gear here isn’t just light—it’s some of the best on the market, period.
That said, there’s a backpacking style for everyone. Whether you prefer to move light and fast or just wander a few miles from the trailhead to sleep under the stars, we’ve got a kit for you. If you want to bring along the comforts of home and don’t mind carrying extra weight, check out our Comfort Backpacking Kit. Penny pinchers will appreciate our Budget Backpacking Kit. And if you’re ready to take a deeper dive into the ultralight world, don’t be shy—our Ultralight Backpacking Kit has you covered.
