What veterans actually carry on a 12-hour Cascades day — and where they cut weight without cutting safety.
Alpine climbing is the discipline where buying the wrong gear costs you more than money. Weight, layering, redundancy. Here's the kit that works.
HARNESS:a 250g adjustable-leg-loop harness like the Northstone Featherweight. Don't bring your sport harness above the trees.
HELMET:hybrid construction (in-mold + EPS) at 200-250g. The Höhenwerk Vertex covers it.
ROPE:a 9.0mm single or a half-rope pair, depending on objective. Dry treated, no exceptions.
LAYERING:stretch soft shell as the outer 80% of the day; bring a 200g down puffy and a 6oz hardshell for the other 20%. The Crux Soft Shell is the soft-shell answer.
WEIGHT:aim for a 12-15kg pack including ropes and rack for a single-day technical objective.
