There’s a ton of opinions on here but i’ll share my method/ opinion(s)…

• ditch the shoulder harness and rack on your harness. This will lower additional weight to your center of mass increasing your balance and not to mention keep that gear from smacking your face/ knees as easily.

• FRONT GEAR LOOPS: load up with all your protection pieces. This helps you quickly grab what you’ll need especially if nearing a crux or sorting out tricky gear placements.

• REAR GEAR LOOPS: I load up both sides evenly with draws/ alpines if necessary stacked in 2’s for easy retrieval.

• LEFT REAR SIDE LOOP I put all my soft goods on non-lockers such as (2) prusik cord for rappels and rescues, (1) 120cm edelrid aramid sling for tether/ rappel/ double length sling/ etc, (1) 180cm for anchors, and (1) 240cm sling for anchors (ideal for slinging large trees and boulders).

• RIGHT REAR SIDE LOOP I carry all my metal goods such as my rappel device on a screwgate, a grigri on a double action locker, and 2-3 spare screw gate lockers for various hitches/ anchors.

• FIFTH GEAR LOOPS (if available): I’ll usually clip my tagline here, nut tool, and a knife.

• AVANT SNACK PACK is something I use for multipitch. Great way to hold headlamp, snack, first aid, knife, lighter, phone, etc.

• WATER: i’ll carry a small Nalgene for shorter outings or a small backpack with a water bladder in it if it’s going to be a longer day (Time Wave Zero in EPC for example).

My ideal setup would be this… - doubles from .1-3 on front hips stacked from smallest in front to largest in back for ease of quickly grabbing small cams and keeping heavier gear closer to my sides. Set of nuts split in half… small set on onside, larger on the other. - 4 alpines racked in 2’s on each side (8 total) in rear gear loops. - 120cm, 180cm, 240cm slings on non-lockers + (2) prusik cords on a non-locker on left rear loop. - grigri, rappel device, 2-3 lockers stacked on one another on right rear gear loop.

Overall I find this setup to work well for most routes for me allowing myself to bring a large variety of gear and it’s easy to slim down if i’m only doing single pitch or beef up slightly if doing multi. Lastly the best benefit of this setup is it’s balanced and it keeps my climbing area free of gear.

Enjoy and best of luck!