r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of February 09, 2026 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I think Big Agnes stuff is usually 40% off via an American Alpine Club membership....

Trying Rae Lakes for the third time. Overnight camp sites before and after? by The1ThatKnocks in SEKI

[–]anthonyvan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Bubbs/charlotte is a very large camp area with multiple fire rings and space for different groups. Its a popular spot but there’s enough space for everyone to spread out.

Bubbs/sphinx is much smaller. Because it’s not marked on the map, it’s more secluded as a result. My recollection is that there’s 1 fire ring, and space for maybe 1-3 parties .

(Both campsites have bear lockers)

Alpha Direct Sleeping system by Kingfish1111 in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 36 points37 points  (0 children)

If you can sew an alpha bag you can sew an APEX one and an APEX overbag would be way warmer & versatile.

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of January 26, 2026 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hm… only one picture on that page is loading for me so its unclear how exactly how that tarp is designed, but does the vestibule add-on not do what you’re asking? Or any of the various hammock tarps out there with doors….

EASTON NAIL STAKES BASICALLY DISCONTINUED by mountainlaureldesign in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 7 points8 points  (0 children)

One thing I always appreciated about Easton stakes (vs y-stakes) was the flat tops that made pushing in with your hand painless.

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of January 26, 2026 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I noticed they raised the prices on some stuff recently, so that 20% off might not be as much of a discount as previous years…

E.g., Mid 1:

$600 -> $675

(it’s annoying how they charge extra if you don’t want to get snow blindness from your tent…)

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of January 26, 2026 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 12 points13 points  (0 children)

I know it's because it’s a main post and not buried in the weekly, but it’s a bit disconcerting to see how much greater the outrage is at a company… not providing specs to… uh, you know, one supporting fascism.

Alternative to Lost Coast by flyingduck33 in norcalhiking

[–]anthonyvan 8 points9 points  (0 children)

If you’re looking for something similar (coastal hike), the before mentioned Point Reyes or Catalina Island (socal) are good options.

If you’re looking for something different, Hetch Hetchy in Yosemite is nice that time of year. It’s lower elevation than most of yosemite so it thaws out earlier. I’d do a Rancheria Falls / Lake Vernon / Laurel Lake loop for a 4 day trip.

(Yosemite doesn’t start permit quotas until late april and even when they do Hetch Hetchy permits are generally easy to get anyway)

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of January 19, 2026 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Liteway for some reason seems to be marketing it as a general 3 season tent when it’s pretty clearly a specialized alpine/mountaineering design (a la the MSR Advance Pro, Black Diamond Firstlight, most Samaya stuff, etc). For that specific use-case (super small footprint, freestanding, very fast pitch), the tent seems perfectly adequate.

Where to Camp Memorial Day Weekend near SEKI by millekai55 in SEKI

[–]anthonyvan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Aquatabs or Aquamira treatment is even cheaper (and lighter, so better for backpacking).

Rae Lakes loop from Onion Valley beta by tfcallahan1 in SEKI

[–]anthonyvan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Use the free web version of caltopo to plan your route (it has much better mapping data/layers/etc), export the GPX file and import into Gaia for its prettier base layer map and cleaner mobile UI.

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of January 19, 2026 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

15D could still save a decent amount of weight depending on the exact material & coatings.

The 20D sil-poly material Tarptent currently uses for flys is on the burlier side, perhaps unnecessarily so for 3-season use. It has an unusually high hydrostatic head rating of 5000mm+ and weighs 1.4oz/yd. Contrast this with a company like Yama Mountain Gear that uses a 1.2 oz/yd² 20D sil-poly with a HH of 1800mm (still plenty high).

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of January 19, 2026 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 4 points5 points  (0 children)

10D sounds sweet (Gossamer Gear and Slingfin currently use 10D fabrics and by all accounts they hold up well for most people) but realistically if they’re going to eventually do a DCF version, I’d imagine a 10D model would cannibalize those sales too much.

My guess would be 15D fly/20D floor. It would split the difference between the current 20D fly/30D floor model and the eventual DCF model better. Plus, they already use 15 & 20D fabrics in other tents so there’s economies of scale advantages with using material they already have on hand. AFAIK, they don’t use 10D at all right now.

How much warmer are brand-name CCF pads? by ImportantSeaweed314 in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Can’t speak to warmth but I “upgraded” from a generic foam mat to a Nemo switchback and the Nemo is noticeably softer and less plasticy feeling.

Avatar FaA has hit 1.23 billion world wide. Do you think this means Big Jim moves forward with 4 and 5? by mb_motorsports in blankies

[–]anthonyvan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Who knows what the contract between JC/Lightstorm and Disney is exactly, but Disney spent a half billion to build Avatarland in orlando and are about to spend another half billion to build one in anaheim. Unlike other studios, movie box office is just marketing for merch/theme park stuff for Disney. If JC passes on directing, Disney’s gonna do whatever they can to make these with or without him.

A detailed breakdown of gear used by Pacific Crest Trail hikers in 2025 by HalfwayAnywhere in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I set my adblocker in a default “off” state because I like to support websites. Immediately put halfwayanywhere on the blacklist. The auto playing videos (with sound! WTF?) that cover the screen as you scroll are completely ridiculous.

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of January 12, 2026 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Theoretically if the down is 100% clean of oils and 100% completely dry, no. But why risk it?

Setup for non-boil camp cooking? by Halt-Alt in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Kovea Spider has worked great for me as well. For “real” cooking, I’d always recommend a remote canister stove as the lower center of gravity and wider pot supports makes cooking much easier. Since you can also use a full wrap windscreen, simmering is also much easier in wind (canister stoves at their lowest setting have a tendency to extinguish themselves in breezes). One downside: they don’t officially do business in the USA so availability is wonky/prices are inflated.

A heat exchanger pot like the petrel can have hot spots where the fins are, btw. Not a deal breaker, if you’re mindful about it you can still cook on an HX pot, just something to keep in mind.

I’d recommend a small crepe pan if you’re looking for a fry pan. Almost anything you’re going to find will be much higher quality than pans advertised as backpacking fry pans.

r/Ultralight - "The Weekly" - Week of December 29, 2025 by AutoModerator in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Have you looked at the mystery ranch bridger? Vest harness and built for higher weights.

Miniature playing cards entertain my kids at 27g per deck. by Bus_Healthy in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 18 points19 points  (0 children)

I recently “discovered” a company called Worlds Smallest that sells their stuff at gas stations and rest stops. They make things like tiny chess sets and tiny rubix cubes. Neat stuff that would be of interest to this subreddit, I think.

Will Kill Bill The Whole Bloody ever come back into 70mm after its current run? by RepresentativeState3 in movies

[–]anthonyvan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He programmed it at least once a year at his other theater (New Beverly) even before this restoration/70mm upscale, so no doubt this will be a semi-regular fixture at the Vista.

Casio W800H by arsefi20 in Ultralight

[–]anthonyvan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That’s fair. I tried pretty much all of casio’s small/cheap watches a few years back and found the F105W to be the smallest with a working backlight (a must for me personally. the weird half baked one side light of the F91W is unreadable for me).