Hiker boxes are repositories of gear mistakes and regrets. Ideas don't pan out. Gear doesn't perform as hoped. Failures get dumped in hiker boxes.
We've rummaged through hundreds of hiker boxes over the years, and we've found many of the same things over and over again. Things like blue jeans, rolls of duct tape, and aluminum water bottles
are so ubiquitous, especially toward the start of major trails, we decided it was a good idea to create a list of common items that hikers bring with them, only to quickly discover their
mistake.
aluminum water bottles
nice alternative to plastic bottles while at the gym, but too heavy for the trail
Nalgene bottles
surprisingly heavy considering they're just plastic
2lb peanut butter jars
you save money when buying in bulk, but you don't save your knees and back from strain
big jar of Gatorade powder
Gatorade is mostly sugar and food coloring so replace electrolytes with a lighter alternative like Propel
fuel cans greater than 4oz
needlessly heavy, especially considering how little money is saved by buying larger cans
plates & cups
eat from your cooking pot and drink from your water bottle
skillet / frying pan
you can make everything you need in a single pot
deodorant
who are you trying to impress?
shaving cream
if shaving while in town, just use soap
shampoo
the shampoo provided at hotels is sufficient
metal shovel
that plastic orange trowel may look dinky, but it gets the job done - you don't need an entrenching tool
jeans
not only does cotton kill but jeans are heavy & uncomfortable to hike in
leather, snake-proof gaiters
you are hiking a well-defined trail, not bushwhacking like a hunter or archaeologist
cotton clothes for town & camp
yes, cotton is comfortable and familiar, but you will get used to your synthetic clothes
bug spray in a metal container
while most bug spray is sold in aluminum spray cans you can find small plastic bottles
flashlight
headlamps are more practical and lighter
headlamps sold at auto parts store
these are huge and heavy, like flashlights
blue tarps
the blue polyethylene tarps at hardware stores are impossibly heavy compared to a silnylon or Tyvek tarp
large carabiners
you won't be supporting your own weight with one so you don't need 'em to be big or steel
entire roll of tape
duct tape & electrical tape can be handy, but you don't need entire rolls
PVC vinyl dry bags
they don't keep gear any drier than silnylon bags, and they're much heavier
rope / parachute chord
thin nylon line is all you need for a bear bag line
more than one paperback book
bounce the second book ahead
tablets
is a small computer really more useful than a smart phone and worth the extra weight?
saws & hatchets
cutting and chopping wood violates Leave No Trace and besides, it's unnecessary
machete
you are walking an established trail, not bushwhacking through a South American jungle
knife with a blade longer than 2 inches
big Rambo knives are useful only in the wildly improbable circumstance that you are in a survival situation with literally no other gear
gun
if it's not self-evident, we probably can't convince you otherwise