Printable kit · 11 worksheets
The Base Weight Reduction Planner
- 11 fill-in worksheets, 36 print pages
- 2 filled-in examples to copy from
- Online buyer guide with current prices
Replaces the spreadsheet you were going to build yourself and the sticky note that says "did I weigh the tent yet".
30-day money-back guarantee. Use it all; if it doesn't help, every dollar back.
Fill in your gear once, in ounces you actually measured, and every other sheet in the kit, the shakedown, the Big Three budget, the sleep system estimate, the trip countdown, works from that same number instead of a guess.
Look inside
Real pages from the PDF you download, including both filled-in examples. Swipe or scroll.
What's in it
See all 11 worksheet titles
- Trip Numbers, At A Glance
- Gear Inventory & Base Weight
- The Shakedown
- The Big Three
- Kit Budget & Buying Order
- Sleep System & Temperature
- Food Planning by Calorie Density
- Water Carry & Treatment
- Pack Volume & Load Plan
- Trip Prep Countdown
- Trip Log & Post-Trip Cut List
Also included
- 2 filled-in example worksheets. Gear Inventory & Base Weight and The Big Three, worked through with real numbers, so you can see a finished page before you start.
- 1 companion spreadsheet. The working spreadsheet version of the gear inventory and kit budget sheets, with the totals already formatted as formulas so the running weight and the running spend update themselves as you add rows, plus a trip log tab for every season after this one. Tabs: Gear inventory, Kit budget, Trip log.
- 1 start-here page. The four sheets to fill in the first 20 minutes, and which sheet to reach for when.
Plus the online buyer guide
Three priced complete gear lists, budget three season through sub-10 pound ultralight, every item priced and linked, plus every product the kit names, kept current on this site. Your kit links straight to it, so the prices you plan with are today's, not the day the PDF was printed.
Who it's for
- A first-time backpacker who wants their own base weight recorded before buying anything, not a spreadsheet borrowed from a forum post
- Someone shaking down an existing kit before the Big Three, so free weight comes off before money gets spent
- A hiker planning a specific trip, a thru-hike, a winter trip or a desert stretch, who wants the sleep system, food and water numbers worked out on paper before the trailhead
- Anyone who has arrived at a trailhead and discovered the pack was heavier than the spreadsheet said
Who made this
Built by UltraLightSetup.com from the same base weight, sleep system and water carry arithmetic already published free on the site, put into a form you fill in with your own gear instead of reading someone else’s kit list.
30-day money-back guarantee
Use the whole kit. If it doesn’t help, fill in the refund form within 30 days and you get every dollar back. No questions asked. Refund form.
Questions
Is this a substitute for trip planning or survival training?
No. It is a set of planning worksheets that record the numbers backpacking decisions actually depend on, such as base weight, sleep system comfort and water carry. It is not instruction, not a guarantee of safety, and not a substitute for knowing your own conditions, route and skills.
Does it work for any kind of backpacking, or only ultralight?
Any base weight. The shakedown and Big Three sheets are exactly where the savings show up first for a traditional or lightweight kit, and the sleep, food, water and prep sheets apply to any trip regardless of starting weight.
What if I already track my gear in a spreadsheet?
Then the inventory sheet takes a few minutes to copy over, and the value shifts to the trip-specific sheets: the sleep system estimate, the food and water planning, and the prep countdown, which are the pages a general spreadsheet usually skips.
Is there a refund if it does not help?
Yes, a full 30-day money-back guarantee with no argument. Use the whole kit, and if it does not help, the refund form on the contact page gets every dollar back. Refund form.
The Base Weight Reduction Planner
11 worksheets · 36 pages · examples, workbook and online buyer guide