I’m new to the community and thought a little activity on the community couldn’t hurt!
I am a pretty large guy (6’2", 240lbs) who’s also pushing 50. As much as I’d like to do ultralight, I struggle to keep my base weight around 20lbs because I need large gear and sleeping on the ground is not that sexy for me. Plus… I have a chair because sitting on the ground is about as unsexy as sleeping on the ground is. I started off with a 50+lb pack and have gotten better gear as I’ve gotten more into backpacking.
I’ve done the CA section of PCT and now I do section hikes on the AT as I live on the east coast now. My trail name is JoePaca, and if you’ve seen me at a camp, I’m pretty easy to remember.
I’m happy to give honest opinions on any of the gear in my list, but I’m pretty happy with all of it.
I’m totally with you on the camping chair. I consider it a nonnegotiable luxury. Jetboils are awesome. Could cut some weight by swapping out the bear vault for and Opsak Loksak. I haven’t had any problems with critters being attracted since using that and it weighs nothing. I do put that inside a more durable sack and hang up in a tree. Another luxury item I like to take is a hand chainsaw. Very little weight and makes cutting down bigger sticks much easier and safer. Overall sounds like a great setup friend!