The Gear I Used On The Moray Way

Last camp of the walk by the river Spey

The weather on my week-long Moray Way walk in late May was pleasant. There was a strong wind the first four days but it wasn’t cold and although often cloudy there were only a few very short showers – my waterproofs never came out of the pack. The last two days were hot and sunny, making water and sunscreen the two most important items in my pack. I required copious amounts of both.

The weather was not challenging for gear. The Moray Way is a low-level walk. On the windiest days I had no problem finding sheltered places to camp. Nights were mild with the temperature only once falling below 10°C. Underfoot the ground was dry and often hard. Much of the route follows disused railway lines and too much is on tarmac or hard packed forest roads. I found it harder on the feet than mountain walking where there is more variety underfoot and much less regular pounding on a flat surface. Rougher terrain was actually welcome.

Here’s a breakdown of my gear.

Pack: Hyperlite Mountain Gear Junction 55

This was my first use of this pack and it was fine. At 910 grams it’s ultralight but still has an internal frame. It carried 12kg comfortably. At 16kg (when I had four litres of water) it did pull down on the shoulders and hips a bit but I didn’t have any soreness or aching. The design is fairly standard for lightweight packs – roll top, mesh front pocket, open-topped side pockets, hipbelt pockets, and compression/adjustment straps. The fabric is a Dyneema Composite one and it has taped seams. It’s probably waterproof – the few brief showers on the trip were not enough to test this.

Tent: Mountain Laurel Designs SoloMid Xl with InnerNet

The SoloMid pyramid tent has become a favourite shelter in recent years. I like the headroom, the space, and being able to pitch it with a trekking pole. I took the InnerNet, which effectively makes it a double-wall tent, in case the first midges were out. They weren’t and I never did up the inner doors. The total weight with pegs was 1020 grams, so still very light for such a roomy shelter. I only had one light shower in camp and the wind was never strong enough to be a problem so I never closed the outer door either.

I pitched the SoloMid with a Pacerpole and used a pair of these throughout the walk, as I have on every trip for many years.
 

Sleeping Bag: Rab Mythic Ultra 120

Launched just two years ago this down bag has already gone from Rab’s range, which is a shame as I find it excellent for summer use. (It is still available for now though). It’s ultralight at 330 grams and packs into a tiny bundle. There’s no fill on the bottom of the upper half, just thin nylon and straps to hold it in place on a sleeping mat. I don’t use these so I can sit up in the bag without the mat coming with me. The upper is wide enough that I can wrap it around me to stay warm and keep out drafts. The lower section is insulated top and bottom.

Sleeping Mats: Therm-A-Rest NeoAir XLite & MultiMatSuperlite 8

As has been my approach for several years now I took two mats – one for comfort, one for security. I’ve had too many failures to trust inflatable mats anymore. The inflatable XLite is comfortable enough and lightweight at 370 grams. The closed cell foam Superlite 8 is not very comfortable but can’t be punctured and weighs only 190 grams. The Superlite is bulky too. I couldn’t decide whether strapping it to one of the sides, which impedes the pocket, or on top, which impedes access to the main pack, so I alternated between the two. 

Stove & Pot: Fire Maple Petrel Titanium UltralightStove & Fire Maple Ramen 800ml Pot

These two items work together, the heat exchanger pot slotting onto the stove to give a stable unit. I took them because I’d be resupplying with food that needed simmering and I wanted to eat out of the pot. The Petrel stove simmers well and the Ramen pot is wide rather than tall and narrow and so much easier for stirring food and for eating from. Both are lightweight - the stove 96 grams, the pot 194 grams. They worked fine.

Mugs, Cups, Spoons, Bottles & More

I took two drinking vessels – the Snow Peak TitaniumBackpackers Cup (37 grams), which is the classic Sierra Cup design, and is useful for dipping water out of burns and could double as cooking pot if needed, and the Sea To Summit X-Mug (68g), which folds flat, holds more and keeps drinks warmer than the Cup. I didn’t really need both of them but I did use both.

I also took two titanium spoons – a standard one and a long-handled one. Again, one would have done but I like two in case of loss (it has happened). I also prefer the shorter one except when eating out of food packets.

The total weight of the pot, stove, mug, cup, spoons, lighter and fire steel, all carried in a mesh bag, was 520 grams.

One concern was water. Both how often there’d be sources and how clean these would be. With the first I ended up carrying four litres of water for the last few hours on several days, both for camp and to get me to the next source the following morning. For water that needed treating I took the LifeSystems Peak Series 650ml Collapsible Squeeze Bottle Water Filter System which I used enough to justify its 120-gram weight, especially on the coastal section where any running water had come through farmland, villages or both.

Otherwise, for day use I had my now twenty+ year-old GoLite 700ml hard plastic bottle. I like it because it’s light at 78 grams and has a wide mouth and so is easy to fill. For camp and when much water had to be carried, I had two collapsible water bags, a 2-litre Platypus (45 grams) and a 2-litre Hydropak (80 grams). These three are all I usually take on backpacking trips.

Clothing

Clothing was about comfort and staying cool rather than dealing with storms or cold. The first four days I walked in nylon trail pants (EddieBauer Guide Pro, 400 grams) and a polyester Rohan shirt (so old I’ve forgotten the name – the current Frontier shirt looks similar) that I like because it closes with studs not buttons and has big pockets. These kept off the wind and didn’t get sweaty. I did take a windshirt – I always do – a now well-worn PatagoniaHoudini (110g) but I only wore it a few times as the wind wasn’t cold.

Once the weather was warmer I changed to an old pair of shorts and a favourite BAM bamboo T-shirt, which is very soft, very comfortable, and after much wear somewhat disreputable.

I had one warm garment, which I wore in camp early and late when the temperature dropped to around 10°C. This was another favourite, the very light (220 grams) insulated Berghaus Hydroshell hooded jacket (now replaced by the very similar MTN Arete Synthetic Hoody). It was all I needed.

Waterproofs, unworn but I’d never leave them behind, were the 335-gram Montane Cetus Lite jacket and an old pair of Berghaus Paclite overtrousers (225 grams).

Shoes

Altra Lone Peak shoes have been my favourite hiking footwear for many years and they were fine for this trip as I expected. I wore them with thin Darn Tough socks the first four days and then without socks for the warmer last three days.

Other Stuff

I had a tiny headlamp (Petzl Bindi), Kindle, compass, first aid kit, repair kit, and various other items. Camera gear of course and smartphone and power banks and accessories. Lots of little things in fact that lived in some zipped bags.

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Note 2: All photos were taken on the walk.

Note 3: After the walk I made a video about the gear I used.