My friend has invited me to go Backpacking in Sept. and i was wondering what light you guys would recommend to buy and bring along. The smallest i have is a streamlight propolymer. He has a cheesy light that he probably got at the local drug store so asking him might not be the best idea.
backpacking light
- Thread starter mcl2u
- Start date
BentHeadTX
Flashlight Enthusiast
Depends,
If you are going for the absolutely lightest thing in existance, one of those little coin cell lights would work.
If fractionally more weight is allowed, the Arc AAA is very small, light, waterproof and idiotproof and is a great keychain light. If you want more light, Peak makes single cell AAA/AA lights that use 1,3 or 5 LEDs for that extra punch. They also have CR123a 3 volt lithium powered light that push 7 LEDs.
It depends on what you want for runtime, the brighter the shorter the runtime. If you want decent brightness, fairly light for it's size, waterproof and 11 hours of even regulated brightness get the Underwater Kinetics 4AA. Use lithium AA batteries for lightness and it will float in water. The thing is also bright yellow so it can be seen.
Oh yeah, to go along with the 4AA, throw an Arc AAA on your keychain... very light and a good backup.
If you are going for the absolutely lightest thing in existance, one of those little coin cell lights would work.
If fractionally more weight is allowed, the Arc AAA is very small, light, waterproof and idiotproof and is a great keychain light. If you want more light, Peak makes single cell AAA/AA lights that use 1,3 or 5 LEDs for that extra punch. They also have CR123a 3 volt lithium powered light that push 7 LEDs.
It depends on what you want for runtime, the brighter the shorter the runtime. If you want decent brightness, fairly light for it's size, waterproof and 11 hours of even regulated brightness get the Underwater Kinetics 4AA. Use lithium AA batteries for lightness and it will float in water. The thing is also bright yellow so it can be seen.
Oh yeah, to go along with the 4AA, throw an Arc AAA on your keychain... very light and a good backup.
Lux Luthor
Flashlight Enthusiast
A good approach is a headlamp for shorter range and hands free use, a handheld for more throw, and a keychain light for general (including navigational) use.
An example of a good quality set like this would be a Princeton Tec Aurora, Impact II, and Arc AAA. That will run you through 2 sets of AAAs. You could also go the AA route with stuff like an Inova X1 in place of the Impact II, and could get any number of 2 or 3AA headlamps. An Arc AA is excellent as a general purpose light, but some find it too large for a keychain light (I personally don't). Many other combinations are also possible, of course. It depends if you want mix battery sizes or not.
An example of a good quality set like this would be a Princeton Tec Aurora, Impact II, and Arc AAA. That will run you through 2 sets of AAAs. You could also go the AA route with stuff like an Inova X1 in place of the Impact II, and could get any number of 2 or 3AA headlamps. An Arc AA is excellent as a general purpose light, but some find it too large for a keychain light (I personally don't). Many other combinations are also possible, of course. It depends if you want mix battery sizes or not.
Lux Luthor
Flashlight Enthusiast
EDIT: Sorry about the double post.
Black Diamond Super Nova, Princton Tec Surge or 40 and CMG Infinity. The Infinity will use up the bat's from the others, and all bases are covered. Long throw, short, hands free, long running. It will be heavier than the minimalist approach, but redundancy is good in the middle of nowhere. You just have to decide what luxury's you want most. You can get by with much less, I use to carry just a mini-mag light and Infinity. But I like the above set up much more. But then I have an addiction.
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pedalinbob
Flashlight Enthusiast
i would think you would want something light-weight.
a headlamp is a great idea.
a great setup might be an aurora, attitude, rage and arc aaa. you will probably use some more and some less. the less used would essentially serve as spare bat holders.
lots of great choices out there!
Bob
a headlamp is a great idea.
a great setup might be an aurora, attitude, rage and arc aaa. you will probably use some more and some less. the less used would essentially serve as spare bat holders.
lots of great choices out there!
Bob
Of those 4 lights I think I'd just take the Aurora. The Rage is plausible as a more powerful backup, but not really needed. The Attitude is just redundant if you have the Aurora. The Arc is also redundant, but weighs almost nothing and is a great little light. A coin cell keychain light is a cheaper alternative to the Arc.
Roy
Farewell our Curmudgeon Administrator
pedalinbob
Flashlight Enthusiast
[ QUOTE ]
paulr said:
Of those 4 lights I think I'd just take the Aurora. The Rage is plausible as a more powerful backup, but not really needed. The Attitude is just redundant if you have the Aurora. The Arc is also redundant, but weighs almost nothing and is a great little light. A coin cell keychain light is a cheaper alternative to the Arc.
[/ QUOTE ]
PAUL! quit being so logical! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nana.gif
gotta be one with the flashaholism... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
yup, an aurora could easily do it all.
heck, i hiked in northern michigan for nearly 4 hours with only an infinity ultra--it was plenty bright.
im sure the cheapie dorcy aaa would have ben fine as well.
Bob
paulr said:
Of those 4 lights I think I'd just take the Aurora. The Rage is plausible as a more powerful backup, but not really needed. The Attitude is just redundant if you have the Aurora. The Arc is also redundant, but weighs almost nothing and is a great little light. A coin cell keychain light is a cheaper alternative to the Arc.
[/ QUOTE ]
PAUL! quit being so logical! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/nana.gif
gotta be one with the flashaholism... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
yup, an aurora could easily do it all.
heck, i hiked in northern michigan for nearly 4 hours with only an infinity ultra--it was plenty bright.
im sure the cheapie dorcy aaa would have ben fine as well.
Bob
BlindedByTheLite
Flashlight Enthusiast
when i hike, i take 4 lights. all LED lights.
1). the Underwater Kinetics 4AA eLED - this light is just amazing. it's super-tough, it's waterproof/dustproof/shockproof, when i run it with lithium batteries it keeps its original level of light for close to 15 hours, and that runtime + the level of light you get out of it, is what makes this light the greatest hiking light i ever used. i wouldn't dream of hitting the trails without it.
- this is where you can get it
- this is what Quickbeam thinks of it
2). the Princeton Tec Yukon HL - this light is also super-tough. nearly waterproof/shockproof, you get alotta runtime from either the 5mm LED's (120 hours) or the luxeon (25 hours), and the luxeon is brighter than the original incandescent version of the Yukon. i usually wear this while i'm hiking, even tho i don't often turn it on.
- this is where you can get it
- this is what Quickbeam thinks
3). the Petzl Zipka Plus - super-tough, super-small, super-light. three levels of light (high/medium/low and also a strobe mode), aren't too bothered by water but not waterproof. this is what i use when i'm around the campsite.
- this is where you can get it
- this is what Quickbeam thinks
4). Arc AAA - this is the toughest light on the list (and also the smallest). it's got a good brightness level for using around the campsite when you're making trips to the crap-spot or wearing around you're neck while you're sleeping so you have it @ your disposal, if something arises. also, this light recently just passed my (accidental) 4,000 foot drop test when i dropped it off Mt. Katahdin - the highest mountain in Maine (5,200 feet @ the Appalachain Trail). i hiked the trail where i dropped it the next day, and tho the battery was completely ruined, i cleaned the Arc AAA out and inserted a new battery, and voila, good as new.
- this is where you can get it
- this is what Quickbeam thinks
in addition to these lights, i usually pack 15 lithium AA batteries and carry a couple extra AAA's for the Arc. i've impressed many a Search And Rescue worker, not to mention random hikers sharing trails and campsites, here in Maine. and i spent a little over $100 (i got the Arc AAA for free from a very gracious fellow CPF member), and i'm almost certain that i'm equipped for life (barring some freak accident or abuse of one of the lights).
now, many ppl like having a super-bright light to have with them in case they hear some scary noises off in the darkness, but i personally don't, so i wont reccomend any such lights and i'll leave it to ppl who have experience with that kinda thing (altho i often hear good things about the Princeton Tec Surge).
but there's a few lights to look @. if you had to go with one, i'd reccomend the Underwater Kinetics 4AA eLED for $20 and something brighter for scares. the UK's got a perfect level of brightness for hiking and it will run all night on one set of batteries if necessary.
Disclaimer:
i usually make these same reccomendations to everyone nowadays, haha. but as the saying goes, your mileage may vary.
-Ryan
1). the Underwater Kinetics 4AA eLED - this light is just amazing. it's super-tough, it's waterproof/dustproof/shockproof, when i run it with lithium batteries it keeps its original level of light for close to 15 hours, and that runtime + the level of light you get out of it, is what makes this light the greatest hiking light i ever used. i wouldn't dream of hitting the trails without it.
- this is where you can get it
- this is what Quickbeam thinks of it
2). the Princeton Tec Yukon HL - this light is also super-tough. nearly waterproof/shockproof, you get alotta runtime from either the 5mm LED's (120 hours) or the luxeon (25 hours), and the luxeon is brighter than the original incandescent version of the Yukon. i usually wear this while i'm hiking, even tho i don't often turn it on.
- this is where you can get it
- this is what Quickbeam thinks
3). the Petzl Zipka Plus - super-tough, super-small, super-light. three levels of light (high/medium/low and also a strobe mode), aren't too bothered by water but not waterproof. this is what i use when i'm around the campsite.
- this is where you can get it
- this is what Quickbeam thinks
4). Arc AAA - this is the toughest light on the list (and also the smallest). it's got a good brightness level for using around the campsite when you're making trips to the crap-spot or wearing around you're neck while you're sleeping so you have it @ your disposal, if something arises. also, this light recently just passed my (accidental) 4,000 foot drop test when i dropped it off Mt. Katahdin - the highest mountain in Maine (5,200 feet @ the Appalachain Trail). i hiked the trail where i dropped it the next day, and tho the battery was completely ruined, i cleaned the Arc AAA out and inserted a new battery, and voila, good as new.
- this is where you can get it
- this is what Quickbeam thinks
in addition to these lights, i usually pack 15 lithium AA batteries and carry a couple extra AAA's for the Arc. i've impressed many a Search And Rescue worker, not to mention random hikers sharing trails and campsites, here in Maine. and i spent a little over $100 (i got the Arc AAA for free from a very gracious fellow CPF member), and i'm almost certain that i'm equipped for life (barring some freak accident or abuse of one of the lights).
now, many ppl like having a super-bright light to have with them in case they hear some scary noises off in the darkness, but i personally don't, so i wont reccomend any such lights and i'll leave it to ppl who have experience with that kinda thing (altho i often hear good things about the Princeton Tec Surge).
but there's a few lights to look @. if you had to go with one, i'd reccomend the Underwater Kinetics 4AA eLED for $20 and something brighter for scares. the UK's got a perfect level of brightness for hiking and it will run all night on one set of batteries if necessary.
Disclaimer:
i usually make these same reccomendations to everyone nowadays, haha. but as the saying goes, your mileage may vary.
-Ryan
[ QUOTE ]
mcl2u said:
My friend has invited me to go Backpacking in Sept. and i was wondering what light you guys would recommend to buy and bring along. The smallest i have is a streamlight propolymer. He has a cheesy light that he probably got at the local drug store so asking him might not be the best idea.
[/ QUOTE ]
How many days will you be out for? What type of terain? What types of situations would you like to prepare for?
Oh, and what is the budget?
-john
mcl2u said:
My friend has invited me to go Backpacking in Sept. and i was wondering what light you guys would recommend to buy and bring along. The smallest i have is a streamlight propolymer. He has a cheesy light that he probably got at the local drug store so asking him might not be the best idea.
[/ QUOTE ]
How many days will you be out for? What type of terain? What types of situations would you like to prepare for?
Oh, and what is the budget?
-john
4x4Dragon
Flashlight Enthusiast
another vote for the UK 4aa eled! all you'd probably need is just a fresh set of AA's in the light for the whole trip, granted your not going for more than a week. this is now my primary backpacking light as i do night hiking on each trip. when i can afford some more weight i take my Elektrolumens Anglelux with me. a backup light or headlamp never hurts either. if you're wanting a quick, easy, and cheap headlamp and multipurpose led light, get the Streamlight Clipmate, highly UNDER-rated. comes with a lanyard and a 3 point headband. it will unclip from the headstrap and clip onto just about anything else. it pivots too for directional use.
jayflash
Flashlight Enthusiast
mcl2u, the ProPolys are good lights, being tough and waterproof. My old PP 4AA & 3C were improved by applying a single layer of Scotch SATIN tape to the lens - that smoothed out the ringy beam. Unless you need to see very far away the PP should be good for 100 or more feet.
Headlights are very convenient and a good recommendation. You could buy a $5 NiteIze head band which holds Arc AAA to 2AA+ size lights, if you don't want to buy a headlight yet or need to keep bulk down. A real headlight is easier to aim but if you already have good, small, lights, they can be used hands free with the NiteIze.
The UKE LED sounds like a winner - I'll have to get one, myself, someday.
An Arc AAA, or similar, hides in one's pocket until needed and provides enough light for walking trail when it's very dark. The UKE will be more useful, much of the time, but a backup AAA is enough for emergencies and low light needs - like in the wee hours so you don't wake anybody.
Keep us posted and have fun!
Headlights are very convenient and a good recommendation. You could buy a $5 NiteIze head band which holds Arc AAA to 2AA+ size lights, if you don't want to buy a headlight yet or need to keep bulk down. A real headlight is easier to aim but if you already have good, small, lights, they can be used hands free with the NiteIze.
The UKE LED sounds like a winner - I'll have to get one, myself, someday.
An Arc AAA, or similar, hides in one's pocket until needed and provides enough light for walking trail when it's very dark. The UKE will be more useful, much of the time, but a backup AAA is enough for emergencies and low light needs - like in the wee hours so you don't wake anybody.
Keep us posted and have fun!
my vote goes to the aurora or tikka+ or zipka+ headlamps. cause when you are actually camped, you'd want to scrounge around the place. nothings better than having two hands free! even when we car camp i used my tikka+ for bbq's and stuff. The multi level lighting is just a big plus when you read(low light) compared to running around the campsite(high setting). any extra flashlights will be taking up packing space when you are back packing. Use that extra space for a mini butane lantern if you really need a bright area light.
Stanley
Flashlight Enthusiast
I'd agree on the importance of a Led headlamp as well. Trust me, you'll be thankful you brought one along... Also, I'd like to chime in and put a vote for an Eternalight as well. I had my Ergo 3 (among others) on a recent camping trip, and the dimmable function was very useful in many situations. Else a Twintask 2L is also a good sized light with dual lighting functions as well. Oh, almost forgot, I always have an Ultra G (Infinity Ultra) on a neck lanyard as a backup to all my other lights as well...
leukos
Flashlight Enthusiast
I vote for the Princeton Tec Aurora as well. Lots of run time, 3 brightness levels. You might want to bring a Streamlight TL-2 for the incandescent just to spot what may be creeping up to your campsite.
It would help if you were a little more specific about your plans. Without further more info I'll make a few assumptions that might be wrong:
1) You're going on a normal backpacking trip, not an expedition. That is, you'll be out for a few weeks or less, not several months; you're in someplace with reasonable climate during the summer, not Antartica; etc. You're not an ultralight extremist but you don't want to carry heavy stuff unnecessarily.
2) You'll be walking mostly during the daytime; flashlights will be used for setting up camp at night, and maybe occasionally spotting something at a distance, but you're not going to try to cross miles of difficult terrain in the dark. Carrying 5 lights and dozens of batteries is pointless unless you're a flashaholic.
Now I'll reveal a dirty secret of flashaholism (CPF regulars may want to shut your eyes). If you take two similar-looking flashlights, X and Y, where X is 10% brighter than Y, and point them both at a wall, it's pretty easy to tell that X is brighter, and this is why CPF'ers spend so much time pointing flashlights at walls and photographing the beams on the wall. But if you actually use one Monday night and use the other Tuesday night, it's quite hard to notice any difference. X really has to be 2x as bright as Y for the difference to really be noticable in practice, and it has to be 4x brighter to be comfortably useable in any situation where Y isn't at least marginally useable.
Where were we, oh yes. The PT Aurora and Attitude both use three 5mm LED's and thus are noticably (maybe not really 3x but close enough) brighter than a CMG Infinity Ultra which uses one LED. But anywhere you can use an Attitude comfortably, you can probably get by with an Ultra. Similarly, the UKE 4AA eLED, which uses a Luxeon side emitter at about 250 mA, is maybe 2x brighter than the Attitude/Aurora. So the difference is noticable but the Attitude/Aurora can generally get you by. The UKE 2L or 4AA xenon, or the SL 4AA ProPoly xenon, (that's what I assume that you have), or the PT Rage, will be about 3x brighter than the 4AA eLED and also more directional, so they'll be at least 5x brighter in the beam center, so you'll be able to spot faraway objects with them in a way that you simply can't with the eLED.
Note also, you can put the 4AA eLED head onto the UK 2L body which uses two CR123 cells and is about half the size of the 4AA body. Also, there's a 7-LED lamp assembly for the SL 4AA ProPolymer that's interchangeable with the xenon assembly. It's functionally similar to the UK 4AA eLED, though the UK is regulated and nicer in some ways.
Where is this going. If you think your 4AA ProPoly isn't too heavy, and if you want an LED light, you might just get the 7-LED LA for it and maybe carry the xenon LA in your pack just in case you need a bright light. The LA's don't weigh much.
If you want something lighter, I'd go for the Aurora or Attitude (probably the Aurora since a handsfree light is very useful for setting up a tent), or even just the Ultra or Arc AAA (either of which you can use handsfree by putting it on a baseball cap brim using its pocket clip). The Rage LA will fit in the Attitude so that would give you an LED/Xenon combo like with the ProPoly, but you may not really care.
Finally, I like to carry a small light with a red LED (something like a Photon II is plenty for this) since those are unobtrusive and nice for walking around camp at night without messing up your night vision. This isn't a requirement though.
1) You're going on a normal backpacking trip, not an expedition. That is, you'll be out for a few weeks or less, not several months; you're in someplace with reasonable climate during the summer, not Antartica; etc. You're not an ultralight extremist but you don't want to carry heavy stuff unnecessarily.
2) You'll be walking mostly during the daytime; flashlights will be used for setting up camp at night, and maybe occasionally spotting something at a distance, but you're not going to try to cross miles of difficult terrain in the dark. Carrying 5 lights and dozens of batteries is pointless unless you're a flashaholic.
Now I'll reveal a dirty secret of flashaholism (CPF regulars may want to shut your eyes). If you take two similar-looking flashlights, X and Y, where X is 10% brighter than Y, and point them both at a wall, it's pretty easy to tell that X is brighter, and this is why CPF'ers spend so much time pointing flashlights at walls and photographing the beams on the wall. But if you actually use one Monday night and use the other Tuesday night, it's quite hard to notice any difference. X really has to be 2x as bright as Y for the difference to really be noticable in practice, and it has to be 4x brighter to be comfortably useable in any situation where Y isn't at least marginally useable.
Where were we, oh yes. The PT Aurora and Attitude both use three 5mm LED's and thus are noticably (maybe not really 3x but close enough) brighter than a CMG Infinity Ultra which uses one LED. But anywhere you can use an Attitude comfortably, you can probably get by with an Ultra. Similarly, the UKE 4AA eLED, which uses a Luxeon side emitter at about 250 mA, is maybe 2x brighter than the Attitude/Aurora. So the difference is noticable but the Attitude/Aurora can generally get you by. The UKE 2L or 4AA xenon, or the SL 4AA ProPoly xenon, (that's what I assume that you have), or the PT Rage, will be about 3x brighter than the 4AA eLED and also more directional, so they'll be at least 5x brighter in the beam center, so you'll be able to spot faraway objects with them in a way that you simply can't with the eLED.
Note also, you can put the 4AA eLED head onto the UK 2L body which uses two CR123 cells and is about half the size of the 4AA body. Also, there's a 7-LED lamp assembly for the SL 4AA ProPolymer that's interchangeable with the xenon assembly. It's functionally similar to the UK 4AA eLED, though the UK is regulated and nicer in some ways.
Where is this going. If you think your 4AA ProPoly isn't too heavy, and if you want an LED light, you might just get the 7-LED LA for it and maybe carry the xenon LA in your pack just in case you need a bright light. The LA's don't weigh much.
If you want something lighter, I'd go for the Aurora or Attitude (probably the Aurora since a handsfree light is very useful for setting up a tent), or even just the Ultra or Arc AAA (either of which you can use handsfree by putting it on a baseball cap brim using its pocket clip). The Rage LA will fit in the Attitude so that would give you an LED/Xenon combo like with the ProPoly, but you may not really care.
Finally, I like to carry a small light with a red LED (something like a Photon II is plenty for this) since those are unobtrusive and nice for walking around camp at night without messing up your night vision. This isn't a requirement though.
[ QUOTE ]
paulr said:
Now I'll reveal a dirty secret of flashaholism (CPF regulars may want to shut your eyes). If you take two similar-looking flashlights, X and Y, where X is 10% brighter than Y, and point them both at a wall, it's pretty easy to tell that X is brighter, and this is why CPF'ers spend so much time pointing flashlights at walls and photographing the beams on the wall. But if you actually use one Monday night and use the other Tuesday night, it's quite hard to notice any difference. X really has to be 2x as bright as Y for the difference to really be noticable in practice, and it has to be 4x brighter to be comfortably useable in any situation where Y isn't at least marginally useable.
[/ QUOTE ]
Excellent point!
While we're revealing dirty little secrets of flashaholism, perfectly shaped, smooth beams with little or no artifacts have absolutely no value unless you're only going to shine them at blank walls (IMO).
In my pack, I carry a PT 40 with an Inova Microlight (as backup) attached to the lanyard.
Whatever you decide on, make sure the switch mechanisms are designed so that the light won't easily turn on and STAY on while it's in your pack.
paulr said:
Now I'll reveal a dirty secret of flashaholism (CPF regulars may want to shut your eyes). If you take two similar-looking flashlights, X and Y, where X is 10% brighter than Y, and point them both at a wall, it's pretty easy to tell that X is brighter, and this is why CPF'ers spend so much time pointing flashlights at walls and photographing the beams on the wall. But if you actually use one Monday night and use the other Tuesday night, it's quite hard to notice any difference. X really has to be 2x as bright as Y for the difference to really be noticable in practice, and it has to be 4x brighter to be comfortably useable in any situation where Y isn't at least marginally useable.
[/ QUOTE ]
Excellent point!
While we're revealing dirty little secrets of flashaholism, perfectly shaped, smooth beams with little or no artifacts have absolutely no value unless you're only going to shine them at blank walls (IMO).
In my pack, I carry a PT 40 with an Inova Microlight (as backup) attached to the lanyard.
Whatever you decide on, make sure the switch mechanisms are designed so that the light won't easily turn on and STAY on while it's in your pack.
