Bibbulmun Track Gear Guide (2024 Survey)
At 1000km long, the Bibbulmun Track, is one of Australia’s premier long-distance hiking trails. The Bibbulmun Track Hiker Survey is designed to provide hikers with a comprehensive and up-to-date planning resource to help them prepare for any trip ranging from day hikes to end-to-end thru hikes. This survey is a community-driven effort, with each response contributing to a valuable resource for both day-hikers and thru-hikers. In 2024 we had 74 responses.
This article provides a detailed analysis of the 2024 survey results, with a primary focus on the hiking gear used by participants. We’ve included product ratings and comments, along with key specifications like weight, material, and price, to offer a comprehensive guide. We welcome your feedback on this year’s survey to help us refine future iterations. If you wish to be notified when the 2025 survey opens, please fill out the form below.
Important Note on Limitations: Please be mindful of the following when interpreting the results:
- The accuracy of the data relies on the honesty of participants.
The results may not represent all hikers, as participation is influenced by the demographics of our respondents.
Stay informed and be notified when next years survey is up!
Base Weight
What Baseweight Do Hikers Have?
Tents
Most Popular Tents
1660g
$249.99 AUD
Type: 1 person, double-walled
“Warm and cosy.”
“It suits me well and I picked it up second hand… at some point want to go smaller and lighter with tent as I prefer tent to shelters for privacy and feeling safe and snuggled.”
| Popularity | Rating | Gear | Price | Weight | Type | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8.5 | Mont Moondance 1p | $646.32 | 1485g | 1 person, double-walled, freestanding | |
| 2 | 9.3 | Zpacks Duplex | $699.00 USD | 507g | 2 person, single-walled | |
| 3 | 6.7 | Mountain Designs Redline 1p | $249.99 | 1660g | 1 person, double-walled | Warm and cosy. |
| 4 | 10 | Durston X-Mid 1 | $239.00 USD | 795g | 1 person, double-walled | Very easy to use, fits the Bibbulmun tent sites well. Enough space inside and heaps of vestibule space to store gear and cooking. |
| 5 | 9.7 | Nemo Dagger 2p | $677.23 | 1860g | 2 person, double-walled, freestanding | Great tent. |
| 6 | 9 | Nemo Dragonfly 2p | $717.27 | 1410g | 2 person, double-walled, semi freestanding | Wouldn't trust it in a gail. |
| 7 | 9.3 | Nemo Hornet 2p | $899.92 | 948 g | 2 person, double-walled, semi freestanding | Easy to unpack and to pack in the morning, big space inside. |
| 8 | 9.3 | Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL1 | $589.95 | 1020g | 1 person, double-walled, freestanding | Single big agnes was light but a bit small especially in rain when everything had to be kept inside it. |
Sleeping Bags
Female hikers carried a sleeping bag/quilt with an average temperature rating of -4.5°C (23.9F).
Male hikers carried a sleeping bag/quilt with an average temperature rating of -2.8°C (27F).
How Many Hikers Were Cold At Night?
Note that being cold at night may also depend on factors such as the R value of your sleeping mat, sleeping in a tent vs a shelter, and how much you ate for dinner!
Most Popular Sleeping Bags
Note: The temperatures ratings are supplied by the manufacturer. The S2S Flame uses the EN women’s comfort rating, whereas the S2S Trek and S2S Ascent use EN lower limit ratings.
S2S Trek III (-12°C)
$549.99AUD
1190g
Fill weight: 700g
Fill power: 650 cuin
“Love it, but is quite heavy at 1.3kg”
“LOVE my sleeping bag, I’ll sacrifice the weight to know the bag will always be warm enough.”
S2S Ascent II (-10°C)
1100g
$598.50 AUD
Fill weight:615g
Fill power: 750 cuin
“I sleep cold so wanted to make sure I was warm enough… taste of weight for warmth.”
S2S Spark III (-8°C)
655g
$509.40 AUD
Fill weight: 430g
Fill power: 850 cuin
| Popularity | Rating | Gear | Price | Weight | Fill Weight | Fill Power | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9.3 | Sea to Summit Trek III (-12°C) | $490.90 | 1190g | 700g | 650 cuin | LOVE my sleeping bag, I’ll sacrifice the weight to know the bag will always be warm enough. |
| 2 | 9 | Sea to Summit Ascent II (-10°C) | $654.54 | 1100g | 615g | 750 cuin | I sleep cold so wanted to make sure I was warm enough... taste of weight for warmth. |
| 3 | 7 | Sea to Summit Flame II (2°C) | $639.50 | 505g | 310g | 850 cuin | S2S Flame (and Spark) series don’t have full length zip which I would have preferred. |
| 4 | 8.7 | Sea to Summit Spark III (-8°C) | $654.51 | 655g | 430g | 850 cuin | |
| 5 | 7 | Enlightened Equipment Revelation -6°C | $599.95 | 543.75g | 420g | 850 cuin |
Sleeping Mats
Most Popular Inflatable Sleeping Mats
$469.00 AUD
350g
R-value: 4.5
“Noisy (though advertised as being 6 time quieter than previous model) and slippery (would slide off when I turned over).”
“Too noisy and cold.”
“Not very comfortable and I didn’t sleep well. Upgraded to a big agnes rapide sl”
S2S Women’s Ether Light XT Insulated Air
495g
$349.99 AUD
R-value: 3.5
“Love this mat although it is very noisy & friends have mentioned how loud it is.”
“Developed slow leak.”
395g
$299.95 AUD
R-value: 2.8
“Nemo was excellent. Very comfy, not too noisy.”
| Popularity | Rating | Brand | Price | Weight | R-value | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Thermarest NeoAir XLite | $362.73 | 350g | 4.5 | Noisy (though advertised as being 6 time quieter than previous model) and slippery (would slide off when I turned over). |
| 2 | 8.3 | Nemo Tensor Ultralight Insulated | $299.95 | 395g | 2.8 | Nemo was excellent. Very comfy, not too noisy. |
| 3 | 8.5 | Sea to Summit Ether Light XT Insulated Air | $309.95 | 495g | 3.5 | Love this mat although it is very noisy & friends have mentioned how loud it is. |
| 4 | 6.8 | Thermarest NeoAir XTherm | $439.09 | 440g | 7.3 | Noisy to sleep on, but soooo warm! |
| 5 | 7.8 | Nemo Tensor Ultralight | $274.31 | 477g | 2.8 | My mat was great though I had to half deflate it for it to be comfortable. Three of us had the same mat and I’m the only one who didn’t have a leak. |
| 6 | 9 | Sea to Summit Ultralight Insulated Air | $179.90 | 480g | 3.5 | Very comfortable but quite noisy for the first 10 nights. After that I either got used to it or it quietened down. |
| 7 | 6.7 | Thermarest NeoAir XLite Womens | $439.95 | 370g | 4.5 | Too noisy and a pain to blow up. |
Backpacks
Most Popular Backpacks
$569.95 AUD
2090g
“May look at lighter for my next E2E.”
“Slightly too heavy but we also took it traveling. I also found it hugs me slightly too much and so left bruises. Otherwise it was great.”
1140g
$409.95 AUD
“Older version on Osprey Eja bit heavier than the new version.”
“Loved my backpack. It fit everything and was so comfortable!”
| Popularity | Rating | Brand | Price | Weight | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7.6 | Osprey Eja 58L | $419.31 | 1140g | Loved my backpack. It fit everything and was so comfortable! |
| 2 | 8.4 | Osprey Atmos 65L | $493.15 | 2090g | Heavy |
| 3 | 9.3 | Osprey Aura 65L | $441.77 | 2090g | Slightly too heavy but we also took it traveling. I also found it hugs me slightly too much and so left bruises. Otherwise it was great. |
| 4 | 8.7 | Osprey Ariel 65L | $423.96 | 2220g | Loved it except that it weighs 2.1kg |
| 5 | 6.7 | Osprey Eja 48L | $319.01 | 1251g | Need to be able to remove the brain. Needs better strap pockets. |
| 6 | 7.5 | Osprey Exos 48L | $305.87 | 1294g | Could be lighter but it’s the pack I have and I make it work. The trampoline mesh on back is nice. No need to go and spend $500 on a better one, does the job. |
| 7 | 8 | Osprey Exos 58L | $429.95 | 1288g | |
| 8 | 7.5 | Aarn Featherlite Freedom PRO | $409.08 | 1138g | Best pack I've ever owned, and I've owned maybe 15. |
Stoves
Of those, 96.0% used gas canisters for fuel.
The average pot capacity for a solo hiker was 1.0L.
Most Popular Stoves
$225.95 AUD
400g
Fuel: Gas canisters
“Quick, easy to use, light.”
“Bit heavy, chews fuel, no real simmering ability.”
87g
$99.00 AUD
Fuel: Gas Canister
“The igniter failed, used my backup lighter.”
“Lightweight easy compact storage.”
99g
$39.00 AUD
Fuel: Gas canisters
“Great stove, but going to look for something lighter.”
“Worked perfectly, cheap and had a good storeage case. Only negative is its slightly heavy compared to more expensive versions.”
| Rank | Rating | Brand | Price | Weight | Fuel | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 | 360 Degrees Furno | $27.26 | 99g | Gas Canister | Worked perfectly, cheap and had a good storage case. Only negative is it's slightly heavy compared to more expensive versions. |
| 2 | 9.4 | Soto Windmaster | $85.45 | 87g | Gas Canister | Lightweight, easy, compact storage. |
| 3 | 9.5 | Jetboil Flash | $249.95 | 400g | Gas Canister | Quick, easy to use, light. |
| 4 | 8.8 | MSR Pocket Rocket | $157.18 | 83g | Gas Canister | Quite noisy. |
| 5 | 9.3 | Jetboil Zip | $189.95 | 340g | Gas Canister | Really good, quick and used a lot less fuel than expected. |
| 6 | 7.3 | Trangia Storm Cooker 27-2 | $134.90 | 825g | Methylated Spirits | Worked fine. |
| 7 | 8.7 | Jetboil MiniMo | $319.95 | 415g | Gas Canister |
Trekking Poles
Most Popular Trekking Poles
540g
$99.99 AUD
Material: Aluminium
“Also used the Mountain Design poles for the PCT and worked great- and also lower cost than the other brands.”
“Great bit of kit!”
| Rank | Rating | Brand | Price | Weight | Material | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9.7 | Black Diamond Distance Carbon FLZ | $257.64 | 386g | Carbon | Love my poles. |
| 2 | 9 | Mountain Designs Tread Cork | $69.99 | 540g | Aluminium | Also used the Mountain Design poles for the PCT and worked great – and also lower cost than the other brands. |
| 3 | 8.5 | Mountain Designs Tread Pro | $79.99 | 500g | Aluminium | Not the lightest I could get. |
| 4 | 10 | Black Diamond Trail Cork | $176.76 | 486g | Aluminium | |
| 5 | 8.5 | Leki Black Series Carbon | $449.95 | 456g | Carbon | Great but they did fall apart about half way through and I had to tape them together. |
| 6 | 8.5 | Black Diamond Trail Ergo Cork | $111.96 | 512g | Aluminium | |
| 7 | 9.3 | Black Diamond Trail Explorer | $157.00 | 490g | Aluminium | |
| 8 | 9.5 | Leki Khumbu Lite AS | $189.90 | 568g | Aluminium | |
| 9 | 9.5 | Helinox Passport FL120 | $229.99 | 311.85g | Aluminium | |
| 10 | 9.3 | Naturehike Ultralight Carbon Fiber | $64.59 | 200g | Carbon |
Shoes
The average E2E hiker used 1.5 pairs of shoes for the whole trail.
Most Popular Shoes
$269.95 AUD
300g
Style: Trail running shoe
Waterproof: No
“No blisters. Sore feet and arches.”
“Did have to sew up areas that split as my feet are wide.”
425g
$258.99 AUD
Style: Lightweight hiking boots
Waterproof: Yes
“I’ve always worn salamon but the blisters were next level, the ASICS were a relief and made the rest of the walk much more enjoyable.”
| Rank | Rating | Brand | Price | Weight | Style | Waterproof | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7.8 | Altra Lone Peaks | $220.86 | 1210g | Trail running shoes | No | No blisters. Sore feet and arches. |
| 2 | 8.5 | Salomon X Ultra GTX Mid Hiking Boot | $369.99 | 425g | Hiking boots | Yes | I’ve always worn Salomon, but the blisters were next level. The ASICS were a relief and made the rest of the walk much more enjoyable. |
| 3 | 9.3 | Hoka Speedgoat | $289.99 | 278g | Trail running shoe | Yes | |
| 4 | 8 | Salomon X Ultra GTX Hiking Shoe | $319.99 | 380g | Lightweight hiking shoe | Yes | Very good until I had to wade through deep water. |
| 5 | 9 | Merrel MOAB 3 Gore-Tex | $279.95 | 920g | Midweight hiking shoe | Yes | Need to tape arches as these ached while walking, tried a different insole but feet swell when hot & small toes were cramped with different insole. |
| 6 | 9 | Altra Olympus Trail Runner | $199.95 | 289g | Trail running shoe | No | I could not love my Altra Olympus more! I found them after years of hiking with extremely painful feet and trying other shoes (doctors, specialists, and podiatrists said it was arthritis, not my shoes). Now I have no pain, even after two 30km days, which I would never have dared to do before. |
| 7 | 8 | Hoka Challenger | $249.95 | 252.31g | Trail running shoe | No | Very happy with these boots for old dodgy basketball ankles! |
Socks
The average E2E hiker carried 3 pairs of socks at any given time.
Most Popular Socks
| Rank | Rating | Brand | Price | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9.8 | Injinji Trail Midweight Crew | $19.28 | Liners plus merino is perfect. |
| 2 | 9.3 | Injinji Liner Crew | $19.28 | Liners plus merino is perfect. |
| 3 | 7.6 | Injinji Outdoor Midweight Crew Wool | $63.26 | Happy with my double layer sock system. |
| 4 | 8.3 | Injinji Trail Midweight Mini-Crew | $25.45 | |
| 5 | 9.3 | Smartwool Hike Classic Crew | $33.95 | Great. |
| 6 | 9.5 | Mountain Designs Hiking Merino | $27.99 | |
| 7 | 8.5 | Smartwool Hike Light Crew | $46.95 | |
| 8 | 9.7 | Mountain Designs Hiking COOLMAX | $20.99 | |
| 9 | 8 | Icebreaker Merino Hike+ Crew | $44.99 |
Rain Jackets
Most Popular Rain Jackets
330g
$249.95 AUD
“AWESOME RAIN JACKET!”
“It wasn’t the world’s best rain coat, mainly from being too hot and sweaty. But I wasn’t going to fork out hundreds of dollars for a rain jacket, I’m glad I had what I did.”
305g
$219.95 AUD
“Still got wet using, like it leached through each time.”
“Didn’t wear it by the end unless blowing a gale and needed warmth.”
| Rank | Rating | Brand | Price | Weight | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7.1 | Kathmandu Trailhead | $119.00 | 265g | Not quite as waterproof as I was led to believe. |
| 2 | 9 | Patagonia Torrentshell | $249.95 | 330g | AWESOME RAIN JACKET! |
| 3 | 7 | Marmot PreCip Eco | $219.95 | 305g | Still got wet using, like it leached through each time. |
Insulation Layers
Most Popular Down & Synthetic Jacket
238g
$399.95 AUD
Type: Synthetic jacket
Fill type: 2oz/yd² Climashield APEX
| Rank | Rating | Brand | Price | Weight | Fill Weight | Fill Power | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Macpac Uberlight | $219.99 | 240g | 73g | 650 cuin | |
| 2 | 9 | Macpac Icefall | $279.00 | 300g | 95g | 800 cuin | Warm and lighter, material was a bit fragile so had to make sure it didn't snag on zippers. |
| 3 | 8.5 | Mont Zero Ultralight | $327.23 | 210g | 75g | 800 cuin | |
| 4 | 6 | Macpac Uber | $219.99 | 270g | 73g | 650 cuin | |
| 5 | 10 | Patagonia Down Sweater Hoodie | $479.95 | 343g | 99g | 800 cuin | |
| 6 | 9 | Rab Zero G | $716.00 | 310g | 160g | 800 cuin |
Most Popular Fleece Jackets
| Rank | Rating | Brand | Price | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 | Macpac Nitro | $179.99 | 140g |
| 2 | 9.5 | Macpac Tui | $129.99 | 200g |
| 3 | 7 | Mountain Designs Navis | $59.99 | 330g |
| 4 | 8 | Mountain Designs Bruck | $59.99 | 400g |
Electronics
The average power bank capacity was 12960 mAh.For an iPhone 17, that’s around 3.3 full charges.
Most Popular Power Banks
Most Popular SOS Devices
Water Treatment
How Often Did Hikers Treat Their Water?
Top 3 Water Treatment methods
Water purification tablets (used by 66% of hikers)
Water filter (used by 48% of hikers)
Boiling water (used by 15% of hikers)
Female Hygiene
How Did Female Hikers Manage Their Period on Trail?
Additional Gear
Top 5 Additional Items
Camp shoes
Towel
Sit Pad
Massage ball
Kindle
Top 5 Items Hikers Picked Up
Blister care
Massage ball
Trekking poles
Camp shoes
Extra clothes
Top 5 Items Hikers Discarded