A great way to go lighter is to find items that can perform several roles, allowing you to reduce the number of items in your pack. The classic cotton bandana is probably the ultimate example, protecting you from the glaring sun, prefiltering your water, drying your body after a swim, protecting your hands from glowing pot handles etc.
This summer I've discovered another contender, the headnet. Apart from keeping the mosquito hordes at bay, it is a great pillow (the mesh is surprisingly comfortable next to the skin) when stuffed with your puffy layer. It is also a very good prefilter, much better than the bandana, and a very functional stuff sack. Some of you may be worried about the durability, but it is better than expected when made out of high quality noseeum mesh.
 |
| Pillow mode with my Montbell Down Inner stuffed inside. |
 |
| Prefilter. |
 |
| Clothes bag. |
I made mine according to the
plans that can be found on www.andersj.se, and using noseeum from my thru-hiker down quilt kit (yes, I'm cannibalizing that bad boy). It only took me 1-2 hours. It's a great project that I know you will enjoy and the result is oh so functional and weight saving.
 |
| Very light and packable. Only 11 grams including the blue rubber band which is a multi-use item too! |
Please feel free to leave comments about other multi-use items that you know about. I am very interested in discovering more, and I am confident I am not the only one
