Do you carry a pack with day hiking essentials like emergency supplies and extra gear on your hikes? Well you should!
Whether we like to admit it or not, heading into the wilderness can be dangerous, especially if you get stuck out there without any essentials for a hike.
Hiking is actually the outdoor activity with the most search and rescue incidents per year! So it’s crucial to have a day hike packing list with the right equipment.
From water filters to fire starters, we’ve put together this Ultimate Day Hike Packing List with everything you need to pack for a day hike.
It’s a list of hiking essentials for beginners and seasoned hikers. We’re sharing all the gear we personally use, along with some equipment we’d like to upgrade to, and additional gear we’d recommend getting before hitting the trails.
JUMP TO: Hiking Essentials | Day Hike Packing List | Additional Hiking Gear | How to Pack | Post-Hike
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The Ten Hiking Essentials
Our hiking day pack essentials are based on The Ten Essentials. A list of equipment created by expert mountaineers that allows you to respond positively in an emergency and safely spend a night outdoors.
The Ten Essentials:
- Navigation
- Headlamp
- Sun protection
- First aid
- Knife
- Fire
- Shelter
- Extra food
- Extra water
- Extra clothes
The first seven will pretty much be the same equipment on each hike, with the exception of trail-specific maps.
Meanwhile, the amount of food, water, and type of clothing will need to be adjusted based on location, hike length, and climate.
If you hike often enough, we recommend keeping your hiking pack ready to go with the first seven essentials stored in a dry bag inside of it. That way you can just throw in the water, extra snacks, and appropriate clothing and be on your way!
Day Hike Packing List
Day Pack
You’ll need a day pack (a backpack made for a one day hike) to carry all of the other hiking essentials. You can use any backpack, but a day pack made for hiking will be lighter and fit better, allowing you to go for longer hikes without any discomfort.
Look for a 15 to 25 liter pack that’s lightweight, water-resistant, and fits your torso length. It should have adjustable shoulder straps, hip straps to distribute weight properly, and a padded, yet breathable, back. Also make sure it has a water reservoir pouch and side pockets for a water bottle.
We love Osprey backpacks because they have multiple sizes and versions designed specifically for women, including an extra small size for 5’4″ ladies like me.
Most importantly, all Osprey packs come with an incredible lifetime guarantee that repairs any damage free of charge!
Water Reservoir
So how much water do you need on a hike? Well, it depends on your activity level and the climate. The drier the climate the more you’ll need.
But in general, you’ll want to bring around 1 liter for every two hours of hiking. That’s about 3 liters of water for a six hour hike.
We prefer hiking with a hydration reservoir instead of a water bottle. It’s much lighter than our reusable metal bottles, slides easily into our packs, and it has a sipping tube that attaches to your shoulder strap so you don’t even have to stop walking to rehydrate!
Osprey Hydration Reservoir
Water Filter
You should always pack a water filter to make river or lake water safe to drink in case you need more water.
We bring the water filter and squeeze bag that we use on our backcountry backpacking trips. We also keep a couple of water purification tablets in our emergency kit just to be safe.
Sawyer Squeeze
Food
Even if you don’t consider yourself a snacker, remember that you’ll be burning more calories than usual, so you’ll need to bring some food.
Energy bars, trail mix, fruit, and peanut butter and banana sandwiches make good hiking snacks. Some of our favorite plant-based nutrition bars are Bobo’s Oat Bars, Clif Bar, and Pro Bar.
Make sure to bring some extra food just in case you stay out longer than expected – either on purpose or by accident.
And don’t forget to pack out any trash, including fruit peels!
Protective Clothing
Always take extra protective and insulating clothing to match the local climate and cover any unexpected weather changes. That means bringing a UPF shirt even though it’s overcast or a rain jacket when there’s not a cloud in sight.
You never know what the weather can bring so layer up and be prepared!
Long Sleeve UPF Shirt
This long sleeve UPF shirt is our go to shirt on hot, sunny days. It’s made with UPF 40 (like SPF but for clothing) moisture-wicking fabric. It also has pockets, buttons to roll-up the sleeves, and an opening in the back for airflow.
We both have these shirts (here’s the men’s version) and we always throw them in our hiking packs to cover up when the sun’s rays get too strong.
Columbia Tamiami II Long Sleeve
Sunglasses
Any pair of sunglasses will do as long as they’re polarized! Polarized lenses are crucial for protecting your eyes from getting damaged by UBA & UVB rays.
Sun Hat
After a failed attempt at backpacking in a baseball cap that resulted in sunburned ears, I now use this packable wide-brim hiking hat on long hikes and backpacking trips because it covers my face, ears, and back of the neck really well.
Rain Jacket
We have these packable rain jackets that we’ve used for hiking, backpacking, camping, traveling in both hot and cold climates, and an outdoor concert at Red Rocks in the pouring rain.
My favorite thing about this jacket are the zippers under the arms for increased ventilation in humid climates.
A rain jacket also serves as your outer layer in case it starts raining or snowing to keep your puffy jacket dry.
Marmot PreCip Rain Jacket
Puffy Jacket
A warm jacket is a true essential in colder climates! This packable puffy jacket takes up hardly any space and will keep you warm for hours on your hike.
Michael, my husband and cofounder of this adventure travel blog, has an Outdoor Research hoodie jacket and absolutely loves it.
The Outdoor Research Helium Down Hoodie is incredibly warm and made for rugged use. It features 800-fill-power goose down and ripstop nylon with a waterproof version of Pertex Shield with Diamond Fuse fabric for added weather invincibility.
Outdoor Research Helium Down Hoodie
Sunscreen
This is so important that it deserves its own category. There’s nothing worse than hiking in the sun while your skin is burning to a crisp because you forgot the sunscreen!
Get an eco-friendly sunscreen (and lip balm) that’s at least 30 SPF and will stay on when you sweat. Don’t forget to reapply every 2 hours!
Navigation
A lot of people rely solely on their phones for navigation when hiking, but this shouldn’t be the case.
Map
It’s always best to bring a paper map with you. Yes, you can also use your phone’s map but that doesn’t replace having a physical map that won’t run out of battery in an emergency.
Make sure to store the map in something that’ll keep it dry if it rains, like this waterproof map case.
Compass
Don’t just throw this in your bag and forget about it. Learn how to use it first!
Get a compass with a mirror that can also signal for help in case of emergency.
Phone
With the right apps, your smartphone can function as a map, GPS, and altimeter for the trail.
Download an app like Gaia GPS or Topo Maps before your hike and remember to download the offline maps.
You might want to bring a power charger and charging cable to make sure the phone’s battery doesn’t die.
Another option is to get a Garmin inReach Mini, a satellite communicator that fits in the palm of your hand. It allows you to send and receive text messages and send an SOS alert, amongst other things.
Lamp
Bring a flash light or headlamp to light the way in case you get stuck outside at night or you unexpectedly stay out too long. It’s also useful if you find any cool caves or cenotes to explore on your hike.
We always pack our headlamps (and extra batteries) because we prefer to have our hands free when fumbling around in the dark.
Remember to check if the lamp works before your hike and lock it so it doesn’t accidentally turn on inside your backpack.
Black Diamond Spot Headlamp
Toilet Kit
Inevitably you’ll have to use the bathroom one day when hiking and when that time comes you should be prepared and responsible for your sh*t. Nobody wants to see your dirty toilet paper (or worse) hanging out on the side of the trail.
Trowel
You’ll need a trowel to properly dispose of human waste. Why? Because you need to bury it!
We pack this ultralight trowel that we also use for backpacking.
Make sure to dig a hole 6 to 8 inches deep and stay at least 200 feet from any water source. And check the rules before you go because some highly impacted areas require human waste to be packed out instead of buried.
The Deuce Trowel
Toilet Paper
Bring some unrolled toilet paper from your bathroom. Also bring a disposable bag to pack out the used toilet paper.
Biodegradable doggie bags work well for this or you can reuse a plastic bag from food packaging.
Hand Sanitizer
Use this in lieu of washing your hands after using the “bathroom” and before eating to avoid getting sick.
If there’s a clean water source nearby, we like to rinse our hands in the water first and then use some hand sanitizer. But never do it the other way around because you’ll contaminate the water with sanitizer.
Knife
Pack a multi-tool or small pocket knife for emergencies. Michael loves his and uses it all the time for random things like cutting up our hiking snacks.
Kershaw Leek Pocket Knife
Check price: Amazon
First Aid Kit
You’ll need a first aid kit for everything from medical emergencies to blisters. Also bring any medications you may need.
This hiker’s first aid kit has everything you need for a day hike, including moleskin blister pads and repair tape for your gear.
Adventure Medical Kit
Emergency Shelter
An emergency shelter may sound like overkill, but it can literally save your life when the temperature drops. You can just pack a heat reflective space blanket, but a waterproof emergency bivy sack is ideal.
SOL Emergency Bivvy
Repair Tape
Bring some duct tape and Tenacious Tape for minor repairs like ripped jackets, holes in your backpack or broken sunglasses.
Take a small strip and wrap it around a pen to save space!
Lighter & Matches
You’ll need a lighter and some matches to build a fire. The fire helps you stay warm and its smoke helps rescuers find you quickly.
The matches are a backup in case the lighter doesn’t work. These stormproof matches come in a watertight container and are both windproof and waterproof. They even stay lit underwater!
Additional Day Hiking Gear
These aren’t really hiking essentials, but you might want to add some of them to your day hike pack.
- Insect repellent
- Camera
- Binoculars
- Bear spray
- Warm hat and gloves
- Trekking poles
- Bandana or buff
- Dry bag
- Pen and paper
- Hammock
How to Pack for a Day Hike
A mix of stuff sacks and dry bags make everything fit easily inside your hiking day pack and keep it organized for easy access.
Put all of the emergency and backup items in a dry bag that you keep stored inside the day pack when not in use:
- Extra Snacks
- Compass
- Water Filter
- Knife
- First Aid Kit
- Emergency Shelter
- Lighter & Matches
- Repair Kit
If you’re hiking in colder climates, you’ll probably need to bring more clothes than say hiking on a tropical island in Vietnam. Use a stuff sack to compress everything down if your clothing doesn’t pack down small enough to fit inside the pack.
Post-Hike Essentials
You might want to keep some comfort items in your car for after your hike. Things like an insulated bottle of ice cold water, a change of shoes and/or socks, a change of clothing, and some more food.
We hope this list of hiking day pack essentials gave you a better idea of everything you need to pack on a day hike.
What are some of the things you like to pack for hikes? Let us know in the comments below.
Hello! Thank you for an excellent article. I’m not sure if I missed it, but I would include prescription medication in the first aid kit (my wife and I use epi-pens for different purposes). Also we both LOVE to have hot coffee in our Yeti travel mugs in the car. When we return, we change socks, put on sandals, and enjoy some coffee on the drive home. Thanks again!
Great point about prescription medication and epi-pens. They can both be extremely important to have on hand.
And that’s an excellent idea about hot coffee waiting for you in the car! We’ve done a similar thing for overnight backpacking trips. We keep some insulated mugs full of ice in the car along with some snacks so we have a nice refuel right when we reach the car. But I love the idea of coming back to a warm cup of coffee or tea after a hike too.
Thanks for sharing your tips!