Long-distance hike
Long-distance hike kit list
For week-long walks like the West Highland Way, Great Glen Way and Cape Wrath Trail.
Multi-day hiking in Scotland — the WHW, GGW, Cape Wrath Trail, Speyside Way, Skye Trail and the rest — sits between day-walking and wild-camping in kit terms. Some routes use baggage transfer and B&B accommodation (much lighter); others are self-supported with wild camps and bothies. This list assumes the middle ground: full sleep kit, no baggage transfer, occasional indoor nights.
Weight matters more on long-distance walking than on a single overnight. Cut grams where the cost is reasonable; pay for premium lightweight kit on the items you wear or use every hour (pack, boots, jacket).
Essential11 items
Lightweight backpack (50-65L)
£150-£300A pack you can walk a week with. Hip-belt fit is critical. Sub-1.5kg packs exist; for a first multi-day, sub-2kg is fine.
Lightweight 3-season tent (sub-1.5kg)
£300-£600Look for double-skin, free-standing or trekking-pole-pitched, sub-1.5kg packed weight. Big Agnes Copper Spur and MSR Hubba NX are the popular benchmarks.
Sleeping bag (down preferred for weight)
£200-£500For long-distance the weight saving of down (700-800g for a 0°C bag vs 1.5kg synthetic) matters. Keep it dry in a pack-liner.
Inflatable sleeping mat (ultralight)
£140-£200Therm-a-rest NeoAir XLite at 350g is the standard. Sleeping well matters more on day 5 than on day 1.
Lightweight cook system
£80-£150Pocket Rocket + 750ml titanium pot weighs under 200g. For long routes a Jetboil saves gas (more efficient) at slight weight cost.
Trail-running shoes or lightweight boots
£100-£200For waymarked LDPs (WHW, GGW, Speyside, JMW) trail runners are fine. For Cape Wrath, Skye Trail, Sutherland Trail you want boots.
Scotland note: Soft Scottish ground eats trail-runner soles fast. Plan to wear them out on the route.
Hiking poles
£50-£150On a 7-day walk, poles take 20-30% of the load off your knees on descents. Cumulative effect is enormous.
Blister kit (Compeed + tape)
£15Blister on day 2 of a 7-day walk is a serious problem. Tape hotspots before they blister. Compeed for damage control.
Map booklet (route-specific)
£15-£25Cicerone and Trailblazer publish route-specific 1:25,000 strip-map booklets — lighter and more focused than carrying multiple OS sheets.
Water filter (Sawyer Squeeze)
£35On long routes you re-fill at burns and lochs. The Sawyer Squeeze at 85g is the standard.
Dehydrated meals (for backcountry sections)
£5-£8 per mealMountain House, Real Turmat, Firepot — ~150g per meal, 600-800 kcal. Re-supply chains on Scottish LDPs vary widely.
Recommended3 items
Camp shoes / sandals
£20-£40Letting your boots and feet air out at camp each evening is the difference between fresh feet on day 5 and a foot infection.
Sun hat + sunglasses
£40 for bothMulti-day cumulative UV exposure on Scottish summer days is real, particularly on coastal and high-ground routes.
Power bank (10,000 mAh)
£25-£50Phone, head torch, GPS watch. A 10,000 mAh power bank covers 4-5 days of moderate use.
Optional1 item
Swimming kit
£20Sea pools, river pools and lochs along most Scottish LDPs are wild swim gold. A pair of trunks/swim shorts and a microfibre towel weigh almost nothing.
Other kit lists
Day walk
The kit you actually need for a day on the Scottish hills — Munro, Corbett, Graham or coast path.
Wild camping
Right-to-roam wild camping is one of Scotland's great gifts — here's the kit to make a night out comfortable.
Bothy night
A bothy night is a wild camp with a roof and a stove — same kit, with a few small additions.
Winter hillwalking
Winter Munro days need real winter kit — ice axe, crampons, B2 boots, and the skill to use them.
Family day
For Scottish hill and forest days with kids — small adventures, big snack supplies.
Trail running
Scotland has some of the best running terrain in Europe — and the most demanding weather. Here's the kit.
Midge defence
The Scottish midge — Culicoides impunctatus — turns May to September outings into a tactical problem. This is the kit.