Over the years I've refined my backpacking technique in the Sierra Nevada. Most equipment decisions involve trade offs of safety and comfort versus weight. There are many lightweight tents, sleeping bags, clothes, cooking gear, food etc available. I could tell you what I have, but I'm guessing there are others that are equally good that I haven't tried, so I won't make any recommendations. A good general equipment reference is by Outward Bound instructor, Ray Jardine, whose book The Pacific Crest Trail Hikers Handbook presents many worthwhile inexpensive backpacking tips for saving weight and exposes equipment manufacturers lies and misleading statements. Below are a few tips that I haven't seen mentioned very often. Please note that these techniques seem to have worked well for me in the Sierra and may not be as applicable for other people or in other terrain.

Climbing Gear: I never carry ropes or other climbing gear because I never go above Class 2 terrain. Despite the verticality of the Sierra there are numerous available cross-country routes that can be taken without having to use your hands to hold on to rocks. In addition to being risky, technical climbing is also slow; you are essentially stuck in on place when you could be exploring numerous compositional alternatives. Also, the mountains and cliffs that require technical gear are often what I want to photograph and it is tough to photograph a rock face when you are clinging to it. Some of my favorite photos are from the unnamed pile of rocks next to, or across a lake from, a well know peak or ridge favored by climbers.

Hiking Poles are one of my most important pieces of equipment, with a long list of potential backcountry applications in addition to sparing your legs. I use an old pair of $15 aluminum (carbon fiber is brittle) cross-country ski poles whose baskets have been shredded a long time ago. I've read that cross country skiers get 30 or 40 percent of their propulsion from their arms and I believe this is true for backpackers if their poles are long enough, and good technique is used. I hike faster with poles and a 50-60 lb pack than I do without either. Slogging in the coarse sand-like decomposed granite found on many Sierra trails is very tiring, but using your poles for propulsion eliminates the digging in that you get by pushing off with your feet. Let your feet carry the weight, push off only with the poles, and you will be happily floating along the sandy trail at a normal pace.

The currently overmarketed 'trekking' poles are all too short (for me) for efficient propulsion, and especially weak for braking on downhills where you can reach down large steps and lower yourself instead of dropping lots of weight onto your legs. I'm 6'2", use chin length poles and will replace them with slightly longer if they ever wear out. Short poles don't allow you to use your lats (latissimus dorsi: the strongest muscles of the shoulders) efficiently. Proper length poles will feel awkward at first (especially if you are a downhill skier) but once you find a good technique the efficiency will be realized.

Shock absorbers on poles are another marketed solution to a nonexistent problem; simply place the pole lightly on the ground and apply force, without stabbing. The shocks are extra weight, and soak up energy when you push off; like climbing on a suspended mountain bike with out locking out the shocks.

Using poles will require using gloves to avoid friction with the wrist strap. Properly used, the pole is never grasped in the hand, or your hand gripping muscles will fatigue quickly. Practice hiking with open hands except for light touches with the little finger and heel of the hand. This gives you all the control you need 99.9% of the time. I end up wearing the gloves almost constantly when backpacking (I use old fingerless cycling gloves with most of the padding removed) for some warmth but especially for hand protection when scrambling on rough granite rocks.

Shoes: It is a myth perpetuated by boot manufacturers that you need stout heavy tough expensive boots for hiking on rugged terrain or trails. Ray Jardine's book, The Pacific Crest Trail Hikers Handbook spends 8 pages giving detailed descriptions of why lightweight running shoes are far superior for backpacking (unless you're going to use crampons). I lucked upon a pair of fairly stiff soled running shoes on the discount rack that I used for 5 years of backpacking. The stiff soles are good at protecting your feet from uneven or pointed rocks but a flexible toe (thus matching the flexibility pattern of your foot) is beneficial because it allows a normal stride pattern and can prevent many heel blisters. Unfortunately the manufacturer no longer makes this model, I'm guessing it's because they didn't wear out. The soles still had some of the fine patterning after many miles of hiking and scrambling on rough granite.

Rugged boots are heavy and since you pick your feet up and accelerate them from a complete stop on every step, the ends of your legs are the last place you want to carry extra weight. Their inflexibility is much more likely to cause blisters. Lighter shoes are easier to control, less clumsy, and give you a better dexterity and more awareness of the terrain.

If you are prone to rolling your ankles, buy a pair of plastic “Active Ankle” (Google it) supports. They give far more direct lateral ankle support than the even the tightest laced high top boots at a fraction of the weight. I've rolled my ankles a couple times, but is has always been because I failed to pay attention to where I was putting my feet. Pay attention!!

Backpack: A pack with a comfortable hip belt, adjusted to keep the weight completely off your shoulders will make the trip easier. There will be a slight load on the front of your shoulders that prevents the pack from falling off your back. My Gregory pack has an angled (up and in) hip belt that sits on the hips (iliac crests) without having to be synched tightly around the hips the way regular vertical hip belts are.

Water Filter: Save some weight and leave the filter at the trailhead. “The giardia risk in the Sierra is grossly exaggerated” according to the best objective research on the subject. People selling water filters and under-informed, overly-cautious government agencies perpetuate the myths. (Google: “Giardia Yosemite” for more information) I filter water at low elevations, especially if downstream of an area heavily used by horses, but no longer carry a filter in the high country. The researchers summarized, "You can contract giardiasis while backpacking in the Sierra, but proper personal hygiene is far more important than filtering the water."