Should I rent or buy trekking gear?

[Shivani Kulkarni]

This is my first time to trekking and I am looking for some good gear options that I can take on my trek. I just got out of college so buying  trekking gear will surely burn a hole in my pocket 😞 I have come across a few rental stores as well, not sure about the quality though.. Can someone please help me here?

[Sneha Yadav]

Hi Shivani, I went on my first trek when I was in my college at that time I didn't even know about trekking gear.  But when I started trekking more I slowly started investing into trekking gear only because I knew I'll be doing it more often. Since the process was long I used to rely a lot on renting trekking gear. It has been really helpful! So you should definitely consider renting. 😄

[Shivani Kulkarni]

That helps 🙂 I will start with renting! Thank you so much Sneha😀

[Ashwin]

Hello Shivani,

I went on my first Himalayan trek with Indiahikes in January this year and faced the same dilemma as you. I went ahead with renting the trek shoes, trek pole, backpack and padded jacket from Indiahikes' own renting portal 

https://store.indiahikes.com/rent-gear/

The advantages of this option are many:

- They are extremely economical and save you a lot of money compared to purchasing. Especially the shoes and good quality jackets.

- The rental gear is delivered to you and collected back at the basecamp. You can avoid carrying a lot of travel luggage.

- You don't need to worry about choosing the right gear. Just tell them your size and you can trust their expertise in providing you quality gear/equipment.

- Hygeine and quality is taken care of. In case you notice any fault in the gear or equipment, you can always ask them to provide another one.

Waterproof gloves are the only thing I rented from another rental store. Clothes, thermals, sweater, sunglasses etc. can be bought. (Decathlon has good, economical options).

Going ahead, if you find yourself trekking frequently, you could consider buying some of these gear/equipment for yourself.

Happy trekking!! :)

 

[Shailendra Jindal]

On 9/21/2022 at 2:43 PM, Shivani Kulkarni said:

This is my first time to trekking and I am looking for some good gear options that I can take on my trek. I just got out of college so buying  trekking gear will surely burn a hole in my pocket 😞 I have come across a few rental stores as well, not sure about the quality though.. Can someone please help me here?

If you plan to trek frequently then make sense to buy trek gears else taking on rental is better 

[Shivani Kulkarni]

On 9/27/2022 at 9:54 PM, Ashwin said:

Hello Shivani,

I went on my first Himalayan trek with Indiahikes in January this year and faced the same dilemma as you. I went ahead with renting the trek shoes, trek pole, backpack and padded jacket from Indiahikes' own renting portal 

https://store.indiahikes.com/rent-gear/

The advantages of this option are many:

- They are extremely economical and save you a lot of money compared to purchasing. Especially the shoes and good quality jackets.

- The rental gear is delivered to you and collected back at the basecamp. You can avoid carrying a lot of travel luggage.

- You don't need to worry about choosing the right gear. Just tell them your size and you can trust their expertise in providing you quality gear/equipment.

- Hygeine and quality is taken care of. In case you notice any fault in the gear or equipment, you can always ask them to provide another one.

Waterproof gloves are the only thing I rented from another rental store. Clothes, thermals, sweater, sunglasses etc. can be bought. (Decathlon has good, economical options).

Going ahead, if you find yourself trekking frequently, you could consider buying some of these gear/equipment for yourself.

Happy trekking!! 🙂

 

Wow! Thank you for the detailed reply, Ashwin😄

[Ashish]

I believe that you should buy your own shoes, especially  if you plan on do another trek after the first one . And I think trekking is quite an addictive sport. So it’s always good to be in your own shoes and ensure they don’t bite you when you rent them just before starting the walk. 

[Quasar]

On 9/21/2022 at 11:13 AM, Shivani Kulkarni said:

This is my first time to trekking and I am looking for some good gear options that I can take on my trek. I just got out of college so buying  trekking gear will surely burn a hole in my pocket 😞 I have come across a few rental stores as well, not sure about the quality though.. Can someone please help me here?

Hi Shivani,

I live in Poland and hike very often in the Polish mountains, both in summers and winters. 

Firstly, hiking is inexpensive. You don't need to burn a hole in your pocket. All you need is sheer will, interest to spend more time outside. 

My suggestion is, you should atleast get a pair of hiking boots. I have always felt, it's one investment, a beginner hiker could make. It can make all the difference between bliss and a blister xD. And moreover, even if you don't hike regularly, the shoes can double up as casual wear outside.

Hiking boots should fit snug everywhere, tight nowhere, and you should have room to wiggle your toes. Try to buy shoes with deep, thicker lugs. The lugs are the traction giving bumps on the outsole. Also, if your budget permits, buy shoes with a high-cut or mid-cut. 

Having your own hiking gear is a cumulative process - I must have spent an year, getting my hiking gear, for my first long-distance hike, here. 

Happy trails,

Quasar

[Nandini S]

I initially rented equipment for my first trek. But if you end up love hiking - and start going on hikes by yourself - where renting isn't an option, you'll end up buying gear 🙂

[Asdulla]

If it is going to be one or two three times only, then renting is better. 

But if you are gonna do it often, recommendation is start buy gradually.Initially must invest in:

1. Good backpack depending upon your need and comfort 40-50L size backpack should be good enough. You can get some easily on Decathlon, or website's like tripole, adventure worx,etc

2. A good trekking boots is must, same you can get on Decathlon as well or else you can try brands like Salomon, Columbia, Adidas Terrex series (I am personally using Adidas Terrex trail running shoe & Adidas Terrex Swift)

3. Thermal layer, Fleece jacket/layer, Good Rain + Winter Jacket, trekking trousers, gloves, neck warmer, trekking socks, Cap or Bennies, Sunglasses.

4. Insulated durable water bottle (along with that i also use additional copper water bottle as usually  two bottles are required)

Then, you can slowly and eventually keep on adding other equipments as you trek often bases requirements likes hiking poles, tents, torch, lamps, cooking kits, spikes, gloves, sleeping bag, poncho, etc...

Hope this might help you decide. Good quality gears might be on little upper side cost wise but these things last really long and are super useful, you won't regret investing in them ever.

Best of luck & have fun trekking.

Edited September 30, 2022 by Asdulla

[Shivani Kulkarni]

On 9/29/2022 at 3:53 PM, Quasar said:

Hi Shivani,

I live in Poland and hike very often in the Polish mountains, both in summers and winters. 

Firstly, hiking is inexpensive. You don't need to burn a hole in your pocket. All you need is sheer will, interest to spend more time outside. 

My suggestion is, you should atleast get a pair of hiking boots. I have always felt, it's one investment, a beginner hiker could make. It can make all the difference between bliss and a blister xD. And moreover, even if you don't hike regularly, the shoes can double up as casual wear outside.

Hiking boots should fit snug everywhere, tight nowhere, and you should have room to wiggle your toes. Try to buy shoes with deep, thicker lugs. The lugs are the traction giving bumps on the outsole. Also, if your budget permits, buy shoes with a high-cut or mid-cut. 

Having your own hiking gear is a cumulative process - I must have spent an year, getting my hiking gear, for my first long-distance hike, here. 

Happy trails,

Quasar

Thanks for your tip on shoes, Quasar! Really helpful 🙂

[Shivani Kulkarni]

8 hours ago, Asdulla said:

If it is going to be one or two three times only, then renting is better. 

But if you are gonna do it often, recommendation is start buy gradually.Initially must invest in:

1. Good backpack depending upon your need and comfort 40-50L size backpack should be good enough. You can get some easily on Decathlon, or website's like tripole, adventure worx,etc

2. A good trekking boots is must, same you can get on Decathlon as well or else you can try brands like Salomon, Columbia, Adidas Terrex series (I am personally using Adidas Terrex trail running shoe & Adidas Terrex Swift)

3. Thermal layer, Fleece jacket/layer, Good Rain + Winter Jacket, trekking trousers, gloves, neck warmer, trekking socks, Cap or Bennies, Sunglasses.

4. Insulated durable water bottle (along with that i also use additional copper water bottle as usually  two bottles are required)

Then, you can slowly and eventually keep on adding other equipments as you trek often bases requirements likes hiking poles, tents, torch, lamps, cooking kits, spikes, gloves, sleeping bag, poncho, etc...

Hope this might help you decide. Good quality gears might be on little upper side cost wise but these things last really long and are super useful, you won't regret investing in them ever.

Best of luck & have fun trekking.

Thanks for your detailed answer, Asdulla 🙂