Planning a 2027 Thru-Hike? Buy These Seven Things Now.
PCT permits open in the fall, which means your gear list starts now — and seven pieces of it are 25% off through Sept. 7. Here's what to buy, and the two things worth waiting on.
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August 28, 2026
If you're planning a 2027 thru-hike, you need to start thinking about your gear now, not in February when you’re panic-ordering. Your gear needs to be bought, shaken down on a few fall weekends, and replaced if it doesn't work.
REI's Labor Day Sale, running August 28 through September 7, is worth it for certain things. Not because the discounts are enormous — they're 25%, not 50% — but because of what's discounted. This sale is heavy on the durable, sizing-stable, buy-it-once items that reward planning ahead, and light on the stuff you'd want to buy closer to your start date anyway.
Everything below is gear a Treeline writer has field-tested.
If you’re not an REI member yet, $30 buys a lifetime membership with benefits:
10% member dividend on eligible purchases
free U.S. shipping
extended window for satisfaction guarantee (in most cases, it’s one full year)
member coupons, such as 20% one full-priced item
The Seven
1. Sleeping quilt — NEMO Pulse Endless Promise 20/30 $549.95 → $412.39 (25%)
Our Best Down Quilt for Backpacking pick in Best Backpacking Quilts, and the single most sensible thing on this list to buy nine months out. Down bags don't change, don't expire, and don't care what your feet do on trail. Find out now, not on your thru hike, whether you're a cold sleeper who needs something warmer. To see if it’s the right fit for you, read our in-depth review of the NEMO Pulse.
2. Sleeping pad — Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite NXT $239.95 → $179.89 (25%)
Our Best Mummy pad, and the pad we run on both the comfort and ultralight versions of our PCT gear list. At an R-value of 4.5 it handles a Sierra snow year and a Washington October alike. Same logic as the quilt: nothing about it changes between now and April. For more, read our full review of the Therm-a-Rest NeoAir XLite NXT.
3. Sun hoodie — Mountain Hardwear Crater Lake Hoodie $85.00 → $63.69 (25%)
Our Best Overall Sun Shirt. This is the piece you'll wear every single day for five months, and the one where fit and fabric feel matter most. Buy it now specifically so you can wear it through the fall and find out whether the hood drives you crazy before you're committed.
4. Socks — Darn Tough Hiker Micro Crew Cushion $26.00 → $19.49 each (25%) — buy three: $78.00 → $58.47
Our Best Overall hiking sock, and the reason this sale is worth your attention at all: this is all Darn Tough socks at 25% off. The lifetime warranty means a three-pair buy now is genuinely a five-month buy. If you buy one thing from this list, make it this.
5. Headlamp — BioLite Range 300 $39.95 → $29.89 (25%)
The ligher, less powerful version of our Best Overall headlamp, the Range 400. For thru hiking where grams matter, we’d take the Range 300.
6. Stove — MSR PocketRocket Deluxe $84.95 → $63.69 (25%)
Our Best Fast Boil stove. The SOTO WindMaster, our Best Overall, isn't in this sale — but the PocketRocket Deluxe has the pressure regulator that matters at altitude and in cold, which is the whole argument for spending above the $17 knockoffs.
7. Trekking poles — Leki Legacy Lite $109.95 → $82.39 (25%)
Our Best Aluminum trekking poles. Aluminum over carbon is the correct thru-hiking call: carbon poles fail catastrophically (ask me how I know) and aluminum ones bend and keep working. If you're pitching a trekking-pole shelter, this is not the place to optimize for weight. (The REI Co-op Traverse poles, also tested by us, are $119.00 → $89.19 if you prefer them.)
Two things to wait on
Your trail shoes
The Altra Lone Peak 9+ — our Best Overall trail runner for hiking — is 25% off at $119.99, and it is tempting. Buy one pair now to confirm your size and sit in the fit over the fall. Do not stockpile unless you’re certain these are the shoes for you, and you know the correct size. Remember, your feet will expand during a thru hike, so you’ll need a size larger than your normal size.
Your backpack
Worth saying plainly: REI didn't discount a single pack we've tested for backpacking. Our winners are mostly cottage; the two we do recommend that REI carries, the Osprey Exos Pro 55 and Eja Pro 55, aren't on sale, and neither are the Gregory Maven, Osprey Aura AG, Osprey Ariel Plus, or Granite Gear Crown3 from our women's guide. Get fitted in a store this fall. Buy in November.
The fine print
The sale runs Aug. 28 through Sept. 7, 2026. Flash deals with savings up to 60% at REI Outlet run Aug. 31–Sept. 1 and Sept. 3–4. Co-op members get an extra 20% off one Outlet item; if you're not a member yet and you're seriously planning a 2027 hike, join before Sept. 7 — a $50 purchase gets you a $30 bonus card, and you're about to spend a great deal more than $50.
Read more in our complete REI Labor Day sale coverage:
Turn your summer kit into a shoulder-season kit with these gear swaps
