For some background, I'm a pretty experienced backpacker, at least I'd like to think so. Last year I attempted a thru hike of the Appalachian Trail, making it ~1,200 miles before falling and breaking my leg.

I am planning to spend 12 days hiking the Collegiate Loop in Colorado in the first two weeks of September, which overlaps the CDT/CT, so this trip is going to be a learning experience for me for a few reasons:

• I have only hammock camped before, never gone to ground, so a total noob in that department.
• I am not used to the altitude. I plan to spend 3 days acclimating near Twin Lakes CO (8000ft) before hitting the trail and climbing to over 11,000ft.
• I'm not used to the weather patterns out west, I know daily rain is a possibility as well as first snow since I'm starting at the beginning of September.

I'm sure there's stuff I'm missing, especially in the clothing/insulation department, so I'd love some insight from anyone who's gone from hiking in heavy forest like the AT to more barren terrain like in Colorado.

Additionally, I'm 6'2 and my previously limited experience in tents has been extremely claustrophobic, hence the ZPacks triplex instead of duplex. It seemed like a small weight penalty for a lot more room, but I'm open to rebuttal on that.

Lighterpack link below, anything with a dollar amount has not been purchased yet: https://lighterpack.com/r/0vf71h