My Auto-Calculating Backpacking Spreadsheet

jjjjeremy

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jul 21, 2017
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213
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CA
Hi all,

I built this a few months back, and I thought I would post it here to share. Essentially it's a packing list and weight calculator all in one. You build up a list of your items in the tabs, and the first tab will show a summary of all your gear, and total weights. Once you have the pack list set up you just check what you're bringing, or use the drop-down menu to select quantity, or whether the clothing is worn or packed.

Dropbox - Backpacking Checklist.xlsx

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jjjjeremy

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jul 21, 2017
Messages
213
Location
CA
Thanks guys! If you download and use it, let me know if you see any bugs. For a while I was getting some rounding errors between grams/pounds/ounces, and entering 2lbs would display on the front page as 1lb 16oz. Also, sorting and reordering the items in the tabs screws things up. You have to delete/enter manually.
 

twall13

WKR
Joined
Jan 21, 2015
Messages
2,568
Location
Utah
I downloaded it and I'm playing around with it a bit. I like what you've done so far, nice work. I'll let you know if I see any bugs.

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bowhuntersd

Lil-Rokslider
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Nov 3, 2014
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126
That is DOPE.... I get a little "Geeky" on spreadsheets but yours blows mine away.
 
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jjjjeremy

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jul 21, 2017
Messages
213
Location
CA
That is DOPE.... I get a little "Geeky" on spreadsheets but yours blows mine away.

Thanks! I never really did anything like that before. I just kept thinking about features I wanted and figuring out how to get the result with Google and trial and error. Getting the spreadsheet to accept pounds/ounces OR grams was a nightmare....
 

twall13

WKR
Joined
Jan 21, 2015
Messages
2,568
Location
Utah
I've always kept a running list of weights on all my gear and have been meaning to make a better spreadsheet that I could quickly select specific gear from and have it compile a packing list with the weight. Yours does that for me so it saves me time. I appreciate the effort that went into it.

It took me a minute to figure out how to add rows to the basic gear worksheet and get it to track through but I figured it out (all those hidden columns). Now I can track all my gear weights and quickly add them to the pack list depending on the trip.

I do wish I could cut and paste gear within the lists for easier organization as my gear list changes but after going through it I understand why that causes issues so I'll take the time to delete and manually enter for any changes going forward. Thanks again for posting it up, it's a really well done spreadsheet.

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Joined
Jan 1, 2016
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69
Location
Southern Oregon
Yes, very cool. I have a pretty good spreadsheet, but it has a totally different format/logic to it. It's cool to see how yours is configured. I'm going to give it a try. Thanks for sharing!
 
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jjjjeremy

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jul 21, 2017
Messages
213
Location
CA
I do wish I could cut and paste gear within the lists for easier organization as my gear list changes but after going through it I understand why that causes issues so I'll take the time to delete and manually enter for any changes going forward. Thanks again for posting it up, it's a really well done spreadsheet.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

Thanks for the feedback! I think the problem with sorting and reorganizing comes from the fact that the toggles aren't associated with the respective rows, or something like that. There may be a way to achieve the same goals through pivot tables or more involved macros, but with my extremely limited knowledge of Excel, I wasn't going to try to figure it out.

My method was just a matter of Googling stuff like "how to list all non empty cells in Excel" and trying/tweaking out the formulas until I found one that worked. I think I said it before, but the pounds/ounces/grams issue was a real effort in logical gymnastics. I built it so that you can't combine metric and imperial units to prevent double-entering the weight.

My final goal was to have a list of all my gear, check the things I want, and end up with a packing list and weight. If I packed and weighed my gear based on the physical items themselves, I would inevitably forget something like a flashlight or knife that I pulled out of my gear closet for some other use. With a list of everything I notice when something's misplaced.
 
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