50 Liter pack for 3 night solo trip

As of now I've done overnights carrying a 2 person tent, sleeping pad, sleeping bag, mess kit, propaine burner and fuel, food, first aid kit, hygene stuff, an extra pair of clothing, and 2 nalgene bottles with water. Now I'm thinking if I get more packable gear like a burner that will fit in my mess kit and a prolite 3 sleeping pad I could make enough space for food for 2 more days and I could carry iodine tablets to refill my water. Doable? or do I just need to concider a new pack?

You should be able to pack for a week with a 50 Liter pack. In order to lighten your load ask yourself some questions like: Do I need everything in my first aid kit? Do I need every pot and pan in my mess kit? Have I checked the weather forecast for the week? Have I packed the necessary clothing for the temperature and conditions? Do I really need all my hygeine products if I'm just going to be smelling myself for a few days? The less unnecessary stuff in your pack means the more food you can bring.

Defineitely doable. In addition to the things you mentioned, here are a few other ideas for making more space in your pack:

- use compression sacks for your sleeping bag and tent
- leave extra clothes behind (within limits of safety -- if you're solo, there's nobody to be bothered by your stench)
- carry your pad on the outside of the pack (Okay, I prefer to not have much stuff hanging from my pack, but it works)
- carry a smaller tent, or use a hammock, tarp, or bivy
- use a more compressable sleeping bag
- minimize your mess kit: carry just a spork and a small pot
- use an external pocket or holster for at least one water bottle

you can get a bigger pack, but you'll probably just put more stuffs into it. There comes a point your pack will be heavy enough that you won't enjoy your hiking. Check out the left panel at http://www.backpacking.net/index.html for some idea about gear:-)

As others have already posted, take a good hard look at what you are carrying. It sounds to me like you are way overloaded already -

"solo" - soooo, why do you need a "2-man" tent? Ok, in winter, I use a 2-person tent (a small, single-wall one) on solo trips, but I take the pack inside. In summer, I often use a bivy sack and put a garbage bag over the pack if there is going to be rain. Or use a tarp, like Integral Designs' SilTarp - 5 ounces, provides plenty of shelter.

sleeping bag - how light is this, how compressible? In summer, you may be able to use a 1.5-2 pound bag (my +20F bag is 2 pounds - just get the right fill material and cut), and one that compresses very small (others have already mentioned getting a compression sack, but get it made from SilCoat so it is lighter).

cook kit - as others have said, you only need a 1 liter pot at most, with lid, plus a spork (Lexan for lightness and cheap but durable). Your canister and burner top plus a small cup will fit inside the 1 liter pot with matches and a lighter if you have one of the small burners. SnowPeak makes a tiny burner/pot combination that will fit one of their small canisters inside and hook another outside, but I do not recommend this one - way too expensive, the 2 small canisters is a marginal fuel supply for 3 days, and Snowpeak's Gigapower fuel in the small canister is by far the most expensive per ounce of fuel. A 1-liter pot with a "270" size canister will work just fine.

Hygeine stuff - You really need only two things here - toothbrush and a small bottle of hand sterilizer. According to my dentist, the mechanical action of brushing is most important, so for 3 days, you don't need the toothpaste. The hand sterilizer is important to clean your hands after using the cathole (be sure to locate it properly and dig it of the right depth, plus in most areas these days, pack out the used Charmin in a double ziplock bag - don't butn it, or you will burn down the forest like the lady did abt 5 years ago in SoCal - 35,000 acres, IIRC). As others said, you will only smell yourself on a solo trip. And even on a multi-person trip, you will all smell each other and your nose gets adjusted to that.

Sleeping pad - a 3/4 length blue foam is light and will tie to the outside of your pack, so no space is taken up inside

Iodine - This is ok for 3 days. You will definitely need two Nalgenes if you use iodine, since you will need to have one of them working the iodine while drinking out of the other. Be sure to re-fill as you empty each one, before emptying the second. It takes a half-hour to hour (depending on water temperature) for the iodine to work. This is a situation where Camelbaks are not good - you have only one container, so you might have to wait quite awhile before drinking, not good when you are running a risk of dehydration (as on any backpack).

Nalgenes - excellent suggestion by someone to have a way to carry one or both on the outside of your pack

First aid kit - as mentioned, think hard about that. Don't include things that you could not use on yourself (if you break a leg, can you put the Sam splint on yourself? Or can you use your foam sleeping pad to make the splint). Plus, plan your activities to keep the risk of injury way down. I have seen people head off on a solo or 2-person day hike with a first aid kit made for a 10-man expedition. Yeah, ok, you want to be prepared to help with that disaster you happen across. But be realistic. Also, read Eric Weiss' books on how to improvise first aid materials from other things you have - you really don't need a full ER Crash Cart.

The extra clothes - think hard about what you are taking with you and what purpose the clothes serve. A rain shell acts as a wind shell and adds 10 deg of warmth. Rain overpants do the same. Synthetic shirts and pants dry quickly, while cotton takes forever to dry if you get it wet (I use coolmax and fleece shirts and microfiber pants).

As has been mentioned may times in this forum, make a list of everything you are taking (on a computer spreadsheet, if possible). When you get back, note whether you actually used the item, and what you didn't have that you wanted to have, and think about whether those things you did not use are really needed (think about scenarios in which they would really be needed, how likely those scenarios are, and whether something you had along anyway would have done as well). Think about whether there is a lighter alternative (e.g., a spork instead of separate fork and spoon, or do you really need that 50-blade Swiss army knife or 60-way Leatherman tool, each of which weigh several pounds).

Plan well. Carry less. And have more fun.

Thanks for the response. To explain myself I don't have much money being a soon-to-be college student. I guess the real question is what's some cheap ways to reduce my pack weight.

There are a number of sources for used gear--the obvious one is eBay,but there are others online as well. There is a used gear forum here, The Lightweight Backpacker has one and I've seen others on various trail and hiking sites. Also, I've heard of some good finds at local second hand stores--depends on where you live, I suppose. You might look at Secondascent.com's website. They are in Seattle but not sure if they do mail order. They offer some discounted new gear. I just heard about them, don't know anything about them other than the website.
I've bought a few used things-tents, pack, down jacket, so it's just a matter of lots of looking and asking questions.

http://www.adventurealan.com/250_challenge.htm
http://www.adventurealan.com/250_equip_list.htm
http://www.adventurealan.com/#safe

I did an 11 day 122 mile hike in the middle of summer with one nalgene. I use polar pure which is much like iodine (you still have to weight for water to be ready). A full nalgene weighs 2 pounds. That could be two more pounds of food to eat.

Couple of problems with your approach -

A single water container works for some outback rambles, but not others. For example, it is fine for the AT or JMT, but is taking a severe risk for a Grand Canyon Rim to Rim. Even a 100-ounce bladder is skimpy for the GCR2R.

Iodine as a purifier works from the biologic standpoint, since it kills everything from viruses to protozoa. However, there is a time factor which you appear to note (did you mean "wait" rather than "weight"?). The delay time is dependent on temperature - significantly longer for 40F water, for example, than for 70F "room temperature" water. With a single Nalgene, you could potentially be without water for a couple hours if the water source is cold, such as glacial meltwater in the Rockies, Sierra, or Cascades, or snowmelt in New England in the very early spring.

Another problem with iodine for some people is the taste. A large number of people find this taste very objectionable.

Yet another problem is that some people, particularly those with thyroid problems and young children still developing physically, risk serious medical effects from iodine.

Any approach carries trade-offs. Before heading out into the woods, you should be aware of the risks, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the approaches - boiling, the various halogens, filtration, drinking the water straight from the spring or stream. In many mountain areas in western North America and particularly Canadian mountains, it is sufficiently low risk to simply carry a cup on your belt and scoop water from the stream to drink, hence much lighter weight than even your single Nalgene. However, for some people, like a climbing partner of mine in the Winds, even that small risk proved too much and carried severe consequences (he and his girlfriend basically crawled 10 miles back to the trailhead with severe diarrhea due to giardiasis).

If it works for you and your particular hike, great.

Polar Pure is not just "like iodine." It IS iodine.