New to Backpacking

A girlfriend and I recently starting looking into backpacking. I used to backpack a LITTLE in college, but now I'm looking into going Ultra lite. I can't afford to get ALL new gear, honestly. My first plan of attack is going to be getting the things I don't have in ultra lite versions. Then, I'll start replacing my old gear as I need to.

I guess this is just a generic, "Any advice at all?" thread. Are there any "specific to women" things we should think/worry about?

Thanks in advance for your advice and help!

  

The three biggest steps to going ultra light are going to be tent, sleeping bag, and the pack. Always buy the pack last. The reason being when you start buying lighter and lower volume gear you can use a smaller pack and one with less support because you are not carrying as much weight. The pack is the only Womens specific piece of gear I would recommend really looking at. The different hip belt designs and the shaped shoulder straps do make a big difference, so says my wife. The next items that really add up quickly are mostly clothing and cookset. If you are taking a fleece jacket I would recommend taking a much lighter down jacket instead. Rain jackets are very light weight now, some weighing as little as 5.5 ounces. The same goes for the rain pants. The stove and pot can be very light as well. The snow peak lite max weighs 1.9 ounces and the 700 or the 900 pot weighs with fry pan 6 ounces. Your total cook set could weigh 7.9 ounces. The water filter I would leave at home. I instead take Aqumira and a coffee filter to strain out the debris in the water. The Aquamira weighs around three ounces. These are a few thing you can look at. If you have any more specific questions about going light weight let me know.