Originally Posted by staehpj1

The distinction is more about how much you carry, not what you carry or how long the trip is. I have met folks credit card touring short distances and carrying more than I would consider light touring. It is also quite possible to cross continents with very light loads while still maintaining camping and cooking capability.

Different folks will probably draw the line in different places, but the line ought to be based on how much you carry. This is pretty arbitrary and I might give different numbers if asked again, but... I'd say over 35 pounds of gear is heavy touring, 25-35 pounds is medium, 20-25 is light, and 0-20 is ultralight.

That said credit card touring does blur these distinctions since it seems odd to call a 20-25 pound load light when not hauling any camping or cooking gear.

BTW... It really bugs me when folks automatically label anything in the ultralight range as credit card touring. I have been in the 10-15 pound base gear range on my most recent tours and was definitely not credit card touring.