Backpacks/Rucksacks

[joe]

I'm just wondering what size rucksack to take?

I have a 35L one here that weighs 1.3kg but was wondering if I should buy a new one that weighs less, or is 1.3kg reasonably light anyway?

Thanks, Joe.

[Covey]

The general assumption is that your pack and contents should be 10Kgs max. Therefore you need your actual pack as light as possible and in many of the specialist trekking shops I have seen 50L packs that weigh up to 3kgs.

Your 35L pack will be fine and will help you keep the weight down. 1.3kgs is OK for the pack and if it saves you spending money on a new one, so much the better.

[joe]

I just found a better 35L backpack that weighs 1.1kg by Gelert, it was on ebay brand new for £27, and reading the description it sounds a lot better than the one I currently have! It looks suitably comfortable too. Shedding 200 grams and getting a new backpack for £27 is a bargain for me... Thank God for eBay.

Beyond by Gelert Hiker 35L Rucksack Daysack RED NEW on eBay (end time 04-Apr-11 12:57:21 BST)

[Covey]

I hope the one you bought had a frame!

[joe]

Oh dear... what's a frame? I knew it was too good to be true, I don't have a clue about backpacks and as it was so cheap I'm guessing it won't have a frame (whatever they are).

I don't mind shelling out a few pound for a decent backpack (well... up to £70 maybe £80)

Any suggestions are welcome

[HuskyNerd]

Hi Joe ~
A backpack frame is the pack's metal skeleton that allows the weight of the pack to be carried by your hips rather than your shoulders. At the bottom of the frame there's a waist strap that keeps the pack tight against your hips. At the top of the pack are the shoulder straps that keep the pack against your back. The shoulder straps nowadays are linked together by a chest strap to keep them from pulling sideways. Large packs without frames are very tough on the shoulders and back, but packs with frames that transfer weight to the hips are much more comfortable for long hauls because the upper body is mostly taken out of the equation. If you're buying a pack it's best to do it right in the outdoor store so you can try on sizes -- often there are S-M-L-XL for certain brands and you just don't know which to purchase until you see how they hit your shoulders and hips.

Others variants on frames are a) some leave a small air gap between your back and the pack itself, keeping you cooler and drier, b) some have a pocket for a water bladder. On the Forum there's a longstanding difference of opinion on bladders -- for instance I swear by mine and others like Covey opt for water bottles. If you do choose a bladder, though, it's necessary to have an internal pocket for it.

I just gave my 2008 backpack to my son for our upcoming May camino and purchased this pack (in apple green) for this year Osprey Atmos 50 Pack at REI.com . It was a little pricey, but I know I'll use it for many years.

[Covey]

I have wandered the Camino Frances for the past four years with my trusty Osprey Atmos 50 on my back and it has been brilliant. |Good air gap between the pack and my back keeps the back dry(ish) and there are lots of loops and straps to adjust how the pack sits on the frame. They are one of the lightest "empty weight" framed packs on the market.

Osprey have some very good videos on You Tube covering each of their packs and how to fit them properly. Only found the video's last year and discovered what some of the loops were for!!!

I see a lot of Osprey packs on the Camino carried by both women and men, and have never heard a complaint. They are however not cheap, so if you think you will use a pack for more than one trip, invest in the Osprey, but if your Camino is the only time you are going to go long distance trekking, then there are cheaper alternatives.

[joe]

I've went for the Vaude Triset Ultralight 35 backpack, costing £55 and weighing a mere 750 grams! It has a lightweight steel spring internal frame (I double checked that it had a frame!), and it's just the right size to keep the weight as minimal as possible, my pack shouldn't weigh more than 8kg now.

I'll invest in a better backpack maybe next year or the year after when I save enough money for a second pilgrim. That Osprey Atmos 50 looks pretty good! It's about £120 here though (which I just can't afford at the moment).

Thanks for the advice and tips, I would be clueless without this forum!

[Covey]

Sounds good, and 750gms is excellent.

Buen Camino

[HuskyNerd]

I have wandered the Camino Frances for the past four years with my trusty Osprey Atmos 50 on my back and it has been brilliant. |Good air gap between the pack and my back keeps the back dry(ish) and there are lots of loops and straps to adjust how the pack sits on the frame. They are one of the lightest "empty weight" framed packs on the market.

My dear Covey, here is yet another common feature of our lives. As well as being Methodists, serial caminoists, and Forum groupies now you have revealed that we carry the same backpack brand and model. I'm beginning to think you are the gin and tonic drinking, cigarette smoking, water-bottle-swilling, Cornish version of me. If someday we can convince you to include your avatar photo I think we may discover we are mirror images of each other.

[BHinSanDiego]

Now the question is has Covey and HuskeyNerd ever been seen in the same room at the same time? LOL Or maybe it's a parallel universe!

[Sparkly]

Yet another backpack problem I've been loaned 2 backpacks so I'm not too keen to buy another. However, one is 1.2kg about the right size (40L?) but it's not comfortable to wear and has a few annoying problems like no give on the external pockets once packed, so I can't fit a water bottle easily. The other pack is bigger and heavier, 1.9kg, but feels much better when packed and on the back. I'm using a detailed list and set of scales and being careful with what I'm taking, but 1.9kg for a pack seems quite heavy, compared to many mentioned on this forum. I'm sure I can put the 700g difference to better use, but that would mean additional cost of a new backpack. Any suggestions?

[Covey]

The better make packs come in various sizes depending on the length of your back from the top of your shoulders to the waist, and a good store will stock the various lengths to fit a customer.

Ideally, when you put on the pack, the waist belt should be nice and tight around your waist, and where the shoulder straps attach to the frame, should be level with the top of your shoulders. You carry the weight of the pack on your waist NOT your shoulders, and the job of the shoulder straps is just to stop the pack from falling backwards.

When your pack is loaded with your kit and you have adjusted the straps, all the weight should be on your waist, and you should be able to slide your hand under the shoulder strap at the top of your shoulder without difficulty. There should be almost no downward strain on the shoulder straps. The pack should have a chest strap which links the two shoulder straps and stops them sliding outwards towards the shoulder joints.

The reason why your external pockets cannot take a water bottle is probably because you have too much kit inside the pack. 40L is verging on the small size for a pack . When you carry water in bottles (use the supermarket plastic bottles not the alloy ones!!) carry one bottle on each side to ensure that the pack weight is evenly distributed. Carrying a lop sided pack is very uncomfortable!! Put your water bottles in the pockets BEFORE you pack the pack and see how it goes. Any problems and you are carrying too much kit!

My Osprey Atmos 50L pack weighs about 1.1kgs empty. Anything over 2 kgs is too heavy and 1.9kgs is a lot! Think about it! You have to carry this weight every day for 35 days, 8-10 hours a day!

[Sparkly]

My thinking was that heavier but fitting well was better than light and uncomfortable. Obsessive weighing of everything, and lots of goes at considering what I actually need to take, and a few swaps for lighter items means that excluding pack and water, I'm heading downwards to a little above 6kg. I did look at the packs in the outdoor shops but couldn't see anything a lot lighter than the ones I already have. I can only find lightweight packs online. The Atmos 50 you mentioned seems, like new versions of cars, to have grown a bit heavier, it's now listed as 1.5kg for the medium fit on the Osprey website!

Looks like I need to work on improving my packing technique and have a browse for a something lightweight in the 50l range. A trip to the outdoor stores in Cumbria beckons I think!

[Covey]

You also have to consider the weight of the water you need to carry and you will usually carry some food items such as fruit.

It's all the other "little" items which tend to add up. The mobile phone and charger, camera, guide book, sweeties etc etc.

Last year I met two French girls in the albergue in St Jean and they were debating on whether to pack their 500g pot of leg wax + wrappings!. They decided that such things as smooth legs were important to a French woman so in to the pack it went. The following evening at Roncesvalles the tub of leg wax was sitting on the shelves in the basement where everyone leaves their surplus kit which they have just spent the day hauling 27kms over the hills from St Jean.

We all get a little manic about weight. Do you really need a whole new tube of toothpaste or will just half a tube do? You can buy anything you need along the way, so you don't need to leave home with 6 weeks supply of everything.

[BHinSanDiego]

Covery wrote; "The following evening at Roncesvalles the tub of leg wax was sitting on the shelves in the basement where everyone leaves their surplus kit which they have just spent the day hauling 27kms over the hills from St Jean.

I remember these shelves well! just off to the side from the stairs on the left as you're going up! It was the bargain bin of shopping for needless items at the beginning of the Camino!

[Sparkly]

No need to pack the leg-wax then, I'll pick some up for free at Roncesvalles I've been using a packing list, and everything I think I'm taking is in one box spread across a number of zip-seal bags. Every day or so I go through a few bags and decide if or when I'd use the items in there, and when I'd used them in the past. A nice moleskiene style notebook has been replaced with a much lighter and smaller 40p Morrisons pad. Many toiletries, medical and other misc items have been downsized, removed or replaced with things that have multiple purposes and yes, I did squeeze out a fair bit of toothpaste and cut the soap bar in half. I've even weighed Euro notes and coins! I'm taking an almost full bottle of sunscreen, I've estimated daily use for the full trip, but I don't want to risk buying one there as it's one of the few I can wear without a serious skin rash, but it does hurt to see the weight of that on the list when I've been cutting back a few grammes at a time! I think I'm not far off being able to use the smaller 40L backpack I have, but I'll wait until I've bought the sleeping bag and see what fits.

[Covey]

If you see a lady on the Camino in color co-ordinated clothes, a bit of bling and some makeup, she is French. Those who carry hair dryers are French or French Canadian!! The Brits and Americans are very practical and carry a large pot of Vaseline and the Continental Women (excluding the French) seem to accept hairy legs as part of their Camino.

I only carry shower gel (the Almond & Honey keeps Covey smelling nice and the Permetherin kills the bugs!) which I use for the showers (there ain't no baths in albergues) and for hand washing my clothes. Carrying a bar of soap is messy.

One thing which is very very expensive along the Camino Frances is Vaseline and also lip balm. In Boots in the UK you can buy a large 250g pot of Vaseline for £2 whereas on the trail, the pharmacies sell a tiny 20g pot for €4. Lip balm (if you wear lip gloss people will think you are some form of French party animal!!) is equally expensive, but essential if you are walking in the summer months.