{"id":3848,"date":"2022-11-01T09:39:55","date_gmt":"2022-11-01T07:39:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/?p=3848"},"modified":"2022-11-01T09:39:55","modified_gmt":"2022-11-01T07:39:55","slug":"hiking-backpacks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/hiking-backpacks\/","title":{"rendered":"Hiking Backpacks"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Tips for choosing a hiking backpack<\/h1>\n<\/header>\n

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\"Back<\/p>\n

Hiking Backpacks<\/h2>\n

Backpacks need to be made of a water resistant fabric, be very durable, comfortable\u00a0and the correct size for the number of items to be carried. Making sure that the\u00a0backpack is comfortable and well adjusted is extremely important as, if this is done\u00a0badly, the whole expedition can become very un-enjoyable.<\/p>\n

Design:\u00a0<\/strong>There are two major design criteria in Backpacks today. These have to do with\u00a0how and if they have a frame i.e.\u00a0external frame<\/em><\/strong>,\u00a0internal frame\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>or\u00a0no frame<\/em><\/strong>. The\u00a0other consideration is if it is a\u00a0day bag\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>or an\u00a0expedition rucksack.\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Day bags are made\u00a0for short outings and typically come in sizes up to 35 litres in capacity. They will also\u00a0usually have no frame at all or may have a soft internal frame. Expedition bags come in\u00a0sizes from about 40 litres up to 100 litres. They are used for long trips and either have\u00a0an internal or external frame. Note that these expedition bags are then again divided\u00a0into two fairly distinctive bag types. The actual bag itself either has lots of internal and\u00a0external pockets so that items can be accessed easily. This type of design is useful for\u00a0ordinary mountain walking. On the other hand, some people prefer a design where\u00a0there is just a single huge compartment. These bags are common with mountaineers\u00a0and climbers and are often about 50-60 litres in size and have internal frames.\u00a0Most backpacks today are made of a water resistant material such as\u00a0Cordura.<\/em><\/p>\n

Note\u00a0that this is not waterproof as it does allow for water to escape during dry times and so\u00a0stops the internal area of the bag becoming mouldy and damp.\u00a0Backpacks should also have wide, well padded shoulder and hip straps. The shoulder\u00a0straps (upper point of attachment) must also be able to be moved up and down the\u00a0back area of the bag. This allows for the bag to be fitted to different sizes of people.<\/p>\n

Fitting the Backpack<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most expedition bags available in South Africa today are of an internal frame design\u00a0and so this section only explains how to adjust a bag for internal frames.\u00a0Firstly the internal frame needs to be moulded to take the shape of the wearer\u2019s back.\u00a0Do this by bending the frame while the bag is empty. Make sure that it fills the lower\u00a0hollow of the back and curves around the shoulders.\u00a0Then remember that the hip strap should take between about 50% and 70% of the\u00a0overall weight carried. The upper attachment points of the shoulder straps can usually\u00a0be adjusted up or down depending on the length of the wearer\u2019s torso. The upper\u00a0attachment should be at about the shoulder blade height of the wearer. There are\u00a0straps that join the upper curve of the shoulder straps to the back of the main bag.\u00a0These need to be fairly tight so as to hold the bag forward against the shoulder.<\/p>\n

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A well designed 20 litre day bag.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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A large 65+ litre expedition bag.<\/p>\n

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A 35 litre day bag.<\/p>\n

Packing a Backpack<\/strong><\/p>\n

The rule here is, \u201cheavy high, light low\u201d. This simple rule just helps to remind you that it\u00a0is more comfortable to carry heavy items if they are pushing down on the upper\u00a0shoulders and not hanging below the wearer\u2019s back.\u00a0Light items such as sleeping bags, spare clothing and a tent flysheet can be carried in\u00a0the bottom of the bag. Heavy items such as tent poles, stove, fuel and food are carried\u00a0in the upper area of the bag.\u00a0There is always a danger of liquid fuels leaking and\u00a0so these items are best carried in an external\u00a0pocket within a sealed bag. The same goes for any\u00a0other liquids that may leak. As backpacks are never\u00a0fully waterproof it is a good idea to place sleeping\u00a0bags and clothing in plastic bags or to fit a large\u00a0garbage packet inside the bag before packing. Try\u00a0to keep bad weather shell equipment near the top\u00a0of the bag where they are easily accessible. Tent\u00a0poles can be placed separately and vertically into\u00a0the bag as this saves space. Make sure that maps\u00a0and the compass are easily accessible.<\/p>\n

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Tips for choosing a hiking backpack \u00a0 Hiking Backpacks Backpacks need to be made of a water resistant fabric, be very durable, comfortable\u00a0and the correct size for the number of items to be carried. Making sure that the\u00a0backpack is comfortable and well adjusted is extremely important as, if this is done\u00a0badly, the whole expedition can […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[116],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3848","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-mountain-walking","7":"entry"},"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3848"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3848\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/peakhigh.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}