Backpacking Packs

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Information

Backpacking in Britain in the spring, summer and autumn is a delight, especially if you have the right equipment. By this I mean that everything is lightweight, compact, fit for purpose and in a good state of repair. The amount of stuff that you will end up carrying will be quite substantial, so you will need a rucksack that has a good quality back system and carrying harness, an ergonomic design to keep the pack stable and you will need to be confident that it will last through the duration of your trip, without question. On top of all this you don't want the rucksack itself to be the weight of an elephant when empty. If you're looking for a travel back and don't mind about weight, see the Travel Packs section. Lots of those have a smaller daypack that can be mounted on the back.

Lightweight outdoor gear has made great strides in recent years, and nowhere is this more evident than in rucksacks. The finest examples are made by Lightwave. The Fastpack and Wildtrek series have welded or taped seams for an extraordinarly high degree of water resistance and a built in waterproof drybag. They are very strong for the weight, and the Wildtrek is available in different back lengths to suit different users. More lightweight rucksacks suitble for walking, climbing and scrambling can be found on the Expedition and Technical rucksack page.

The Deuter ACT Lite range is also worth a look for those keeping an eye on the scales, and is also available in women's fit models. They are lighter but slightly less durable than the ever popular Deuter Air Contact range, which have a well designed back system that aims to promote airflow and keep your back cooler and drier. The Air Contacts have plenty of features- side pockets, compression straps, rain covers, are generous in size for the stated volume.

Lowe Alpine's Ridge and Horizon have a similar high level of durablity and are fully featured, excellent all round rucksacks. The back systems are very adaptable and will suit a wide range of body types, as do our range for men and for women from Karrimor. These are well priced and a favourite with Duke of Edinburgh groups.

The ability to alter the size of your pack, ie in the case of a 60 - 80 litre pack is very popular, but whilst this may seem good there are more things to go wrong on such a pack and this will also increase the packs weight. And just think, are you ever likely to need / want to carry 80 litres worth of gear. Remember: you will find that you don't carry much more for a two week trip than you do for a three day trip when backpacking.

Other useful features for such a bag are: good compression straps on the side to keep the carry stable and compact and room to strap maybe a tent and karrimat on the outside. Ideally everything should go inside the bag, the use of a thermarest helps to make this possible. Compartmented packs are useful so that you can keep your sleeping bag etc. easily accessible without tipping eveything else out of the bag.

For more specialist users, ie those that will be away for extended periods, who may need to carry lots of climbing gear as well as backpacking gear etc. take a look at our Technical and Expedition section.