Articles Tagged with: backpacking

A person who is not experienced with camping or hiking may think that all backpacks are the same, but that is far from the truth. For a camper who is serious about making the most out of a camping trip, a backpack can make or break an excursion to the woods.

Take the plight of a trekker who traveled to the Appalachians in 1994. Rather than a thrilling camping expedition, he needed to return home injured from the weight of an ill-fitted backpack that damaged his hips. A decade later, the same hiker, utilizing a backpack more suited to his needs, walked over 950 miles of terrain, turning what could have been another ugly experience into a more pleasant memory.

There are a few key tips you should bear in mind when selecting a backpack for the outdoors.

First, you need to assemble a fairly comprehensive list of gear you need to bring on the trip. Whereas some campers prefer to haul a bare minimum, others like to be well equipped and ready for almost any eventuality. Consequently, the size of your backpack is important. If you intend to camp or hike for several days – or even simply overnight -you need a sufficient amount of supplies to cover your time and prospective needs.

Second, make sure your backpack is comfortable to wear for a lengthy period of time. The best styles of backpacks distribute the weight in the bag evenly so that you can wear it comfortably for a few hours while hiking. Try it on at the store to ensure it meets your need. Some camping stores even provide weights inside so you get the full effect of the backpack. By placing these in the pack, you can walk around the store to get a sense of how well the weight distributes and how much you can actually hold while remaining comfortable and not overly straining your back or shoulders.

Third, select a frame for the backpack. You can choose between an internal and external frame, each of which has advantages and disadvantages. Internal frames are more slender and allow the pack to remain close to your body which makes it great for densely wooded and more narrow trails. They do not restrain your ability to move in the least, but are admittedly more cumbersome to load and sometimes do not hold as much gear.

External frames, on the other hand, are great for clear walking paths and wider trails and are generally easier to pack. However, they tend to restrict mobility because they are larger and less flexible, making them seem more uncomfortable at first. External frames are the best option, though, when buying a backpack for beginners or children.

Finally, when purchasing a backpack, take into consideration whether it is designed to work efficiently with weather sheets that help protect your pack against dew and rain. Also assess how attachments can be accommodated for your pack. Most backpacks have either rings or snap-ons (or both), allowing the convenient integration of accessories with your pack.

Finding a backpack doesn’t need to be a challenge if you familiarize yourself with options ahead of time. By following these few tips, you should be able to purchase one that fits your budget and your camping experience needs, helping to make sure you have a wonderful adventure in the woods.

Cheap backpacking is accomplished in two basic ways? The first is to cut the cost of the trip. The second way is to spend less on the gear you buy. Here are some tips for doing both of these.

Cheap Backpacking Gear

Don’t bother with high-tech gear. Is it really important to have a super wicking poly-fiber t-shirt for when you’re hiking? Probably not, especially if it is the middle of July. Any regular t-shirt bought on sale for a few dollars will work. For that matter, a cheap plastic emergency poncho can replace that $200 breathable/waterproof rain suit if rain is unlikely and it’s warm out there. You might want to spend the money for better gear if you want lighter versions. In that case, you can still save money by putting the next two tips to use.

Look for the deals. An obvious tip, but easy to forget when you get excited about that shiny new equipment. Shoes and hiking boots in particular can be bought inexpensively if you watch for the sales. Apparently some people won’t buy last year’s styles, so those $90 shoes go on sale for $40. Look for the closeouts from online vendors and local shoe stores. Thought outdoor clothing is most likely to go on sale, tents, sleeping bags are sometimes half-priced when newer models come out.

Look for used gear. Though I would never buy used shoes, I’ve found that thrift stores have plenty of used jackets that are in great condition. I’ve even found decent lightweight hiking pants at times, as well as aluminum pans that are really light and some other backpacking equipment.

Make your own gear. I know of backpackers who sew their own backpacks and sleeping bags. That seems like too much work to me, and I’m not sure the savings would amount to much. But I have modified cheap pans for backpacking, made hats from old thermal shirt sleeves, and bivy sacks from plastic and duct tape. And now that I think about it, I did make a backpack once from an old aluminum frame and a duffel bag. It weighed less than any commercial frame pack for sale at the time.

Skip the expensive foods. You don’t need freeze-dried meals to enjoy backpacking. Snacks are a good way to go, and if you really need those cooked meals, bring simple foods like instant rice.

Cheap Backpacking Trips

Plan your own backpacking excursions. Although guided hiking trips can be nice, they are expensive. Just plan your own. Choose a location, do your research online, and start looking for the cheapest plane tickets that will get you there.

Go to free places. Many people automatically think of national parks or other places that have fees when they think of a wilderness experience. But there are many places that are just as beautiful and don’t charge anything. Try national forests with hiking trails, for example, or BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land, or state forests. One advantage of this approach – apart from the money savings – is that you’ll likely find such area less crowded.

Find a location nearby. For many backpacking trips the cost of getting to the trailhead is the biggest expense. Isn’t there someplace interesting to see within an hour or two of where you are? Visit those areas and you might save a lot of travel money.

Now put it all together. Plan your own trip to a free place close to home and outfit yourself with basic clothing bought at thrift stores and equipment bought on sale. That’s cheap backpacking.

If you are just starting out in backpacking then there are a few things you really must do before hitting the trail. Becoming knowledgeable about backpacking is very important to being able to enjoy it. Having the essential knowledge you need will help you to be able to plan trips, stay safe and have a memorable overall experience. Like with any other hobby or project you take on in life, it will pay you to learn more about it before you embark on it.

One of the first things you can do to become more knowledgeable about backpacking is to read about it from some of the many resources which are available to you. You should try to get backpacking books and magazines. There are even ebooks and podcasts now about backpacking. You’ll find out about backpacking culture, problems you may encounter, essential gear needs and many other elements which contribute to your backpacking experience. Whilst reading can help you to gather essential information, there is another way in which you can learn everything you need to know before actually going out on a trip.

Another great way to get knowledgeable is to join one of the many clubs or organizations dedicated to backpacking. Through an organization you will meet other backpackers who can give you first hand information. They can give you helpful tips and share their experiences. You will probably learn more from others than you could ever learn on your own. By listening to and learning from other people’s experiences you will start to be able to really understand what backpacking is all about.

Here are just a few of the important aspects it will be helpful to learn about before taking your first backpacking trip:

- first aid

- gear needs

- how to make gear repairs

- information about the area you will be in

- general safety and health concerns

- general hiking information

- camping

To list everything you need to know would take much more space than is available in this article. What you basically need to do is to understand every aspect of backpacking, including the unexpected, like accidents or getting lost.

Through gaining knowledge you will be able to ensure that you are ready to handle the adventure ahead of you. Backpacking is fun and exciting, but there are several things that can contribute to a good trip going bad quickly. Learn everything you can and you will reap the benefits once you are out on the trail.

Backpacking can be fun. But the excitement and joy of the adventure might get marred due to some untoward happenings. A backpacker needs to be equipped with some basic essentials that can save them from certain unpleasant situations. A compass qualifies as one of those.

First and foremost, a compass can help a backpacker find their way through unknown territory. Especially, when poor weather conditions deteriorate visibility and the backpacker can see none of the landmarks, there is no friend like a compass.

No backpacker ever strays from the trail intentionally. But, a brief moment of oblivion and distraction can take one down a wrong fork in the trail. Then, as they turn around, they do not find the correct trail. They immediately become disoriented and feel completely lost. If they had been carrying a compass and knew how to read it, they have a great chance of finding their way back. They could also find their way with the help of a map, but a compass makes it easier and quicker. No matter how alert and attentive a backpacker be, long days of backpacking is bound to make one distracted at times. Anybody can lose the trail at such a moment. A compass helps you avoid wasting hours, roaming in the wilderness, trying to find your way back.

While your map helps you become accustomed to the trail, your compass helps you in following the right trail. Whenever your mind is at a crossroads about which way to take, you should work out your present position from the map, and then take a reading on the compass to be absolutely sure about the trail you should follow. Every trail might not be clearly defined. Hence, a backpacker should always use a compass and a map to ascertain the direction of their travel.

A compass can help a backpacker avoid the worst. Losing the trail amidst heavy fog, rain or snow can literally be fatal for a backpacker. The wilderness is not all about fun and adventure. It is also about danger. A sudden cliff or waterfall can endanger one’s life at any moment. Losing the way more and more into a deep forest is also quite risky. A compass comes to one’s help immensely in such a situation. Carrying a compass – and knowing how to read it – are the two best favors that a backpacker can do for himself while venturing out in the wilderness.

When a backpacker has lost the trail, the worst thing that they can do is panic. Panic and fear will only add to the bewilderment. After sounding the emergency whistle, the backpacker needs to get to the closest highest point and use their basic compass knowledge to narrow down their location. The knowledge that they are carrying a compass and that they know how to read it is going to prevent their confidence from flaggin.

Thus, a compass helps a lost backpacker immensely in finding their way back, and staying on the trail. A backpacker can avoid innumerable untoward incidents and dangerous outcomes during their trip, with the assistance of the ever-reliable compass.

Related Blogs

• Related Blogs on Backpacking Tips, Choosing an Internal or External Framed Backpack