Whats in the bag thread?

[Taz38]

I tried a few packs before I found one I was comfortable with (Granite Gear), not the lightest but it carries well and does the job. As a woman I tend to carry a lot of the pack weight on the hips and this pack is good for that. But we're all different.
Shame the atom pack didn't work for you.

 

[mjh]

I keep coming back to the same issue ie how do you know that X item doesn’t work for you? It sounds like you never have any item of kit long enough to know or understand whether it will work out. Or perhaps that you’re expecting too much in the search for the unicorn bag/tent/stove/quilt/sleeping bag etc.

Sorry if that sounds harsh and perhaps you are unlucky in your dimensions such that a lot of gear doesn’t work for you but most of us benefit from experience and actually using the gear for a reasonable distance/period. I wouldn’t think you would actually know if a rucksack works if only used for a mile.
Some gear requires you to adapt the way that you do certain things, not just buy it and expect that it will work in a preconceived way that might not be correct.

 

[echo8876]

backpacks in particular have learning curve

 

[Taz38]

backpacks in particular have learning curve

Agreed, you really to walk quite a few miles to find whether it carries right or not, sometimes it takes me a few miles for a familiar pack to sit 'right', and it's rarely 100% comfortable. with some weight in it.

 

[Jshdudhwodj]

I know because, the cheap £20 pack feels better than the atom pack, I've used the atoms a few times, I've even loaded them just for walks not camping.

Anywho's

This is what's in my pack

 

[mjh]

Good points about packs. With lighter packs I tend to find that they have a tipping point for weight beyond which I don’t find some packs comfortable.

I also find that apart from taking a few miles for everything in your pack to settle and for me to dial in the straps, that it can also take a fair few miles/days even for my muscles to get used to carrying loads again.

 

[echo8876]

I know because, the cheap £20 pack feels better than the atom pack, I've used the atoms a few times, I've even loaded them just for walks not camping.

Anywho's

This is what's in my pack

organize much?

 

[BogTrotter]

I know because, the cheap £20 pack feels better than the atom pack, I've used the atoms a few times, I've even loaded them just for walks not camping.

Anywho's

This is what's in my packView attachment 52529

Sleeping bag looks bulky. What’s that grey thing on the far left? That looks quite bulky too.

 

[Jshdudhwodj]

Thats the xtherm, it is bulky. The bag is a thermarest questar -6 bag, 650fill 1kg

I have a sierra design nitro -6 800fill @800g but the questar is better for me,

 

[echo8876]

xtherm is the only thing i roll into its own stuffsack.
it's, like, normal, that way.

 

[BogTrotter]

Thats the xtherm, it is bulky. The bag is a thermarest questar -6 bag, 650fill 1kg

I have a sierra design nitro -6 800fill @800g but the questar is better for me,

Can the sleeping bag be compressed any?

I checked on your pad after you mentioned it previously and it didn’t seem to be very bulky. Is this the same one?

 

[Jshdudhwodj]

It's the long, but similar to that.

 

[BogTrotter]

It's the long, but similar to that.

Is the red thing a duvet jacket?

 

[Jshdudhwodj]

Those are my down boots.

Didn't bring a down jacket today. It's a toasty 11 degrees

 

[BogTrotter]

Those are my down boots.

Didn't bring a down jacket today. It's a toasty 11 degrees

They are massive !

I’d expect a pack size for down boots to be about the size of a 300ml bottle- at most. 200ml size probably more apt.

Your weight is good but your bulk is high. You’ll work out what works for you in time.

 

[Jshdudhwodj]

Nooooo that bag has:

Pillow, socks, pants, top, hat, down boots.

 

[Taz38]

Lol I read 'top hat'!
I find it easier to pack for 3 to 7 days than shorter trips, probably because I need to be more organised/ruthless in what to take on longer trips. Taking a dog complicates that, it upsets my packing routine

 

[OwenM]

Nooooo that bag has:

Pillow, socks, pants, top, hat, down boots.

You mist out the white tie and tails.

 

[Jshdudhwodj]

There was a comma, lol

There just base layer for sleeping

 

[JRT]

Good points about packs. With lighter packs I tend to find that they have a tipping point for weight beyond which I don’t find some packs comfortable.

I also find that apart from taking a few miles for everything in your pack to settle and for me to dial in the straps, that it can also take a fair few miles/days even for my muscles to get used to carrying loads again.

Totally second this. Every hike I find it takes a few hours before my back has straightened up (from spending most of my days in the confines of an office chair) and I need to adjust the straps continuously for several miles before I start to feel at one with my pack (Exos). Then it starts to feel like an old friend again.

I should also add. There's never a point, particularly after 15-20 miles, where I don't look forward to taking my pack off again. There's totally comfortable, and there's wearing a pack.

 

[Jakey]

There's totally comfortable, and there's wearing a pack

Reminds me of a response I heard when someone was asking about the most comfortable bike saddle………….”there is no comfortable bike saddle, just less uncomfortable “

 

[echo8876]

you still must know your limits.
i've seen a girl trying to overpower shoulder arthitis (how the hell 22 year olds getting arthritis is beyond me), by sheer willpower.
It didnt' end well.

 

[Jshdudhwodj]

My sister in law is under 30 with arthritis. So it happens.

My frozen shoulder is a total pita

 

[BogTrotter]

I wonder how far off we might be from manufacturers offering sleeping mats with individual air chambers like inflatable boats?

High/hard side rails to keep you on and an adjustable hip section for those that need it.

 

[Calvin]

I don't use stuff sacks, every thing goes in poly pack liners and is squashed down.

View attachment 52529

You effectively have 6 stuff sacks here... Tried using one as a pack liner with all of your stuff?
Also try folding your sleeping pad into a long flat rectangle that goes against your back up the entire length of the pack.