Backpacking: The Elephant in the Room

I suppose, after the last two articles we'll have to cover the subject of weight. I've already stated that for me, weight is relatively unimportant and that the rucksack will 'weigh what it weighs' when I've packed all that I need for that particular trip. So! Am I actually going to put a number on it? Well, no, but I'll put a range that it should fall between and then cover the reasons behind it. Are you ready? Sure? 12kg - 22kg is what you can expect for a 3 day/2 night adventure, but why the 10kg difference? Let's take a look.

Where?

The first thing is that those weights are based on the UK climate. There are many variables concerning this, so in order to obtain any sort of useful information from it we have to look at the same length of trip throughout. We also have to assume that we're taking 1 litre of water, that the food is dried and is, of course, the same weight. We only need to cover two seasons, summer and winter, as the remaining two can easily fall into either one. Now, before we get going, many backpackers have different gear for different seasons; on the whole, this makes sense but it does bring an additional problem to the table. Those who go down this route have multiple sleeping bags, a selection of tents and of course, a selection of 18 different sleep mats. In an effort to keep the weight down to an absolute minimum they look at the weather forecast and choose their gear accordingly; a sensible approach you may think, but this is the UK and the words 'weather' and 'predictability' should never be used in the same sentence. This often results in a cold, uncomfortable night curled up in a tent that's creaking and groaning while enduring conditions that it was never designed to operate in; it's also quite possible to have to sleep in your socks along with your base layers to keep warm. To me, an unacceptable state of affairs, especially as it's self-inflicted! A good night's sleep is incredibly important, after all, it's when your body attends to its repairs and prepares itself for the demands that will be placed upon it during the following day.

Summer

It's not unreasonable to assume that the weather conditions in the summer months, along with the temperature will be kinder than those in the winter months; with this in mind, a lighter sleeping bag, a thinner sleep mat, lighter clothing, lighter tent etc. all seem logical decisions and the sensible way to go. Along with all the other stuff that's been trimmed to allow for the season's promise, you can expect to achieve a weight in the region of 12kg – 14kg without too much effort.

Winter

Everything gets 'beefed up' for winter excursions and this is due to a number of things. If things don't go so well in the summer, you're likely to have a bit of an uncomfortable night or two along with a grumpy attitude. If things don't go so well in the winter you may not even get as far as the grumpy stage! The trip is 3 days/two nights, and assuming that you're not hiking around the car for the entire duration you're likely to be quite a way out; it's therefore reasonable to assume that a 'quick exit' is out of the question and any trouble that you get yourself into, you'll have to get yourself out of! The chance of an uncomfortable night now gives way to much more serious problems. Of course, winter brings with it extra weight in the form of a warmer sleeping bag, a better tent, better sleep mat, warmer clothing, crampons, ice axe/axes, snow shovel, snow shoes and the suchlike. Of course, not all that stuff may be needed but all of a sudden we're into the 20kg – 22kg ballpark.

Is Cold Dangerous?

Generally no! Like many things, if you know how to deal with it and show it the respect that it deserves you're unlikely to encounter any serious problems. Dry, still, extreme cold around -15 deg. C and below is quite easy to deal with when backpacking, mainly because water doesn't exist!; however, 1 deg. C with rain, sleet and a moderate to strong wind is a different proposition altogether! A 20 minute spell will liven you up a bit, but when you've had 5 or 6 hours of it without a break it starts to get tedious! Now, you can have the best waterproofs that money can buy, but you'll still get wet! The water coming in through the opening where your face is will eventually soak down, but the real problem is coming from the inside! Again, you can have the best 'ventilated' rucksack on the market, but your back will still get soaked. The two combined mean that your torso is now wet. This happens because you've almost completely wrapped yourself up in a plastic bag! Yes, yes, I know, you've spent ￡400 on a Gore-Tex jacket but it won't save you. Sure, it'll keep the water out but it can't get rid of the moisture as fast as you're body is now producing it; layer systems help a little but not that much really. Water removes heat from your body 25 times faster than air, and although your Gore-Tex shell garment will stop the rain and the wind in its tracks, the rain and wind on the surface of the jacket cools the fabric. This in turn cools the water on the inside, and then your body does its very best to heat it all back up again. Conditions like these are commonplace in Scotland, in fact, I'll go as far as to say that they're more the norm, and not just in the winter!

Are There Solutions?

The paragraph above is the start of what can become a very, very, bad day, and an even worse night!

If you're travelling alone you have to be exceptionally vigilant and brutally honest with yourself. The things to look for and the ways in which you have to manage the situation are too involved to cover in this article, in fact, it would need a few articles just to explain how your worst nightmare will start to unfold. That said, there is one item that will make the biggest difference.

And That Is? Drumroll Please!

Your sleeping bag! I use one sleeping bag for all trips irrespective of the season. It's a Mountain Equipment 'Everest', I either sleep in it or on it! It's a smidgen over 2kg but when packed in a compression sack it reduces to a very acceptable size. Is it over the top? Almost certainly, but I don't use a sleep mat, so that weight and bulk comes off straight away. I've slept out on a number of occasions in -25 deg. C with no sleep mat and been as warm as toast with just my undies on. Your sleeping bag is your only way to get warm after a really bad day; your body is the only heat generator that you have, it's all about conservation. As for sleep mats, I've tried them and genuinely can't tell the difference warmth wise, and when you combine that with the 'faffing about' trying to keep it where it should be, I just don't see the point. I know many will disagree and, to be fair, the figures disprove my findings; even so, I've been honest and the findings of others may be different.

Weight Again!

15kg is nice, 20kg is less nice, 25kg is manageable if you're used to carrying it. 35kg is just hard work. That's really all you can say about weight! There are other factors at play here, safety being just one. The heavier the load the more susceptible you are to injury, not only muscle and joint fatigue but nasty falls as well. Generally, the heavier the load the slower you'll go. That means that a given distance will take you longer, that means an extended trip, that means more food and more gas, and that, of course, means more weight! As you can see, after a certain point the whole thing becomes self-defeating, and that point is different for each individual.

Warning: Ultra-Light Gear!

While we all have some ultra-light gear to help in the quest to reduce our burden, we should also be aware of its shortcomings. There are two ways in which gear manufacturers can reduce the weight of a product; the first is lighter materials and the second is improved design. Now, in virtually all real-world situations this will result in a more fragile product. To get the best from these products they have to be used exactly how they were designed to be used; any deviation is inviting a catastrophic failure. Our trick of using the same gear for different things in order to take fewer items is now much less of an option, and we're in danger of taking more gear, albeit lighter!

Failure & Weight

Bearing in mind that we may be a long way from safety and gear failure can be an extremely serious issue, it makes sense to go for the ultra-light gear on certain items only. Taking it to the extreme, you're better off with one piece of reliable gear in your pocket than a rucksack full of stuff that's going to let you down when you need it most! Unfortunately, there are no hard & fast rules on this because of all the other variables involved; the advice here is just to be aware of the consequences should the item fail. One piece of gear springs to mind here, and that's a Titanium mug compared to my British Army Crusader mug. Would I swap? Not on your life! I can cook on a stove with it, I can cook on an open fire with it, I could even scrape out a snowhole with it if I needed to without any chance of a failure. I can crush the top a Titanium mug flat between both hands and then it's useless; as your brewing gear is normally kept accessible, a minor fall could crush it in your rucksack. To me, it's a no-brainer, I'll carry the extra weight. That's just an example and, to be fair, there's some great ultra-light gear out there that's well worth buying. Have I got any? You bet! All I'm saying is choose wisely and don't let this 'as light as you can' trend turn into an obsession that may endanger your life.

The Last Word

Well! After reading that through I've completely depressed myself! Joking apart, there is no last word on this and really, there never will be. There are a myriad of variables and multiple right answers to each constantly changing scenario. We all feel the cold in different ways and our mental threshold in dealing with it are all different. Suffering to one person is quite the norm for another! It's difficult to see how anyone can make any sense out of it at all. I covered 'expectations' in a previous article and this goes a good way towards 'rolling' with it. If I know that I've got 5 hours of wind, rain and sleet ahead of me, along with another 20km of hard terrain to be covered before I stop for the night, I'm under no illusion that I'm going to suffer to some extent. Not only that, I know intimately how I'm going to suffer, and because I do, it doesn't come as any great surprise! How do I deal with it? I tend to deal with it by pushing back; I make sure that it does not increase my planned time or alter my route. That keeps my mind off the weather and keeps it on the job in hand. I can push it right to the very limit knowing that I will be warm and cosy later on. Of course, that's only okay if I'm travelling alone. Others deal with it differently, perhaps by just 'switching off' to it and just accepting a late arrival or change of route; however you deal with it is relatively unimportant, as long as it works for you. If we disregard injury the vast amount of failures are down to mental not physical shortcomings; keep your expectations of a situation realistic and maintain a positive attitude. When writing an article I always strive to offer something that may be of use to someone that has given their time to read it; however, with these three I feel that I've offered very little in real terms. As it's turned out they seem to be a collection of personal views rather than tangible facts, and as such, may have only muddied the waters further. As with most things in life, finding the best way to deal with a problem is to experience that problem first-hand. Hypothermia is rather a special problem, the window for recognition is extremely small and if you miss it when travelling alone the description 'bad day' doesn't even come close! I know that all this sounds very disjointed, but unless you cover each subject in great depth it's exceptionally easy to take things out of context.

In any event, take care, stay safe and enjoy your adventures.