Backpacking: The Kitchen Sink?

Everyone has their own thoughts on this, but are there any fixed points that just don't change, regardless of the trip? I've always thought so, and I follow the same routine for every trip. Let's try and break it down logically.

Weight

Over the last few years weight seems to have taken precedence when backpacking, but in my view it's nowhere near the top of the list. If you really don't want to carry anything, don't! Just go out with what you can fit into your pockets and make do. At the risk of stating the obvious, when you have the amount of gear in your rucksack that you need to complete your planned excursion safely, it will weigh what it weighs! Of course, modern gear is exceptionally light and, if you can afford it, that's the best way to get your pack weight down. You often hear people say 'I'll leave this.' or 'I'll reduce that.' but this approach is generally a sign of inexperience; the experienced backpacker will pack exactly the right gear, nothing more and nothing less. It's a fact of life that on occasion your rucksack will be heavier than you'd like it to be, but is there anything else that can be done to ease the burden? Yes, I believe so, and the next three don't weigh anything at all!

The Big Three

Knowledge, ability and experience. These three things will enhance the 'light' gear that you've just spent all your hard-earned cash on; now you can really start to make headway! Let's take a look at these three things individually.

Knowledge: Excellent navigation can off-set severe terrain and heavier pack weights substantially. Knowing how to get the very best from the gear that you're carrying will help enormously, as will knowledge concerning weather, clothing, fitness, first-aid along with making sure that you know what to feed your body with so that it performs at its best. A good knowledge of knots, hitches and bends can also reduce the need to take bits of 'hardware' along.

Ability: The 'ability' side isn't all about fitness or your climbing prowess! It's also about the way in which you handle different problems and situations, making the absolute most out of the gear that you're carrying, and above all else, developing a mindset that will always find a solution to the current problem.

Experience: In many ways, experience tempers the knowledge & ability to the point where the three become a 'complete' package, and quite a formidable one at that! This package will enable you to deal with all the little things that every trip throws up without any drama, along with many of the larger ones that tend to make an appearance from time to time.

Expectations

It's no good dressing this one up! You have to lower your expectations; even with the best gear and the big three in tow, it won't be 'home from home' or anything approaching it! You never see any articles about mental preparation but the vast majority of backpacking 'failures' can be attributed to this. If you expect something and then you don't get it, you're on a 'downer', but if you get what you expect or more, all is well. Don't get me wrong, backpacking isn't an exercise in suffering (and shouldn't be) but neither is it a night or two in a 5 star hotel! Once your expectation matches the reality there's very little else that will bother you. With this in mind, don't waste your time packing your Mother's best twenty-one piece tea service; it's extremely unlikely that you'll be stopping for afternoon tea, cucumber sandwiches and fairy cakes!

Size Matters!

Ah yes! That old chestnut again! The size, quality and fit of your rucksack is extremely important. There are many features in the design of a quality rucksack and often, these features are not apparent if you're just starting out. Don't be fooled by all the little 'trinkets', the best rucksacks do tend to look extremely basic! The fit is paramount, the shop will have heavy 'bean bags' for loading rucksacks; anything above 25-30 litres needs to be 'loaded' in order to ensure that it works for you. Now on to size! Is big best? No, the right size is best! Virtually all rucksacks have some degree of adjustment to accommodate variations in volume, but even so, you'll never get a 70 litre rucksack to carry well with just your flask and a boiled egg in it! This is why you need as many rucksacks as your wife has pairs of shoes, although in reality, you'll have a hard time pitching the argument. My collection ranges from 5 litres up to 90 litres with almost every size in between; should you feel the need for something larger than 90 litres, save your money and just borrow one of your wife's handbags.

Packing

I won't go into 'what to put where' in order to get the best carry as that would fill an article on its own! Assuming that you've got everything in its place the rucksack should be comfortably full. When I say that, I don't mean bursting at the seems, and I don't mean various pockets of empty space. There should still be a little room to accept any clothing that you may wish to remove when hiking etc. allowing the rucksack's adjustment system to accommodate these small changes. What I'm going to say next many will disagree with, but it was drilled into me many, many years ago and, to be fair, it has served me extremely well over the years. When your rucksack is packed correctly with everything that you need, pick it up and shake it. If there is any sound whatsoever you have not packed it correctly. As a general rule there should be nothing fastened to the outside of the rucksack; there are exceptions to this rule such as a snow shovel, ice axes, snow shoes, walking poles etc. but for a normal excursion everything should be on the inside. It would be incorrect of me to state these things without offering the reasons why. For the military, any noise when moving is undesirable, but when we're out in the wilderness it's a joy to see all the wildlife going about their daily routines; the quieter you are the more you'll see. It's also extremely annoying after a while to hear something in your pack rubbing, squeaking or knocking every time you take a step. As for things attached to the outside of your rucksack, well, they get caught on things! Trees, gully sides, rocks, bushes, the list is endless; while this is somewhat annoying it can also be extremely dangerous. Things will always get caught at the most inopportune moments when you're least able to deal with it. As with most things, prevention is always better than cure so keep it as uncluttered as you possibly can, apart from that, the rucksack offers your gear a reasonable amount of protection. Equipment that's strewn all over the exterior of your rucksack is more vulnerable to damage, to be blunt, unnecessary damage and damage that you can well do without!

How Much Gear?

When starting out, everyone, without exception, takes too much gear; as time goes by the amount of gear in your rucksack will become smaller and smaller. You'll eventually get to the stage where your 'basic' gear is fixed and the size of your rucksack will only get bigger to accommodate things like extra clothing for winter trips, other seasonal adjustments, additional gear that may be needed to complete a task, along with additional food on longer trips. If you're unsure, plan a circular route close to home with your car in the centre, that way no matter where you pitch-up you'll only be a relatively short distance from your car; if things really don't go well you can abort and go home. On the whole, things always look better after a hot brew, a shower and a good cry; when all is well again determine what went wrong and take steps to make sure that it doesn't happen again. Lessons learned in this way are rarely forgotten and are invaluable as long as you've got the safety aspect covered.

The Last Word

On this subject? You must be joking! We all have different ideas on what's best and while I consider that my own are right for me, I accept that they may not be right for others. The best system is the system that's right for you and the best way to get there is to chat to others about their gear; their thoughts will also assist you when evaluating your own experiences. Even after all these years I still pick up good ideas that are better, often from younger backpackers! It's also worth remembering that just because someone is younger doesn't mean that they know less than you do; knowledge is ageless and you should never be afraid or embarrassed to learn new things, irrespective of where they may emanate.