How to Buy a Hiking Backpack

Being lifelong travelers, we all love our lightweight, multipurpose gear that will withstand the trials from the road. Gear should be dependable, multifunctional, durable and perform beyond expectations. Nothing might be truer in relation to investing in a good hiking backpack, especially considering it’s going to be your house away from home. Traveling, especially long-term, will literally test the boundaries of one’s bag plus your body, and as such this decision should not be made impulsively. Buying your backpack shouldn’t be a rushed decision and factors such as trip length, capacity, material, functionally and luxury should invariably be considered. When i got intent on purchasing a good pack, I used to be at REI for a good 3 hours -I think they started to suspect I used to be looking for a job.


If my three hours was any indication, investing in a good backpack just isn’t easy. With a huge selection of Backpack Manufacturers and styles, it may understandably be overwhelming. Whatever you do, don’t go cheap. You’ll be doing your hair a disservice and end up buying another one anyways. A good backpack is definitely an investment. You don’t need to spend $500 on the backpack, but be skeptical of cheap, no-frills, mediocre $70 brands, as you’ll regret the structure flaws and deficiency of extras. Spend a bit more for a good backpack coming from a trusted brand, and it’ll become the perfect companion for a lot of trips into the future. The Osprey pack I finally chosen has traveled when camping from the U.S on the Middle East for 10 awesome many It has another good A decade to go.

Travel Backpack or Hiking Backpack

Before you start shopping for the proper pack, it is advisable to be aware of distinction between travel backpacks and hiking backpacks. A travel backpack can be a backpack-suitcase hybrid which has a zippered side panel such as a suitcase. Hiking backpacks include the also seen cylindrical top loading packs with straps, clips along with a top lid. A lot of people offer an opinion that hiking backpacks are simply suited for the backcountry and it has no room to the backpacker, I disagree. The things for you ultimately comes down to personal preference and elegance of travel. Travel backpacks are good for easy, organized use of gear and transporting from hostel to hostel. They also work well abbreviated walks and even being a daypack.

On the other hand, in case you possibly have camping or long treks with your travel plans, you might like to think about a hiking backpack. Hiking backpacks are equipped for comfort, proper weight distribution, and toughness. Unlike a travel backpack, hiking backpacks can have enhancements like full-sized hip belts, shoulder and back suspension systems as well as plenty of load bearing straps to mitigate discomfort. Granted the very best down packing just isn’t as easy to access your gear, but that’s part in parcel to proper weight distribution. A good compromise is always to get yourself a hiking backpack with side load access.

We are generalizing a little while they do have travel backpacks which can be within the upper capacity range with an increase of advanced suspension systems, in case you’ll receive a 70L travel backpack, you could at the same time opt for a hiking backpack. Trust me, you may be glad learn about for that unexpected 20 mile trek to another town.

Personal Backpacking Style

Next, determine the perception of travel you normally want to do. Unless you’re prepared to purchase a different backpack for every trip, determining your travel style can save you lots of money ultimately and provide you an item of foundation gear that’s ready for almost any trip. For example, in case you generally go on week long trips you don’t need to get yourself a high capacity bag and can probably pull off a 35 liter to 50 liter (L) pack, whereas living long-term traveling might require 65L or greater.

Sizing is pretty subjective though and shouldn’t be the only determining factor. A lot of people have the ability to pack very bare bones, where others need a extra. To understand factors:

The length of time is the trip:

With regards to the length of your journey the capability and overall weight of one’s pack will vary. Short trips require less capacity, and long trips typically require more. But know that the bigger the pack the heavier it will become. 50lbs might not seem a good deal at first, but Eight weeks in and it’ll feel as if a lot of bricks.

What Type of Activities will you do:

Personally, i believe that one bag can rule all of them ever since i generally use my pack for everything. However, this isn’t always the situation for everyone. Knowing what type of activity you may be doing will allow you to zero in on that perfect backpack. If you aren’t planning on carrying it around much, think about a travel backpack or possibly a wheeled backpack, whereas in case you foresee yourself doing long treks then this hiking backpack may be far better. I prefer to then come any type of spontaneous activity, and so i lean more towards hiking backpacks. Also, hiking backpacks are usually developed a bit tougher, so understand that the harder challenging the experience, the greater the force on the bag.

Lightweight or perhaps the drain:

Although I pointed out earlier that dimensions are not the principle determining factor, it’s still vital that you consider capacity based on what you want to bring. If ultra light is the goal, avoid high capacity backpacks as you’ll invariably bring an excessive amount of or you do have the ability to pack light your backpack won’t distribute the weight properly. Conversely, if your backpack is way too small, you will not manage to it is able to. Know the gear you’re bringing and pick the capacity of one’s bag accordingly. Don’t hesitate to take the what to the store to view how it corresponds the packs. A professional retailer, like REI, won’t have an issue with this.

Things to look for Inside a Hiking Backpack

Backpacks vary in functionality around they actually do in appearance, together with the more costly models keeping the most features. Much like everything, your decision here is closely linked to what type of traveling you want to do.

Water Resistant

Your pack is probably not destined to be completely waterproof. Meaning, if submerged, or perhaps in a torrential downpour your clothing and equipment will acquire wet. Although most backpacks now include a rain cover, you’ll still wish it to be manufactured of the tough, rip proof, and light-weight silicone coated nylon or Cordura type material that permits rain or water to bead off instead of soak through.
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