selias Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 Enough about what's IN your backpack... OK - I admit it - I'm just a flatlander without a lot of experience in dayhiking away from civilization... In this thread I asked for opinions on a daypack for an upcoming trip. I have since ordered it and received the pack (awesome, by the way!) and had a follow-up question... What is the appropriate position for a daypack on your back? My experiences carrying a backpack are limited to cycling with a relatively small Camelback and wearing "school-type" backpacks. The new pack I just purchased has a waist belt which is new to me... Now, when I wore a "school" backpack, I'd just wear it as high up on my back as I could by really tightening down the shoulder straps. When I do that with my new daypack, the waist belt sits just across the bottom of my rib cage (I'm 6'3"). It isn't particularly comfortable, and it just doesn't look right... When I adjust the pack so that the waist belt is right above my waist (what a concept!) it feels OK but a bit awkward - as if it's about to slide off my backside... I will admit that this awkwardness could be due to the fact that I am not used to wearing it like this, but I was interested in finding out what is the "best" position for the pack. Is this completely subjective or is there a right or wrong way? Thanks in advance for helping a poor flatlander enjoy his vacation... -- Scott ** The Cacher foremerly known as "Scott / WA4SE." Thanks, Caching In for the inadvertent inspiration!! Quote Link to comment
+DustyJacket Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 Perhaps really tall people need a tall pack. It is a hip belt (not a waist belt), and should rest in the upper curve of the hip bone. The weight of the pack should rest on your hips, and not your shoulders (or waist). DustyJacket Not all those that wander are lost. But in my case... Quote Link to comment
+StarshipTrooper Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 The belt should ride on the top of your pelvis. If the sternum strap is much above your actual sternum when you wear it that way, the pack is too small. Quote Link to comment
+Desert_Warrior Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 Well, I don't want to be a jerk.... but I would recomment you wear it in whatever manner is most comfortable for you. I wear mine (photo featured in several threads)with the shoulder straps over my sholders, and the sternum strap closed. I keep the waist strap loose unless I am traversing terrain where a shifting load might be a hazard, or if it might slip over my head. It works for me. YMMV!!! Mike. Desert_Warrior (aka KD9KC). El Paso, Texas. Citizens of this land may own guns. Not to threaten their neighbors, but to ensure themselves of liberty and freedom. They are not assault weapons anymore... they are HOMELAND DEFENSE WEAPONS! Quote Link to comment
selias Posted June 9, 2003 Author Share Posted June 9, 2003 Thanks! Mike - After looking more closely at your avatar, your pack is in the same relative position mine was in when I wore the hip (not waist - sorry!) belt loosely fastened right above my hip bones. From the above posts, I think I had it right - it just felt weird (not uncomfortable, just different) after wearing school packs hunched all the way up to my shoulders and neck. The sternum strap is in an OK spot, but I have a pretty broad chest so I probably won't fasten it. I only use the one on my Camelback when I'm doing some serious trail riding... Sorry about being such a complete bonehead about this - I figured the most comfortable way was the best - but since I'm not that familiar I just wanted to make sure I wasn't doing anything that was completely dumb. Hence I bow to the better knowledge of those with the good fortune of getting out to hike more often than I. Thanks!! Have a great week!! -- Scott ** The Cacher foremerly known as "Scott / WA4SE." Thanks, Caching In for the inadvertent inspiration!! Quote Link to comment
+unclerojelio Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Flatlander22: Sorry about being such a complete bonehead about this - -- Scott You aren't. Packs come in different sizes just like people do. It's important to get one that fits. I've worn my share of backpacks, bookpacks, and camelbacks and some of them fit right and some of them didn't. The best thing to do is go to an outdoor store and try a bunch on. You'll notice a difference when you find one that really fits. ... Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-- I took the one less traveled by, ... unclerojelio Quote Link to comment
+flask Posted June 9, 2003 Share Posted June 9, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Flatlander22: Sorry about being such a complete bonehead about this - better to ask questions. no apologies ever needed. it doesn't matter if you get to camp at one or at six. dinner is still at six. Quote Link to comment
selias Posted June 10, 2003 Author Share Posted June 10, 2003 Thanks for the replies - most confirmed what I already thought... BTW, the Colorado countdown is 5 days! After last week's weather, I'm not sure if I'll be hiking or snowshoeing the trails at Bear Lake... -- Scott "Nature uses as little as possible of anything." -- Johannes Kepler Quote Link to comment
martmann Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 most of the time I wear it on the floor, in the back of my car _________________________________________________________ If trees could scream, would we still cut them down? Well, maybe if they screamed all the time, for no reason. Click here for my Geocaching pictures and Here (newest) Quote Link to comment
+Og's outfit Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 Remember loading your pack is as important as how you wear it. I'm going to try and add a picture (my first time) I hope this works. OG Prophetically Challenged Quote Link to comment
selias Posted June 11, 2003 Author Share Posted June 11, 2003 OG - Try again - I'd like to see the picture..... "Nature uses as little as possible of anything." -- Johannes Kepler Quote Link to comment
+Og's outfit Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 Okay, here goes! OG Prophetically Challenged Quote Link to comment
+parkrrrr Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 Geocities doesn't let you link pictures from outside like that. The first attempt was closer, but nothing but photoshop knows how to read a .PSD file. Quote Link to comment
+Og's outfit Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 Of course the picture doesn't show where to put your trading goodies and his GPSr must be in his left hand. OG Prophetically Challenged Quote Link to comment
+Dub. Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 Sounds to me that your pack isn't fitted correctly. Go to a store such as Galyan's or REI and have them measure your back for a proper fit. The measurment is taken from the 7th vertebrae to the small of your back where it curves. I'm 5'11" and for me, that is 19", however, heigh has very little to do with torso length. You could be taller with a smaller torso and vice versa. Once you have that magic number get fitted for a backpack that is designed for your size. For me, most of the backpacks I wear are M. When properly fitted the pack should rest above your liliac crests of your hips--this is where all the weight of the pack should be felt. You should feel just a little bit of pressure from the front of the shoulder straps--the weight should not be on your shoulders at all. If your pack has load lifter and hipbelt trim straps let me know and I'll help tell you how to properly adjust those. ________________________ I'm not saying we should kill all the stupid people in the world. I'm just saying we should remove all the warning labels and let the problem take care of itself. Quote Link to comment
dsandbro Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 You may want to try different positions even with a properly fitted pack. High or low depending on whether you are descending or ascending, rough terrain or smooth trail, etc. Keep trying different position for different situations. See what's right for you. =========================================================== "The time has come" the Walrus said "to speak of many things; of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and Kings". Quote Link to comment
MikeK5117 Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 I'll second (or third) DW's comments, for a day pack wear it however it feels most comfortable. There has been lots of advice posted here on fitting a backpack, but IMHO if you can get it to fit as described it ain't a daypack anymore, its a backpack. Cinch it in tight so it doesn't sway and catch on stuff, and use the waist belt to stabilize it esp. if you are carrying something heavy or are climbing or scrambling where your balance is important. Quote Link to comment
+Zartimus Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 I wear a daypack or backpack for long geocaching hikes, but for the majority of them, I use this large bike courier's bag. The sucker's huge, waterproof and slings nicely on the side and I can shove it to the back for long jaunts. Since I carry this to work every day I've become used to the slightly off-balanced load. (the skelly is optional) What I like about bags like this is that I can get into it ridiculously fast without taking it off and I don;t even have to stop moving. Everything is at the ready, camera, tripod, cache swag, uhh, other weird stuff, uhh, everything... But for a 20km hike or up a mountain, a backpack for sure! Quote Link to comment
+Dub. Posted June 11, 2003 Share Posted June 11, 2003 quote:IMHO if you can get it to fit as described it ain't a daypack anymore, its a backpack. Daypacks shouldn't have hipbelts, backpacks do. Backpacks are designed to carry more weight over longer periods of time, thus the need to have a hipbelt. Daypacks are lighter, smaller, and don't have hipbelts. If there is a hipbelt, it is a backpack. ________________________ I'm not saying we should kill all the stupid people in the world. I'm just saying we should remove all the warning labels and let the problem take care of itself. Quote Link to comment
martmann Posted June 12, 2003 Share Posted June 12, 2003 My Osprey SOLO daypack has a hip belt. _________________________________________________________ If trees could scream, would we still cut them down? Well, maybe if they screamed all the time, for no reason. Click here for my Geocaching pictures and Here (newest) Quote Link to comment
+Og's outfit Posted June 12, 2003 Share Posted June 12, 2003 So does my North Face daypack. OG Prophetically Challenged (or is that Pathetically?) Quote Link to comment
+Dub. Posted June 12, 2003 Share Posted June 12, 2003 quote:Originally posted by martmann:My Osprey SOLO daypack has a hip belt. And I know backpackers that use "daypacks" to backpack for a week. 15lbs total gear weight...which is probably lighter than some people here carry for a day and no overnight. ________________________ I'm not saying we should kill all the stupid people in the world. I'm just saying we should remove all the warning labels and let the problem take care of itself. Quote Link to comment
selias Posted June 12, 2003 Author Share Posted June 12, 2003 Thanks for all the great advice... Just wanted to follow-up... I carry a Gap backpack* to work some days (helps me to blend in with the students...) and as I mentioned I tended to wear it with the straps tightened down and the load all the way up at my neck. Well - this week, I loosened the shoulder straps to let the pack ride a little lower and WOW - what a big difference... I always just used to throw on the pack and pull on the ends of the shoulder straps until I couldn't get the pack up any higher... I tried the above strategy (loosening the straps a bit - not tightening them) with my new daypack loaded up and loosely fastened the hipbelt. It was a much different feel than I have been used to before - it felt a little different at first, but MUCH more comfortable... Thanks again for the help!!!!! Anyone know if I will be slogging through snow when I get to the Rockies on Sunday?? -- Scott * from what I gathered here, I have made the following generalizations: A daypack may or may not have a hipbelt and is generally smaller than a backpack. May or may not have an internal or external frame. A backpack has a hipbelt and tends to be the term used to refer to the pack used for an overnight hike. Probably has a frame of some variety. So what do you call a backpack/daypack used for school? Again - this whole area is new to me... I have a lot to learn about pack vernacular....... "Nature uses as little as possible of anything." -- Johannes Kepler Quote Link to comment
+Dub. Posted June 13, 2003 Share Posted June 13, 2003 quote:So what do you call a backpack/daypack used for school? Species: Backpack Subspecies: bookbag There are many types of backpacks. You have expedition backpacks, week-long (adventure) backpacks, weekend backpacks, daypacks, bookbags, napsacks, etc. ________________________ I'm not saying we should kill all the stupid people in the world. I'm just saying we should remove all the warning labels and let the problem take care of itself. Quote Link to comment
selias Posted June 21, 2003 Author Share Posted June 21, 2003 Update... Just got home last night from a VERY short trip to the Rockies - three days, three GREAT hikes! The weather held out until noon or 1:00 each day so we got in hikes of 2, 5, and 3 miles respectively. Three miles at altitude is a HECK of a lot different than 3 miles at sea level......... Anyway - the pack worked out perfectly! Just the right size!! Thought I'd let you folks know who were kind enough to help out... Apparently, my wife and I were the only ones on the mountain without trekking poles... need to look into those for next year :-) I hope to have some pictures online soon!! Have a great weekend!! -- Scott Quote Link to comment
+evergreenhiker! Posted June 21, 2003 Share Posted June 21, 2003 quote:Originally posted by martmann:My Osprey SOLO daypack has a hip belt. _________________________________________________________ If trees could scream, would we still cut them down? Well, maybe if they screamed all the time, for no reason. http://community.webshots.com/album/67423220KEECyy http://community.webshots.com/album/71654825qQctnv Yep, my trusy ten year old internal frame Bugaboo daypack has hipbelts too. Basically diff between daypacks and overnight models is storage space...cubic inches. I think mky daypack is around 2700 which is a fairly large daypack, but beginning backpacker models need to be at least 3500...4500-5000 is better. If you're going to be doing technical stuff...even more is needed or prolonged backpacks. Quote Link to comment
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