Latest / Everyday Hiker / Backpacks: Size, fit, packing and waterproofing

Transcript

Backpacks: Size, fit, packing and waterproofing · Everyday Hiker

• 0:05
  SPEAKER_00: Are you looking for details of the most beautiful weekend hikes in South East Queensland and further afield?
• 0:10
  SPEAKER_00: Well you're in the right place.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Everyday Hiker Podcast.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: My name is Beck and I'm your host.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: Join me and my guest hikers as we share amazing locations, practical tips and guides for new hikers as well as those with more experience looking for some inspiration.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_00: And please, if you like what you hear, follow me, share with your friends, rate my podcast and send me your feedback.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: Hello and welcome everyone to Everyday Hiker Podcast.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: Today I'm going to do an episode on backpacks, and I have a special guest with me, Ethan from Wildfire Sports here in Brisbane.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: So welcome Ethan.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_01: Hey Beck, thank you for having me.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: It's a pleasure.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: I've been waiting to do this episode because I said before that some women collect shoes.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: I seem to collect hiking shoes and backpacks because I feel like there's a different purpose for every backpack that I have, and that one just won't do everything that I need it to do when it comes to hiking and I guess slash travel.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_00: So but today we are specifically going to be talking about hiking backpacks.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_00: Ethan and I were down in the store before.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: If you haven't been, make sure you get down while Fire is at Milton.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: They've got a great range of everything to do with hiking.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: But that aside, um, I said there's kind of like three backpacks that I think most um hikers need.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: So we're going to talk about those three.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: There's kind of the day pack, there's the short overnight, maybe hut to hut hiking, and then there's the big baby that's going to take us to the overland or something like that.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: So Ethan, shall we kick off with that day pack?
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: What do you see as essential?
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I just want to validate you by saying I've got my fair share of backpacks.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I think a lot of people not the only one with a problem.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_01: I think a lot of people who are into hiking end up collecting more gear than they expect.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, so I have a day bag myself.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_01: I believe it's between 10 and 20 litres.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: And I think what's most important with a day pack is having your water with you.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_01: I think bladders are terrific.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_01: You don't have to reach around for a water bottle, you've just got the hose that comes up the side.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_01: So, like you said earlier when we were talking in the store, uh, sometimes you just have a bag that's the size of a bladder.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um, then you bring rain jacket, some first aid, some food.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_01: So I think definitely under 20 litres for a day bag, you don't need to bring luxuries, maybe your camera's nice, you know.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_00: So that tw mine is 25 litres.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_00: I probably don't fill it up, but I would say most of those ospreys we see around, are they going to be around that 20 litres?
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so uh one that's really popular right now is the Hike Light 22 litre.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_01: And I think for a lot of people it's peace of mind having more space.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_01: So you look at a 10 litre and you think that's that's a really small bag, you know, like just my rain jacket alone is gonna take half that space.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_01: And if you wanted a small bag, you could go for something like a running vest.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_01: People could definitely do a day hike with a 12-litre running vest, you know, and that's super lightweight.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um so I think having the extra space like over 20 litres is peace of mind for some people.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: Because I guess doing some of our walks around Southeast Queensland, where it might go for a bit longer, you know, six to eight hours, and you've got to want to take a little bit more food, but you also might want to take things like poles, you might want to take one of those fold-up foam mats because you're sitting in rocky outcrops to eat your lunch, etc.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: So you 20 litres is gonna cut it, you think, for carrying that sort of gear?
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think definitely that's a that's a comfortable range.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_01: I think you could fit everything you'd need to, especially with things like foam pad and tracking poles, uh, probably gonna go on the outside of your bag.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_01: You have those uh those web meshes on the outside or those um uh adjustable straps that you can slot these things through.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um so I don't know if you really have to consider those as much in your size of your hiking bag.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_01: But I do agree with you on the space you're mentioning.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so that's a really good point to stop with because the backpacks that we have, and I have one sitting here, which is I consider my travel backpack, but it doesn't have those special features that you would get on a hiking day bag.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: So the things you want to look for is you want to look for the toggles.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, to put your hiking poles on.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_00: You want to look for the mesh to be able to strap on.
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_01: I think the bladder insert, maybe I'm used to I don't know, let's call it luxury, because we sell a lot of those higher-end brands here, like the the Osprey, Doida, Gregory, where they they have all these bells and whistles, and people are just going with a school bag, which is perfectly fine.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_01: You don't need some high-tech um top of the range backpack just to climb a mountain on a weekend, especially if you're just getting into hiking.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_01: I would recommend buying as little gear as possible, probably just hiking shoes to start with, and then go on a hike and you'll learn what you need.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_01: You'll say, Oh, I wish I bought this.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_01: I wish I bought a rain jacket, I wish I bought a next more water, you know, and then you can expand your collection from there.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_01: That's probably a bit of a more reserved way.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_01: You're less likely to sell your bag on marketplace after two weeks of owning it.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you know.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_00: But there are some of those features that do make it worthwhile buying the more expensive brands, and that's going to include things like the toggle toggles, the webbing.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of people like the the hip straps that have got a little pocket on them, so they can put it on.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_01: I'm a big fan of the head belt pockets.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_01: You put like an unusley bar in there, you can eat it on the go.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, or your sunscreen or lip balm, depending on the conditions, tissues, you know, exactly.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_01: I'm a big fan of the hip belt pocket.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_01: You know, Osprey actually sells just the pocket, and you can attach it to the hip belt if your bag doesn't come with one.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_00: Right, that's interesting because that's really a feature that I think people people like.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_01: Just buy the the hip pocket zipper that you put on your hip belt.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: Yep, okay.
• 6:09
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes I find the um pocket size isn't big enough for a phone, particularly some of the larger phones.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_00: So I do wear a like a little, a really, really lightweight day pack.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: It's a little Columbia one because it fits my phone.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_00: So um I think but the Osprey pockets are a bit bigger, aren't they?
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: Like they're they'll fit a phone in there.
• 6:28
  SPEAKER_01: This is a bit of a segue because I'm holding a uh Doida 55 litre, but something really cool the sales rep showed me is that with these hip pockets, obviously you've got the set size in there, yeah?
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, but they've designed an expansion for your hip hip belt pocket.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: Wow.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_01: They're getting a bit netty in the in the chat.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_01: I'm I'm a big fan of hiking gear and sometimes the over engineering of it.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_01: And when the the rep pulled this out to our um customer service team, we all went, Wow, expandable hip pockets, that's cool.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_00: That is.
• 7:00
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so if you're a fan of um, if you want a bigger hip pocket, maybe look at a Doida bag.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that that's a really great point because that's something that annoys me.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: If you're gonna spend all this money on a backpack, and then you one of the features you want is the hip belt, and then you get it, and you find the pockets too small to put anything useful in there.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think another thing that we have as a benefit at Wildfire Sports is that if you're a Brisbane local, you should come in and try and look at the bag.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_01: You can't know just by looking at it on the website, it's gonna fit different, you can look at the features in person.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_01: So uh if you want some help with picking a bag, um our friendly staff can help you.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, come in for it.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, in in Milton.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: So one of the non-negotiables for me is the web back, because if you're hiking in Southeast Queensland, it's just it's just so hot, isn't it?
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: So we're seeing that is a feature in Osprey.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: So that's another reason why you might move to a premium bag because you'll get that wonderful webbing that lets the air flow behind your back.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so on the on the Osprey bags, if you're looking for that mesh, it's called Airscape.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_01: And if you're looking at photos online, you can see it written under the mesh, so you know that that mesh is actually separated from the frame.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_01: And I agree with you in our hot climate here.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_01: It's really nice when you feel that breeze go by your back.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_01: Because you we do have a lot of hiking bags that don't have that um what's it called?
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_01: Elevated mesh.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_01: Um and it is really hot, like.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_01: They claim to have the airflow channels, but like the wind isn't directed into your back.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_01: It's not gonna go where you want it to.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so I think if you're going if you live somewhere cold or you're going somewhere cold, having a foam that sits flush with your back is an advantage.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_01: In our hot climate, it your back really you feel it in summer.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_00: Oh gosh, that's another reason now to have two backpacks.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_00: But anyway, for day bags.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_00: So um the other thing that you mentioned before, and before we move on to the bigger sizes, it's it fit is so important, isn't it?
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: Because you know, I made the mistake early on of buying a um backpack online, and it was just the wrong fit for me.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_00: And I thought with a day bag that wasn't, you know, so important.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_00: It was the bigger ones that I had to worry about with that, but it actually is because a lot of them have got these frames now to have that that sort of flow-through mesh back.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_00: But if they've got a slight wire frame and it's too tall for you, that is gonna bug the hell out of you, banging at the back of your neck and head.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_01: So there is a lot of variability with bags now.
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_01: Like you can have um a range of bags that all have the same leader capacity, but you'll have uh specific men's and women's fits, you'll have the phone be flushed with your back or not on your back.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_01: You will have some day bags that have a frame or no frame, and that's also a preference.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_01: So these aren't reasons to have multiple bags, these are reasons to try on a bag and customize it, yeah.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_01: Because you might not want a frame that keeps it rigid, or you might not want the phone to be sitting flush on your back.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_01: So I agree with what you've said.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's got to be fitted.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: So let's go to the next size pack then.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_00: So you're doing an overnight hike, maybe with very little gear, or you're doing kind of like a hut to hut hike.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_00: Like I'm thinking three capes.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: So I know a lot of people when they're doing three capes, I did an episode on it recently, want to know how big a backpack do I have to take for that type of thing, where you might only be carrying your sleeping bag and obviously a little bit of extra food.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I I definitely think um there's always a bit of overlap with bags, uh, especially with between hiker to hiker, whether you you can afford to be ultra-light or if you're getting your gear off marketplace, or maybe it's like 10 years old.
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but I think if you you're like you don't need to bring a tent, you don't need to bring a sleeping mat or a pillow.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_01: That's a the tent's the biggest thing in your bag.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_01: It's always the biggest thing in your bag.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_01: So if you're taking your tent out, you could almost halve the size of your bag.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_01: So for these hut to hut ones, or if you have a guide, I would I would say from 25 to 40 is probably a good range.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, that's skinny is so 40, because I see a lot on these um chats of people saying, Oh, you need at least 45, 50, and I'm thinking that's quite big.
• 11:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I'm thinking that's a lot.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe uh I think I I do have some bias here because I I have gear that's quite light and packs quite small, and I think that gives me the luxury to have a smaller bag or a lighter bag.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_01: And uh it's quite expensive to have those setups, especially if you're just starting out with hiking.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_01: So maybe if you're experiencing like a 40 litre being too small for an overnight hike, it could be related to the size of your gear, and that's completely fine, you know.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um what you could also do is you could purchase a bag you're interested in, leave the tags on, take it home, do a practice pack, see how it looks and feels with all the weight in it, which is really important when fitting a bag.
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_01: You can't fit a bag empty because it doesn't feel like it's there, and you you're moving differently, you're walking differently when you have 10 to 15 kilos on your back.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then if it's not the right size, you should have the receipt and the tags on the bag.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_01: You can take it back and swap it out.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_01: We do we do offer that here.
• 12:16
  SPEAKER_01: You can definitely do that.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_00: That's fantastic because I'm thinking about people that are doing the Camino that you know might have HUD accommodation at night, but they've got to carry this bag for six weeks.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: So your tip is don't try it on empty and think that that's comfortable.
• 12:30
  SPEAKER_00: You gotta pack it up and then see whether or not.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_01: So if you're going in store to get a pack fitted, put weight in it.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_01: We have um like five to ten kilo pack weights here, and even ten kilos, my bag's usually heavier than that.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_01: Because um, when you're out you're adding carrying water, water's really heavy.
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_01: One liter is one one liter is one kilo.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you know, so if you're carrying just three or four litres on your body, that's four kilos more that you're carrying.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_01: So I would definitely recommend packing a bag with weight and if you can, your own gear before committing to keeping it, especially if you're buying one of these Osprey bags where they can run you up almost$500 for one hiking bag.
• 13:09
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 13:09
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it's like it is a big investment for a lot of people.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_01: You want to be sure you're buying something you like and that works for you.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_00: And I think the other advantage is you've got to get the fit of the straps right, don't you?
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_00: And you might not know um how to do that.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_00: So we were talking downstairs before, and you said your formula was 70% on my hips, hips, and 30% on your shoulders.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_01: So, like uh either 70-30 or 60-40 is what's comfortable for me.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_01: So you'd have your um so I'm talking about my frame, so I'm skinny and tall for for the viewers, um, and well the listeners, because they can't see you on the bottom.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_01: So uh this might not work if you have a female body or if you're bigger than me.
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_01: Uh it's important to say that first, but I like to have my hip belt resting uh on the belt line or just above the belt line and be quite snug.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_01: Uh and the snugness is taking a little bit extra of the weight, then you want to make sure that the mesh or the foam is flush with your back.
• 14:09
  SPEAKER_01: You can actually adjust this really easily with those two toggles at the very top of your straps, of your shoulder straps.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: They go from the top of your shoulder straps to the top of the frame of the hiking bag.
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_01: And those should be the last things you're adjusting, and you can just pull this very gently to pull the foam into your back, like into your um your lower back and your upper back.
• 14:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then you can feel the weight on your hips, and you should have the straps resting on your shoulders but m uh majorly on your hips, because it gives you a lower center of gravity to have that weight lower on your body.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_01: And then 70% sounds like a lot.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_01: So you're walking for five to six hours and your hips are feeling sore from the weight.
• 14:51
  SPEAKER_01: I would just loosen the straps of my hip bed a little bit and put the weight on my shoulders instead for a couple kilometers or a couple hours.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, get into the heart and give you something.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_01: To distribute that weight a bit.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but I I definitely think it it feels better for me personally to have majority of the weight beyond my hips.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's so important getting it sitting just on the right spot and getting it really nice and tight and firm on your shoulders.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_00: So even if you aren't buying the fanciest backpack, probably a non-negotiable is adjustable straps to get it to fit to your body.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_00: So okay, that's great advice.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_00: We are now stepping it up and we're going to the big one.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so we're doing, say, the overland, and we've got to take the tent and cooking gear.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_00: So, what size are you going to recommend for that?
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_01: So, I have actually done the overland.
• 15:45
  SPEAKER_01: I personally did it with a 70-litre black wolf bag I got off Marketplace.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, it worked great for me.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_01: It's not like a hot new fancy bag, you know.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um, sometimes old school just works fine.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_01: And I've personally found 70 litres was too much space.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_01: Because um you can refill your water along the hike, um at the at the resting spots, at the huts, and I'm not sure, maybe it's the combination of gear I have that I don't think that just because you're doing more days means you need a bigger bag.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_01: Because once you have your gear, the only thing that's fluctuating in your bag is your food.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_01: Your your gear's not changing size, you know, your water's not changing size, your bag's not changing size.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_01: So that's why I'm saying uh fill your bag up with all your gear, then you know how much space you have to work with.
• 16:34
  SPEAKER_01: Because um yeah.
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so I mean really I think the message here is don't just listen to the Facebook forums and say you have to have a 70 litre to do the overlay.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_00: No, I didn't mean it.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_00: You have to have a 55 to do three capes, because that's definitely what I'm seeing.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_00: People are saying you've got to have this, but it's really about the kind of gear you're taking.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I've been hiking with people who take a different, like, clean set of clothes every day.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_00: There are other people who are like, I know, I know, right?
• 17:03
  SPEAKER_00: Females, sorry, have to say it, but there are other people that are like, I wear the same thing every day, so I'm not taking any sort of spare gear or I wash at night.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_01: So maybe I'll out myself a bit here.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_01: But if I'm going on a one-night or a two-night hike, I I'm taking new underwear every day, maybe two pairs of socks, I'm reusing socks, I don't care.
• 17:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and maybe an extra shirt or an extra pair of pants.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_00: And this is what all this hiking gear that's promoted to do is that you can wear it for two or three days and not stink out your companions.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_01: You don't get to wash your clothes every day, you know.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_01: And you're not going to be able to.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_01: I think uh underwear is a non-compromise.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_01: Change your under every day.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_01: But with um socks and clothes, the only thing that would make me want new ones is if it's really wet.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: And so this is a great point to talk about.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_00: It's a really, really essential part of your pack, and we're just coming out of a really rainy parent of Southeast Queensland.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_00: There's nothing more miserable than a wet sleeping bag.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_00: So, what are these packs that we're looking at here today?
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_00: Like, let's start.
• 18:12
  SPEAKER_00: What makes Osprey so special with apart from all these other features?
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_00: Let's talk about waterproof, the waterproof umness of some of these packs, and also the covers and whether that's going to be enough.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_01: So only up until recently, I had never hiked with a pack liner, which is really popular right now.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I think there's benefits and drawbacks.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_01: I I wouldn't trust the rain cover of a hiking bag to completely keep your bag dry, especially what I experienced.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_01: I went hiking um not last weekend, but the weekend before in Diagula, and that was very wet.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_01: It rained um all day the second day.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: And uh unfortunately to me, so I'll just tell a bit of a story here.
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_01: We're packing up on the morning of the second day, the tent's wet.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, don't put a wet tent inside your bag.
• 19:01
  SPEAKER_01: Um, put as much of the tent as you can dry inside your bag and put everything else that's wet on the outside.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_01: So we have the fly and the footprint on the outside, and because of its shape in a long cylinder, when I tried to put my um my rain cover over my bag, it didn't fit because it's fitted for the shape of the bag um as its own body.
• 19:22
  SPEAKER_01: It doesn't account for that extra on the outside.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_01: So if I had something bigger, like a folding foam mat, the the rain cover I that is pre-installed with my bag doesn't cover.
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_01: So uh in that moment, the pack liner was really good for me.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the main inconvenience of a pack liner is not being able to get gear.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_01: Because it's it's um one tube with one opening.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: So you you if you want your sleeping bag at the bottom, you have to empty your entire bag.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_01: But keeping your things dry is really important.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_01: I think if you were being uh anal about your setup, you could have the rain cover on the outside of your pack, then a pack liner, which is the in the entire body of your bag.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_01: So if you have a 50-litre bag, you get a 50-litre pack liner, and then you would have more dry bags on the inside of the pack liner.
• 20:14
  SPEAKER_00: Um for small accessible things.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_01: Sleeping bags, sleeping bags are really important to be dry, clothing's really important to be dry.
• 20:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um, if you need a lighting source for your stove, that that needs to be dry.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_01: Your light power banks.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, your light is your matches, your technology.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you need these to be dry to keep yourself safe.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_01: So it might sound anal to have all of these steps, but if you're going hiking in Southeast Queensland in summer, it gets that wet.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that you're gonna need it.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_00: And and a garbage bag, which I know is um one that pops up on the forums all the time, might be okay for a day, but it just breaks after that.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_01: Well, if it catches a branch, it's it's gone.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_01: It has a hole in it, and the water is gonna trickle down the side and get in the hole and get wet.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, keeping your gear dry is one of the most important things in hiking in the rain.
• 21:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, funny story about the garbage bag.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_01: If we have time for a tangent.
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, go ahead.
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_01: I was hiking around Harry's Hut.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_01: You know what that is?
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, Noose, yeah, yeah.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_01: Around Harry's Hut, and my dad and I planned a hike to cross Harry's Hut and hike around Lake Cathara.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_01: And our solution was to put our entire all our gear in double wrapped in trash bags and swim across the river.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, so you mean where that bridge used to be and it's collapsed, yeah.
• 21:28
  SPEAKER_01: So we we waded across Harry's Hut uh River in our underwear with our all out of our gear double wrapped in trash bags and it was completely dry.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_01: So I can't knock the trash bags on that front.
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_00: Well, it's funny you do say that because I've actually gone through Barren Gorge exactly the same way with the garbage bag, just pushing it in front as you swim along.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_01: As a long term solution, we do not recommend a trash bag in any way.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_01: But if you're on a budget or short term uh just across the river or something, it's extremely helpful.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I think the point is that the rain covers not the be all and end all, you're gonna need something else.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_01: So you absolutely need to for my bag, uh I have an o uh Osprey Atmos uh 50.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_01: It comes with a rain cover pre-installed um at the bottom under the where the sleeping bag goes in your bag.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_01: And it only covers the bag itself.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_01: If if I put anything on the outside, foam mat, rain jacket, uh wet tent, the rain jacket isn't covering the entire bag anymore.
• 22:28
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's right.
• 22:30
  SPEAKER_01: Something really interesting that I want to try is I saw uh I think it was an Anaconda, it was a rain poncho that is big enough to cover your body and your bag.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_01: You have this?
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: I have that.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: That's what I use.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_01: Does it work?
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_00: It absolutely works.
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, because the problem I have is I have a rain jacket.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_01: My bag has a rain jacket, but there's a gap between your body and the mesh or the phone.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: Where rain trickles down the back of my rain jacket and soaks into the mesh of my bag.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_00: Yep.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_00: I would say two things about it.
• 23:00
  SPEAKER_00: You've got to get a quality one.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_00: Um so um your hands are free, which is fantastic, but it does mean that your sleeves and gloves and things get wet, and it's uncomfortable to kind of you know tuck your arms into the poncho.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and if it's hot, it's just hot under there, under the poncho.
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_00: So it's probably a better sort of for a cold solution.
• 23:21
  SPEAKER_00: The other thing is that it drips a little bit onto my shoes, um, and there's just sort of no getting around that so that you know at the bottom of your so I guess wearing rain pants, but then you're just getting hotter.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_00: But I love it, that's what I take.
• 23:35
  SPEAKER_00: I usually take that and and a raincoat.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_01: I've been really curious about it for a while, so maybe on your recommendation I'll try it out.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it keeps your pack dry.
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_01: This is probably a conversation from a different day, but I just want to add a note really quick about waterproof gear and rain jackets and everything like that.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_01: You cannot have a breathable jacket that is also waterproof.
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_01: I don't care what the company tells you, I don't care if it's Cortex, if it's waterproof, it is not breathable.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_00: That's right.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_00: That's what and that's what I'm saying about the poncho.
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's fantastic for keeping the water off you, but it's a little bit better because you get that airflow with the arms and up through your legs.
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_00: You're like a cone.
• 24:09
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, exactly.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'm glad you mentioned that because that certainly is a solution that I use.
• 24:15
  SPEAKER_00: Um, just not on really hot days.
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_00: Now we are gonna run out of time, but I do want to talk about how we organise our packing.
• 24:24
  SPEAKER_00: So when we're talking about that 70-litre pack and you're doing the overland, it's really important to get the um the weight of each item to get it at the right place in the pack, isn't it?
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_00: Because that's that's gonna really help with distributing the weight over your shoulders and your hips.
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_00: So, what's what's the philosophy there?
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_01: What so I will say, even I struggle with this because there's systems you can use to try and have the weight distributed.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_01: But when you have so many small nitpiggy items, it's hard to get the weight even.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_01: But a general rule of thumb is you want the sleeping bag at the bottom because it spans the width of your bag, um, and you can't put anything either side of it.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um and most bags uh have a dedicated pocket for a sleeping bag as well.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_01: Then you want to have your tent, if you're carrying one, uh running along your spine vertically.
• 25:11
  SPEAKER_01: Because you want the weight centered along your um centre of mass.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um because it's keeping the weight even, and if you have weight on one side, you'll feel it on your hips.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_01: Like I I think I I must have had like 500 grams or a kilo extra on one side of my bag, and I felt it in my hip.
• 25:28
  SPEAKER_01: And it's so hard to find that that middle line.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_01: So the most important thing is tent along your spine and then pad it either side with um even weight items.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um as best you as best as you.
• 25:42
  SPEAKER_00: So maybe cooking items like your little stove and your food on either side of it, building upwards.
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_01: I'd go sleeping mat and rain jacket equivalently on the other side.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then you would stack evenly on either side of the tent until you get to the top of the bag.
• 26:02
  SPEAKER_00: Yep.
• 26:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and you try your best.
• 26:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_01: Honestly.
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, that's the best I start with that method and see what you can work with.
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_01: That's the best advice I can give, because honestly, I do I I did have that feeling of weight on one side and it's it's awkward.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_01: And I think, well, what part of my packing system wasn't right this time?
• 26:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_01: And you can learn from it.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_00: So you've really got to change things up and change things around.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_00: And um, and so then what about if you if like if you've got that uh method, if you are putting things on the outside, that is gonna change the weight ratio, isn't it?
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_00: Again, so you've got to be pretty careful about putting too much on the like I like the idea that it's you know means you take a smaller pack, but you do have to get it just right to get that balance right.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I I think the same rule on the inside as the outside.
• 26:52
  SPEAKER_01: You want to balance the weight either side.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_01: If you use your spine as the middle line, you want to have half half of the weight on your left and half of the weight on your right.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_01: So I would usually have um, like I said before, sleeping bag tent, I would also have a one liter water bottle either side of my on the outside of my bag.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_01: And you would I you would really want those to be the same weight.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_01: Because uh having different um weights on those water bottles is is really gonna mess you up.
• 27:18
  SPEAKER_01: So when I was leaving on the second day of that hack I just did, um I wouldn't have the water uneven in my two bottles.
• 27:24
  SPEAKER_01: I would distribute it between them to be level so that I have the same weight on either side.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_00: Okay, yeah, that's a good because it often people only take one bottle, two, so that's gonna give them a really uneven.
• 27:36
  SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah, yeah, you gotta have two, okay?
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_00: That's Ethan's tip for today about getting the weight right.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I I went for so it was a uh the one I did in Diagula two weekends ago, it was um two days, one night, it was I think like 24k's, and I we had at least four litres each on us, and we needed all of it.
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_01: Like if you're talking about drinking one and a half to two litres a day, which you should be, yeah, you should drink at least one and a half litres a day when you're doing that much exercise.
• 28:04
  SPEAKER_01: And cooking with those freeze-dried meals, you use more water than you expect.
• 28:07
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, we needed all of the water we brought.
• 28:10
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, okay.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_00: So to wrap it up, then we said today we were only going to talk about hiking backpacks, and I think hopefully from everyone listening can see.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm looking at some of these packs at the moment, there's all sorts of bells and whistles and straps.
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we we didn't cover as as much as I think in detail.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_00: But we can put a link to some of the models to look at in the show notes.
• 28:31
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but one of the issues going to be, and I find this with my um my Hut to Hut pack, it's not a great travel bag because of those straps.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_00: So it's really hard to get um a backpack that's going to do it all.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_00: I think you're just gonna have to accept that you're gonna need a hiking backpack if that's part the most part of your holiday, and then you're gonna need maybe a smaller backpack that you use for travelling around if you're combining the two.
• 29:00
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 29:00
  SPEAKER_00: And you can also get these awesome little um backpacks in a purse these days.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_00: You you know, that folds up that big.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, because that's a really great one.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_00: I know with three capes, the days that you could drop your pack, that's all you needed, just to have something to throw your water bottle in, throw a snack in, you know, throw maybe a rain jacket in.
• 29:21
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and that's another great way if you're traveling.
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_00: Don't try and make your backpack do it all.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_00: You're just not going to get a travel um pack because you're not gonna be able to tie it up nice and neat for the plane.
• 29:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we we have plenty of bags, they roll up to probably the size of your fist, like they're really small, and it's they don't have a frame or anything, so they don't have much support.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_01: But if you're just dropping your main hiking bag off at an outpost to climb a mountain or do an offshoot, it is really handy to have that extra bag to carry your day items, or like you're saying, you want to do a bit more um tourism when you're traveling with a hiking bag.
• 29:55
  SPEAKER_01: Uh actually, I'm not sure how much time we have left, but I did ask my co-worker the other day how how do you travel to Tasmania with your hiking bag?
• 30:03
  SPEAKER_01: Because the straps go everywhere.
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_01: I don't want them to get stuck in a conveyor belt at the airport.
• 30:07
  SPEAKER_01: Because um Osprey sells this product called an airporter, which is a bag for your bag.
• 30:12
  SPEAKER_00: Right, yeah, okay.
• 30:13
  SPEAKER_01: But the problem is they're really bulky, so then do you carry it on your hike?
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_01: Like, what's the solution here?
• 30:18
  SPEAKER_01: And he said he he didn't have any trouble with the straps just hanging out.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_01: You like you cinch all the straps down to the as tight as they can go, you try to tuck them in somewhere and make it neat and tidy, um, and you hope for the best.
• 30:30
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 30:30
  SPEAKER_01: So it is really tricky to travel on a plane with a hiking bag because they've got stuff hanging off everywhere.
• 30:37
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
• 30:37
  SPEAKER_00: And I've had two unfortunate experiences where my straps have got caught, um, including having to do the loop at Tokyo Airport because I just, you know, got stuck pulling it off a luggage rack.
• 30:49
  SPEAKER_00: So, I mean what I generally do, it is funny you mentioned black wolf, because I've got like a black wolf like 65 litre, and I will put the hiking backpack inside that, plus my other you know, clothes and things that I might need for the trip, because that can zip up around, but it's still got straps for if that's you want to be portable when you get off the plane or and uh yeah, and it's nice and soft to store it.
• 31:10
  SPEAKER_01: What do you put your hiking bag bag when you go on the hike?
• 31:12
  SPEAKER_01: What do you what do you what do you store it?
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_00: Do you get an overnight locker or yeah, or maybe if you're going with a group or like Three Capes was a great example because they provided lockers at the start of the hike, but the hotel where you're staying in town before the hike will often let you store it there.
• 31:28
  SPEAKER_00: And if it's nice and soft and compact, nobody really has a problem with that.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_00: So that works for me.
• 31:35
  SPEAKER_00: But um, and I was saying to Ethan before, just about to head off to uh Nepal really shortly, and I'll certainly be doing exactly the same strategy, just putting the hiking pack inside my bigger black wolf that can get knocked around as much as you like on those conveyor belts.
• 31:50
  SPEAKER_01: Well, the only caveat is having to store your um your check-in bag somewhere when you're hiking.
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_00: I usually find a way though.
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_00: Even you know, there's all these apps these days where you can leave them, say, at a news agent or a 7-Eleven, um, which I can put a link to, which is another great way to do it.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_00: So you just leave it in town, you know, wherever you happen to be taking off from.
• 32:12
  SPEAKER_00: So anyway, we had better wrap up because we've just gone over the 30-minute mark and I do try and keep it to around that 30 minutes.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_00: But before we finish up, and I'm going to put this in the link, Ethan has very kindly offered a discount at Wildfire.
• 32:26
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so please do look at the show notes.
• 32:29
  SPEAKER_00: If it's time for a new bag, you need to add one to your collection.
• 32:33
  SPEAKER_00: If there's something that we we've talked about today where you've thought, I need that, pop on into Wildfire.
• 32:38
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you do also have a fantastic um website, you know, for people not living in Brisbane.
• 32:43
  SPEAKER_01: It's very hard to upset our website.
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_01: It's probably our biggest fight every day is trying to make our website better.
• 32:48
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, it's really great, and you have a great service with um delivery as well.
• 32:52
  SPEAKER_00: So um, so that that uh code will be able to be used in store and online.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, of course.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_01: We can set up, we can set that up for you.
• 32:59
  SPEAKER_01: It'll be$10 off your order online or in store off any item you buy.
• 33:04
  SPEAKER_01: Um another uh really cool thing we offer for people not living locally is an item on our website called Try To Anything.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_00: I've seen that.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so all you have to do is add it to your order for$5 and you can send your whole order or part of your order back to us uh without any delivery fees.
• 33:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I've seen that because I think that's a fantastic idea if you're not sure which shoes to pick and you can't get into Milton.
• 33:27
  SPEAKER_01: The most popular one is ordering multiple colours or sizes of shoes.
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, colours really.
• 33:31
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, okay.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_00: Sizes I get brands, maybe, but it's a fantastic feature.
• 33:36
  SPEAKER_00: It's a really good one.
• 33:37
  SPEAKER_00: So you can send the ones back that you know that didn't meet your requirements.
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_01: Your whole order back, even.
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 33:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 33:43
  SPEAKER_00: Fantastic.
• 33:43
  SPEAKER_00: Ethan, thank you so much for your time today.
• 33:46
  SPEAKER_00: I know everybody will appreciate hearing some of your own personal experiences with gear as well.
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_00: So until next time, everyone, happy hiking.
• 33:53
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.