BEST RUCKSACK.
After choosing the best walking boots for your feet, a rucksack is the second most important piece of equipment you need for walking any of the Camino routes. Bear in mind this humble backpack is going to hold all your belonging for a month, sometime more.
Rucksacks come in many different shapes and sizes. Each rucksack is specific to a certain activity or pursuit. When looking for a rucksack there are four vital points to consider before you purchase:
1. You need to decide what activity you intend to use the backpack for. Are you going on an afternoon walk, or an adventure holiday like the Camino? Make sure you have a comprehensive kit list typed out and if possible estimate the overall weight of your combined kit, and remember you do want to keep the weight as low as possible – buying a bigger backpack than necessary will often lead to taking more with you than you need. This may not seem very important at this stage, but when it comes to selecting how much capacity you need, kit weight comes into play. Different sized backpacks handle certain weights better.
Many outdoor enthusiasts claim that your most important piece of kit is your rucksack. Needless to say choosing a quality bag made by a reputable manufacturer is imperative. By doing so you are ensuring that you get a quality bag that isn’t going to rip or tear. Not to mention the significant difference in comfort between cheaper brands and trusted manufacturers.
3. Fit. This is the most important aspect of selecting a rucksack. In simple terms, a bad fit results in a bad back. Rucksacks are designed so that the majority of its weight is lifted off your shoulders and carried on your hips. Positioning the straps to ensure a fit to your proportion is of utmost importance. This prevents over straining the shoulders and back and avoids injury.
The correct way to fit a rucksack is a process that initially takes time to get right but once you’ve used the bag enough you’ll know exactly how loose or tight each strap should be.
1. To start off, loosen every strap.
2. Lift the bag onto your knee using its haul strap.
3. Correct your stance and ensure that your back is straight.
4. Haul the bag steadily from your knee onto your shoulders.
5. Place the hip belt over your hip bones making sure that it’s not on top of or underneath them. And then tighten it.
6. Adjust the shoulder straps so that they fit closely and wrap over and around your shoulder. If it feels like your shoulders are taking more than 15% of the packs weight, adjust them until you re-distribute more of the weight to the hips
7. Depending on the bag, you should have adjustable load lifters which allow you to bring the bag close to your head or further away. Experiment with these to find the setting that suits you.
8. The chest strap seems to be a weak, pointless buckle. However when adjusted properly it can pull the shoulder straps together which allows your arms to move more freely and brings the weight closer to your body.
9. Ensure that you are comfortable and as you walk try to pin point areas that might cause pain and adjust them.
It’s very important that you distribute the weight evenly inside the bag so not to throw off your balance. There is no point in putting unnecessary strain on your lower or upper back. Keep your rucksack close to your body. Try to keep the heaviest items close to your back near your hips as opposed to hanging loosely off the bag which can act to drag you backwards into a negative stance.
You won’t know what suits you best until you get out there and do it, so keep a mental note when you’re wearing your backpack of places that strain so that you can adjust them later.
By caminoadventures. Image: Pixabay
