Picking Out a Backpack: Features to Look for and Features to Avoid!

We’ve used a LOT of backpacks on a LOT of backcountry trips. From big and heavy, to small and light, we’ve had a chance to try them out in the wilderness. What we’ve learned is that certain features are very useful, while others are little more than gimmicks that do little to enhance a backpacking trip — they’re just designed to get backpacks off of shelves.

We just posted this Youtube Video going into the details of our experience with particular backpacks and particular features.

The backpacks we explore in the video are a subset of backpacks that we are confident recommending. They are the:

We hope you enjoy the video! For folks who prefer reading over watching, below are the key take-aways:

The most important factors to consider are:

  • Capacity: Choose a backpack with the right capacity for your typical trip (volume and load)
  • Weight: All else being equal, lighter is always better.
  • Size: Take measurements and/or try on packs to make sure you get one that’s the right size for your body.
  • Simplicity: Fewer unnecessary features means fewer potential failure points, and an easier-to-use pack.

Features we like include:

  • Water Resistance: A pack made out of a water-proof (ie water resistant) material such as Dyneema makes trips more pleasant in inclement weather.
  • Side Pockets: Our water bottles live in our side pockets, so the larger these are the more water-carrying capacity we have.
  • Hip-belt pockets: We always put small items, like snacks and phones, in our hip-belt pockets. It is frustrating when manufacturers charge extra for these (we’re looking at you, Zpacks).
  • Load Straps: These let you adjust how your load carries on-the-fly. In our opinion, all backpacks should have them (we’re looking at you, Hyperlite).
  • Top Strap: We keep our sleeping pads buckled to the top of our packs, so we make sure any backpack we use has a strap on top that can be used to hold it on.

Features we don’t like include:

  • Extra pockets: Whether it’s a “brain” that goes on top of a pack, or small pockets up and down the sides, these pockets can only fit certain items, and they don’t carry as well as a single large compartment.
  • Extra zippers: Many traditional packs have a lower-zipper that provides access to a sleeping bag. This is an unnecessary failure-point that adds unnecessary weight.
  • Excessive padding or loft systems: When padding exceeds the amount that’s essential for comfort, it just adds weight to a pack. We’ve found that if our packs are sized properly and transferring the load to our hips, only minimal padding is necessary.
  • Water-bladder pocket: This might be a little controversial, but we don’t like or recommend water bladders, because they make it hard to assess how much you’re drinking.

Whatever backpack you choose, have fun out there!

-T&R

Disclosure: We use affiliate links in this post, which may include Amazon affiliate links and others. We receive a small commission on some of products you buy. There is no extra cost to you.

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