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squeezebox
02-04-2014, 11:32
So what do you carry on the outside of your pack, and why?

Firefighter503
02-04-2014, 11:38
Define "outside of your pack."

If you mean in outside mesh pockets, then I carry my rain jacket and and other stuff when it is wet. I also carry snacks, bear bag line, alcohol (both gel and the drinking kind), water, and fuel in the outside side pockets (also mesh).

If you mean stuff hanging off my pack with carabiners, then nothing. I like a streamlined pack.

Tipi Walter
02-04-2014, 12:22
http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2014-Trips-152/24-Days-in-the-Cold/i-32W7cQB/0/L/TRIP%20152%20014-L.jpg
I generally dislike carrying crap on the outside of my pack but sometimes it's inevitable as shown at the beginning of a 24 day trip. I even had to hang my cooking pot on the bag in a grocery bag. NOT COOL. The green bag is filled with books (about 10 lbs) and the black/yellow thing is my down 2.5lb parka---vital at -5F. The beloved crocs. The red thing is my tent. The brown barely visible on the right is my sleeping pad. The top under-lid bag is my third food bag.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpacking2010/15-Days-with-a-Red-Hilleberg/i-N6qctkZ/0/M/TRIP%20105%20121-M.jpg
This is what a pack is supposed to look like, and eventually does near the end of one of my trips.

GoldenBear
02-04-2014, 12:28
I try to ensure that A.T. Bear
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=49881&catid=member&imageuser=13863
is outside.

Tipi Walter
02-04-2014, 12:35
I try to ensure that A.T. Bear
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=49881&catid=member&imageuser=13863
is outside.

My buddy Johnny Be likes the real thing---

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpacking2005/Nine-Days-With-Johnny-Be-Trip/i-5rJfNL7/0/M/45-3%20%20little%20dog%20in%20johns%20pack%20at%20cro wdrs-M.jpg

OgreJon
02-04-2014, 12:46
Wow, 10 pounds of books! Why books instead of a kindle? Is it reliability concerns? Books not available digitally?

Just curious, that is a lot of weight for reading material.

Tipi Walter
02-04-2014, 12:51
Wow, 10 pounds of books! Why books instead of a kindle? Is it reliability concerns? Books not available digitally?

Just curious, that is a lot of weight for reading material.

The books (or rolled up copied internet readings) are all burned in the first week so those 10lbs can be kissed goodbye. The only time I really read is on a trip. Kindle? Naw, no spare batteries and I hear they pretty much go haywire at 0F.

squeezebox
02-04-2014, 12:52
I would be interested in getting a copy of your pack lists. I want comfortable camping as well as hiking. But I'm not going to carry 10 lbs. of books. Thanks for your input.

Old Hiker
02-04-2014, 13:17
Foam sleeping pad. Everything else is pretty much inside. On the days it (I) warmed up, I'd sling my quilted top through my shoulder strap just to
have it handy. Anything important (compass is all I can think of) that's in the mesh pockets has a cord tied to a 'biner hooked onto a strap somewhere. Snacks just ride.

I'm just too worried about gear falling off and getting lost. Like my quilted top, just before Roan Mountain !!! Thanks again, Bubble Foot, for finding it, carrying it forward and returning it !!! You rock !!

Kerosene
02-04-2014, 13:20
Typically I only carry gear in one of the two external side pockets of my Granite Gear Nimbus Ozone, plus a few items in a small pocket attached to a shoulder strap.

Left side pocket: 1L lightweight water bottle; Footcare ditty

Right side pocket: 1.5L inverted lightweight water bottle with hose clipped to right shoulder strap; pack raincover; Toiletry Ditty

Shoulder pocket: Point & shoot camera; lip balm; snacks for day; guidebook notes in baggie

In the past I've resorted to hanging my camp shoes off the back of my pack, or a 2-person pack strapped onto the back, but I strive to put everything inside. My next pack will likely have a back mesh pocket where I will put my zPacks Hexamid Duo and rain gear.

Tipi Walter
02-04-2014, 13:20
I'm just too worried about gear falling off and getting lost. Like my quilted top, just before Roan Mountain !!! Thanks again, Bubble Foot, for finding it, carrying it forward and returning it !!! You rock !!

I always double check my zippers before heading out---once left the top lid zipper open, where I store my keys and $/ID. Not good. I saw a tent once on the trail that fell off someone's pack. I thought about "taking it" but discovered it to be a Walmart Ozark Trail---Leave It Be!!

martinb
02-04-2014, 13:26
H-berg goes under the lid. The usual suspects (nalgene, map) in mesh side pockets. Everything else is in the pack.

bigcranky
02-04-2014, 13:29
I have a lot of pockets on my ULA Circuit, and I like them.

Side pockets: water bottles
Big stretch mesh front pocket: rain cover, TP and tent stake (for trowel), rain shell, maps/guidebook/journal/pencil in ziploc bag, hat and gloves in cool weather, ground sheet, shelter (1-person tent or tarp for my hammock.)

Hip belt pockets: snacks go on left side, alcohol gel and Gold Bond powder on right.

If I am using a closed cell foam pad it gets strapped to the top of the pack. I also hang a bandana from my shoulder strap -- I know people hate this, but it works for me.

HooKooDooKu
02-04-2014, 13:35
My two largest items are my tent and my sleeping bag. I don't have room for both inside my pack (or in the mesh pockets). So I use the lashes on the bottom of the pack for my tent.

Back before I started purchasing lighter weight and down-sized gear, I had an external frame Kelty pack where I could strap the tent to the top cross bar, the sleeping bag to the straps under the pack, and then lashed my rolled up sleeping pad to some lash connection points on the back side of the bag.

ALLEGHENY
02-04-2014, 13:36
Wet socks tied with 50/50 cord.
Bandanna>Ilost six.

Coffee
02-04-2014, 13:52
So what do you carry on the outside of your pack, and why?

Very little normally. I don't like things hanging off my pack. Water bottles on the front of my shoulder straps and a dry bag with misc. items I need during the day in one side pocket. Rain gear in front pocket. If my shelter is wet, it goes in the front pocket as well but I have room for it in the main pack if needed. (Pack: ULA Circuit)

slbirdnerd
02-04-2014, 13:58
Regularly: CCF sleeping pad, shockproof/waterproof camera on an S-biner on my hipbelt, flip flops. Maybe my second trekking pole.

jimmyjam
02-04-2014, 14:03
I have the usual stuff in the mesh pockets like everyone else: water bottles, filter, snacks, hand sanitizer, TP, and tarp. The only things actually hanging off my pack will be my wet laundry: 1pr socks, 1pr underwear-yep I am hiker trash.

dmax
02-04-2014, 14:39
25820 Day hike, snacks and foam seat.

QiWiz
02-04-2014, 14:52
Just about always:

ccf butt/sit pad
rain gear
water treatment (Aqua Mira or SteriPen or Sawyer Squeeze)
trail snacks
shed layers as I warm up
map
compass
water bottles

Sometimes:

Shelter/tarp
Saw (Little Buck from QiWiz.net)
Hat/headband
Gloves/mittens
Microspikes
Snowshoes

Dogwood
02-04-2014, 16:10
So what do you carry on the outside of your pack, and why?

zippered hip belt pouches - snacks/mp3 player/very compact digital camera/1 extra AAA battery

side mesh pockets - maps, trail book, small journal WP paper w/ WP pen, bandana, beanie, nylon gloves/mittens/mitten shells, more but larger snacks that don't fit in hip belt pockets, perhaps wind shirt, perhaps sunglasses, sometimes bug juice in separate ziploc

front shovel pocket - wet stuff(at stops I'm drying this wet stuff out though which I then transfer to the inside of pack and usually take an apparekl piece to put into the shovel pocket), AM, sunglasses, extra shirt, shell(rain/wind jacket), rain pants, garbage in ziploc, bug juice in ziploc, mid layer, pack cover(if I think I will be needing it)

trekking poles

water bottle attached to front of shoulder harness

Dogwood
02-04-2014, 16:14
ice axe, micro spikes, crampons, ccf pad, bivy in stuff sack, in winter a couple of dry chemical Hot Hands packs,

always have a few safety pins attached somewhere to webbing for hanging drying clothes like socks etc

Drybones
02-04-2014, 16:19
http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpack-2014-Trips-152/24-Days-in-the-Cold/i-32W7cQB/0/L/TRIP%20152%20014-L.jpg
I generally dislike carrying crap on the outside of my pack but sometimes it's inevitable as shown at the beginning of a 24 day trip. I even had to hang my cooking pot on the bag in a grocery bag. NOT COOL. The green bag is filled with books (about 10 lbs) and the black/yellow thing is my down 2.5lb parka---vital at -5F. The beloved crocs. The red thing is my tent. The brown barely visible on the right is my sleeping pad. The top under-lid bag is my third food bag.

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpacking2010/15-Days-with-a-Red-Hilleberg/i-N6qctkZ/0/M/TRIP%20105%20121-M.jpg
This is what a pack is supposed to look like, and eventually does near the end of one of my trips.

What did you use to attach that Altima to your pack?

Drybones
02-04-2014, 16:20
Wet socks that are drying.

Tipi Walter
02-04-2014, 16:22
What did you use to attach that Altima to your pack?

Ha Ha loads of laughs available here on Whiteblaze:)

Dogwood
02-04-2014, 16:55
Tipi, ever get the sensation you're faaaalllling bacaakwaaards? :)

Malto
02-04-2014, 17:21
While I will have stuff in pack pockets I rarely have anything on the outside of my pack. One of the few exceptions was when I had to tipi a grocery bag to the outside of my pack to hold a days worth of food, the limit in my pack is six days. That was gone in a day but I still had my ten pounds of books. :)

max patch
02-04-2014, 17:25
For me, having to carry anything outside my pack (other than drying socks or whatever) is a sign that my pack is too small. But thats just me. Anyone who happily carries things hanging from their pack can ignore this comment.

George
02-04-2014, 17:42
Tipi - that does look like the packs of most of the boy scouts I see on the trail

aficion
02-04-2014, 17:57
Got no outside pockets, so whatever doesn't fit inside. Usually nothing for a weekend non fishing trip. Sometimes a table and a chair, around 2 lbs each. Most often wet stuff that needs air.

Conure
02-04-2014, 18:29
I also hang a bandana from my shoulder strap -- I know people hate this, but it works for me.

I'm curious because I've never heard this before. Why would people hate someone else hanging a bandana from their shoulder strap? I swear I can't think of any logical reason. The only thing that crosses my mind is gang identification, but that just seems silly on the trail.

Tipi Walter
02-04-2014, 18:44
Tipi - that does look like the packs of most of the boy scouts I see on the trail

I hope not---

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpacking2009/The-Longest-Trip-at-23-Days/i-PWPdMGP/0/L/TRIP%20102%20%20OCTOBER-NOV%202009%20089-L.jpg

rocketsocks
02-04-2014, 19:05
What did you use to attach that Altima to your pack?


Ha Ha loads of laughs available here on Whiteblaze:)

Freakin Beautiful...I love it....goot one!
25823

way to think outside the box Drybones.

moldy
02-05-2014, 14:16
I carry water in 2 coke bottles, attached to the chest strap in those wal-mart carriers one on each boob. That is all the water I carry so it is easy to get to and maintain and I can take a drink in stride.

George
02-05-2014, 14:30
I hope not---

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpacking2009/The-Longest-Trip-at-23-Days/i-PWPdMGP/0/L/TRIP%20102%20%20OCTOBER-NOV%202009%20089-L.jpg

yeah, but you only showed a "before" picture - the scouts look like an "after", at least he is smiling

flemdawg1
02-05-2014, 15:08
Left side pocket: hydration bladder, peice of housewrap sit pad.
Right side pocket: gatorade bottle, TP baggie.

strapped/binered on: crocs, large tent (family trip), large self inflater pad (winter trip)

Kc Fiedler
02-05-2014, 15:28
In all seasons and conditions I strive to keep everything inside the pack. On occasion, however, sleeping pads have ended up on the outside of my pack. Wet clothing also is frequently strapped to the outside to dry when the need arises. Other than that... Nothing. Unless you count mesh pockets and water bottle pouches as outside. In which case up to two water bottles, and my shelter usually end up in the outer pockets. Though I commonly stuff my shelter in the void spaces inside my pack so it's a dynamic system depending on what and how I'm packing. Are you looking for suggestions on how to arrange your own pack?

bigcranky
02-05-2014, 16:36
I'm curious because I've never heard this before. Why would people hate someone else hanging a bandana from their shoulder strap?

I've seen posts along the lines of "no real hiker has a bandana hanging from his shoulder strap." That's the only reason I mentioned it. Remember that anyone who is doing it differently than you is doing it wrong and must be punished (http://www.pmags.com/hike-my-hike-damn-it-hmhdi) :) .


For me, having to carry anything outside my pack (other than drying socks or whatever) is a sign that my pack is too small

I dunno, all my stuff is in pockets, not hanging off the back or whatever. OK, except the bandana. I just see the pockets as part of the pack.

Conure
02-05-2014, 18:43
I've seen posts along the lines of "no real hiker has a bandana hanging from his shoulder strap." That's the only reason I mentioned it.

Okay, thanks bigcranky. You worried me there. Good thing I'm not a real hiker, I have nothing to worry about.

Dogwood
02-05-2014, 18:55
I hope not---

http://tipiwalter.smugmug.com/Backpacking2009/The-Longest-Trip-at-23-Days/i-PWPdMGP/0/L/TRIP%20102%20%20OCTOBER-NOV%202009%20089-L.jpg

I have to ask. What is that kid carrying on top of his head? It looks like a Big Top Tent he borrowed from P.T. Barnum. Tell me, with the conditions and the load he's hauling he remembered gloves/mittens? He remembered the UL plastic baggie garbage bag AND MOST IMPORTANTLY his smile though. :)

Tipi PM me about the kid. Do you know him? Does he not have a rain jacket/hard shell? I might be able to help.

Different Socks
02-05-2014, 22:48
Hanging outside my pack: sleeping pad, dirty socks, crocs, dirty shirts, wet bandanas, wet towel used to dry me off every day b/c I like to be as clean as possible before i get into my bag.

Prime Time
02-06-2014, 00:50
By outside the pack I assume you mean hanging off of it or strapped to it. For me the only sensible answer is nothing except crocks because they weigh very little, are pretty dirty or wet most of the time, and I may need them quickly for a river fording. Bigger stuff outside just gets in the way of accessing other stuff, gets wet when it rains, shifts, falls off, is at risk of getting damaged by a sharp branch, and worst of all creates a load imbalance that fights the way your pack was designed to distribute the weight. If you can't fit all of your standard gear into your pack, get a bigger pack.

sparkygeek
02-06-2014, 15:51
In side mesh panels- aquamira and snacks.
Strapped underneath- my tarp when it is wet.
Hanging off the back- pstyle and rag in its own mesh bag, wet and/or shedded clothing items.
If I ever get camp shoes they probably will get added.

LIhikers
02-07-2014, 03:12
I like to carry our tent on the outside.
That way I can get to it without opening my pack on a rainy day.

Old Hiker
02-07-2014, 11:05
Had to look at my pack after reading the thread. Forgot about the bandana hanging off my shoulder strap to mop my face or glasses during rain or sweaty times. Don't care if people "hate" it or not. Scroom.

Also, my whistle is hanging off a shoulder strap where it can be reached and my small digital camera is hanging from the center of my sternum strap for easy access.

squeezebox
02-07-2014, 11:27
I was wondering where to keep my whistle.
Thanks!

George
02-07-2014, 16:09
I have to ask. What is that kid carrying on top of his head? It looks like a Big Top Tent he borrowed from P.T. Barnum. Tell me, with the conditions and the load he's hauling he remembered gloves/mittens? He remembered the UL plastic baggie garbage bag AND MOST IMPORTANTLY his smile though. :)

Tipi PM me about the kid. Do you know him? Does he not have a rain jacket/hard shell? I might be able to help.

it is a standard blue plastic tarp - likely used as a ground sheet, but the scouts will also rig them as a shelter for as many as 20 - it was just bunched up instead of rolling, hence the bulk, in this case it also has become a head cover

Stroke
02-07-2014, 19:03
Tent, rain jacket, and sit pad.

Wet clothes that need drying.

My watch.