Packing the pack

[Chaco Taco]

Where is a picture of how the weight should be distributed in a pack?

[Phreak]

Here are a couple of pics that may help ya.

[Hammock Hanger]

Here are a couple of pics that may help ya.

Eventually you will find what works best for you. When I am teaching a class I try and have the heaviest weight about 2/3 of the way up from the bottom and close to the back.

Then it becomes a personal issue. Are you someone who goes in to the pack a lot to get clothes, do you need to dry your tent out everyday do to condensation, do you cook lunch...

Once you find a system that works best for you, if you pack the pack the same way every time, you will not forget or lose things. You will know where everything goes and as you are packing you will sense that you did not put something in "it's" place.

MY PACK: (bottom to top)
hammock -- unless it is summer, then I use it midday
sleeping bag
clothes/kitchen (cook pot/stove/etc)
food bag
jacket
rain packa is vertical between the pack and all the other stuff
water bladder vertical along back (although I have been toying with idea of it being on top of the food bag)

FRONT POCKET:
first aide
snacks/lunch
pocketmail
wallet

SIDE POCKETs:
flask with Gatorade or flavored drink
fuel
plastic knife
wet wipes

HIP BELT POCKET:
camera
cell
map (sometimes in skirt pocket..)
couple pieces of hard candy

This seems to work for me. Good luck with your hike.

[rafe]

Lowspark... whatever works. Your difficulty may be a result of too much gear or too small a pack. You may want to carry tent and sleeping pad outside the pack. Generally, stuff you use at camp goes to the bottom -- your sleeping bag, kitchen, camp shoes, etc. Stuff that you're likely to want access to during the day needs to go higher up. (Eg., water filter, rain gear, snack food.) In terms of physics: keep the heaviest stuff close to your back. Easier said than done.

[Chaco Taco]

Thanks so much everyone, this really helped as well as the links in th eother threads. I packed it and have found the way I wanna do it now. This is my first long trip and it is a winter trip. I sincerely appreciate it. Dont know what Id do without the Whiteblaze folks
:sun

[Jack Tarlin]

Lowspark:

The biggest determining factor is what kind of pack you decide to use. Is there only one big compartment? Are there side ones? Is there a separate "lid"?

As a rule, I tend to put my heaviest stuff towards the bottom and middle of the pack, with the emphasis on burying stuff I won't need til day's end, i.e.
tent, sleeping pad, extra clothes, etc. The main food bag, stove, fuel, cookpot, etc., can also go deep as most folks don't cook during the day. (Depending on what you've got for side compartments or pockets, many folks
carry their stoves, fuel bottles, etc. outside the main body of their packs).

Basically, you always want to make sure you have easy and immediate access to stuff like your raingear; pack cover; camera; first aid kit; map/trail guide; snacks. Also your hat and gloves if you expect cold weather. But always kep stuff that you know you'l need close to the top; it's a real pain in the ass to discover that you've completely buried your lunch for the day or your headlamp, extra batteries, etc. I always carry this sort of stuff in my lid, or somewhere at the top. I generally use multi-colored stuff sacs; one very quickly learns that personal stuff is in the purple bag; extra clothes are in the blue one, whatever. Tis means you'll never have to go thru six bags to find one particular item.

And some stuff will most likely go outside your pack, stuff like your mattress; camp sandals, maybe a fleece. Always make sure that whatever is outside your pack is well strapped or tied down; it's quite easy for stuff to fall off without your noticing!!

[namehere]

i purchased a golite gust- medium

3600 + 1000 cu inches. taller, slender pack with one main compartment and a medium sized front pocket.

i took out the thin framesheet (really just a piece of flattened foam) in hopes that i could expand out the poe insulmat to give shape to the main body of the pack. i found that the pad (full sized) takes up way too much volume, causing little room for the bulk of my winter stuff. anyone have experience packing the golite gust with bulkier winter pads? there are two small loops towards the bottom front of the pack, but i don't like the idea of strapping it outside because it adds so much more width to the profile of the pack. i can shove everything inside, but then the height of the pack makes it a bit unwieldy. i plan to use 2 compression sacks, one for the sleeping bag and one for clothes. mind you, this is for winter hikes and so i can't reduce the bulk of those two items. i don't think i will have this problem for 3 season hiking, as i expect to use a thinner sleeping pad. ideas anyone?