Backpack with wheels to just pull

[AlpineKevin]

So I threw this idea out there in a PTC thread but now that I think I'm serious about it I'm going to make it's own thread.

As a thru-hiker on the PTC I noticed that it looks like a good portion of the trail is just dirt trail (and in some cases even flat dirt road like next to the aqueduct). So it occurred to me that instead of carrying 30+ pounds of gear/water why not just carry absolutely no weight at all and have it roll behind you. So here is what I'm thinking.

Buy an external frame back pack. Solder two lawn mower wheels on the top of it. And then on the removal hip belt just attach a leash on either side. That way when you want to carry it the wheels are just sitting over your head without you even being aware of them, but when you don't want to carry 30 pounds and would rather just walk with no weight then you can set it down, remove the hip belt and just walk with it behind you.

Look at this Kelty external backpack and see what I'm talking about. It would require not much work at all to turn it into something you can just pull for thousands of miles instead of carry. It could save the hiking life of someone with bad knees too.

https://kelty.com/yukon-48/

[Maineiac64]

Carry 20 lbs instead.

[AlpineKevin]

After looking at some narrow parts of the trail I think the best option would be 1 single tire from a riding lawnmower. The tire is wide enough to not have stability issues with a single tire. I'm looking at putting it on maybe a Kelty Tioga 5500. So simple.

[Engine]

After looking at some narrow parts of the trail I think the best option would be 1 single tire from a riding lawnmower. The tire is wide enough to not have stability issues with a single tire. I'm looking at putting it on maybe a Kelty Tioga 5500. So simple.

If you set it up like a travois with a single low pressure tire and a well padded waist belt, it would probably work. I'm not certain the pros would outweigh the cons though. The PCT is a well graded trail for it's majority, but there are areas in which this idea would probably be unsuitable. I also wonder about trail degradation...would it cause damage to the trail that simply hiking it doesn't? In my area of Florida, we hate when mountain bike riders use the hiking trails because it can really tear the trail up. Not the same thing I know, but food for thought.

[fiddlehead]

I think it's an idea you should try.
They do it in Australia.
I would use more like bicycle wheels than lawn mower wheels though.

But, you dont' have to carry that much water (if your smart)
I've hiked the PCT and never carried more than 3 litres of water.

But keep thinking of new ways to move your gear.
That's an open mind.

[rafe]

Some young fella I met on the GAP last spring was carrying his belongings crudely lashed to a standard issue Craftsman hand truck. He was about 50 miles into a supposed cross-country walk (American Discovery Trail). I kept my thoughts to myself but it didn't look like it was working too well for him.

[full conditions]

Some federal wilderness areas (I'm thinking of Boundary Waters specifically) have banned the use of wheeled vehicles of any sort - so it may be worth your while to check the legalities of your project - lots of wilderness areas on the PCT.

[rickb]

Google up Karl Bushby (Goliath).

He found (and may still be finding) such an approach useful on his multi-year hike around the world.

Not so good for the stretch through the Darrien Gap or Berring Sea but I think it did work in much of North America.

[AlpineKevin]

The PCT is a well graded trail for it's majority, but there are areas in which this idea would probably be unsuitable.

That's when you throw the pack back on. I'm talking about a backpack you can also roll behind you, not a stroller. If it gets rocky, snowy, whatever, you just throw the pack back on with the 1 pound wheel above your head you don't even know is there.

I also wonder about trail degradation...would it cause damage to the trail that simply hiking it doesn't? In my area of Florida, we hate when mountain bike riders use the hiking trails because it can really tear the trail up. Not the same thing I know, but food for thought.

A single wheel rolling across the dirt with 30 pounds on it I would think tears into the trail less than 200 pound hikers with 30 pound packs. Not too mention mules, horses, and llamas,

[saltysack]

Someone already built a contraption just like you speak off. They tried to raise money to market and sell haven't heard anything more on it...just carry less....it's called backpacking not dragging for a reason....

Ps if you have tons of $$ simply hire a Sherpa!


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[AlpineKevin]

I would use more like bicycle wheels than lawn mower wheels though.

And have a bicycle wheel hanging above your head while you hike with the pack on? A bicycle wheel is way more intrusive than it needs to be. Plus bicycle wheels are thin and big for humans. We are talking a 30 pound pack on a thin wilderness trail, not on a bike trail. A single tire from a riding lawnmower would be perfect. It is tough as hell, low to the ground, wide so no stability problems and still small enough so it can sit over your pack while you have your pack on.

[garlic08]

Wherever mountain bikes and other wheeled vehicles are prohibited, so is a wheeled travois. Officially, wheels are prohibited on the PCT, and the AT as well.

I met a European attempting to pull a vehicle like that on the CDT in New Mexico. It did not work out well for him. The extra weight of the wheel and axle system were prohibitive in the many rough trackless areas he had to carry it. And he ignorantly left an illegal wheel track across the Gila Wilderness. He was not aware of the US laws. And then the thing broke after about 500 miles of rocky desert.

[AlpineKevin]

it's called backpacking not dragging for a reason....

It's called rolling not dragging for a reason. I suppose we should go back to using rope for climbing harnesses then too? What are you doing with a smart phone with apps on it, it's called the wilderness for a reason? What are you doing with an emergency Spot device, it's called adventure for a reason? What are you doing with light weight space age fabrics for gear, this is called earth for a reason? Shall I go on? Anybody who uses any backpack under 10 pounds is cheating, thats not real backpacking. A backpack should weigh at least 10 pounds like in the old days. Anyone who tries to make things easier and smarter should just stick to the tour buses. Right?

[AlpineKevin]

Wherever mountain bikes and other wheeled vehicles are prohibited, so is a wheeled travois. Officially, wheels are prohibited on the PCT, and the AT as well.

A backpack with a single unobtrusive wheel on it is not a wheeled vehicle. And "mechanical vehicles" are prohibited. I've been to court several times. I'd have no problem taking this one to court.

[AlpineKevin]

Google up Karl Bushby (Goliath).
.

Nope. Not like I'm talking about at all. I pulled him up and that is a damn cart. You guys are totally not getting what I'm saying with descriptions of "vehicles" and "handcarts" and mechanical devices. Not getting it at all.

[Tipi Walter]

George Meegan already beat you to it---He hiked from Argentina to the top of Alaska using a rolling cart---between 1977-83. 19,000 miles.

[AlpineKevin]

^^^ Ok that's more in line with what I'm thinking. That is still just a roller cart and not a hybrid backpack with a single wheel. But that is closely to the footprint I'm talking about. Not a damn bicycle, cart, or vehicle.

[GoldenBear]

Massachusetts has clearly stated its regulations on use of the A.T.
http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dcr...ian-trail.html

Prohibited: Motorized and wheeled vehicles, horses and alcoholic beverages

Note that the laws is explicit that NEITHER motorized or wheeled vehicles are permitted on the The Tail. Good luck insisting that a conveyance with wheels is not a wheeled vehicle.

[ScareBear]

Good luck with your ill-conceived rube goldberg project, you'll be miserable. Get back to me when youv'e got it to work for 15 miles and apply for the patent.

Late to the parade.....

https://gearjunkie.com/mule-backpack

[ScareBear]

It's called rolling not dragging for a reason. I suppose we should go back to using rope for climbing harnesses then too? What are you doing with a smart phone with apps on it, it's called the wilderness for a reason? What are you doing with an emergency Spot device, it's called adventure for a reason? What are you doing with light weight space age fabrics for gear, this is called earth for a reason? Shall I go on? Anybody who uses any backpack under 10 pounds is cheating, thats not real backpacking. A backpack should weigh at least 10 pounds like in the old days. Anyone who tries to make things easier and smarter should just stick to the tour buses. Right?

What are you blathering about? My first harness I made and tied myself. Out of rope. It's called a "Swiss Seat".

And, what is it about NO WHEELED VEHICLES OF ANY KIND OR PROPULSION ARE ALLOWED ON THE AT AND PCT that you fail to comprehend?

Wilderness doesn't mean no cellphone. It means no mechanical devices are allowed to touch nature. Like in the Nanthala Wilderness, do you know how trail maintainers have to saw through a five foot diameter oak tree that fell across the AT? With a chainsaw? Nope. Forbidden. Even for trail maintainers. Crosscut Sawyer to the rescue. Wilderness means no machines. A cell phone is not a machine. A SPOT is not a machine. No bikes means no unicycles. No unicycles means no monowheeled backpack.