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Anyone use the traditional canvas packs and would like to comment on how they pack their gear into them? I just purchased a Frost River Lewis and Clark pack and just got done with the Filson’s
Barry
Didn’t trust my advice there buddy?:)
I have used canvas packs and I always line them with Trash Compactor bags (more durable then regular trash bags) to help waterproof them. Where I pack things depends on who I am going with. If the wife is carrying the baby then She gets most of the light stuff and I end up with the heavy stuff. 🙂
This is what I try to do while packing whether it is a canvas or Cordura Nylon pack:
Durable structured items on the bottom to form somewhat of a base. I try to line the area that will be in contact with your back with softer items (ie. Sleeping pads, ropes, clothing stuff sac, etc.) forming a nice comfortable padding while you carry. The loose odd shaped stuff goes on the top along with important items that may be needed in a hurry such as first aid kit, rainwear, tarp.
I hate to speak for Barry, as he does well enough on his own, but what I think he is looking for is a more detailed description.
Such as where do you put the sleeping bags, and which orientation do you use, ie horizontal, verticle. Things like this. I gave him my description, because when he first tried packing his new Frost River pack it ended up looking like a beach ball.
J
@Jerry R. 73 wrote:
I gave him my description, because when he first tried packing his new Frost River pack it ended up looking like a beach ball.
J
Jerry, It’s not surprising that a Packer fan won’t listen to a Viking fan. As a Bears fan, I won’t even entertain the possibilities. 😮
Good luck with the new pack Barry… I’d offer you thoughts on your pack, but I’m a modern cordura portage pack kind of guy!!!
PK
@pknoerr 123 wrote:
Jerry, It’s not surprising that a Packer fan won’t listen to a Viking fan. As a Bears fan, I won’t even entertain the possibilities. 😮
Good luck with the new pack Barry… I’d offer you thoughts on your pack, but I’m a modern cordura portage pack kind of guy!!!
PK
Hey PK, Bman might need that new Frost River when da Beres send Green Bay ‘packin’. :p
heh, heh, heh. Life Is Good Barry. Life Is So Good! 😉
pake
To my fellow Bears fan Rick,
I’m hoping you are right about the Bears. Don’t wanna get to mouthy about that this early in the season, but ya gotta start believeing that the D is there to stay, and the Offense seems to only need a few points to get wins… So, hopefully we can improve on last year… though there are lots of AFC teams out there that might have something to say about that… not to mention the upstart Saints.
PK
Found this company I haven’t ordered from it, but they’re cheaper then Duluth Packs.
Sweeper,
Dan Cooke makes quality gear and you wouldn’t go wrong buying from him.
I have a spray skirt for my Bell Alaskan, that ccs made.
J
@Jerry R. 234 wrote:
Sweeper,
Dan Cooke makes quality gear and you wouldn’t go wrong buying from him.
I have a spray skirt for my Bell Alaskan, that ccs made.
J
You have an Alaskan? You must have gotten that this spring in lieu of the Explorer fiasco? Do you like it? I’ve never opted to buy a rubber tandem, but I’d be interested in your thoughts on it.
PK
PK,
Ah well I guess I forgot to tell you the rest of the story! I traded my Bell Northwoods for the Alaskan.
With my kids getting bigger and going a lot more often than not now, I needed a boat that I didn’t have to baby, or worry about scratching or crunching. The Northwoods was proving to be way too delicate for my crew.
Back to the Alaskan, it is a rubber tandem, so everything has to tempered with that in mind, but it is a very nimble boat for 17+ ft, and surprisingly fast on the flat water. The rocker makes it nimble and quick to turn, but I was very pleasantly surprised how well it tracks and how relatively fast it was. I’m pleased. I also got the spray skirt, an MSR Dragonfly stove, an Original Bug Shirt, for my daughter, and an Ostrom barrel organizer in the deal. I just used the barrel organizer for the first time last week, and again, I was very pleasantly surprised!
J
Hey Barry,
Did you EVER get the response your were looking for? Jerry relayed what he told you earlier, and he’s pretty much correct. He does fill the darned things up too much, if you ask me, but he carries them so I don’t rightly care. My job is just to get it on his back.
I personally don’t like the traditional canvas packs as the leather straps are horribly uncomfortable, but all portage packs are packed pretty much the same, so here’s what I do: I pack the bottom gear in a single row, even if it takes a bit of struggling. For my smaller Granite Gear Solo pack, that means my tarp/tent sitting vertically on the left, the compression-strapped sleeping back in the middle, and the 15-liter clothes back vertically on the right. That sets the basic shape of the pack. Everything, with the exception of my dry shoes and loose clothing/jackets, gets put on TOP of that row. The aforementioned shoes and loose clothes can go behind as they don’t balloon the pack up too much.
The trick is the bottom row. Keep it flat. The flatter the pack is overall, the more the weight is centered over your hips on NOT pulling you over backwards.
Chuck
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