P Leisure Info

Anyone who has ever hiked over 20 miles in a day while carrying a backpack will know that weight is a really significant factor. Experiences hikers, trekkers and backpackers know that to reduce the weight of your gear you need to concentrate on the three main items: your sleeping bag, shelter and the backpack itself.

So you will want to leave your huge 10 pound tent and snug 5 pound sleeping bag at home and get yourself the lightest backpack you can find.

Believe it or not you can find some exceptionally high quality backpacks that weigh in at less than five ounces. This is no exaggeration. The typical capacity would be around 1800 cubic inches which is enough for around 15 pounds of gear. This should be enough for your lightweight sleeping bag, a tarpaulin for some shelter, a basic first aid kit and some energy food. And some water of course.

In fact the water that you need to carry when trekking can become the heaviest item. You can reduce the amount of water that you need to carry with you by planning your route to take you via locations where you can refill.

Another big benefit of going ultra light weight is that the equipment tends to be much cheaper than the heavier, tougher alternatives. You can even find some perfectly adequate lightweight backpacks, often sold as day sacks, in various bargain disount store costing only a few dollars. They can be a very simple in desgn with only a few, if any, external pockets. But they can be excellent for lightweight trekking.

If you are lightening your load it’s really worth paying some attention to your clothes and footwear. Forget your all weather outdoor clothing and instead go for an ultra lightweight rain and wind proof fold-up cagoule and some light weight sports shoes rather than heavy walking boots.

When you’ve lightened your load with some lightweight clothing and less gear in a lightweight backpack you will find that a 20 mile trek will seem like nothing at all.