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Going to New Zealand- help with choosing a pack
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Home › Forums › General Forums › General Lightweight Backpacking Discussion › Going to New Zealand- help with choosing a pack
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Feb 8, 2009 at 2:12 pm #1233895
Hi, I'm a college junior, love backpacking, taken many, many trips throughout the country. In a few days I'm shoving off to New Zealand to study abroad for the semester and realized that it'd probably be best to invest in a pack. I've always used my dads big LL Bean pack (couldn't tell you the model or capacity, I just know that I could live out of it fairly comfortably ((I'm kind of a minimalist, I don't need much)) for up to three weeks, including sleeping bag and pad) but I'm gonna be gone for awhile, and he might need it for himself.
While I think I'm definitely going to actually be doing something hiking and backpacking I might also spend a good chunk of time just backpacking through the country. Any recommendations for the kind of pack I should buy? Maybe even where I should buy it? I'm not really tech saavy, as I've mostly used my dad's gear when it comes to the more expensive items like packs and such.
Thanks for your help.
Feb 8, 2009 at 2:18 pm #1476278Although I prefer a top-loading pack for regular backpacking, a panel-loader is much more convenient for traveling. Check out the SMD Traveler for a panel-loading pack that would be great for both traveling and backpacking (the wilderness variety).
product page: http://sixmoondesigns.com/shop/shopexd.asp?id=59
BPL forum thread: http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=18222
Feb 8, 2009 at 3:59 pm #1476316I tend to agree with Peter. A pack that is perfect for backpacking may be a pain in the b**t for general travelling. So it depends on what you'll spend the most time doing.
If you are going to spend any time off trail, then bits hanging off the pack will cause greief, as will mesh pockets. Make sure the pack will be big enough to carry everything you need inside. If you're just going to stick to the main tourist tracks then it's not such a problem.
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