Tiny day pack

Very nice, Franco.

Here’s something similar, available in the States. Alas, it is a bit heavier, clocking in at 6.4oz.

https://www2.montbell.com/america/asp/products/Spg_shosai.asp?cat=1402&hinban=1123199

Franco, Great little pack. 2.5kg? That’s an entire UL base pack wt! Obviously, volume is another issue.

Ben, I’ve bookmarked the Montbell URL for possible future use.

Thanks, both, for sharing.

I have a Columbia Bugaboo day pack very similar to this one. I’ll have to dig it out and get the specs. I picked it up at a garage sale for $1— love that utility to price ratio.

With base weights falling below 5 pounds, I have wondered if a light messenger style bag would work– so easy to swing around to get at water, snacks, raincoat, etc. Ray J. wrote about wearing his pack on one shoulder only– seems the messenger bag would be along that line, with the weight spread over a larger area.

nm

Dale, Good for you. Nice idea on the messenger bag.

Last week Miguel Arbodela posted a link to a very old book on hiking (it even talked about a previous generation’s version of car camping – using covered wagons!!). In the book the author, wrote about the “haversack” being an indespensible piece of hiking gear for its sheer utility. I didn’t know what a haversack was, but from the illustration, I gathered that the haversack was slung across one shoulder and could be used to counter-balance the blanket roll (if the blanket roll was used instead of a rucksack). It’s alot like a messenger bag.

RE Messenger bags

Since my sewing skills are – well – horrid, Ive often toyed with the idea of a messenger/haversack type bag for backpacking.

They are really simple to make, in fact Ive made a few for other activites.

Its, at its most basic, 2 peices of squarish fabric, sewn together, with a zipper or velcro across the top, and a single shoulder strap.

From there, it can be made with depth, with side pockets, with a top flap, with removable shoulder strap, whatever.

And if its easy enough for me to do it……

How about a big mesh bag with a shoulder strap to hold your stuff sacks or a garbage bag? I’ll bet I could macrame one.

in indonesia i saw everyone rolling up their stuff in a sarong, then twisting it to enclose their stuff, then slinging around thier shoulder tied into a knot in front with the loose ends – a quick and easy one shoulder bag carry.

suppose this could be done with a tarp?

Dale, good idea of using a mesh haversack.

I’m thinking that in many of the places I hike, a haversack (just like the RayJ-carry when I used a Breeze pack) is more trouble than it’s worth. The trails are very uneven, often some scrambling or non-technical climbing involved. The Breeze used to want to swing around front; couldn’t keep it on my back slung over one shoulder RayJ-like (maybe I hadn’t “mastered” the one shoulder carry?). Placing on and off and on both shoulders as required was a bit inconvenient also (hands were holding trekking poles). The standard haversack provides no means to secure it on both shoulders. I bet you could design one that could (a second stowaway shoulder strap???). Until the SMD Essence pack arrived, I used to resort to a fanny/lumbar pack, worn 180 deg about face in front of my lower abdomen. If it’s not too big, or too heavily loaded it doesn’t interfere with stepping up or scarmbling and climbing (non-technical).

Cary, that’s the blanket roll idea used over a hundred years ago. The haversack and the blanket roll were slung over opposite shoulders to counter-balance each other and also relieved tension/load on the small muscles the hold the spinal column erect laterally – that way, the person carrying them wouldn’t be “listing to starboard” (or “port” side, depending).

Daypack stuffsack

2.9 oz. (2.4 without hip belt) 1050 c.i

http://owareusa.com/images/daypacksilfront.JPG

Thanks David
I was trying for a “mine is smaller than yours” post or at least lighter, and some weirdo have to suggest centuries old ideas.
I hope that you realise that my pack is still .1 of an ounce lighter ( I have no idea of how much that is) so I win. I could also have more room in mine. I still have not figured out how manufacturers get their L carrying sizes.( what I mean is that there is very little relationship between a claimed figure and space inside)
Franco

Franco, I’m the “weirdo” – the shoe fits; my apologies for steering your Thread amiss. No hard feelings? If not, then if you ever want to see your Thread alive again, you too can place $500 in a brown paper bag and have Franco-the-Roo put it under the park bench in Bozeman – no cops or else. If so, then I apologize also for “thread-napping” humor.

Hi PJ, you show me your tiny bag and then we talk.
( Just to drive you nuts this w/e I will post a picture of my double Rainbow)

I just ran into this Kiva backpack:

http://www.letravelstore.com/PBK0883.htm

10 liters for $10, although a stick and a large scarf bundeled on the end might do better– the *orignal* UL pack.

franco, where did you get your hands select backpack from in oz

Hi
It was a present from my mate Adam, I think that he ordered it from Japan. Today he gave me the finger tooth brush, possibly from Gossamergear because he also gave me the “lighten up” DVD. I will be watching Glen Van Peski in action tonight. The bag will be my on board luggage next week. I might post a line after the trip to let you know how it worked out for me.

You rarely see them anymore, but when I was a boy in Japan they were very common… called “Furoshiki” (wrapping cloth), a 3’x3′ square of cloth was folded into many configurations for wrapping, backpack, shoulder satchel or havesack for carrying things, as a hat, wrapping the stomach to keep warm, even, when filled with stones, as a weapon. Take a look at some of these links:

The statement at the bottom of the site sums up the epitome of going as light as you can…

Though the images are not very clear take a look at the backpack wrapping technique.

Some photos of people wearing the furoshiki backpack style.

The links show many of the different ways you can wrap the furoshiki.

Whenever I think I have the weight in my pack down pat, I take a look at the way a lot of people over two hundred years ago traveled and am humbled. I once met this 85 year old man in the mountains in Japan carrying, as an all-day selection of gear (beisdes his worn clothing): a Japanese-style long-bladed hatchet (for collecting burdock root), a one-foot square basket satchel (for carrying the burdock), a rolled up poncho, and two oranges. He told me that he only needed to eat once a day and if really pressed he could find mountain edible wild plants. He knew all the water sources in the area and just didn’t get cold. He showed me some old photographs from when he was young and helping to build the very trail we were walking. In one photo he was carrying a 130 kilo log to build the mountain hut that he now operated. One really tough man! I couldn’t keep up with him.

This reminds me of a very common sight in the Andes: You will see women with their babies wrapped in a blanket and slung over their shoulders. They carry them with them everywhere like this.

I’m not sure of the dimensions of the blanket however. I’m sure this is quite common in many cultures.

If one was going to go extremely (hyper) ultralight one could probably use one’s tarp in a similar manner.

Cheers
Dan

The illustrations from Japan are amazing. A lot of food for thought.

I have a small Kiva pack that has all of the features that I want and a few that I don’t. The size at 1100 CI is just perfect, but it has web straps that become uncomfortable with even a light load.

Now I have a possible solution. Clip off the existing web straps and replace with cotton bandanas!! This would be so much more comfortable.

” have a small Kiva pack that has all of the features that I want and a few that I don’t. The size at 1100 CI is just perfect, but it has web straps that become uncomfortable with even a light load.

Now I have a possible solution. Clip off the existing web straps and replace with cotton bandanas!! This would be so much more comfortable.”

How about foam pipe insulation?

I bought a kathmandu (new zealand company) collapsible 20 litre day pack which weighs in at 175grams, with a ripstop material that is much stronger than the kiva. It has slightly padded shoulder straps 4 cm wide, much better than the kiva pack. I have cut off all of the labels, and straps, except for the shoulder straps! and replaced the zipper pulls with spectra cord. This has got the weight down to 135grams. Not quite as light as the kiva, but the padded shoulder straps make up for it when carrying any sort of load.