After a long rethink about gear and the high Aussie dollar a spending spree on overseas purchases came about with the personal aim not to change the way I walk or camp but to do it a bit more compactly and lighter. This is not an UL attempt as that is just not me. Gear for me has to have a degree of comfort and longevity that suits my person standards and the walking that I sometime wind up doing. Basically I do not want to be limited by my gear in deciding where I go during a walk.
Pack
For me there is only one choice of brand and that is One Planet. From my first pack which was a Bass 85 litre travel/walking pack then came Traverse 38 litre day pack and the McMillan 90 litre walking pack. I managed to dodge back surgery so very fussy on harness systems and OP have the best of the traditional type in my opinion. Also I have found OP recommendations on sleeping bag warmth and pack comfort ratings if anything understated so trust what they write.
I have found that volume (litres) to kilograms works out around 1/3 to 1/4 for your average mix of gear. This means a 60 litre pack harness should have a comfort rating of at least 15 kilograms with 20 kilograms been the safe lower end of the scale with say 25 kilograms being the practical upper. What this means is buying say a 75 litre pack with a 18 kilogram "comfort" rating harness is asking for trouble that a person with a near similar pack at 65 litres with a 22 kilogram comfort rating will never understand. The 75 litre pack can hold 25 kilograms and be extremely uncomfortable while a 65 litre pack would be near maximum capacity at 22 kilograns and still "comfortable". As for "comfort" ratings they are a black art and subject to marketing hype so are still back in the dark ages that sleeping bag ratings once occupied. Trust in a brand is the critical factor.
I was toying with a long OP WBA pack 2011 model with the Exact Fit system rated by OP at 20 to 25 kilograms and 65 litres at 2.3 kilograms. My two big packs have the Exact Fit Plus system which is rated by OP at "what you can carry" and I regularly carry 27 to 30 kilograms in them and found them brilliant, even when overloaded to 38 kilograms as an overnight test in stupidity walk. I was please to find that OP on their new models have incorporated the two drink bottle setup from the "Plus" into the standard harness. This systems means no matter how much you cram into your pack the space for the bottles in not compromised. The lighter canvas of the WBA compared to my other packs is still suppose to be strong but I was not sure how it would fair in scrambling and scrub bashing. Be curious how others find it in such a role. For track walking it looks to be tough enough.
Anyway I fluked a 60 litre long Mungo with XL shoulder straps second hand with distinguished past owner that is probably somewhere around five years old. It was in perfect condition and same colour (green) as my Bass that after four months backpacking around Europe looks as good as new itself. The pack tipped my scales at around 2.4 kilograms and surprising it was 60 litres, not the standard 65 litres of the Mungo long. I believe that the Mungo is very popular for school group hire as tough as nails, so near kid proof as a pack can be, which makes for a good scrub pack. The 20-25 kilogram comfort rated harness gave the carrying capacity I was after and also was the universal harness. Not exactly sure what that means but I think it is the two hooks on the front for the hanging off the day pack that comes with my Bass. Not so sure why it appeared on the Mungo but it does nicely hold my snout bag for the SLR. Me thinks that the Mungo might have been a custom job for the past owner so hence the universal rather than standard harness for handling camera gear. Works well in that role.
Pack cram
Anyway the cram started and sure enough to my usual XXL sized every thing and luxury items such as three man tent with groundsheet etc, etc, I maxed out the volume at 20-21 kilograms. The only downside was the side external pockets became useless for drink bottles but this had the upside that nothing protruded so a perfect scrambling and scrub bushing profile. Having the water bottle in the pack is a pain though so looking at a tube to the Sig bottle. Have used bladders before but not a fan as lost a mouth piece in heavy scrub down a creek and wound up covered in its contents and no drink when most needed at the top of Western Bluff on a stinking hot dry day. Dehydration is not nice
First outing
A gentle wander up to Daisy Lakes was on the cards for the weekend so bit of track of varying levels plus bush bash from Long Tarn to the lake was the plan. Um? 8.74 kilometres in on Saturday with overcast skies and occasional rain. The track was not too bad with a bit of a rope scramble in two places while following the path of least resistance meant that the camp site was found with minimal dodging and weaving once we left the track at Long Tarn. In fact the walk along the old forestry road with numerous fallen trees was the hardest part, and the smaller more compact pack was appreciated. All night it rained, and rained, and rained, etc, etc.
The walk out, swim out, tested both man and pack. It was excellent in such conditions. The lovely little falls had turned into a white water version of hell so no way across the "intermittent stream"
Yes I had the PLB but even though drenched from the "swimming" everyone had tents and sufficient dry gear to bunker down for a long night fighting of leaches and not being worried over hypothermia. I now know why I always packed a change of clothes and thank the people that made such a recommendation. But the concept of eating "Backdoor Country" spurred on the two younger members of the group to head up stream to find a way across. The "way" was a greasy fallen tree across a narrow part of the stream. Here the more compact pack was greatly appreciated as an overbalance would have resulted in at best a freezing swim with Murphy deciding what bank you would wind up on, or what log you would drown under, or what fall you would be broken by. Now the the added bonus was a one kilometre slippery slog up to the log of terror and down back to the track. Still, gave a chance to admire the many falls that you would have visited if you slipped off the log.Conclusion
I will detail later the gear in XXL sizing that crammed into the pack and made it possible to down size but with carefully cramming it is possible to fit a three person tent, change of clothes, sleeping mat and bag, plus cooking gear and other stuff into a 60 litre pack. Missed the water bottle holders of the bigger McMillan and the ability to just dump everything in but with modern more compact gear it is possible to adopt a style of walking that allows for comforts such as wine, biscuits, camera, and other such stuff. The water bottle issue has two remedies, the newer OP packs or drinking tube. Compact, lighter weight cooking gear is better called water boiling gear so on the hunt for cooking gear that is compact but has a solid base. Maybe a 1.5 litre single pot that lid can double as decent frying pan. This would mean if a trout would have swam into the tent during the night it would be cooked rather than cremated at breakfast time. As for harness comfort. At 20-21 kilograms as comfortable as the Exact Fit Plus system so gets the two thumbs up. Toughness, I would break long before the little blighter does.
Cheers
