Marcus O’Dean tells why “90 litres is a lot for a little man to fill”.
We will duly venture into the educational subject matter of this column, but first readers may like to know where the inspiration for my intro came from.
It is a bastardisation of the chorus from a dirge-like humorous song, which was played often on Roy And HG’s This Sporting Life radio show on 2JJ in the eighties. “That line was, '18 wheels is a lot for a little man to stop', indicating someone being splattered by a semi-trailer.
A Google search has revealed nothing, so I would really appreciate some help from readers here. Now my barely relevant digression is off my chest, we will proceed.
Readers might know that I have an aversion to carrying too much and I have waxed on that topic quite a bit. Consequently, when my esteemed editor Brent asked me to write on carrying, I thought I would explore not what to pack, but rather how to pack and carry an overnight bushwalking pack.
To do this, I will mercilessly plagiarise myself from my 1998 out-of-print book Basic Bushwalking. To assist in visualising some of the ensuing tips, I have hand-coloured an old drawing from the book showing where items may go for comfort and balance. So, on with the tips:
- When you stop, even if it is only for a short time, get the pack off and stretch. You will be happy you did when you have cooled down in camp.
- On momentary stops, lean against trees or rocks to take the weight off your back and hips.
- Use a straight, dead branch or walking pole to take weight off your footfall, enlisting the unused arms and shoulders to take some of the weight from your legs. Drag the stick from behind and drive off from behind, rather than placing the stick in front of you and planting it. Watch good cross-country skiers to get the idea on energy efficiency with poles.
- Ensure your harness is adjusted so the cinched-in hip belt takes a greater percentage of the weight you bear.
- In the evenings in camp, give each other back and leg massages near a cosy fire.
- If you have the choice of jumping over, or walking around, an obstacle, take the latter course, possibly avoiding injury or cumulative joint damage.
- If climbing, scrambling or skiing are on the agenda, requiring fine balance and coordination, pack heavy, dense items low and in close to your back. This lowers your centre-of-gravity, aiding balance. Cinching in the chest strap is also recommended to clamp the load in on your shoulders. It is no fun when the top of your pack is swinging away from you, pulling you off balance as you edge around a crag.
- Ensure your fuel bottle is closed tight and the O-ring is serviceable so food contamination and fire risk is avoided.
- Keep those items you are likely to need handy, like your jumper, rain jacket, snack food, compact camera or sketchbook, water bottle (if you are not using those bladder things – there is one reason I don’t) and first aid kit.
- Keep a plastic cup or piece of aquarium air tube handy to pick up fresh opportunity water laying in rock ledge depressions on creek-less plateaus or from drips in overhangs.
- Be neat and keep a mental note of where you pack things in your rucksack. The more you do it the same way, the easier it becomes and the faster this logistical chore will become. An easy way to achieve this is to compartmentalise like stuff e.g. clothes, bulk food etc into individual cloth bags (stuff sacks). A handy friend sewed me up half a dozen from light gauge cotton and included nylon cord drawstrings with toggles made by Coughlan and others. Separate your tent into two or three packages so they fit into spaces that neatly accommodate the fly, inner, poles and pegs, if muggins is carrying a whole tent.
- By being neat, organised and mindful when you carry, you will free up time and headspace, mitigate unnecessary wear and tear on your body and, in all likelihood, be carrying mostly essentials with a few compact little luxuries that make your walk just that much more special.