Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

A place to chat about gear and the philosphy of ultralight. Ultralight bushwalking or backpacking focuses on carrying the lightest and simplest kit. There is still a good focus on safety and skill.
Forum rules
Ultralight Bushwalking/backpacking is about more than just gear lists. Ultralight walkers carefully consider gear based on the environment they are entering, the weather forecast, their own skill, other people in the group. Gear and systems are tested and tweaked.
If you are new to this area then welcome - Please remember that although the same ultralight philosophy can be used in all environments that the specific gear and skill required will vary greatly. It is very dangerous to assume that you can just copy someone else's gear list, but you are encouraged to ask questions, learn and start reducing the pack weight and enjoying the freedom that comes.

Common words
Base pack backpacking the mass of the backpack and the gear inside - not including consumables such as food, water and fuel
light backpacking base weight less than 9.1kg
ultralight backpacking base weight less than 4.5kg
super-ultralight backpacking base weight less than 2.3kg
extreme-ultralight backpacking base weight less than 1.4kg

Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby raewrites » Sun 10 Dec, 2017 1:10 pm

Hi all,

I'm doing the Overland Track over New Years and want to take a day pack with me on side trips to hold water, snacks, raincoat etc. Can anyone recommend a great lightweight day pack?

I've already checked out the Osprey Ultralight Stuff Pack and the Sea To Summit Ultra Sil Packable Day Pack. Both look like what I'm after. The only drawbacks are that neither bag provides space for a Camelbak.

What do other bushwalkers take for side trips? Keen to know your thoughts!
raewrites
Nothofagus cunninghamii
Nothofagus cunninghamii
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun 10 Dec, 2017 12:52 pm
Region: Victoria
Gender: Female

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby Moondog55 » Sun 10 Dec, 2017 1:37 pm

Do you mean no dedicated sleeve for the bladder? Easy 2 minute sewing job is so but for a day trip why bother? I would just chuck the bladder in and pad it into the upright position with your parka and raincoat
Ve are too soon old und too late schmart
Moondog55
Lagarostrobos franklinii
Lagarostrobos franklinii
 
Posts: 11066
Joined: Thu 03 Dec, 2009 4:15 pm
Location: Norlane Geelong Victoria Australia
Region: Victoria
Gender: Male

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby Tortoise » Sun 10 Dec, 2017 2:12 pm

I've actually used Kathmandu ones, like this, which is reasonable cost at the moment - except you don't have the get the icky blue colour. I have 2 older versions, but I'm guessing this is similar:
https://www.kathmandu.com.au/pocket-pack-v4.html
It's slightly smaller and heavier than the Osprey you mention, which i haven't seen in person. It unfortunately Ktm don't give the denier value for the rip-stop nylon for a comparison, but I suspect it's a bit sturdier, which could be a good thing.

Friends of mine have used the S2S Silnylon ones, but they tend to get holes in them pretty quickly, from dolorite (Cradle, Barn, Ossa) or scoparia (which was encroaching on the Oakleigh and Pelion East tracks last time I visited them.)
I use a dry bag that I'm already carrying, inside the day pack if the weather or vegetation could be damp.
User avatar
Tortoise
Lagarostrobos franklinii
Lagarostrobos franklinii
 
Posts: 5136
Joined: Sat 28 Jan, 2012 9:31 pm
Location: NW Tasmania
Region: Tasmania
Gender: Female

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby raewrites » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 2:02 pm

Moondog55 wrote:Do you mean no dedicated sleeve for the bladder? Easy 2 minute sewing job is so but for a day trip why bother? I would just chuck the bladder in and pad it into the upright position with your parka and raincoat


Yeah, did consider sewing in a "hook" to the top of a day pack so I can hang my water bladder. I think I might just do that.
raewrites
Nothofagus cunninghamii
Nothofagus cunninghamii
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun 10 Dec, 2017 12:52 pm
Region: Victoria
Gender: Female

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby raewrites » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 2:04 pm

Tortoise wrote:I've actually used Kathmandu ones, like this, which is reasonable cost at the moment - except you don't have the get the icky blue colour. I have 2 older versions, but I'm guessing this is similar:
https://www.kathmandu.com.au/pocket-pack-v4.html
It's slightly smaller and heavier than the Osprey you mention, which i haven't seen in person. It unfortunately Ktm don't give the denier value for the rip-stop nylon for a comparison, but I suspect it's a bit sturdier, which could be a good thing.

Friends of mine have used the S2S Silnylon ones, but they tend to get holes in them pretty quickly, from dolorite (Cradle, Barn, Ossa) or scoparia (which was encroaching on the Oakleigh and Pelion East tracks last time I visited them.)
I use a dry bag that I'm already carrying, inside the day pack if the weather or vegetation could be damp.


Good tips about the dolorite! The Kathmandu pack looks good. I'll check it out and see what works best. Thanks!
raewrites
Nothofagus cunninghamii
Nothofagus cunninghamii
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun 10 Dec, 2017 12:52 pm
Region: Victoria
Gender: Female

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby peregrinator » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 4:43 pm

I’ve never used a day pack when on extended trips. I cannot see the point of doing that. If you’ve been able to carry all your gear as far as the location where you’d contemplate using a day pack, then you’ll have a perfectly good pack to use. Namely, the one which when emptied of all items that won’t be required for the day, will now be much lighter than when you arrived at that location. And of course you will have had the advantage of not having carried the utterly pointless weight of a day pack on the approach and not having paid good money for said pack.
peregrinator
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri 15 Apr, 2011 2:50 pm
Region: Victoria

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby Warin » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 5:01 pm

peregrinator wrote:I’ve never used a day pack when on extended trips. I cannot see the point of doing that.


On the Overland you may want to do a small side trip part way into your day, you may even want to do 3 such small trips during the day. The birds have learn that packs contain food. And they have learnt how to undo zips on the packs to get to the food. People use rain covers to defeat the birds on their main pack.

So your now going to empty your main pack out - including the food that the birds want... and put it where so the birds won't get it? And put it so your night clothing won't get wet. The birds will rummage through your stuff while you are away - trying to get to your food.

Much easier and quicker to have a day pack with lunch, camera, wet weather gear and first aid kit ready to go for any side trip that takes your fancy.
User avatar
Warin
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1408
Joined: Sat 11 Nov, 2017 8:02 am
Region: New South Wales

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby DaveNoble » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 5:05 pm

A small daypack is very useful on the Overland Track (and many other trips). Some of the side trips are part way along the track - so this makes it difficult to use your main pack as a daypack. Eg - Mt Ossa, Pelion East, Cradle Mtn, Barn Bluff etc.

In Tasmania, in your daypack - you need to carry wet weather gear, a fleece in case it turns cold, suncream and a hat - in case it turns sunny, a beanie, gloves, perhaps some food if going for a while, a beacon, map or gps/phone, matches or lighter for emergency fire, and a camera and lenses etc. I would not bother to carry any water - there is plenty along the way in pools on most side trips, but a cup may be useful and some Raro. To fit all this stuff in - you need a pretty big daypack, but not a heavy bulky one. The Kathmandu pocket packs or whatever they call them these days are cheap and reasonably durable. Better than the slightly lighter silnylon packs from Macpac and Sea to Summit.
DaveNoble
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1031
Joined: Sun 03 Feb, 2008 3:56 pm

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby Neo » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 6:27 pm

Hi raewrites
I have the tiny STS one. It can be handy but I find the shoulder straps collapse and cut into my shoulders if there is any more than about 3kg in it (water is heavy!).
UL is nice but not always comfortable.
Just run your hose out a zipper, if you have anything sensitive inside then just put it in a dry sack. Cheers
Neo
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1887
Joined: Wed 31 Aug, 2016 4:53 pm
Location: Port Macquarie NSW
Region: New South Wales
Gender: Male

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby keithy » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 7:27 pm

raewrites - I just reviewed a few of the sub 150g ultralight daypacks I have here viewtopic.php?f=63&t=26889 I only reviewed the ones with the roll top style closures, but also have a few of different zippered versions.

The downsides of the ultrasil straps is that once you put a fair load in the pack, they can bunch up and can get uncomfortable without regular readjustment. The other thing is that in warm weather, I tend to get quite a sweaty back as the ultrasil sits on the back of my t-shirt.

But it isn't all that bad. Week before last I did the Great Ocean Walk and took one of the roll top bags as a daypack. I used it on the day we walked from Princetown to Gibston Steps / 12 Apostles. Used my hydration bladder inside, and despite not having a dedicated slot for the hose or a pouch for the bladder, it worked out fine. I just rolled the closure such that the hose could still poke out, but things couldn't fall out of the bag.

Quechua with Hydration.JPG


As mentioned in my review, I also have the zippered versions of the Sea to Summit daypack and I reckon it lasted a good 4 years or so until I had a hole in the outside mentioned in Suz's thread.

When I did Overland years ago, I think the daypack I carried was a 20L daypack around 400g and while it was pretty flat, it wasn't packable. Used it on the walks to Barn Bluff and Mt Ossa.
User avatar
keithy
Phyllocladus aspleniifolius
Phyllocladus aspleniifolius
 
Posts: 737
Joined: Tue 28 Oct, 2014 5:31 pm
Region: Other Country
Gender: Male

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby peregrinator » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 9:07 pm

Warin and DaveNoble, thanks for your corrective explanations. I misinterpreted “side trips” as “day trips”. I was assuming that a lot of the gear carried in would be stowed in a tent for a one-day side trip, because that is what happens on many of my walks. But you are correct to point out that on routes like the Overland this often does not apply.
peregrinator
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1776
Joined: Fri 15 Apr, 2011 2:50 pm
Region: Victoria

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby Strider » Mon 11 Dec, 2017 9:37 pm

I empty my pack contents into my pack liner and leave it in my tent/in a hut/behind a bush. Then I put whatever I need to take with me back into my pack for the summit climb.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
User avatar
Strider
Lagarostrobos franklinii
Lagarostrobos franklinii
 
Posts: 6030
Joined: Mon 07 Nov, 2011 6:55 pm
Location: Point Cook
Region: Victoria
Gender: Male

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby Tortoise » Tue 12 Dec, 2017 8:52 am

Strider wrote:I empty my pack contents into my pack liner and leave it in my tent/in a hut/behind a bush. Then I put whatever I need to take with me back into my pack for the summit climb

In the context of the OLT, I personally wouldn't trust a plunder of currawongs with my trip's food with only a pack liner in between. Wouldn't want to risk a puncture by any of the spiky alpine flora either. And I'd find it tricky if it happened to be raining at the wrong time.

Btw, when passing by New Pelion hut verandah recently, we watched a currawong swoop down and grab a full packet of biscuits from one of the seats. He flew up a tree to stash it, and was straight back for anything else he could find. We shut the wide open doors of the hut, to prevent him taking stuff off the tables inside.

raewrites, every unbelievable story you have read/heard re currawongs on the OLT is probably true.
A friend didn't believe us once, when we did a side trip in Waterfall Valley. She left food in zipped pockets and shoved the whole thing head first tightly under a bush. Upon return, the pack was in the open, every zipped pocket open, loo paper everywhere, with the wrappings from a kilo of cheese, a full salami, 2 packets of biscuits and a bunch of scroggin.

Good news is, they haven't learned to undo toggles yet. :)
User avatar
Tortoise
Lagarostrobos franklinii
Lagarostrobos franklinii
 
Posts: 5136
Joined: Sat 28 Jan, 2012 9:31 pm
Location: NW Tasmania
Region: Tasmania
Gender: Female

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby Warin » Tue 12 Dec, 2017 11:55 am

Tortoise wrote:In the context of the OLT, I personally wouldn't trust a plunder of currawongs with my trip's food with only a pack liner in between. Wouldn't want to risk a puncture by any of the spiky alpine flora either. And I'd find it tricky if it happened to be raining at the wrong time.


I too want to keep my food for me, not the birds. Having brought it in it is most valuable, next to warm and dry nights sleep.

My present thinking is a pack cover made out of HyperD 300 diamond ripstop polyester or similar (suitable for tent floors so should be strong, and water tight) with at least 2 water resistant zippers (top and one side) and then a toggle attached to both zip pulls to keep them closed. For the bottom section I am thinking of a draw cord around the top of the shoulder harness. That should keep hte brids out .. until they learn how to rip apart rip stop.

I may even make a 'pack liner' out of it to contain the food for hanging in the huts overnight as well. Needs to be mice resistant. I have had a pack attacked by mice on a floor... so I know they can chew! May be some cloth with permethrin would discourage them?
.
User avatar
Warin
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1408
Joined: Sat 11 Nov, 2017 8:02 am
Region: New South Wales

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby rcaffin » Sat 16 Dec, 2017 8:00 pm

every unbelievable story you have read/heard re currawongs on the OLT is probably true.
A friend didn't believe us once, when we did a side trip in Waterfall Valley. She left food in zipped pockets and shoved the whole thing head first tightly under a bush. Upon return, the pack was in the open, every zipped pocket open, loo paper everywhere, with the wrappings from a kilo of cheese, a full salami, 2 packets of biscuits and a bunch of scroggin.)

I agree that the currawongs are swift and deadly, but what you have described sounds a lot more like a possum. Around there they are very big (on bushwalkers' supplies) and impervious to hints (like being poked away with a broom).

Cheers
Roger
User avatar
rcaffin
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1223
Joined: Thu 17 Jul, 2008 3:46 pm

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby Tortoise » Sat 16 Dec, 2017 9:03 pm

rcaffin wrote:
every unbelievable story you have read/heard re currawongs on the OLT is probably true.
A friend didn't believe us once, when we did a side trip in Waterfall Valley. She left food in zipped pockets and shoved the whole thing head first tightly under a bush. Upon return, the pack was in the open, every zipped pocket open, loo paper everywhere, with the wrappings from a kilo of cheese, a full salami, 2 packets of biscuits and a bunch of scroggin.)

I agree that the currawongs are swift and deadly, but what you have described sounds a lot more like a possum. Around there they are very big (on bushwalkers' supplies) and impervious to hints (like being poked away with a broom)
Cheers
Roger

Good point, Roger. Have you seen them do that in the middle of the day? I've only seen them on the prowl late afternoon so far...
User avatar
Tortoise
Lagarostrobos franklinii
Lagarostrobos franklinii
 
Posts: 5136
Joined: Sat 28 Jan, 2012 9:31 pm
Location: NW Tasmania
Region: Tasmania
Gender: Female

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby DaveNoble » Mon 18 Dec, 2017 10:45 am

rcaffin wrote:
every unbelievable story you have read/heard re currawongs on the OLT is probably true.
A friend didn't believe us once, when we did a side trip in Waterfall Valley. She left food in zipped pockets and shoved the whole thing head first tightly under a bush. Upon return, the pack was in the open, every zipped pocket open, loo paper everywhere, with the wrappings from a kilo of cheese, a full salami, 2 packets of biscuits and a bunch of scroggin.)

I agree that the currawongs are swift and deadly, but what you have described sounds a lot more like a possum. Around there they are very big (on bushwalkers' supplies) and impervious to hints (like being poked away with a broom).

Cheers
Roger


Much more likely to be Currawongs. They can certainly unzip pockets on packs. I have seen them do this at Waterfall Valley. We came back to our packs, and my friend's pack had currawongs around it and various pockets opened and stuff strewn around. And each trip through Pelion Gap at the turn off to Mt Ossa and Pelion East - you see packs with stuff from pockets all strewn around, despite the signs warning about birds.
DaveNoble
Athrotaxis selaginoides
Athrotaxis selaginoides
 
Posts: 1031
Joined: Sun 03 Feb, 2008 3:56 pm

Re: Day pack for side trips on Overland Track?

Postby weeds » Tue 02 Jan, 2018 8:41 am

We didn’t think about a side track pack before arriving at cradle mountain.

The rangers hut/check in had STS....we found it perfect and glad we grabbed one as we did a few side trips.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
weeds
Athrotaxis cupressoides
Athrotaxis cupressoides
 
Posts: 338
Joined: Tue 31 Mar, 2015 5:29 am
Region: Queensland
Gender: Male


Return to Ultralight backpacking

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 4 guests