Single swag advice for a female hiker!

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Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Joels » Tue 15 Jun, 2021 8:05 pm

Hi all,

So my beloved swag has reached the end of its well loved life and now I am looking for a new one!

The swag I had was free standing, very well waterproofed, the seams were well sealed, there was a good mat inside and it was under 10kg. Problem is it was a local person that made it for me and they are no longer making them. So now I'm on the hunt for something similar.

I have hiked with a swag and prefer a swag over a tent as I really value my comfort and at the end of the day I just feel better in a swag.

I have carried just a tad under 15kg comfortably long distances, but as I am only 5'3 and small framed I am always on the look out for something a little lighter.

I was looking at the darche dusk to dawn, but that comes in at 12.8kg and as i'm doing my longest hike yet at over 1000kms, I'm kind of looking for something a little lighter.

Any swag suggestions would be really appreciated. :)
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby CraigVIC » Tue 15 Jun, 2021 9:20 pm

Proviso, I don't know anything about swags.

This one has a claimed weight 3.5 kg

https://seasonfort.com/au/motorbike-swa ... t-camping/
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Joels » Tue 15 Jun, 2021 9:23 pm

CraigVIC wrote:Proviso, I don't know anything about swags.

This one has a claimed weight 3.5 kg

https://seasonfort.com/au/motorbike-swa ... t-camping/


Thanks! I'll check it out!
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Zapruda » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 8:49 am

There is absolutely no good reason to carry a swag bushwalking when there are a multitude of lighter tents, tarps and sleeping pads available.

A great deal of comfort can be achieved quite easily for a 10th of the weight of your old 10kg swag.

What does a swag offer that other options don't?
Last edited by Zapruda on Wed 16 Jun, 2021 8:55 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Eremophila » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 8:55 am

Out of interest.... what kind of total pack weight are you looking at?
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Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby ChrisJHC » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 8:57 am

As the vast majority of people here don’t use swags, it might be useful to list what you are looking for that a swag gives you and a tent (or hammock!) doesn’t.
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby wildwanderer » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 10:54 am

Hi Joels,

There was some discussion and options for swags in this thread. Might be helpful. viewtopic.php?f=15&t=35136&view=unread#unread

While many people prefer lighter weight gear (myself included), there is no wrong way to enjoy the bush. Take gear that maximizes your enjoyment.

All the best.
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Joels » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 2:01 pm

wildwanderer wrote:Hi Joels,

There was some discussion and options for swags in this thread. Might be helpful. viewtopic.php?f=15&t=35136&view=unread#unread

While many people prefer lighter weight gear (myself included), there is no wrong way to enjoy the bush. Take gear that maximizes your enjoyment.

All the best.


Thanks I will check out the other threads :)
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Joels » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 2:25 pm

Zapruda wrote:There is absolutely no good reason to carry a swag bushwalking when there are a multitude of lighter tents, tarps and sleeping pads available.

A great deal of comfort can be achieved quite easily for a 10th of the weight of your old 10kg swag.

What does a swag offer that other options don't?


Hey,

I guess it is just something that I've always used. Going on horse adventures or trekking and throwing out the old canvas swag has just been something that I've always done. I guess I just found mine less drafty and it just felt tougher and it always served its purpose so well. kind of got attached to it too haha! My little home on adventures!

I'm by no means saying one is better than the other, it has just been something that I've gotten used to, but I am open to other ideas and suggestions.

I am actually really impressed by that seasonfort backpack bed that was recommended to me and i'm seriously considering getting it. :D
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Joels » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 2:31 pm

Eremophila wrote:Out of interest.... what kind of total pack weight are you looking at?


I am used to trekking with around 13kg...which is madness...i know!! haha
But i am definitely looking at dropping that weight down considerably.
I am doing over 1000kms soon so I just don't want to be weighed down that much over such a long distance. Also, i will be doing drop offs, which will help considerably on the weight side of things. I've carried 13kg over 2 weeks, but it is just going to be way too much on this adventure.
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Joels » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 2:36 pm

ChrisJHC wrote:As the vast majority of people here don’t use swags, it might be useful to list what you are looking for that a swag gives you and a tent (or hammock!) doesn’t.


It is more that I have just become accustomed to using the swag. It just feels tougher and my swag was always so comfortable. I am in no way knocking the tent idea, it is just that my tenting experiences never seemed to go that great. I just found it draftier, wetter and colder. My experience with tents is limited however compared to my experience with swags.

I am very open to the idea of using a tent if I can find something really suitable.
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby EGM » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 3:44 pm

I'm actually pretty impressed the the weight being so low considering the swag. Many carry similar or more including a 1-3kg tent.

Out of interest what sort of pack to you use and do you strap the swag to the outside?
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Re: Single swag advice for a female hiker!

Postby Joels » Wed 16 Jun, 2021 7:45 pm

EGM wrote:I'm actually pretty impressed the the weight being so low considering the swag. Many carry similar or more including a 1-3kg tent.

Out of interest what sort of pack to you use and do you strap the swag to the outside?
EGM wrote:I'm actually pretty impressed the the weight being so low considering the swag. Many carry similar or more including a 1-3kg tent.

Out of interest what sort of pack to you use and do you strap the swag to the outside?


The swag was handmade and just came in a canvas bag that i would carry on my back (I added some padding to make it comfy for my shoulders), but it had room for other bits and pieces. I hike pretty light, normally do food drop offs if i need to, dehydrated food etc and mostly on tracks that have water that I can access (although i obviously take water with me too).
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