44 liter is small. You're going have to make sure your gears can fit and most importantly, you going have make sure when you get all your gears in it that you can still carry 3 days worth of food. I carry a 60 liter pack for 3 days and 2 nights that weighted a grand total of 33 pounds at the trail head and barely got my food in it. My biggest volume killer in my pack is my 15 degree synthetic sleeping bag.

I say, calculate your budget and start buying your gears first to make sure it will all fit in the 44 liter, then go from there. Hammock is good way to save a lot of volume in your pack. Your tent and sleeping bag will be the biggest items in terms of volume, theoretically.