Choosing a backback

Hello!

I've never gone for any "serious" trekking-trips before, and I'm planning on going for a 7-day trip this summer in the north of Sweden (Kungsleden), and I'm trying to figure out what kind of backpack I should get. I weight about 75kg and I'm about 185cm tall, average built.

I will most likely do a longer trip next year (we have not decided where we will go, but we will probably be out for >10 days). I'm studying Geology so I will very likely be going on longer excursions in the future.

Right now I'm considering the Osprey Aether 70l, Osprey Argon 70l or the 85l. I've tried them and they feel really comfortable and it have received many good reviews.

Do you have any other backpacks you would recommend?
I'm really having a hard time deciding how big of a backpack I should get. Is 85l overkill, or is it best to get that big of a bag? The price for the Argon 70l and the 85l is identical.

Appreciate your help!

The size of the backpack very much depends on the volume and weight of the gear and food that go inside. That's why it's a good idea to buy your backpack last, after all your other gear! If the pack is too big, it won't balance right and you'll be tempted to fill it up with stuff you don't need. If it's too small, you'll have to tie stuff on the outside, also affecting the pack's balance and making it easy to lose the tied-on items.

Check out the articles on the home page of this site, left hand column. They will give you an idea of what to look for when gear shopping. The most important measurement for packs is your torso length, which has little to do with your height and weight. The articles will tell you how to have someone measure it.

The most important thing about packs is fit, fit, fit! The pack must fit you, it must fit your gear and it must be comfortable for you with all the gear (including food and water) inside. Pack fit is almost as individual as shoe fit, which is why you should take recommendations with a grain of salt.

Osprey makes nice packs, but not everyone is comfortable in them. The ones you mention may be heavier than you need--it all depends on what you're putting inside!

OM is exactly right: fit is everything. You'll be able to find the capacity you want in almost any pack line, but each brand's suspension (and sometimes each model line's within brands) will fit differently. Go for fit first.

Osprey is a good brand, but don't overlook the Deuter lines, either, particularly the Aircontact and ACT Lite seris. If the Ospry isn't comfortable, the ACT might be.

My gear load plus food and water has always been well under 35 pounds so my Osprey attempts were in the Ultralight series. I liked the pack but it hated me. It was terribly painful trying to hike with them. I carried someone's Exos for a mile and experienced the same pain across the hips as with the Aura I started out with. Something about that frame just does not agree with my body.

That said, the packs you mention are entirely different than those I tried - however! with any pack, you must be certain that it fits you correctly (have your back and hip measurements, this is a procedure you can find easily online) and be absolutely certain the size of the pack matches your measurements (not the volume in liters, the size - small, medium, etc.) as well as having your gear and food fit into it.

There are a lot of packs around to look at and I suggest trying on a variety of them before making up your mind. But first you need to determine the gear - and what kind of trip you are planning determines that. I just finished a trip with a nice lady whose experience was not wilderness backpacking of the sort I am familiar with but hut to hut walking in Europe. For that, you do not need a huge pack. Her pack would not fit a bear can in, and so she had to use a different one - that did not fit her properly and hurt her shoulders.