Rucksack

Chosen by litre and by back length

A rucksack is measured in litres, and the range here runs from compact day packs of around forty litres up to expedition volumes of ninety and a hundred, including waterproof shells and duffle hybrids. Volume is the number everyone reads first, yet it means little alone: a pack too long in the back will hurt whatever its capacity, and one far larger than the trip gets filled simply because the space exists.

What size rucksack do you actually need?

Match the litres to the night, not to the ambition. Around thirty to forty litres carries a day out with food, waterproofs and a spare layer. Fifty to sixty covers a weekend once a mat and a bag are added. Seventy and above is for multi day trips, bulky winter kit or gear carried for two people. The tall framed patterns grouped under bergen backpack are built around that upper range. Anything near a hundred litres is a haulage bag rather than a walking pack, so it is worth asking whether the load is carried far or simply moved from a car to a tent.

How should a rucksack sit on the back?

A loaded pack should ride on the pelvis rather than hang from the shoulders. The hip belt should close on the top of the pelvis, with the shoulder straps then pulled just snug enough to stop the pack swaying. If the belt rides up onto the ribs or drops onto the thighs, the back length is wrong and no amount of strap adjustment will fix it. Load lifter straps running from the shoulder straps to the frame pull the top of the pack inwards and stop it levering backwards on descents.

Which parts of a pack do the real work?

• Frame or stiffened back panel: what transfers load to the hip belt. Without it, everything hangs from the shoulders.
• Side pouches: on larger military patterns these often detach, so one pack serves as both a full load carrier and a smaller day sack.
• Webbing panels: rows of MOLLE strapping let pouches be added where they are wanted rather than where a maker sewed a pocket.
• Compression straps: pull a half empty pack tight so the contents stop shifting with every stride.
• Base access: a second opening at the bottom saves unpacking the whole sack to reach the item loaded first.

Are these packs waterproof?

Fabric can shed rain for a time; zips, seams and the lid are where water finds a way in eventually. The sealed roll top designs grouped under waterproof backpack are the exception, built to keep contents dry rather than to slow water down. On any other pack the sensible habit is to line the inside with a dry bag and keep spare clothing separate from the wet layer.

How should a pack be loaded?

Heavy items go close to the spine and level with the shoulder blades, so the weight sits over the hips rather than pulling backwards. Soft, light bulk fills the base: a sleeping bag pushed loose into the bottom uses the dead space a stuff sack wastes. The same loading logic applies across military backpack designs of any size.