The hiking bug has hit me!

I've been constantly thinking about camping and hiking in this upcoming season. I spend around 12-15 hours every week working at the psych desk in the hospital. Needless to say, I have a lot of spare time on my hands after the work is done at the desk. I've been looking up a lot of different equipment I'd like to save up for this summer. Some of it is just wishes, but the others I think I may be able to save enough bottles to buy them in the summer.


The first piece of equipment I've been looking at is backpacks. When I was down in the states, I carried a Camelbak Blowfish for two years, and I'm still using it today. I bought that backpack in 2005. I'm looking to stay with Camelbak because of the hydration pack built into it. I've never had issues with my Camelbak, and the only reason I need another one is because my current pack holds only about 15L. The 2012 Camelbak Vantage FT carries around 33L and is more than enough space for a two night trip out into the mountains.

This pack is the newest model of the Vantage by Camelbak. I had been looking at the previous model which has a higher capacity at around 40L, but I think this pack has me sold. Here's a shot of last years model of the Vantage.

They're pretty similar. The big reasons I like the newer model is the pockets on the sides for carrying items like a tent or sleeping pad appear to be bigger. There are also two hip pockets on the waist strap on the newer model versus only one of the last years model. Last summer when I was hiking with my smaller Camelbak, I was frustrated about taking my back off every time I wanted to grab a granola bar. The hip pockets, in addition to the pocket on the top of the bag which can be reached while the pack is on, are going to be great additions for out on the trail when you need to grab a camera, snack, or rain poncho quickly.


The newer model sells for around $200. It ain't cheap, but at the same time, I've seen some packs for around the same size made by high quality makers for over double that price. The nice part about buying a Camelbak is the quality of the bag. When I buy this bag, if its quality matches the quality of my smaller bag, I'll be able to use this bag for the next five to seven years.


One of the issues I am looking at with buying only a 33L pack is running out of space for my equipment. As I've been looking around on StumbleUpon.com, I've found a lot of different ways to cut down on weight so a two night pack can weigh as light as 15-20 pounds. I've been looking up different plans for home made alcohol stoves which burn hot and burn little fuel. I still need to experiment with building a couple different designs, but it is a cheaper and lighter alternative to buying a commercial backpacking stove.


We'll have to see how much overtime I can bank from now until June when I get out to hit the trails.