How to pack for Backpacking?

A resource to consider is "The Backpacker's Photography Handbook" by Charles Campbell. (see a description of the book at http:// www.photonaturalist.com/book.html)

I have two giant black labs who can carry about 40 pounds apiece and never get exhausted. I hiked about 120 miles in the Sawtooth Wilderness area last summer with them, and rekindled a love for photography in the process. Dogs are better than either goats or lamas since they can ride inside the car and are great companions. I have photos of those two guys RUNNING down the trail and RUNNING after deer fully loaded. They love it. Save some of these pathetic beasts from certain death at the hands of the Pound. For winter camping, dogs can pull sleds, leaving you free to photograph on your winter ski campout trips. With a properly designed sled, those labs can easily pull over 100 pounds apiece and easily keep up with you unladen on skis. Your hands and back are completely free!!

 

Once you pass 80 pounds onto those beasts (Dogs can carry 1/3 of their weight as well), you should be able to get by with no more than 40 pounds for yourself and your mate.

 

What kind of photography are you doing? If it is nature photography, then certainly go with the SLR and zoom. If it is to get those dramatic shots from on top of ridges, nothing more is needed than the ultralight and water resistant Yashica T-4 Super, or a lightweight Yashica 124 G for medium format. A very lightweight and effective tripod is available from REI that only weighs 4 ounces and can strap itself onto a tree for higher leverage.

Larry,

I hope you are not actually allowing your dogs to chase deer! Just as you would not distrub an animal you are photographing you should not allow your dogs to harass the wildlife. The only thing worse is leaving your trash in the wilderness. As a native Idahoian and dog lover please get out of the woods if you continue this behavior.

 

BV

<P>dig:</P>

<P>A PDF Trip Plan for Outdoor Survival, courtesy of the

Provincial Emergency Program, of the British Columbia ( Canada )

gov't.</P>

<P><A HREF="http://www.pep.bc.ca/hazard_preparedness/Trip_Plan.pdf">

http://www.pep.bc.ca/hazard_preparedness/Trip_Plan.pdf</A></P>

<P>Also try

<A HREF="http://www.mec.ca/">Mountain Equipment Co-op, Canada</A>

and <A HREF="http://www.rei.com/">REI America</A> since they both

have good gear <EM>and</EM> publications on hiking, surviving,

etc.</P>

Cheers,<BR>

Hmmmm....

 

EOS 3 plus 24mm f/2.8 and 70-200mm f4L + 1.4x TC in two LowePro pouches on the pack belt...? Could do just the 28-135USM and save a LOT of weight. The 70-200mm and 24mm seem more rugged though. Optional: Olympus Stylus to cover 35mm and as backup. Lightweight, rugged and versatile.

 

I also like the 24mm + 50mm + 100 macro for outdoors/landscape. However, I find that when hiking with others I need to do quick snaps or people get pissed at me for lagging. I got nagged for slowing down to take pics with my old Tamron 28-200mm. I have since replaced that with EF28-135mm USM IS lens. Pentax K1000 + 28+50+135 is compact, cheap and rugged too.

<p>hahaha, do you realize you just answered a thread that is over 12 years old and the most recent comment was from 8 years ago... why the hell did stumbleupon bring me here? </p>

Yeah it is old but still a useful thread, glad I've landed here. It's a good read and knowledge for adventurers ;)

Since the thread got revived; I can't resist contributing. - The elaborated original question sounds like an absurd concept to me. A backpack capable to hold a serious amount of gear + camping & everything + food for a week for traveling abroad is a bit absurd. Airline regulations don't permit something of it's size as carry on and checking in photo equipment doesn't sound like a bright idea either.

At vocational school they had a poster: "Don't ever carry what you could cart!"

I'm no athlete / mountaineer / soldier type, but I do own huge backpacks. while they are a tad more convenient to carry than suitcases, I must say: From a certain load on my brain switches into pack animal mode and I am just forcing myself along, loosing interest in my environment that could urge me to make any use of photo gear.

I also wouldn't be comfortable with a huge pack on board of foreign buses trains or ships. I recommend to split your stuff. Get a bigger daypack to hold valuables and essentials. For the rest I recommend a collapsible 2 wheeled hand truck and straps to hold your items in place on it. It is somewhat convenient to march from train station via supermarket to camping at the outskirts of town with such a device. If needed you can even BYOB that way. For an average or short person wheeled suitcases, one stuffed into the other for flights in and out, might be an alternative, I am unfortunately too tall to handle those conveniently. but I guess one dedicated to groceries is realistic; a bag of crisps takes It's space...

The limiting yourself to a big daypack has 3 reasons:

• You can read a book sitting with the pack on your lap.
  
• The pack should be portable enough to carry it with you to the toilet (tree) or all day long, if needed.
  
• AFAIK most buses & similar divide passengers from the majority of their luggage which is stored in a cargo compartment below the seating area or on a rack on the roof too. in trains you'll have to be able to lift stuff overhead. One pack holding everything would be too much to lift it on your own.
  

Yeah it is old but still a useful thread

 

maybe

Please also keep in mind that this thread was started in February 1998, almost a full 20 years ago and before September 11, 2001. Airline regulations were quite different back then, and a lot of gear have improved over the years..

I've done a lot of wilderness backpacking and canoeing coupled with photography. Over the years my photography equipment has been slimmed down to a single camera with zoom lens. Now I use the Lumix FZ1000 which is a great all purpose camera. No need to carry extra lenses. I hang the camera on the frame of the backpack so it is resting on my chest and easily accessible when the wildlife appear. My advice then is to travel light. Your back and legs will appreciate it.

this thread was started in February 1998

Oh no wonder I was seeing something like he planned to pack "50 rolls of film". And I was thinking "really?". This was stuff we did eons ago. ;)

 

Now please just bring along a survivor cell phone if one is carrying camel-fulls of stuff. Or, seriously, a do-it-all zoom lens.

Edited January 31, 2018 by Mary Doo

Having been both a serious backpacker and a semi-serious photographer I have a real appreciation for the conflicts involved in the OP. I won't try and regenerate all of the backpacking advice I've seen or given over the years. Rather, I highly recommend the most recent edition of Colin Fletcher's The Complete Walker. Be aware, he has some very specific and sometimes offputting opinions regarding the mix of backpacking and photography.

 

Now, I see two approaches to wilderness travel combined with photography: 1) Photography is the prime activity, so one packs light for only one or two nights as required to get to a photo location and make the needed images, then return to vehicle or base camp. In this case one can carry most if not all of the camera equipment desired while maintaining capacity for minimum food and shelter. 2) Backpacking/distance travel by foot is the primary activity. This means food, shelter, and supplies for up to a week on the trail. If alone, then one can't share the load, and it quickly becomes an extraordinary burden. (I even find myself cutting the handles off toothbrushes and the borders off maps to save a few grams!) In this case I recommend the best mirrorless/fixed lens camera one can carry in addition to the enormous load. I've been on journeys where I started out with 65-75 pounds (30-35 kilos) in my pack, and there simply is nothing good to say about it. Adding the weight and bulk of even a lightweight DSLR and lenses is beyond consideration. A quality mirrorless/point-and-shot with adequate IQ and exposure control is the only way to go when weight is the primary consideration. One might also consider a solar charging panel for both emergency phone/GPS and camera, such as those sold by Goal Zero, so long as it weighs less than the batteries it replaces.

 

Anyway, just thought I'd drop my two cents into this bucket...