Rucksack and Boots

Following advice on the forum I bought a 38L back pack and having had a trial pack it's more than large enough. So, I would have thought your size of rucksack a tad larger than needed and probably heavier as a result.

Howdidyougetthesebootsforfree?!!! I'm jealous, but to me they look ideal for a Camino as long as they fit OK, obviously. The pack is larger than I'd go for but if you are happy with it and don't get tempted to fill it to capacity I'm sure it would be OK. I'd aim for 40l or thereabouts ideally.

If the good people at Rohan have any more spare boots they need to get rid of just send them in my direction. :lol: Size 11.

Buen Camino!

Take ALL of the gear you plan on carrying (not wearing). Put it in the pack. If the gear fits inside it's big enough. If the gear needs to be tied to the outside, its too small. I have a Granite Gear Blaze that weights 1.3kgs and is 60 l. Some will say this is too big. However, Its fits my body extremely well, is very comfortable and well built. I can compress the size down to about half if I need to. I don't like tying anything to the exterior of my pack as it is more difficult to keep dry/clean. The most critical aspect of any pack, is not size. It is comfort.

Boots look nice. Put some miles on them with whatever sock combo you will be wearing well ahead of time.

Well hope you've got boots right size:
You should try to wear two pair of rohan socks one being their linner that's 4 pairs of socks & as much as the boots hope they are going to be as generous, I'd prefer the Manang boot, just because i prefer leather, & they will even tually mold to your foot. Remember you toes must not touch the front of the boot. If the one you've chosen fits well with two pairs of socks then great. @pairs=no blisters :mrgreen:

With regards ruck sack, I would go smaller as this is an unframed ruck sack & I would say if you ever filled it to 50l it will hurt & be uncomfortable, basically @ 50l you need a frame.
So like others suggested go smaller 40l or never fill-it! Vango usually make good products, make lovely tents.
http://www.vango.co.uk/products.html?ov ... e&vcatid=1

Good Luck David

CriostoirMacAodha said:

Free boots? Well redundancy pays sometimes lol.

Click to expand...

It's paid for my Caminos! :lol:

I have just done a trial pack of the recommended list from the Confraternity of St James into a 45+10 li Dueter Guide. The pack was more than large enough for that. The CSJ list is a bit tight in a 40li Macpac Adventure Racing pack. Both configurations come in around 10kg.

To satisfy my own curiosity, I also packed what Sojourner47 lists as his load, and I was able to fit that into the 30li Salewa Summit, but with no space left for food! I suspect it needs a 35 li pack to give it the flexibility needed on the Camino.

More importantly, it is just over 8kg in what is a relatively heavy pack at 1.3kg. Sojourner47s list is one of the few that gets below the 10% of body weight when I pack it with my gear, but seems to be best suited for walking in late spring to early autumn, and I think it would need some additions in colder conditions.

I think the pack you have chosen will be more than sufficient, especially if you are travelling early in the year when you might need to add some thicker items such as thermals, warm gloves, a beanie, etc. You will now need to avoid the temptation to put little extras in because you have the room. I did this when I walked the Camino Frances in 2010, and eventually posted most of the extras home, but they were a great encumbrance until I found an open Correos.

I prefer boots, but also prefer leather to fabric. I walk a lot here in Australia in summer, and I find that fabric boots with a waterproof membrane tend to retain sweat more than a leather boot. If you are walking in warmer conditions, and find this, you might need to change your socks during the day.

Also, with most membrane based waterproofing, you shouldn't wear any cotton underneath the waterproof layer. So you will need to avoid socks with any cotton content. Good hiking socks normally aren't made with cotton, but recently I have seen some with a small amount of cotton, so it will pay to check.

Regards,

I noticed these hiking boots are notched at the heel in back. They look great and it's very important that they are water proof too. As long as they are light then they look good

The weight of the back pack is important so check that out. The lighter the frame the better. bigger is not automatically heavier unless you load it all up. Extra room EMPTY is a real bonus. Ease of packing and extra groceries occasionally is a good thing. Occasionally while hiking I'd pass a grocery store and know that I was staying at a place that night which had a kitchen. You will occasionally want to cook for yourself. there was NO extra room in my bag for the potato/eggs, etc. Just a thought.

I have the Osprey Aura 50. It's a women's bag and has a great mesh vent area in back, allowing air to circulate making it cooler. Also is set up to house a "camelback type water container, but didn't like it because it took up too much room in the backpack. I am going to go with my water bottle which I'll refill.

Buen Camino

Hello DougF,
Could you post copy of or link to Sojourner47 pack list. Have tried Search function but cannot locate it. Thanx for your help. John

merrellj said:

Hello DougF,
Could you post copy of or link to Sojourner47 pack list. Have tried Search function but cannot locate it. Thanx for your help. John

Click to expand...

http://www.caminodesantiago.me/board/equipment-questions/topic5018.html#p64294

This should work, but if it doesn't, please let me know.

Regards,