Thread: Lightening the gear load...

Just an update on the pack. Arrived last week, very impressed with the quality of it and the size, both expanded and compressed right down.

It's amazing how well it carries weight compared to previous packs I have had. I got a hanging meat bag for it that I have hanging from the top of the frame stays and down into the main bag. I have about 16kg of shotgun ammo in it for an overall pack weight of 18.5kg for training with. The weight seems to literally disappear once the pack is on and properly fitted. Other packs I have had would pull back on my shoulders with a similar amount of shotgun ammo in them. For some reason I would feel this in my calves and achilles when climbing, even with less weight than I have in the Kifaru pack. This morning I didn't have this feeling at all.

I realise that shotgun ammo won't simulate how a similar weight of gear would be distributed in my pack if walking into somewhere/fly camping, but what it does simulate is a load of meat/headskin etc plus my day hunting gear. When I have had that sort of stuff (like a full bull tahr winter skin and head) in other packs it can't be properly contained and always seems to end up bulging out/down in the pack and pulling back on my shoulders which seems to make everything a lot more difficult than it needs to be.

I am tempted to just take the main bag off the frame for day hunting and have the hanging bag on it for meat etc and strap a couple drybags under the hanging bag for my day hunting gear...