Backpack Fitting

Ensuring proper fit is the most important step when you select a pack. It's hard to take in breathtaking vistas if your pack leaves you hunched over or racked in pain.

Pack size and suspension systems are the key considerations in fitting a pack.

Finding Your Pack Size

Finding the right pack size for you depends on your back length, not your overall height. A short pack can fit taller people with shorter backs, and vice versa.

To find your back length, have a friend measure your spine:

• Find the most prominent vertebrae at the back of your neck. It’s the large bump at about the same level as the top of your shoulders (point A).
• Find the top of your hipbone. Follow this point around in a straight line to your spine. (point B).
• Lay a measuring tape directly against your spine, and measure the distance between points A and B.

Suspension System

Wearing a loaded pack should feel as though your body has become somewhat heavier, not as though you’re shouldering a sumo wrestler. If the suspension system is doing what it’s supposed to, most of the pack’s weight will be comfortably transferred to your hips.

If possible, try the pack on in person. First, loosen the straps on the pack’s harness, then try it out:

• Load the pack up with 10 to 15kg (22 to 33lb.).
• Put the pack on, place the hipbelt directly over your hip bones, fasten the buckle, and tighten the hipbelt. The padding should wrap right around your hip bones.
• Snug in the shoulder straps. They should be far enough apart that they don't squeeze your neck. The strap ends should be no more than 10cm (4in.) from your armpits.
• Adjust the top stabilizer straps to a comfortable position. They should be at about a 45-degree angle.
• Fasten the sternum strap and adjust the lower stabilizing straps until comfortable.

Finally, walk around and play with the adjustments to fine-tune the fit. A pack that fits correctly should feel like an extension of your own body. Remember that if the pack doesn't feel right now, it certainly won't feel right after hours on the trail.

Note: If you buy your pack by mail or online, you’ll have to test the fit at home. If the pack you ordered doesn’t fit or feel quite right, return it, and we’ll help you find something that better suits your needs.