Packs

Packs are amazingly complicated. They come in different volumes and materials, to fit different sexes and back lengths. They have many varied features. Luckily 10 years ago as I prepared for my first camino I didn't know any of this. I simply took a pack that we already had in the cupboard, that had come free with a tent that we had bought from Kmart. Despite that it worked beautifully. It fit everything I needed, was comfortable and reasonably light, and easy to open and close. I wondered if it would be strong enough to last for a 800 k walk but it was. In fact it lasted well and I used it again in 2003 for another camino. In 2005 my daughter Anna walked her first camino with it and in 2008 her second. Between times I patched and reinforced it. Now it is old and a bit tired but still going strong and Anna still uses it weekly to walk home from the vegetable market.  Which left me in a bit of a quandary. Over the holidays I visited outdoor shops in Hamilton, Whangarei and Tauranga but nothing really appealed. Packs that should have worked liked the Osprey Exos just didn't seem to fit me.. even the sales person said he didn't know why.. but it just didn't look right. I was intrigued by the new Aarn packs with their balancing front pockets, but at $NZ450 it was a bit hard to justify.

And then a stroke of luck. Although my pack was well over 10 years old and I had unsuccessfully checked the previous 3 months of Trademe (NZ's version of Ebay)  I had  saved a search. A few weeks ago someone advertised its duplicate.. just a bit newer looking and still brightly coloured.  Last week I won the small bidding war for it and today it arrived in the mail. It has a frayed strap and is missing a buckle so there will be a bit of mending, but I am so thankful to have it. I will also sew on the Camino and NZ patches and add some black mesh so I can safety pin my damp socks to dry as I walk. So far I have been going on practice walks with G's old pack. Tonight I was able to load up the new one and it felt so good!