My friend cancelled our hiking trip and I discovered I'd been putting on my backpack wrong for 5 years

So my buddy bailed on our hike last Saturday morning because his kid got sick. I was already packed and annoyed so I just went alone. About a mile in my shoulders were killing me and I stopped to adjust the straps, and this old guy on the trail just sort of paused and said 'hey, your hip belt should be sitting on your hip bones, not your waist.' I've hiked maybe 30 times over the last few years and always just put it on like a school backpack. Has anyone else had that moment where a stranger casually fixed something you'd been doing wrong forever?

3 comments

3 Comments

wells.olivia19d ago

Your hip belt should be sitting on your hip bones, not your waist." Honestly, that old guy might have been wrong. I've had my pack sit on my hip bones before and it dug in so bad I got bruises. Waist carry feels way more natural for me, keeps the weight higher and closer to my center of gravity. Maybe the real issue is your pack doesn't fit your torso length, not the belt position. All these "rules" are just one person's opinion anyway, tons of people carry packs however works for them.

dianaanderson19d agoMost Upvoted

Wait, your hip bones are literally your waist though.

noaht1518d ago

Yeah wait that actually makes way more sense lol.