Backpacks on multi pitch rock routes

Discuss

Discuss

Troll baiting is not funny

Not baiting, I just wonder what everyone thinks. I see so many people on routes and on social media wearing backpacks on relatively short routes. I personally don’t like to wear them. I’m curious shat the advantages are. 

kingpin wrote:

Not baiting, I just wonder what everyone thinks. I see so many people on routes and on social media wearing backpacks on relatively short routes. I personally don’t like to wear them. I’m curious shat the advantages are. 

 Nervous noob thing. People haven’t usually learned about tying off water bottles, stuffing shit in approach shoes (that they probably don’t have yet), and girthing headlamps to gear loops. That essentially provides backpack levels of storage. Mostly an ignorance of better ways thing. Exceptions being long approach routes with walkoffs that don’t come back to the base or not wanting to “backpack” or haul a tag for rapping.

I’m not really a nervous noob, but I like carrying a backpack. If I’m carrying more than shoes and a little water bottle, it feels better to me in a small backpack than it does dangling all over my waist. Yes, even in chimneys. Maybe even especially in chimneys… 

Snacks.

Is it really noobish to not have the weight of your Nalgene, your shoes, your chalk bag, your headlamp, and your belay gear pulling the back of your harness down like a toddler’s diaper full of poop? Sounds like some weird tough-guy posturing to me.

The far superior method is to use a child-size Camelback. 1.5L of water storage. Less than a foot long. Enough storage pockets for everything above and more. Plus it comes in wayyyyy radder colors than the normal bland adult outdoor gear spectrum. Like red with yellow flames so your shit can look like Lightning McQueen from the movie Cars. 

belay pillow

So I'm pretty atypical in that this is one of the ways that my chronic ME/CFS affects me, but I get incredibly thirsty quickly, which is a weird but not uncommon and definitely not understood symptom. I take 3L of water up almost everything. 

Also, rather recently I've started having to snack frequently to avoid crashes, so I just need a bar every few pitches and maybe a 5 minute sandwich or beefaroni break at mid day. Hopefully that goes away again, it's kinda annoying, but we'll see. 

But also also I frequently bring up my partner's shit. Their extra liter of water, their approach shoes. 

But I appear to be a significant anomaly in this regard. My climbing partners are often in disbelief at how much shite I've got in my bag. But I genuinely don't feel a 10lb or 12lb bag and it really doesn't seem to affect my climbing. If I'm doing something super hard for me or there's features that suck to climb with a pack then I take my haul pack and my tagline and just fix and follow for those pitches. Often it isn't any slower, and when it is it's rarely by much. 

5.8 might be a scary grade for me to onsight in the valley but I'm a pretty good pack mule apparently. So I got that going for me which is nice. 

Ally L wrote:

The far superior method is to use a child-size Camelback. 1.5L of water storage. Less than a foot long. Enough storage pockets for everything above and more. Plus it comes in wayyyyy radder colors than the normal bland adult outdoor gear spectrum. Like red with yellow flames so your shit can look like Lightning McQueen from the movie Cars. 

Exactly this. I stumbled on this set-up along time ago and love it. Water, keys, pills whatever but then I also usually only climb 350'-1,000' climbs so that'll usually cover it. Anything longer and I'm not opposed to something bigger, depending on the climb a small backpack is usually not the thing dragging me off.

John Clark wrote:

 in approach shoes (that they probably don’t have yet), 

lol have you ever looked in the cubbies at your local gym? It’s the first purchase after rope and draws. 

kingpin wrote:

Not baiting, I just wonder what everyone thinks. I see so many people on routes and on social media wearing backpacks on relatively short routes. I personally don’t like to wear them. I’m curious shat the advantages are. 

I try to avoid them as much as possible.
Worst case, we have one for follower and swap. Like a 15L pack. Then we'll see other parties climbing the same 5-pitch route and each person has a pack on that looks like they're training for Denali. Maybe the route is too easy and they're trying to up the grade a bit? 

Fanny pack ftw

I'm pro backpack. If I'm bringing a belay jacket, or water, or shoes to walk off, I find it much more comfortable to carry that stuff on my back than have to blindly grope for my chalk bag amongst all that stuff back there. And also Ally's point about it feeling like a weighted diaper. Bonus: if you use radios you have a convenient shoulder strap to clip it to. I used to have an 11L BD Bbee that was perfect, but I've since lost it somewhere :(

Im in the minority but if I’m doing a big multi pitch I’ve never done and I’m a bit over-racked I like to use a big wall harness. I agree with the poopy diaper comments I think it’s uncomfortable to have a ton of weight hanging off my hips. If it’s a lot of weight and hanging belays my lower back is pretty sore the next day.

With a big wall harness and a ton of gear I feel a lot more agile. I can rack my approach shoes and water bottle and headlamp or whatever off the back of my big wall harness. I think it’s a lot easier to stay organized too. 

John Clark wrote:

 Nervous noob thing. People haven’t usually learned about tying off water bottles, stuffing shit in approach shoes (that they probably don’t have yet), and girthing headlamps to gear loops. That essentially provides backpack levels of storage. Mostly an ignorance of better ways thing. Exceptions being long approach routes with walkoffs that don’t come back to the base or not wanting to “backpack” or haul a tag for rapping.

This is such a weird attempt to gatekeep having experience by whether you want the weight on your hips or back lol. I just did the Yosemite double last week and wore a 15L BD vest on both walls- my partner didn’t wear a bag for either. He prefers to climb with everything on his hips in a very tight squeeze, I’d rather have snacks accessible easily and have a light jacket and shoes on my back. I bring a small backpack on almost every multi pitch I do unless it’s short and a rap descent. Do what makes sense and what you prefer, I despise trying to squeeze everything I own on my gear loops a small bag seems so clearly obviously a better option

I try to avoid them due to the snowball effect. Carrying shit on your harness forces you to go as light as possible. But I will bring a small, light pack for long climbs (6+ pitches, and I'm throwing in an emergency space blanket bivy sack or I'm bringing more food than a bar) or for long approaches/descents (I'd rather throw my stuff in a pack and hike comfortably than having everything hang off my harness.

I’m pro small backpack nearly every time i step out of my house. Are y’all really stuffing (at minimum) keys, wallet, and phone in your pockets all day every day? If you happen to buy something you are just carrying it until you get home? If you want to take a sweatshirt off, you’re stuck tying it around your waist like a big ole nerd? Sunglasses?

the mammut neon 12L is part of my every day outfit including most multi pitch’n. It’s tiny and i can usually find an edible starburst at the bottom of it if i dig hard enough.

Tanner James wrote:

This is such a weird attempt to gatekeep having experience by whether you want the weight on your hips or back lol. I just did the Yosemite double last week and wore a 15L BD vest on both walls- my partner didn’t wear a bag for either. He prefers to climb with everything on his hips in a very tight squeeze, I’d rather have snacks accessible easily and have a light jacket and shoes on my back. I bring a small backpack on almost every multi pitch I do unless it’s short and a rap descent. Do what makes sense and what you prefer, I despise trying to squeeze everything I own on my gear loops a small bag seems so clearly obviously a better option

How is it gatekeeping? It is an observation. Nice brag you slid in there, congrats. For the record, here is me as a nervous noob with a shitty backpack and no approach shoes on nutcracker 6 years ago. Took like 6 hours back then to do a route people regularly do in like 20-40 minutes.

A short multi, especially one that I'm going to rappel -- probably no back pack. Though, if warm, and not a super-short multi, I'll likely have a camelback for my water -- I find that less awkward than a bottle hanging off my harness, as it doesn't swing around as much.

For a longer multi, especially one where it is a walk-off, I'll almost always want a small pack (I happen to use a BD BBEE11), as I'll want it for shoes, water, food, and a light wind/rain shell.

If the approach is more than short, and the walk-off doesn't return to the base of the climbing, likely the follower will be climbing in a full cragging bag, switching that off.