Making more room in a day pack

Sample Pan Dan

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Oct 20, 2012
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This is not an original idea of mine. I saw this on some videos on you tube. Also saw saw the zip ties on pans in Hurthawks videos.... Haven't heard much from him lately, has anyone else?
Anyhow, needing more room inside the pack, I had to be able to carry pans and classifier outside of the pack. A 1/4 drill bit and drill, a few zip ties, and I can now hang gear outside of my pack, making much needed room for other tools, food and drink, etc. Hope this helps someone.
 

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goldenIrishman

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You call THAT a pack Dan? Sheesh! I couldn't get 1/2 my stuff in there! I use an Army L.R.R.P.* rucksack. Plenty of room in there for EVERYTHING! Nice big pockets on the outside and plenty of tie points too. You can get one at a surplus store for about $30-$35 with the frame.

* Long Range Recon Patrol
 

goldenIrishman

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LOL You may be cursing me once you carry it fully loaded for a few miles. I used to have to carry one in the Army and lived out of it for weeks at a time. The joys of being in the Infantry! Yeah....RIIIIIGHT!!!!!!!!!
 

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Sample Pan Dan

Sample Pan Dan

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Lol, ya Im a "fat boy" I tried to keep it as light as possible. Carrying myself up and down them hills is work without 25lbs hanging in my back. :-)
 

Pointman

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Lol, ya Im a "fat boy" I tried to keep it as light as possible. Carrying myself up and down them hills is work without 25lbs hanging in my back. :-)

Old Ranger saying: "Go light freeze at night".

I spent 20 years in the military and I always meant to pack light, but typically I still had 50-70 pounds of gear in my rucksack.
 

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Sample Pan Dan

Sample Pan Dan

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Keep in mind the majority of my trips are less than full day, and less than a couple miles from the truck.
 

63bkpkr

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It would be nice to have a place with a short 30-45 minute easy hike in and out so it could be done as a day hike or at least a short easy hike in and out. Having a small light pack with some of the high volume low weight items (like you showed in your pictures - nice pictures by the way nice and clean) on the outside will most certainly leave more room inside for the heavier and even bulkier items so the idea is a good one and will be new to some folks, nicely shared.

The problem I have is the trail is long and 'substantially' difficult and I prefer to go in for longer periods of time. To add to this I like to be comfortable when I'm out there and I like to bring enough of my prospecting/mining equipment and toys to be prepared for whatever. I've attempted to cut back on my stuff and take in freeze dried food rather than less costly but heavier food stuffs however the pounds or ounces left out do not really help that much.

As an example I give you the following picture - 183_8316.JPG I've just finished hiking down the mountain for 2 to 3 hours with my A52 sluice and a new bucket the sluice will not crack along with my pack, one man tent with rain fly and ground sheet, sleeping bag, air mattress and foam pad, a well stocked first aid kit, camp chair, cook pot, cook stove w/fuel, spoon, food for two weeks (BLD) including drink mix and mixing container, two cloth food bags with steel cable and caribiners and rope and pulley to keep the food safe from the bears, gold pan, classifier, 16" Gad pry bar, thin 6" nail puller/crack opener, collapsible folding shovel, snuffer bottle, change of dry clothes and shoes w/socks, water filter, SPOT Messenger, car keys (I tried burying them once and some critter dug them up leaving them in plain sight and I've already had one car stolen from me in this area), ammunition for the 454 Casull and the revolver itself (check out the rock to my right and a little in front of me), wash cloth and towel w/soap, kitchen clean up stuff, tool kit for assembling the A52 (flare must be off so I can get through the heavy brush), a book to read, paper and pen, diving mask and camera with extra battery. Likely a few things I've forgotten as well like the 6.5' hiking staff (in the background that grey horizontal line in back of the pack) and the 100 lumen head lamp and extra batteries. Then if they are needed, I hike back out and bring in the tool pack (8000 capacity cable hoist, cables, tire chain boulder bra, hunk of regular chain, snatch block with extra pintle clip, small sledge hammer and more.

So back to the regular pack - as you see it in the picture it was well over 85 lbs. I also have items strapped to the outside of my pack, like that high tech camp water jug (used and cleaned milk jug). The tool pack is about the same weight. I hike these in and out by myself. I stash some of the more typical items 5 gallon buckets, waste basket sifter, long handled shovel, 4.5' work bar but the bears dig up the buckets and a person took the long handled shovel and the pry bar may be gone as well (I did not have my detector with me to see if I could find it where I buried it). Oh yes, sometimes the GMT comes in as well. I used to carry only a little .22 revolver kit gun type however, after 'they' set loose some bad bears in the area and they are not hunted so they just thrive and the bear attacks grew and kept happening to regularly including incidents on the trail on day hikes holding that nights trout in my hand I decided I needed a big bang stick, so I got one. It weighs a ton unloaded and two tons loaded and the extra ammo is another ton, that's life's choices. Just grin and Bear it so to speak. OH, I have no desire to shoot a bear of any type but any size bear is really strong, many times stronger than I. They have sharp teeth mounted in powerful jaws and sharp claws mounted on Very strong legs and they are quick! I've been in camp when an over 400 lb bear came in to camp to check out my food bag and the very first bear that accosted my young son and I was only about a 250 lb bear so I carry the protection. So far just firing the 454 scares them off and they usually do not return but yelling and beating pans together is no real deterent, they will be back.

I've tried to leave out things but most of the time the usual pack is 85 lbs anyway. The conclusion I've come to is I need to be in shape including not overweight. Of course when I was younger I carried a 50 lb lighter pack, slept out under the stars, had nothing but a gold pan, a trowel and a crack scraper. Of course I was only in for 3 to 4 days and the bugs had at me day and night, I used a lot of Jungle Juice @ 100% strength insecticide and the fishing was better so I carried fishing equipment and dinners were centered around frying fish and cooking some sort of starch item.

If I didn't love the outdoors and the mountains and rivers so much I'd likely be back at home wishing I had something to do, I'd be out of shape and likely quite overweight. Moral of the story, protect your health, stay fit and get the heck out there!...........................63bkpkr

Sorry, long winded again. But one other thing, late this coming April 2014 I will be 70 years of age, notice its just age! So doing what I'm doing can be done at a variety of "Ages". Someday I will get old but right now I'm just getting older. :hello:

And no, I've not heard from him either, must have gotten Lanny fever. :laughing7:
 

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goldenIrishman

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AS those of you who have been following my thread have learned, I've allowed myself to get out of shape and become a "Camping Wimp". Seven years back in Georgia with no place to go out for long periods and no one to go with are only part of the blame. Working too much is another part. I'm slowly working on getting back into shape since I want to be back out working our dig for long periods. Still having a warm body and an air bed to curl up with is not something I"m going to be giving up anytime soon. ;)
 

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