How to Carry A Lot of Weight

If you’re going out for a long time, you’ll be carrying a lot of food, a little over 2 pounds per person per day. Therefore, you’ll need a backpack designed for loads over 60 pounds. I strongly recommend that you get a Dana Design ArcFlex series backpack, as no other brand of pack is as well suited to extremely heavy loads—I’ve comfortably carried 95 pounds in my Dana Design pack. I recommend the Dana Design Astralplane on account of its large size. You’ll need the extra space to carry all the food you’ll need. Unfortunately, as of October 2004 the Astralplane costs $449 retail. However, if you plan ahead and wait for an annual sale, you can get it for significantly less.

Get heavy duty hiking boots if you plan to carry more than 40% of your body weight on your back. The shape of your foot will determine your choice of boot. However, my main backpacking partner and I have radically dissimilar feet, and we both settled on Scarpa boots. Scarpa boots are made in Italy, and many people think that Italian shoes are the finest in the world.

Scarpa makes an extended line of footwear, ranging from lightweight day hike shoes with nylon uppers, to extra-heavy expedition worthy all-leather boots. Most models come in variable widths. One exceptional thing about Scarpa is that their extra-heavy boots don’t make you lumber.

Boots suitable for heavy loads and more than three trail days in a row will set you back by about $200. As with other backpacking equipment, waiting for an annual sale is to your advantage.

You should augment your boots with Superfeet insoles. These insoles come in several foot and heel widths. For backpacking you want the green ones. The cost is about $30. You should also wear two pairs of socks. The inner pair should be made from Coolmax and the outer pair should be heavy wool.

Finally, having some experience with martial arts, Qi Gong, or Yoga can be very helpful when carrying a heavy pack over rough terrain. It’s possible to cultivate resistance to injury with these skills, and I’ve written an essay on that very subject.

That’s what it takes to carry more than 80 pounds in good cheer. If you have a comfortable backpack and hiking boots, combined with a modicum of physical discipline in your everyday lifestyle, you can expect to be very happy while you’re making your way down the trail with a heavy pack.