Yesterday I succumbed to an item that has been tempting me for months now - a new rucksack. There is absolutely nothing at all wrong with my old Karrimor Jaguar, which has served me faithfully on many trips. It has great side pockets, and has been with me up Kilimanjaro, carried a staggeringly heavy load (24 kg) for 7 days along the West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island and completed the West Highland Way with me.
However, when I held the Karrimor in one hand and the Osprey on my other hand, the weight difference was so apparent that I decided that punishing my bank account was a long-term way of being kind to my knees. After all, I want to able to still go Irish Dancing in 20 and even 30 years from now!
So this is the new one:
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| Osprey Kestrel 68 l, empty weight 1.78 kg |
And this is the old one:
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| Karrimor Jaguar SA Supercool 55 - 75 l, empty weight 2.8 kg |
The Osprey is over 1kg lighter than the Karrimor.
I have been reading more and more about lightweight trekking and the reasons for reducing the weight carried seem to make perfect sense:
1. It makes walking more fun2. You can walk further
3. You can walk faster (if you want)
4. It reduces damage to knees
5. It reduces the chances of blisters
6. You are less likely to get seriously injured if you fall
7. You can continue walking in your old age
It seems like a no-brainer to me!!!!
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