1 Cut the weight
Every gramme counts when you’re toting your house on your back, so be really ruthless. Do you need four pans or can you cook and eat from one? Need a handle on your hairbrush? A towel bigger than a stamp?
2 Share the burden
Backpacking with someone else? Check you’re not duplicating gear. You don’t need a stove each… unless you’re not sure the friendship will last the experience!
3 Pack a pack
It ain’t rocket science, but pack things where you can find them and in the order you’ll need them – ie tent on top of sleeping bag – and keep stuff you’ll want while you walk in easy-to-grab pockets.
4 Spread the load
Where you stow your heavy gear in your pack makes all the difference. Always keep it close to your back ,but experiment with high or low. Low means a lower centre of gravity-ideal for the unsteady and stuff doesn’t get squashed –but some swear high is better.
5 Lift your pack
To avoid a hernia before your first step, lift your pack properly. Stand it in front of you, straps facing you, bend your knees and lift the pack. Rest it on one thigh, put one arm through the shoulder strap, and swing gently on to your back to put the other arm through.
6 Build up strength
Still nervous about this house-on-back idea? Use exercise to build strength before you go – squats, lunges, step-ups. Also try Pilates to improve your core muscles and back strength, and soon that backpack will feel as light as a muesli bar wrapper. Oh yes, and try walking with poles to redistribute weight.
8 Keep dry
Most backpacks come with a raincover, but to keep things truly crisp ‘n’ dry use a survival bag as a bargain pack liner. Or invest in different-coloured stuff sacks to keep your things dry and organised. Washbag in red, clean clothes in green, dirty socks marked biohazard…
9 Plan your route
Don’t leap straight out the door at Lands End and aim for John O’Groats. Start with seven to 10 miles a day over easy terrain on a weekend trip, and build up. See the ‘Backpackers Britain’ books by Graham Uney (currently Wales, Northern England and the Scottish Highlands and islands, £10-£12 each) for suggested routes – or find your campsite, get your maps and plan your own.
10 Get the best view
Perfect weather? If it’s not raining cats and dogs or blowing a gale, then all you have to do is simply pitch your tent in the direction of the best view.
11 Get acclimatised
Take trial ambles. Load up and go for a stroll to get used to the pack, check the weight build your fitness and sort any problems before you’re two miles in with 37 to go.
12 Breakfast
It’s all about the porridge! Add dried fruit and spices to liven things up. Can’t stand oats? Mix dried milk with cereal in a resealable bag for just-add-water breakfast, and you can even eat from the bag. Or pack some bacon for the first morning and enjoy the best ever breakfast bagel watching the sunrise. Mmmmm!
13 Wild camp
In England and Wales you need landowner permission to camp, but it’s often tricky to know who owns the patch of turf you’re standing on. If you are high up, pitch late, leave at first and leave at first light and leave no trace, and you should be okay. Or wander free in Scotland, where wild camping on access land is fine.
14 Pitch clever…
Check you haven’t picked a tent spot where water naturally collects – like a fry river bed. And make sure your tent is pitched taut with a good gap between inner and fly sheet, or condensation will soak the inner.
15…and wind-free
Note signs of the prevailing wind, like the lie of long grass or bend of trees, and then seek protection from it behind a rock or wall. No shelter? Pitch the narrow foot end into the wind – it’s more stable and you won’t get battered when you open the door. And for extra security put the pegs in at 45 degrees.
16 Stay on the level
Try and find a level pitch, or you’ll spend all night wriggling up the tent, only to slide all the way down again – a bit like snakes and ladders! If you do have to sleep on the tilt, keep your head at the higher end.
