Trail tools

How heavy is your daypack, really?

Add your base kit, your water and the food you actually eat, and see whether the load still belongs on a day hike.

Pack weight snapshot

8.5lb

Pack weight snapshot: 8.5 lb. Fine for longer days if straps fit well.

Weigh the loaded pack once. Guessing is how a six-mile day turns into a shoulder ache.

Base kit (lb)4210Water (lb)318Food + extras (lb)1.50.56

How to read this

Eight pounds is comfortable on most half-day trails. Past twelve, the question stops being what you packed and starts being whether the straps fit.
Water is the heaviest thing most people carry and the one they under-pack. Weigh it in rather than guessing — a litre is about 2.2 lb.
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