Hiking Backpacks Vs. SAR and BOB
Attention must be given to the weight of necessary items that you MUST carry to safely complete your mission, your physical condition, and your need for mobility. The approach used by search and rescue groups and highly recommended is a total package consisting of three LEVELS:
Level I: Your "Every Day Carry" or "EDC" that you always have with you on your key ring, in pockets, etc.
Level II: Is the minimum "grab and go" items needed to conduct outdoor activity, away from your vehicle, for a 12-hour period. This compact survival kit should include personal medications, snacks and a water bottle and the "ten essentials " It can be carried easily in a lumbar pack, multi-pocket vest, or zippered pouch which fits in your briefcase. The most popular waist pack among professional EMTs, ski patrol and SAR operators is the Harper:
http://www.harperpack.com/comp.html
Level III: Expands supplements the first two levels to include additional supplies of expendables, like AA batteries for flashlights, plus adequate food, hunting and foraging items, water, containers and purification, extra clothing, shelter, tools, navigation, signalling and first aid items to enable you to survive in safety and relative comfort for not less than 72 hours. This is your "survival ruck" or "SR." Many operators carry their 2-way radio and Level II gear in a utility pouch, attached to the SR with a snap-link so that if necessary they can "drop rucks" and still take the essentials with them. There are LOTS of options among the three general types of PACKS.
The following article is a MUST read:
The SAR Pack Part II
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Unframed packs are useful for storing loads loads transpoorted primarily in a vehicle, and carried on your back for relative short distances on moderate terrain, as in portages. The Duluth type is the best example.
Duluth Pack
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Internal frame packs are standard in the SAR community and ride close to the body. They have fewer projections which catch or snag on brush, have external zippered compartments to organize loads, and usually compression straps to adjust for various size loads and sometimes external attachment points for carrying climbing or technical rescue gear.
Search and Rescue Pack - Coaxsher SR-1 Endeavor
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External frame packs are commonly recommended for general backpacking. Military surplus ALICE packs are also of this type.
External Frame Packs from Backcountry.com
Keep in mind that many of us reading this forum are "middle aged" and older and not in the prime of physical condition which we once were. A pack weighing 25 to 30 pounds is the maximum which a 40+ to 60 year-old male in "good" physical condition, with no medical problems, should carry all day on easy terrain. Anyone over age 50 should first seek medical evaluation before undertaking any strenuous activity, followed up when deemed medically necessary by a stress test and structured conditioning program, under medical supervision.