My D21 is heading to Colorado for college. She is going on a one night hiking trip next week but does not have to carry all of her gear like sleeping bag/pad, just her own things.
We are looking at backpacks and are not sure if she needs one with a built in hydration pack or not. She likes to hike but we live in Florida so she has only done small hikes when we are on vacation. I am hoping to get one that will work in the coming years if she wants to do longer day hikes, don’t want to buy one now then have to upgrade later this year.
I had a backpack with built-in hydration (Camelbak). I was never comfortable with the hygiene aspect ie the residual water in the bladder, cleaning the tube etc. I switched back to carrying my water.
A hydration backpack is the easiest way to carry enough water for a long hike in the west. We have hydration backpacks and definitely use them for longer hikes. We just used them on vacation in Colorado. All three of us nearly emptied them on a three hour hiking/climbing adventure. It was not hot, it was at 8000 feet. It’s drier and much higher elevation in Colorado and the fastest way to get in trouble on a hike is not enough water. Most hydration backpacks can be used with or without the water bladder so she could still use the backpack when she can get by with just a water bottle.
I agree that you don’t have to use it. I like camelbaks for biking, hiking, because I don’t have to stop and get a water bottle-- often awkward with a loaded pack, especially if you don’t have a companion. Being able to grab and bite the straw thingies is very convenient! (For shorter hikes, I have come to prefer hip packs to back packs for ease of access.) And the pack distributes the weight evenly. Bigger deal if you have to load up in advance.
With that said, it also means that when you are without your pack, you are without water unless you bring a separate bottle and have a way to carry it. So if you leave your pack and your campsite and go off on a shorter jaunt or if you use your pack on a trip where it is transferred by someone other than you, you need the alternative. For that reason, you don’t need the built in as an essential.
I really think you can go either way. My guess is that she won’t use it much.
For day hikes, which is what it sounds like your daughter is doing since she’s not carrying all her gear, yes the Camelback is useful. One tends to drink more if the water is right there and you don’t have to take off the pack to access it. For true backpacking, when more water is needed for cooking and when getting water from a stream or lake and then having to treat it, a large water bottle or two is better.
A good salesman at REI or equivalent store can advise on all the pros and cons.
I’m not a fan of camelbacks. My daughter has been on overnight hikes and she takes a big water bottle and purification tablets. (Obviously you’d need to research water sources along the route).
Both of my Ds use the camelback’s for long hikes and when they ski. They both complain about how difficult they are to clean. Does anyone have suggestions for keeping camelbacks clean?
The sad news is you’ll be buying more backpacks all the time. Not necessarily upgrading but just buying packs for different types of hikes. Or she’ll see someone with one that she thinks is cool and want that kind. And there will be a new design, a new capacity, a new way to cool the water.
This is how I ended up with 25 different types of jackets. The grass is always greener…
Thanks for all of the information! We went to REI yesterday but just poked around ourselves to get an idea of how big the different sizes are. We will be going back tomorrow to try them on and hopefully find one she likes.
@momtogkc , ime, the salespeople at REI are terrific. They really don’t try to upsell and are informative. It’s one of the few places where I genuinely welcome sales help!
If you choose not to go with the hydration system be sure to have a backpack that can hold plenty of water bottles. The air is much dryer and the altitude will have her breathing a lot heavier at least until she is well acclimated. You will need one large enough to carry plenty of clothes and perhaps the food etc. Depending on where she will be hiking she will need clothing for rapidly changing conditions. A warm day in the 80s can turn in to near freezing temperatures when the sun goes down. Be sure to take sunscreen as the sun is more intense in the mountains and have good sunglasses and a hat for hiking. If she is hiking soon after she arrives in Colorado take the altitude very seriously. It can turn a fun trip into something miserable or even dangerous.
We use camelbacks but not built in ones. Most backpacks have a clip inside to attach to the top of the camelback, many also have a sleeve next to your back which is where the water is best carried. That way the bladder can be removed and cleaned when you get home (we just shake it with soapy water then rinse repeatedly with clean water) and you can use different sizes depending on the person and climate/length of hike (we hike mostly in CA and Utah for anything from 2-7 days).
We have a mix of sizes from 32oz (young kids) to 128oz (large adult), my teenagers usually carried 64oz except in desert hiking (this one: https://www.rei.com/product/108367/camelbak-crux-2l-reservoir-2-liters). For multi day hiking I find it much better than a bottle, because you don’t wait to drink until you stop and take the backpack off. I do carry both a large (200oz) plastic water carrier (to store water you’ve filtered) and a 30oz bottle for water in the tent which are empty while hiking unless I know water is really scarce on route.
I don’t like Camelbaks. Don’t like biting down on straw thingies like that and seems hard to clean. We have one we never use. I think we may have finally given it away. We are big on water bottles. I do day hikes. Hubby is a runner and does backpacking too.
Does the college have a gear rental shop your daughter could call to get advice? My son looked at 3 colleges in Colorado, and all had gear shops. They all had outdoor clubs as well. The college-based stops/clubs could give specific advice about local conditions.
I don’t hike a ton, but l’m a fan of the removable water bladder with bite valve. Makes it easy to stay hydrated in the dry mountain or desert air. For backpacks, I have a woman-specific Osprey daypack that is absolutely incredible; it puts the weight on the hips so effectively I barely feel any pressure at all on my shoulders.
Thank you all for so much information! The program is run through the school - CU Boulder. They are the ones who told us it is more of a car camping situation so she just needs to be able to fit her own clothes/shoes/toiletries - they suggested 30-35 liter might work but said even a school backpack would be fine for this trip if she could fit everything. When we looked quickly at REI it seemed like a smaller one would work for her. I just wanted to make sure I bought something that she can use if she decided to go on bigger trips with friends or the outing club later in the year. I’m not imagining her doing overnights where she would need to carry a sleeping bag or more equipment.
It seems like it almost hard to find a pack without the hydration option but I like that they are removable. I ordered two Osprey bags and one Gregory for now and we will head back to REI this week.
@123France Hah- if you can do Kilamanjaro without the hydration system I think she can handle a few small afternoon hikes without it!
Everyone in my family backpacks (we day hike, too) and nobody uses a water bladder. They are just too hard to clean out. I would like to reiterate the need to drink more, though, in dryer climates and on hotter days. If you don’t know what water sources are available along a trail, you should pack enough for the whole trip. If you have a water filtration system (like a Sawyer Squeeze) and know that you’re hiking to an alpine lake or crossing lots of reliable streams (‘reliable’ is the key word here) then you can get away with carrying less and refill along the way.
