Chances are, you can make an enjoyable day trip even without a backpack entirely. If you choose carefully what you carry and wear something like a Windproof Smock, you can pack everything in your pockets. Hiking without a backpack adds to the sense of freedom. If you must, choose a small backpack. Let style dictate the choice if you please: this kind of use is not very demanding.

On a longer trip, you'll be hauling way more stuff than before, so get a proper tough rucksack that's also good to carry. We stock Berghaus, Savotta, and Särmä TST lineups, these are all made for serious use. The budget choice is a used milsurp ruck, but test it well beforehand - although we weed out obviously broken items and will refund/replace faulty kit in case it slipped through, the most unpleasant time for reclamation is in the wilderness.