Ok, I have to admit that I am a gear junky. I love to obsess about getting the right gear for the task and am a pretty avid outdoor lover. I enjoy being outside and hiking and backpacking all through the year. This year I have even gotten into hammocking and yes I also have a stoma. The fact is that even with my stoma I am completely enjoying living a happy and active life. I do use a little extra gear when I am outside and that is why I think it is always wise to have a great way to store it all. Being an avid backpacker even before my stoma led me to understand that the correct backpack could make or break a good trip. I learned this by failing and I want you to know what I didn't and to overcome mistakes without having a bad trip. If I had a stoma back then I would probably have been in trouble but luckily I am able to have a lot of knowledge and experience behind me to help new stoma comers to enjoy their time outdoors.
The first thing to know about getting a backpack is that weight is usually not a good thing. When it comes to being human you may notice we were not designed to carry weight well. Even putting things on our back we are always struggling to have it work well without body. So the main goal of backpacking or picking out a day pack is to get one that fits your body well and does your tasks for the lightest weight possible. My first backpacking trip I took an old military backpack. It ended up weighing 6.6 pounds before I put a single piece of gear in it. The trip was set to be 50 miles and in 3 days. It was rainy and my backpack weighed 55 pounds. It was a terrible trip and I found my body in so much pain. My feet were in trouble and my shoulders were bruised. It was a terrible time and it was all because I packed too heavy and used a pack that did not fit me.
So with that in mind my next trip I went on the complete opposite end of the spectrum. I went ultralight and my pack and loadout ended up weighing 25 pounds even full of water. That was a great way to backpack and fit my body much better. I got a pack that fit my torso well and carried well on my shoulders. But now I have a stoma that does not allow me to use a hipbelt. That is something that now makes me need an even lighter loadout because all the weight has to be on my shoulders now. So now I use a pack that fits and with a full loadout only weighs 15 pounds for a full backpacking trip.
My ostomy gear and all my stuff fit well into a dinema backpack. This pack is made by Zpacks and weighs less than 24 ounces. It is super lightweight and allows me to fit the gear I need and put it on my back without weight much at all. It is also very strong and that is a great way to get outside. The lightweight and yet very strong backpack is incredible and I very much appreciate it.
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