Purchasing a rucksack

	View the best rucksacks for backpacking as well as city-breaks at Blacks.
	Gear Zone has a wide selection of backpacks, rucksacks and travel bags for first-time backpackers as well as the experienced traveller.
	Millets has a good choice of day packs, backpacking rucksacks and all you need for your travels
	Tiso is the outdoor specialist offering a full range in rucksacks, backpacks for travellers of all levels.
	OutDoorGear offer a full range of competitively priced day packs, backpacking rucksacks and much more

What To Look For When Buying a Rucksack

A good rucksack is designed for multi-day use and for carrying heavier loads and has all the features of a daypack but with additional padding, pockets and fixing points for your extra gear.

When buying a good rucksack there are a number of things you should look out for:

1. A strong padded hip belt as the weight of a rucksack increases so should the percentage of the load (over 50%) that is carried on the hips. Large backpacks or smaller packs that will carry heavy loads should be have a well padded waist belt.

2. A water proof cover tucked into the upper cover of the rucksack lid or base of a rucksack. This will give your bag extra rain protection should you need it.

3. An internal pocket, drinking straw exit hole, and fastening for mouth piece that allow a platypus water bottle be fitted inside the bag.

4. Expansion section An extra section of material around the opening of the rucksack allows the top of the bag to be ‘overfilled’ increasing your storage capacity.

5. Walking pole attachment straps or small pouch at the base sides of the bag and fastening straps higher up.

6. Base opening & additional fixing points usually found on larger packs. These zipped openings allow easy access to the bottom of the rucksack.

Waterproof rucksacks

Very few bags are 100% waterproof and I would advise on not worry about spending the extra money on this feature.

Some will come with waterproof covers built into the top lid or on the base of the rucksack but you can also buy a waterproof cover which can be attached to most bags easily should you need to.

Read / Download our article on how to pack your rucksack properly

Where To Find The Best Deals On Rucksacks

	View the best rucksacks for backpacking as well as city-breaks at Blacks.
	Gear Zone has a wide selection of backpacks, rucksacks and travel bags for first-time backpackers as well as the experienced traveller.
	Millets has a good choice of day packs, backpacking rucksacks and all you need for your travels
	Tiso is the outdoor specialist offering a full range in rucksacks, backpacks for travellers of all levels.
	OutDoorGear offer a full range of competitively priced day packs, backpacking rucksacks and much more

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