QUESTION: Let’s say you’re backpacking and want to travel light and your food, clothing and other gear is in your backpack. Also, since you want to travel light, you have a 1 person tent, hammock or a bivy sack. So what do you do with your backpack when you’re sleeping in the small tent, hammock or bivy?
ANSWER: If you’re in an area that is secure and you’re not at risk of having someone steal your pack, you can just lean the backpack up against a tree and pull your waterproof pack cover over it (you do have a lightweight pack cover for your backpack, don’t you?).
Although some people suggest keeping your pack in your tent, we always recommend keeping your backpack some distance away from your tent due to the danger of attracting wild animals, such as bears.
And remember to put anything with a strong smell into a bear bag hung high above ground. For more suggestions related to bear safety considerations for placing your food and backpack, you might want to read our Backpacking Q&A: Food And Bears.
What do you do with your backpack at night? Want to share a suggestion or tip? Drop us a line in the comments!
