How to pack your mountaineering bag properly: advice and tips for optimising your equipment
Preparing your bag for a mountaineering outing is a crucial step in ensuring comfort and safety throughout the climb. Choosing the right rucksack and the right equipment to take with you is vital if you are not to weigh yourself down and if you are to have quick and easy access to all the equipment you need. In this article, we offer advice and tips on how to prepare your mountaineering bag.
Preparing your mountaineering pack: Choosing your pack
The choice of mountaineering bag is crucial to your comfort and the success of your outing. It's important to find the right balance between comfort, lightness and a minimum of accessories. For summer mountaineering, a 30 litres maximum will offer an ideal compromise between the volume needed to carry technical equipment and the weight to be carried on the back. It's also important to choose a bag with good ventilation to avoid the accumulation of sweat and a feeling of discomfort.
The pharmacy
The first-aid kit is an important part of your mountaineering pack. It should contain a few standard medicines for headaches, stomach aches, diarrhoea and so on. It's also a good idea to pack a standard antiseptic in pod form and eye drops in pod form. For first aid, you can add large dressings and Compeeds, a few sterile compresses and two sterile scarves.
Technical clothing
Technical clothing plays a crucial role in preparing your pack for a mountaineering outing. It's important to wear softshell or windstopper trousers, a breathable long-sleeved t-shirt and a thermal fleece to prevent heat loss. It's a good idea to pack a down jacket, a goretex jacket, thick gloves, a good pair of sunglasses, a high-altitude mask and a pair of thin gloves for technical work.
Technical equipment
Technical equipment is a key element in preparing your mountaineering pack. It must be chosen with care and must not be neglected. It's important to pack a helmet to protect your head in the event of a rock or ice fall. Crampons are also essential for progressing on snow or ice. Ice axes and poles help to stabilise you during the ascent. Finally, a harness is essential for technical operations and for safety in the event of a fall.
The importance of a lightweight rucksack
Finally, the weight of the rucksack is an important factor in the success of your trip. mountaineering outing. A bag that is too heavy can tire you out quickly and prevent you from making effective progress. So it's important to choose a lightweight bag to avoid overloading yourself. However, you mustn't neglect the accessories, which are essential for your safety and comfort. So it's important to find the right compromise between what you really need and what you don't.
