The backpack is perhaps the main item of all the tourist's equipment. How the hike goes, how comfortable the traveler will feel depends on its strength, spaciousness and convenience. But it is not enough to study the recommendations and choose a "shoulder bag" suitable in terms of volume and design, with which you will go on a hike. You will also need to adjust the backpack for yourself so that the weight of the load is distributed correctly.
You can adjust the backpack, taking into account your height and individual anatomical features, using its harness, which includes shoulder straps and a waist belt - waist. It is their relative position and length that determine the convenience of moving the load. Before adjusting the backpack for yourself, you need to load it. The weight of the load should approximately correspond to the one with which you are going to go on a hike.
Unlock the clips holding the harness, adjust the length of the straps to a height appropriate for your height, and re-lock the bindings, leaving some margin. Adjustment of the harness of the backpack is made from the bottom up, so you need to start it from the waist. Put on your backpack.
Pull up the belt first - its bottom edge should rest on your hips. In this case, the protruding ends of the pelvic bones should be located approximately in the middle of the wings of the belt, its wide part. Lean forward slightly, fasten the retainer and adjust the straps of the belt so that it fits snugly around the torso, but does not squeeze it or interfere with breathing and movement. Straighten up. The backpack should not rest on the buttocks with its lower part.
Adjust the straps by pulling the straps from them to the corners of the backpack. The weight should be evenly distributed between the shoulder straps and waistband. The place where the straps are attached to the backpack should be located approximately in the middle of the shoulder blades or slightly above it. If this is not the case and the place of attachment of the backpack and shoulder straps is noticeably higher or lower, adjust the length of the floating harness, if any. In the absence of a floating suspension, you will have to change the backpack for another one that is more suitable for your height.
Upper shoulder guy adjusters last. Tighten them until the backpack does not vibrate back and forth when walking. Just do not overtighten them so that the load on the shoulders is evenly distributed, and not only on the collarbones.
Remove the backpack and check that the tightening of all lines on the right and left side is the same and symmetrical. Adjust it and try again how it worked.
