I'm having trouble keeping my back dry with my Golite Pinnacle. I'm not sure if it's the Pinnacle or the polyester shirt I'm wearing. It's a Nike Fitdry shirt, which is supposed to stay fairly dry.

The other potential cause could be that I'm using my Big Agnes Insulated pad as the frame for the pack. Could the insulation in the pad be causing my back to not breath as well?

P.S. On a side note, does it make any difference if you use an acrylic knit hat, or is wool much better?

> I'm having trouble keeping my back dry

Welcome to the real world. Live with it.

Cheers

Mainly, I was asking if the Big Agnes Insulated pad should be used as the pack frame.

Realistically, I don't think it's the pad - it's the fact that you have a backpack on. I'm guessing you'll get the same results with a different pad.

The Big Agnes pad isn't even that insulated compared to closed foam.

Edited by mn-backpacker on 02/21/2009 20:41:40 MST.

Thanks for the input. Just wanted to know if it was something to adjust in my packing system. thanks guys.

If you have a pack on your back, your back will be sweaty. Unless you use an Osprey AirCore, in which case it will be slightly less sweaty than otherwise.

I think wool is much better than Acrylic, but you can get some really really lightweight (and cheap) wool/polyester blends.

The only reason Roger etal say that it is the "real world" and you must live with it.....is that somewhere down the line everybody convinced themselves that internal frame packs are somehow required. They are not. If sweating is as much of a distraction to you as it is for me, break away from the lemmings and look at an external frame pack. There is another thread going on right now on this subject under G Spot.

Rand :-)

I've found a pretty good fix for me. After getting the pack weight down enough is to use the Ray Jardine one armed method. If you are not using hiking poles you can remove the pack from your back and let it hand from one arm. I hike this way for maybe 15 minutes at a time and my back is dry. Wet back is not really an issue for me anymore.

Jamie

I don't like packs with sprung backs, so a sweaty back is a fact of life.
It's all about learning to manage it, and find the best solution for yourself. The only time it bothers me is when you stop on a summit after a hard ascent. That ice-cold feeling on your back isn't nice.
My solution is to always wear Merino base-layers. By varying the thickness to suit the season, i'm perfectly happy. I might feel a little damp, but not cold.

Hi Rand

> everybody convinced themselves that internal frame packs are somehow required
Well, not **everyone**! I use an external frame pack.

But try walking in Australia with any sort of pack without getting a sweaty back :-)

Cheers

Edited by rcaffin on 02/25/2009 20:46:07 MST.

Jamie beat me to it,mentioning the rayway-one arm method.You can also try slowing your pace down a bit.

Patrick

I also wear an external frame pack and it doesn't stop my back (and just about everything else too) from sweating.

Honest Sweat! It greases the "wheels" of the backpacking world.

"Honest Sweat! It greases the "wheels" of the backpacking world."

Yes it does. I have a dark complexion, and often just hike without a shirt in the summer. Not a good option for everyone.

When desert hiking over 100F, I always wear a shirt and a long sleeve one most of the time. It helps reduce evaporation. A mesh panel helps. But no matter what, you are going to sweat. It is a fact of life.

"The only reason Roger etal say that it is the "real world" and you must live with it.....is that somewhere down the line everybody convinced themselves that internal frame packs are somehow required. They are not. If sweating is as much of a distraction to you as it is for me, break away from the lemmings and look at an external frame pack."

I have an Osprey Atmos 50, older style, and it has a large space
between the mesh that makes the back and the bag itself. Comes in 35, 50 and 65 L. sizes. I see them on Ebay and here go for $75, brand new older style range from $100 - $150 in close outs. I have hiked in the desert and Rockies and find minimal sweaty back. They fit MY body, but YMMV.

>I have hiked in the desert and Rockies and find minimal sweaty back.

Just shows how everyone is different. When it's hot or I'm working hard up a steep hill, my back will be soaked even without a pack on. It's my body's cooling system, and I would be alarmed if I DIDN'T sweat.

Since is sweating is one of the ways the body expels toxins, I too would be very alarmed if I didn't sweat.

"I have hiked in the desert and Rockies and find minimal sweaty back."
...compared to the rest of me.

The gist of the OP was discomfort/annoyance at a too sweaty back caused by the poster's pack insulating and preventing air circulation on his back.
I have not yet evolved into a non-sweating marvel! ;-)

I don’t like wet backs because when you stop for a break, take the pack off, whew! Instant freeze (for cooler days). For hot days, I don’t like wet backs because the sweat will run down the legs and promote chafing. Thus, with the pinnacle or the mariposa, I lay my pack towel on my back. Friction keeps it there. Incredibly, the pack towel draws the sweat off my back and my shirt is practically dry at stops. The towel is soaked. I let it dry in the breeze.

My shirts are usually very thin polly cotton blend that dries quickly. My towel is any towel that dries fast (Cascade, car buffer, etc.,)

May everyone find their sweating zen.

-Barry

When I switched to an internal frame long, long ago I didn't really notice that much difference. If you have bendable aluminum stays you can give them an S-curve so that the backpanel pulls away from your back just above the lumbar area then comes forward a bit below your shoulders.

I didn't do that with my Six Moons Starlight. It has ".etc" wicking, antifriction material against the back. I shove my spare socks down into the lumbar area to help it ride a bit better and wear a 190 g/m2 merino polo shirt when hiking. The shirt and socks do a good job of buffering the sweat. I tried hiking in a 140 g/m2 merino shirt and it didn't work as well since it absorbed less. I haven't hiked in high humidity though.

The merino shirt seems to do a very good job of managing the moisture.