The Best Backpack for the Inca Trail

What Backpack to Take on the Inca Trail

At the end of the hike - the view of Macchu Picchu.

 I was very impressed with my Talon 44L from Osprey. It was comfortable and held a ton of stuff. I managed to fit everything on the list including my sleeping bag if you can believe it and the pack still looks and feels like I'm just going for a day hike. The bag also has a lot of mesh which made it great for the humid weather on the inka trail. As we found out, when hiking the Inka Trail you should avoid tank tops. A t-shirt or long sleeved lightweight shirt is best or you will probably get chafing -  no matter what kind of bag you have (at least two of us had chafing from our bags even when they weren't fully loaded). I used the bag as my hiking bag on the inka trail which was lightly loaded with one change of clothes, water in my platypus, and my DSLR. Despite the hip belt being on the verge of being too big and the shoulder straps being a bit scratchy I still think this is the best bag for hiking the inca trail. One of the guides even said it was a perfect choice. If you're carrying a DSLR camera I would consider the Lowepro Photosport or the Jack Wolfskin Photo Pack Pro as a day pack.

Whatever bag you choose make sure it fits you well - put some weight in it and walk around your neighbourhood for an hour and see how it feels. It shouldn't make your lower back ache if it fits you properly (I know from experience!). If you don't like the idea of carrying everything with you then give your stuff to the trekking company and they will get a porter to carry it. Don't feel bad about making someone else carry your stuff - this is the local's livelihood.

It was so hot at Macchu Picchu I had to forego my UV shirt. 

My Peru Daypack - or lack thereof

I also took a cross body mini messenger bag from Timbuk2 that I put my DSLR camera in most of the time. I got a bit annoying when hiking however and made my back ache when I was carrying it around town. If I could go back I would bring a smaller day pack (with TWO shoulder straps) for my camera. I do really like this mini messenger for carrying around lighter stuff. I especially love it for airports because I can keep boarding passes in the secret stash pocket in the back that's really easy to access. It's the perfect size for my airplane necessities too (e-reader, earplugs, headphones, neck pillow, down jacket, snacks and eye mask).