longtime backpacker, Stephanie Fong has worked in the mountaineering department of the REI Sacramento store since 1996. She includes Lake Shasta, Lassen National Park and the Trinity Alps among her favorite Northern California destinations, and routinely undertakes backcountry trips that last up to 9 days.
Stephanie specializes in helping women select equipment best suited to their dimensions. Some of her recommendations might be helpful to you:
Backpacks
Make sure a backpack's hipbelt is positioned on your
hips,not your
waist.A hipbelt should straddle the 2 prominent bones on the front of your hips, known as the iliac crest. This is where a pack's weight is most effectively carried. "The weight of a pack won't feel comfortable on your waist, but some women try to wear it there," Stephanie says. "You've got to get the belt down on the hipbone."
Hips are an individual matter."Some women are more conically shaped than others," she says. "If your hips have more of an angle, some packs have hipbelts that may fit a little better, like packs from The North Face and Arc'Teryx. If your hips aren't very conical, most female or unisex packs should fit your hips fine."
An
internal-frame packis a good choice for females. "When women walk naturally, they tend to sway a bit more in the hips," Stephanie says. "An internal is designed to give a hiker better balance, and a woman can walk a little more naturally while wearing one without feeling like she's going to tip from side to side."
Look for packs that offer
S-shaped shoulder straps."Straight shoulder straps you see on men's packs might pinch a woman," she says. "An S-curved shoulder strap really helps a lot, especially if you're kind of chesty." Kelty offers a curved shoulder strap on some of its external-frame models for women.
The
space between the shoulder strapsis sometimes narrower on women's packs. "If they're too far apart, they might slide off," she says. "You want to avoid that."
When you
load your pack,place
heavier items lowerin the pack against your back. "Women tend to have weaker upper bodies then men," she says. "By concentrating the majority of the weight on your hips, it's easier to carry."
Fanny/Lumbar Packs
Stephanie prefers fanny packs or lumbar packs because, as just mentioned, they focus the weight on the body's most efficient load-carrying area—the hips. "I have a huge fanny pack," she says. "A woman's strength ratio is greater in her hips, so it makes sense to carry weight close to your hips. Women seem to like the results fanny packs give them."
Sleeping Bags
Some sleeping bag designs, including some models by Sierra Designs and The North Face, are specifically configured to a
woman's anatomy."Some bags are a little narrower around the shoulders than a men's bag, which helps less air enter or escape at the top," Stephanie says. "They're also wider at the hips and thighs, where women are a little rounder. That also allows extra space for curling up, which is how a lot of women sleep."
Bags intended for women sometimes provide
extra insulationfor the upper body and in the footbox. "Those are usually a woman's cold spots," she says.
Stephanie uses a men's sleeping bag herself. "Personally, I can't use a women's bag," she says. "Just because it says it's a women's bag doesn't necessarily mean it's going to fit you better."
Downtends to be more popular with female customers than
synthetic insulation."It's the feel they're used to at home," she says, "and they like the lower weight and ability to compact it into something small. They just can't get it wet."
What about
temperature ratings?Evaluate your style of travel choice of destinations. Anticipate the worst conditions you might encounter. Select a bag with a temperature rating that can handle the lowest temperature you may face. If your choice is a toss-up, choose a warmer bag.
Due largely to the different blood volumes carried by men and women, women often need a bag with a
lower temperature ratingthan a male taking the same trip. It is quite logical, Stephanie says, for a male to carry a +15°F bag and a woman to carry a bag rated to 0°F.
Most mummy bags, even those from different manufacturers, have
compatible zippers,allowing you to zip bags together for a shared sleeping space. To do so, the bags must zip open on opposite sides. You can only attach a "right-zip" bag with a "left-zip" model. Such an arrangement makes for a cozy setting, but a less heat-efficient area. "You have more space to heat inside," Stephanie says, "so it's not as warm."
Sleeping pads,which insulate you from the ground, contribute much to your sensation of warmth or coolness as well as your comfort. Stephanie likes a 1.5"-thick self-inflating air mattress, full length. "Women have a little more curve in their backs," she says, "so this helps fill in the gaps."
Boots
Women's feet tend to be narrower than men's feet. This is often most noticeable in the heel. Some type of boot insert is also a worthwhile consideration, since women's feet often are not as well padded as men's feet.
longtime backpacker, Stephanie Fong has worked in the mountaineering department of the REI Sacramento store since 1996. She includes Lake Shasta, Lassen National Park and the Trinity Alps among her favorite Northern California destinations, and routinely undertakes backcountry trips that last up to 9 days.
