A simple Facebook post about a backpack sparked nearly 500 comments and revealed that the real discussion wasn't about gear at all. From ultralight hikers to military veterans and bushcrafters, the conversation uncovered how experience shapes what we carry and why wisdom often weighs less than equipment.
In this episode, we dive into one of the most active discussions to hit the Primitive Camping & Bushcraft community in recent months. What started as a photo of a loaded backpack quickly turned into a deeper conversation about experience, comfort, preparedness, and the lessons learned from time spent outdoors.
Topics discussed include:
Whether you're preparing for your first overnight camp or refining a loadout built over decades, this episode offers practical insights for choosing the right gear and leaving behind what no longer serves a purpose.
(upbeat music)
Welcome to the Primitive
Camping and Bushcraft Podcast.
I'm your host, Chris Speir.
So here we're gonna talk about gear,
grit and the kind of stories
you only get around a fire.
It's all about learning, adapting
and keeping your faith strong.
So whether you're a seasoned outdoorsman
or just looking to unplug and reconnect,
you're in the right place.
So pull up a chair by the
fire and let's get into it.
(upbeat music)
All right, welcome back
to the Primitive Camping
and Bushcraft Podcast.
My name's Chris Speir
and a couple of weeks ago,
or here recently, something like that,
something very interesting happened
within the Primitive Camping and
Bushcraft Facebook group.
And one member posted
a picture of himself
standing in his living
room wearing his backpack.
That's it, no dramatic
story, no survival situation,
no fancy gear review,
just a dude getting ready for a trip.
He was going, I believe he was going
to the Hoosier National Forest.
And that backpack, why
can't I say that today?
(laughs)
Backpack, that backpack.
Anyway, that backpack immediately
caught a lot of people's attention.
So I figured, hey, over a couple of days,
there was a lot of comments, a lot of
discussion about this.
I was like, well, let's
go out in South Mississippi
summertime and 90
degrees, 90 plus degrees,
200% humidity, and
let's do a podcast episode
about this backpack.
There we go again, I
can't say it, backpack.
So some folks thought that
this backpack looked great.
Others thought it was way overloaded.
A few people said it
needed a bigger pack.
So I just, oh man, I even
left a comment in there.
I was like, man, I've
come to the conclusion
the people in this
group, the majority of people
in this group are only here to leave
condescending remarks.
I know, I said that, I
shouldn't have, but I did.
Once you say it, you can't take it back.
But other people said
he needed a smaller one.
Other people said he
wasn't carrying enough.
The more comments I
read, the more I realized
nobody was actually
talking about the backpack.
Nobody was talking about the pack itself.
So essentially, the way I broke it down
is everybody was
talking about themselves.
They were talking about their
experiences, their successes,
and all the trips that
taught them hard lessons.
So before we discuss that,
or before the discussion died down,
another member asked a simple question.
And I'll quote it here.
How big, how big is your gear bag
and how far can you carry it?
So there was two, now don't get confused,
these were two different posts.
One was a post of a picture,
one was just a little post saying,
"How big is your gear bag
and how far can you carry it?"
And that question
generated hundreds more comments.
By the time both
discussions were slowing down,
there was nearly 500
comments in this group
about these backpacks and sacks
and carrying your own
weight and all that good stuff.
And after reading all
through, I realized something.
The backpack is not the topic.
The backpack is not the topic.
The topic was experience.
So I've come to the conclusion,
I've started bullet
pointing my topics here
so I don't ramble on too much,
but I've come to the conclusion that
there are four camps.
As I read through these comments,
there were four
distinct groups that emerged.
And the first group
was the ultralight crowd.
Now the ultralight crowd are the folks
carrying seven pounds,
12 pounds, 15 pounds, every ounce,
every gram matters to them.
Every item has to be
justified or they won't carry it.
You have to justify its existence.
The goal is simple, travel farther,
move faster and cover more ground.
That's it.
That is your
ultralight crowd right there.
That's camp number one.
So the second group was
traditional backpackers.
Most of them lived somewhere
in the 25 to 35 pound range.
They wanted a balance
between comfort and mobility.
They wanted enough
gear to enjoy their trip.
Not so much gear that
they hated carrying it.
Now that's the second camp.
That was the backpackers.
The third group in
this, take a wild guess.
Take a wild guess.
The third group was
all your military guys,
all your military
veterans, all the Ruckers.
And this group had a
completely different perspective.
And I've noticed through the comments,
after just pouring through the comments
just going through, looking and reading,
it was like 40 pounds,
50 pounds, 60 pounds.
Some talked about
carrying 80 pounds or more.
I know when I was in the military,
you know, by the time you
got all your body armor on
and you got your medic
bag and all this good stuff,
you got 80 pounds in a bag.
I mean, it's ridiculous how
much stuff we had to carry.
And their mentality was not comfort.
It was mission accomplished.
And that is the way
our great military works.
Mission accomplished.
We are here for a mission.
We're gonna do that mission
to the best of our abilities.
And then we're gonna head
out to the next mission.
It's kind of like a waypoint.
If you're traveling with a compass
from one destination to another,
you're gonna hit a waypoint and then turn
whichever way to the next waypoint.
Same thing with the GPS.
If you use ONX for hunting,
then it's all waypoints.
You're just adding waypoints in there
and you can mark them to whatever it is.
But their mentality
was not comfort at all.
Their mentality was just
accomplish the mission.
Then that was group number three.
Then group number four
was the bushcrafters.
Now this group felt a
little bit more familiar
because these are our people.
The people that listen to this podcast,
the people that are
members of the Facebook group,
Primitive Camping and Bushcraft,
that follow Speir Outdoors online.
You know, they're carrying a saw
because they enjoy processing wood.
They're carrying a cook kit
because they enjoy cooking over coals.
They're carrying a tarp
because they plan to spend time in camp.
They're not trying to win a race.
They're trying to enjoy their experience.
And that's where all the
things get interesting.
(chuckles)
It's crazy because all the time,
every day in the
Primitive Camping and Bushcraft
Facebook group, we are
always seeing comments of,
this ain't very primitive,
this ain't very primitive.
I'm having to remind
folks all the time that,
primitive to you is different
than primitive to somebody else.
Primitive does not mean a stone chisel.
It does not.
Yes, that is primitive.
Don't get me wrong.
But that's not in the
context of what I wrote the book
and started this group
and started this podcast.
And so there's more
information about that
on the Facebook group
if you wish to join it.
I highly encourage you.
We're getting tons of engagement on there
every single day now.
And the real question
that most people ask
over and over and over throughout all
these conversations,
throughout all these posts,
the real question, the
underlying question has been,
how much gear should I carry?
That's it.
That is the underlying question.
Then, I really personally
think that that is the wrong
question, the better question should be.
And don't get me
wrong, I believe that people
are genuinely asking
this because there are a lot
of individuals in our
group that haven't done this
that are first timers,
that are just learning
to get outdoors and that
is where this whole idea
of primitive camping
and bushcraft comes from
is to teach people how to get outdoors
and enjoy their time.
But the better question
is, why are you carrying it
as in that gear?
So every item in your
pack costs something.
Everything, everything you have in your
pack costs something.
And here are three key
things that it costs.
And everybody, no matter
what camp you belong to
in the four camps of these groups,
no matter what camp, we
can all agree that every item
in your pack costs weight.
That's the first one.
It costs space in your backpack.
That's the second.
And energy, that's the third one.
That is the three
things that cost the most
whenever we are loading
our gear and heading out.
Those three items,
weight, space, and energy.
So the trick isn't carrying less.
The trick is to carry the right things.
You follow me?
So I know Chris, but what do
you mean by the right things?
Well, you know, in the gear section
of the primitive
camping and bushcraft book,
I wrote that certain
items you would carry them,
you know what gets me is I
didn't even bring it down here
with me today for the
podcast based off of the book.
(laughs)
But in the gear section, I outlined gear.
You know, I didn't specifically say what,
I outlined what it was for
you to make the determination
if you wanted to select
that and take it with you.
Now, ultimately, when
it comes down to gear,
gear is one of those things
that you are going to make sure
it has more than one purpose.
Gear should always
have more than one use.
There should be an idea, a permanent
fixture in your mind
if I use this, what can I use it for
besides what it's designed for?
So I got a three pack, I own three packs
and I'm about to film a
YouTube video this week on this.
And I'm gonna go over
the bag, how to load it,
how to, you know, all the good stuff
and why I have these three
separate individual bags.
All right, follow me on
this, follow me on this.
All right, I have what works for me.
All right, what works for
me may not work for you,
what works for you may
not work for me, okay?
So first I have the three pack system
that I'm talking about here is,
the first is the
Rothco European Rucksack.
It is a cheap canvas rucksack.
Eventually I wanna get it
to where I waterproofed it.
I'm thinking, I can't
decide whether I wanna use
the silicone and
naphtha or mineral spirits
to make this particular thing waterproof
or do I wanna use the
wax and mineral oil.
I haven't decided on those two yet
but either way, both of those are great
waterproofing methods.
If you ever followed
NightHawkInLight on YouTube,
the dude is amazing and
he has two amazing ways
to waterproof any kind of material.
So I did an experiment,
I wanted to try it out.
And so I did a king size bed sheet.
I have made so many
videos with this bed sheet.
I have used this bed sheet
to cover me up in the rain.
I have used it as a ground cloth.
I have used it as
cover when I was camping.
I have used this thing
to make hammocks with.
I have carried water in it.
It is that waterproof.
It will hold water to where I'm going.
Now some does leak out but
it will carry enough water
to get to where I'm going.
So yes, I mean, it is an amazing thing.
And so I haven't decided
if I want to waterproof
the Rothco European rucksack that way.
Now this rucksack is 30 liters.
It's canvas.
It's extremely simple
and it's extremely basic.
There is one aspect of
this that I do not like.
And that is the top hatch is a zipper
that if one side is open,
something will come out.
So I devised a way, I
put a carabiner in there
so it won't open up.
The zippers can't
accidentally open up and come out.
So this thing is, it's like,
it has no fancy suspension.
It does not have endless compartments.
It's got two side cup
compartments, a top compartment
and inside it's kind of like a bucket.
And I think it's got a little bit,
a little pocket on the outside.
So this pack, I have
gotten everything down
for a one or two
nights stay at 19 pounds.
I've got it down to 19 pounds.
And that's a bushcrafting kit.
That's not just an
ultra light hiking kit.
All right, that is a
hammock and some pots and pans,
some food, a change of clothes, a knife.
I'm gonna go over it all in the video.
And if I recall, I
will try to put the link
to the YouTube video where
I've covered the Rothco
before on YouTube, but I
will try to do it again.
But everything that
you carry is discipline.
You are disciplined to do it.
So you have to decide
what really matters.
The second pack I used,
boy, I cannot speak English tonight.
The second pack I used,
(laughs)
so the second backpack is
the Pathfinder Scout Pack.
And it is 30 to 35 liters.
It has an internal frame.
It's got some, it's nylon.
It's got some attachment points on there,
some large side pockets,
some compression straps.
And this is probably the
sweet spot for many bushcrafters.
It's big enough for comfort,
but it's small enough
to prevent nonsense.
And it doesn't seem,
it's weird, that pack,
it does not seem to carry
much, much more than the Rothco,
but it does.
I don't know how to explain that.
But anyway, it works for me.
And it's got a couple
of pockets on the outside,
a couple of little zipper compartments,
perfect for, there you
go for a couple of days.
Now, if I'm going for a longer trip,
and this is where
earlier I said, follow me here,
follow me on this,
what works for me may not
work for you, blah, blah, blah.
The third pack is a $99 Amazon Basics
75 liter internal frame pack.
That's it.
It is a $99 75 liter pack.
It is, I've used it countless times.
I've hiked with it countless times.
You know, when I typically use it,
I'm throwing it into a boat or a kayak
or something to that nature
and heading to where I'm going.
It is a great, if you wanna carry it,
this thing is like a bucket.
You could dump it in there.
And matter of fact, I didn't think of it,
but you could probably
put a five gallon bucket
inside there first and then
put all the rest of your gear
in there if you wanted to.
I don't know why
anybody would wanna do that,
but I might do a video
on that or something.
It is perfect for
extra food, extra clothing.
Uh oh, it's perfect for
extra food, extra clothing.
And for me, camera equipment.
And that is one of the
main reasons I bring this bag
with me whenever I go camping
is because I bring a lot of camera gear.
I got the main camera here.
I got the two cameras on the sides.
I got lights, I got podcast
equipment, blah, blah, blah.
And that stuff takes up a lot of room.
And if I'm doing videos for
companies or stuff of the such,
it is, it takes up a lot of room.
So one thing I like about that
is that it carries a lot of winter gear.
Winter gear is a little bit more bulky
and it allows me to
carry more comfort items.
And that is both a
strength and a weakness
because empty space has
a way of convincing us
we need more.
And that's where you get up to that,
like it's up to 60 or 65 liters
and then it's a
drawstring about this high
where you can compress it down or more.
And that statement is so true
that if you have an
empty space inside a bag,
it makes you feel like you
need more when you really don't.
What you really need to do is concentrate
on what you do have and take
in the tools that work for you.
So now let's talk about loading the pack.
There were plenty of comments about that.
And there's different,
there's different camps
as far as loading the pack,
how to load a pack.
Most of them are
practically, most of them are similar.
I'm not gonna lie.
But, and I have always put
like bulkier bedding stuff
at the bottom, heavier pots and stuff,
like it just a little bit up.
That way it don't shift your
center of gravity type deal.
So this is where the comments really
started contradicting.
And one person said
heavy gear belongs low.
Another person said that heavy gear is,
needs to go up high.
Another said it belongs in the middle.
And the truth is most
experienced outdoorsman
agree on three things.
Keep heavy items near your
bag, keep the load stable.
Don't let stuff shift around as it shifts,
shift around in there.
And keep your most
frequently used items towards the top
are always accessible.
So for me, I don't
typically bring a sleeping bag,
but if I was, I would put it down there,
I do use a wool blanket.
And that wool blanket goes at the bottom,
or sometimes I will actually carry it
on the outside of the bag,
on the bottom of the bag.
Kind of like they do
in the movies, you know?
Sleeping clothes,
sleeping pads, all that stuff
that you're gonna get out last
should be at the very bottom.
So in the middle of the
pack, I'm gonna carry my food.
I don't carry water.
I carry a GRAYL GeoPress,
and I will carry that cup on the side.
So I don't carry water inside my bag.
Typically where I go in the South,
water is readily available.
All you just have to do is filter it.
You don't have to worry
about bringing water in
because you can't find
none in a desert area.
So I'm typically going to
have water filtration system,
not bulk water.
My cooking kit's gonna go in there.
Then shelter, rain gear, insulation,
like jackets and stuff like that.
Then on my exterior pockets,
I'm gonna have my compass, my headlamp,
some snacks, my first aid kit.
And usually, typically
me, I have my first aid kit
close to the top on the inside.
I don't keep it on the outside.
So everybody's gonna do it different.
If you go and you can
actually Google the US Army guide
to loading a rucksack.
And it's good information.
It tells you how the Army does it.
And the Army's been doing
their stuff for 250 years.
And so it's like a continuous
self-improvement process.
They have the experience.
It works for them.
And that's what they do.
And that's how they train you to do it.
Some of the Air Force,
the Army gave birth to the Air Force.
(coughs)
And a lot of our
processes and everything,
everybody, a majority
of the military processes
come from the Army.
Army and Navy,
because those two
branches have been around
basically the longest.
But you can go online
and see how that works out
because it will give
you a complete loadout,
kind of like the survival handbook.
And it'll tell you
exactly step-by-step what to do,
how to do it.
Kind of like we talked earlier,
mission, follow the
mission and go for it.
So one of the smartest
comments in the entire discussion
came from a member who said that he
already cut half his gear
and probably could cut half again.
(coughs)
To me, that's experience.
That is experience talking.
And I've done that.
I have went camping and I
recommend everybody do that.
That is the one thing that everybody
that hears my voice should do.
If you get into the
woods and you don't use it,
cut it down.
You get into the woods and
you don't use it, cut it down.
That's why you have multiple items
that have multiple purposes.
If you carry one item that
could do three different things,
but you're carrying one thing that the
other thing could do,
get rid of the one thing.
Follow me?
So that comment was experience.
That comment is something that I really
would like everybody
to start trying.
It's an exercise that
we should all live by
on this group, in this podcast.
Had to get some H2O.
So here's one way to do that.
After your next trip, I
want you to make three lists.
Okay?
And one is items that you used every day,
that you were gone.
Make three lists, the first list,
and you can do it all
in one piece of paper,
but items you used every
day, list them all out.
Items you only used
once, list them all out.
Items you never used, list them all out.
Then go to your gear section,
and that third category is
where the weight disappears.
You go ahead and say,
hmm, I never used this.
Cut it all out.
Don't bring it with you the next time.
And I know us as humans
always have a tendency of,
oh, just in case.
Just in case.
I need this just in case.
But if you do that and you go through
and you start cutting out
gear that you never touched,
you're going to substantially drop the
weight of your pack.
You're going to substantially increase
the longevity of your hike.
You're going to
substantially increase your knowledge
of how to use what you brought with you.
And then you will
increase your experience.
Follow me.
So somebody else made
a comment in there too.
So somebody else or
something else stood out really,
but these comments kept popping up.
Many of the comments come
from people in their 50s,
their 60s, some in their 70s.
All right, get that guys.
Some 70 year old folks
are in the primitive camping
group and commenting constantly.
But a common theme started to emerge.
Most of them were
carrying less gear today
than they did years ago.
Now, not because of age, not
because they became weaker,
but because they came
smarter, they became wiser.
They learned what worked.
They learned what did not.
And they learned what was worth carrying.
Experience removes more weight than
excessive gear ever will.
Your experience from trip to trip
will always remove more gear.
Your experience will weigh more.
You know, there's an old
saying from Mors Kochanski
where he said, "The more
you know, the less you carry."
And a lot of people
have used that experience
and a lot of people have used that comment
in our comment section.
And it's to the point
to where it is a theme,
the more you know, the less you carry.
So you have to be cognizant of the fact
that a lot of the folks
in this group are newcomers
and they need you to
help coach them along.
But all in all, there's a lesson here
that goes a lot further than backpacks.
So life, it works a lot in the same way.
And I'd write this down,
but many of us spend years
carrying things that we
were never meant to carry.
Just like in this
backpack, you as an individual,
as a person are
carrying something in your life
that you were never meant to carry.
Regret, bitterness, fear, pride.
You know, we fill our packs with burdens
so much that they slow us down.
In Matthew 11.28, "Come to
me, all you who labor
and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest."
Just like the backpack, life gets easier
when you learn what
belongs and what does not.
Some things stay, some things need to go.
And wisdom that we're
constantly sharpening
is knowing the difference.
So, recapping this thing out,
those two Facebook posts
weren't really about backpacks.
They were really about learning, learning
that every trip teaches something.
Every piece of gear
either earns its place
or gets left behind the next time.
So before your very next trip, lay
everything out on the top
and you see these pictures all the time.
If you surf the outdoors
groups and Facebook pages
and if you start
searching Facebook for YouTube,
any of these social
medias, if you start looking
at certain things, it's
gonna start feeding you certain
things, an algorithm is what it's called.
If you look at outdoors
content, it's gonna feed you
outdoors content.
Conversely, if you
look at naked pictures,
you're gonna get fed naked pictures.
It's crazy, but the thing
is gonna do what it does.
I advise you not to
look at the naked pictures.
Pornography will destroy your mind.
But before your next trip,
lay everything out on a tarp.
You've seen these pictures before, that's
where I was going with this.
You've seen the top
now, what would you leave?
What would you take?
What else would you add?
You know, that kind of stuff.
And ask yourself, why is that there?
Why is this item here?
Why do I need it?
Now, choose the pack
that matches your gear.
You know, I use a $99.75 liter pack
whenever I go on big trips.
It's a $99 pack.
It has served me well.
I have one complaint about it, the
adjustment strap, it slips.
Other than that, it's a great backpack.
It's $99.
You don't have to spend
$5, $600 on a backpack.
But choose the pack that matches the
mission, we're going back to the
military stuff here.
Whatever your mission is, choose the pack
that matches that mission.
Now, get outside.
The woods are going to teach you
everything that Facebook
and the Facebook group cannot.
But a comment never could.
The woods will teach you
everything you need to know.
I saw some posts this week about people,
I'm new here, and I have these books.
What do I do?
Read the book, go out and
practice what you just read.
You don't have my book?
That's fine.
Read another one.
Read the Bushcraft 101 book.
Read the SAS Survival Handbook.
Get out there and practice what you read.
Don't just read it.
Because if you read it and put it in
here, it's never going to come back out.
If you don't practice it, there's a
saying where practice makes perfect.
Well, no, it doesn't make
perfect, but it does make better.
So practice will make it better for you.
So get out there and practice.
So that's it for today.
I'm just going to go ahead and sign off
with that, saying get
out there and practice.
It's summertime.
If you don't have a place to start a
fire, start a fire in your barbecue pit.
Put you some tinder and start a fire
right there on top of
your barbecue pit where you
ain't going to catch the world on fire.
There's always a way to practice.
Get into your yard, go into your living
room, set up a tent.
Don't set up a hammock on the 13th floor
of your condo, on the balcony edges.
I don't recommend that.
But get outside as best
you can and set up your gear.
Practice with your gear.
Practice as best you can
with what you have available.
Start to see a theme.
You know, what gear is available.
Learn how to use the gear.
What backpacks are available.
Practice, practice, practice.
Alright guys, I'll see you next time.
And remember, in all your ways
acknowledge him and he
will direct your paths.
God bless ya.