The Best Little Daypack in the World

When I travel, I usually take both a small purse and a small daypack with me. The purse makes an appearance on short urban jaunts and travel days, and the daypack comes out whenever I plan to be out and about all day.

The Northface Flyweight Pack has quickly become my favourite daypack and I wanted to share the reasons why I love it so much. I don't know why I have this burning desire to evangelize about gear that I really like. But blogging about it is a great way to get it out of my system without annoying my family and friends!

The Flyweight Daypack at rest

The Flyweight Daypack in action

My criteria for a good daypack is pretty simple,

Must Haves	Nice to Haves
Packs down small	Light-weight
Comfortable to wear all day	Small pocket for phone/wallet
Big enough to carry water, an extra layer, lunch, phone, wallet etc.	Easy access to my water bottle
Strong fabric that can take a beating	Clip for keys so they don't fall out accidentally

The Northface pack meets all requirements except one -- the key clip.

Hidden Lakes Loop

We managed to sneak in one last camping trip before winter by heading up to the Lassen Volcanic Park area for the Canadian Thanksgiving/Columbus Day long-weekend. We had a wonderful, albeit slightly chilly, time!

The Hidden Lakes Loop in Caribou Wilderness proved to be a super easy and relaxing one-night backpacking trip. This would be a great route to do with kids, or a first-time backpacker, as the distances are reasonable, the trail is mellow without being flat and boring, and there are spacious, well established campsites around many of the lakes.

One of the Hidden Lakes

And did I mention that it was really pretty and serene? The pin-drop silence in the middle of the night was amazing; just what we needed after a busy few weeks at work!

	Posey Lake	Hidden Lakes Loop
Distance	5.3km one way from the Hay Meadow Trailhead	12.3km loop from the Hay Meadow Trailhead
Difficulty	Easy	Easy
Scenery	Nice, 6/10	Nicer, 7/10
Elevation	~1900m	~2100m
Elevation Gain	~50m	~200m