Choosing a Backpack
Choosing a Backpack
When choosing a Backpack one should consider the following. What type
of trips or hikes do I plan on taking? How long will I be gone? And how
much gear do I really need to take? The following will show you what you need to know, and have you hitting the trails in no time.
What Type Should I Get?
Internal Frame
This type of pack is used mainly for large loads, they transfer a lot
of the weight from your shoulders to your hips. Transferring the weight
produces a better center of gravity, which can be felt on the trail.
Make sure you get a pack that has an aluminum frame or one made of the newest material called "Carbon Fiber X frame" which is made of a composite material and is very lightweight. Cheaper packs that have a steel frame. Shoulder straps should have an
adequate amount of padding, new technology has produced a "honeycombed"
synthetic material that feels like Gel and is a joy to use. A lumbar or
lower back support is a must with heavy loads as is a waist strap. Look
for packs that have loops to hang extra gear if needed, these come in
handy if you access some items a lot on the trail. A pack with external
pockets comes in handy allowing you to access often used items without
going through the rest of the Pack.
Although this type of pack offers a better sense of balance it does
have its drawbacks too. It hugs your body a little more closely than
external packs and doesn't allow for much ventilation.
External Frame
These types of packs appear a little larger because the frame is on the
Outside and usually made of aluminum. A higher center of gravity is typical
with this type of pack, and they do a good job of transferring most of the weight to
your hips.
Unlike the Internal Frame packs these have a few different frame
shapes, Straight-has a good amount of room between the pack and the
hikers back allowing for ventilation, S-Shape-which is made to conform
to a hikers back, Hip wrap-transfers some of the weight to the hikers
legs, and one that is built to conform to a Woman's body (although some
might disagree with that). Look for packs that have Shoulder straps
with an adequate amount of padding, new technology has produced a
"honeycombed" synthetic material that feels like Gel and is a joy to
use. The padding around the hip area should also be generous so you
don't develop tender spots after a day on the trail.
Baby Carriers
These packs let you bring the little campers or hikers in training
along. While not really a backpack they do allow you to take the
infants on the trail with you.
How Much Pack Is Enough?
That all depends on how long you plan your trip, how many people are in your group?
will you be going during warm weather or cold weather etc. If your hike will take place during the warmer months you'll be able to pack with the least amount of gear, however in colder months you'll need extra room for bigger sleeping bags, more clothes, even more fuel for meal times. Don't forget to add extra room if you will be carrying items for your children that may make their packs a little to heavy for them
(Yes, they do make packs for children). Packs are usually rated for a few days at a time 2-3 days, 4-7 days, etc.
Material
Most of the packs available today are made of lightweight, waterproof fabric, such as
Cordura, Ripstop, etc.
What Size Is Right For You?
To determine the correct size for your pack, you will have to measure the distance between the base of your neck and the top of your hips, you don't want to buy the wrong size pack because you will loosing proper support in areas like the lower back and that could make for a very uncomfortable hike.
Use the following as a guide to finding the right size pack for you, due to variances in manufacturers there doesn't seem to be an industry standard:
12-17 inches would be a small pack.
14-19 inches would be a medium pack.
15-21 inches would be a large pack.
Tips For A Good Fit
Place the Backpack on as you would a jacket by putting your arms through the shoulder straps.
· Next adjust and secure the waist strap ,It should not hang below the top of your waist.
· Adjust the shoulder straps until you can just feel a slight tug on the waist strap, making little adjustments on the shoulder straps with a full pack allows you to position the pack correctly so your upper back doesn't have the burden of all the weight.
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How to get free audio books?
The only purpose of the following article is to help you get free audio books – free downloadable audio books and free audio books in general. Although there are some illegal ways we can think of to get free audio books, we will mention only legal ones:
1. Free trials: There are some online shops which offer a free trial agreement, meaning you pay nothing or you can get your money back if you are dissatisfied with the products you get. The free trial agreement could be found for audio book cd and for downloadable audio books. Getting free
audio books by this method is easy and could be down in no time. However, there are some cons:
First, we believe there might be an ethical problem knowing from the beginning that no money is going to be paid for the product and that the online audio book service will be used to get a free audio book.
Secondly, not all audio books are offered for the free trial. Therefore, you might get free audio books but not the ones you searched.
And the last con is that some of the free trial periods are too short to listen to the audio book. Therefore, you get free audio books but have no time to listen to them.
2. File sharing services: There are numerous file sharing services on the net (Most use p2p technologies) that allow downloading files for free. We have founded more than 100 free audio books ready to download from these sites. However, it took us a lot of time to find them and the bandwidth rate was slow.
3. Search engines: You could find lots of free audio books by just searching for the right sites. Look for the small sits by typing the exact title you want and the phrase: "free audio book". For example, if you are looking for an Harry Potter audio book just type : "Harry Potter" + "Free audio book".
4. Markets – you can find audio books to swap with other goods in some flea markets and second hand shops.
To sum up, there are no free presents. Although, there are ways to get free audio books, we think it is better to pay a couple of bucks for online audio book rental services – the worthwhile method of getting nearly free audio books.
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Attracting Birds to a Tropical Garden
Some individuals enjoy bird watching but prefer to do their bird watching in their back yard. Below is some advice on attracting wild birds to your back yard.
Firstly it depends upon having wild birds in the general area where your house is located and then you can attract then to your backyard.
The method used to attract the birds will depend upon what is the diet of the bird. If the bird is a nectar feeder e.g. bananaquits or hummingbirds, then large flowering plants will attract them. Hummingbird bills are perfectly adapted to the various types of flowers that they feed on, so different types of flowers will attract different hummingbirds. Some hummingbirds have especially curved or elongated bills that allow them to feed on special flowers, eg the White-tipped Sicklebill hummingbird whose downward curving bill allows it to draw nectar from heliconias. The Ruby-Topaz Hummingbird has a short and slightly decurved bill that is suited to feeding on the flowers of the ixora shrub. The Blue-tailed Emerald has a short bill that is suited for feeding on the Hibiscus flower. The Copper-rumped Hummingbird has a straight long bill that allows it to feed on medium sized tube shaped flowers such as the allamanda. Hummingbirds have little or no sense of smell, so colour is important to a hummingbird's search process for locating flowers containing nectar. While they will visit any flower that has sufficient nectar they prefer flowers that are red to orange in colour. It is believed that this colour preference is due to the fact that red flowers standout in a green background and so are more easily seen by the hummingbird. It is also believed that because hummingbirds compete with insects for nectar they choose flowers that are less likely to be visited by insects. Most insects do not see well at the red end of the colour spectrum and so may not visit red flowers while hummingbirds see the full visible spectrum.
If space in your yard is very limited, preventing you from having large flowering shrubs, an area to consider is the curb area between your property line and the roadway. You can plant small flowering shrubs such as the miniature ixora, which will then attract nectar feeding birds to your property.
For birds that are fruit eaters, the presence of ripe fruit will attract and so having fruit trees will attract birds. The majority of trees however only fruit once per year for a few months, so the attraction is not year round. If your garden has sufficient space then multiple fruit trees that bear at different times in the year will ensure a continuous bird presence. One tree that bears fruit for a very extended period is guava and so can attract birds for most of the year. Trees are also an attraction to birds because they provide nesting and resting sites. If you have the palm trees that people usually plant in from their houses that will generally attract Palm Tanagers who will feed on the small nuts, use material from the tree for building their nests and may also nest in the tree.
When a large number of flowering shrubs and/or fruit trees is not an option, you can consider purchasing a bird feeder. The type of feeder will also be dependent upon the type of birds in the area and the type of birds that you want to attract. For nectar feeders you use a sugar solution (the feeder usually has directions). You must put the feeder in a location where the birds will see it and you must change the solution regularly (2 -3 days). Red Feeders are good for attracting hummingbirds because they have a preference for red flowers. If you use a feeder it will take a few days for the birds to recognise that it is present in your yard.
Other feed can attract other types of birds. Bare-Eyed Thrushes and Kiskadees are somewhat omnivorous and so you can use rice (not boiled). I have found that they will also be attracted by dog food. Tropical Mockingbirds can also be attracted with rice. In addition, ripe fruit such bananas, mangoes and cherry can be used and will usually attract Blue-Gray Tanagers, Palm Tanagers and Yellow Orioles.
As an alternative to purchasing a feeder you can construct a feeder. For fruits you can build a simple chicken wire basket or bamboo joint to hold the fruit and attach it to the fence. Another low cost feeder can be constructed using a plastic bowl with a narrow edge. To construct this feeder you punch three holes, equidistant around the bowl. Then attach wire strands through each hole with the strands coming together at the top to form either a hook or a loop for suspending the bowl. Three strands are required to provide stability to the bowl particularly when birds alight on the bowl to feed. It is necessary to punch several holes in the base of the bowl to allow any rainwater or liquids to drain out the bowl.
Attracting birds, apart from the visual delight also provides the benefit of controlling the insect population, as many birds are insect feeders.