Backpacking is a mixture of hiking (walking in the wilderness or climbing mountains for exploring.) and camping (staying in the wilderness or in a protected forest for a day or two).

Backpacking is the best of both worlds. A backpacker makes a base at one place and then packs all the gear into a backpack and hikes off to a different location.

This gear consists of essentials like food, water, shelter or the means to obtain them. The gear includes only bare necessities, less than one would carry for a stationary camping.

This is an excellent recreational activity, to explore a place that is beautiful and fascinating. It is called tramping or trekking in other parts of the world.

Imagine being in a lush green forest environment away from all civilization or on a mountain which is inaccessible to humans. Since there are bare necessities with you, there is a sense of simplicity and being one with nature.

Of course the meaning of bare necessities is different for different persons. So if your backpack is heavy then you will cover less ground in a day. The backpack can be a nuisance and a distraction in enjoying the scenery. So what gear to carry is an important issue.

Backpack trips can be for one or two nights or if it's a long-distance expedition may last weeks or months, sometimes aided by prearranged food and supply drops.

Backpacking is tougher than ordinary camping. There may be areas where regular traffic of backpackers camp, here they might have a fire ring, maps might also be available as well as some warning and information signs.

Many of these camps are no more than level patches of ground without scrub or underbrush.

In many desolate areas, these common camp bases do not exist and travelers pitch their tents wherever they please.

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