[tele_pathic]

The website says the Cloudscape weighs 2.8 lbs. I nearly bought the Cloudscape, but I didn't need that much volume for trekking around WDW. And thank goodness I didn't go any bigger than the Probody, which was a tight squeeze in many of the rollercoasters. But the Clik-Elite bags are super awesome, super comfortable. I had a shoe repair shop add daisy chains down the shoulder straps for $10. I found that was the only thing missing.

[tibbitts]

What I used for day hiking was a plain frame backpack, with a waist pack camera bag attached (with the belt) at the bottom of the frame. The tripod went in the main compartment of the backpack (and stuck out the top, of course.) You need something that will hold the tripod in the center of the pack. A typical tripod is probably 28" and 6lbs, so you can't have it on one side or the other, it's got to be pretty close to center.

[Macario]

I would recommend you check out the backpacks from Clikelite. they are very good. they have many to choose from

cloudscape, venture, probody sport, obscura. all backpacks that also have room for other stuff (clothes, foods, drink etc.). They have more, but those are bigger bags. www.clikelite.com
Naneu also has a good bag the K4L Adventure K4L | Naneu Bags also plenty of room for your gear and more

[bdery]

Hiking is serious business. You need a very well-fitted bag or important discomfort could occur (even injuries in some cases).

My recommendation is always the same. Do not purchase a camera bag. Instead, purchase a real hiking backpack in an outdoors sports store. One that fits perfectly. Then, measure the dimensions of the bag, and get a fitted insert.

What I prefer is a bag in the 25-30 litres range, with a smaller, lower compartment. This gives you easy access to your gear, you simply find an insert fitting snugly in that lower compartment and you're all set.

For instance, I personally use the McKingley Lynx 28 bag, and an APE case insert (from Amazon, about 15$).

My bag cost me less than a dedicated camera bag, it fits better, and it's just as convenient.

[tele_pathic]

Hiking is serious business. You need a very well-fitted bag or important discomfort could occur (even injuries in some cases).

My recommendation is always the same. Do not purchase a camera bag. Instead, purchase a real hiking backpack in an outdoors sports store. One that fits perfectly. Then, measure the dimensions of the bag, and get a fitted insert.

What I prefer is a bag in the 25-30 litres range, with a smaller, lower compartment. This gives you easy access to your gear, you simply find an insert fitting snugly in that lower compartment and you're all set.

For instance, I personally use the McKingley Lynx 28 bag, and an APE case insert (from Amazon, about 15$).

My bag cost me less than a dedicated camera bag, it fits better, and it's just as convenient.

This makes a ton of sense to me also. Frankly, had I not discovered clik-elite, I would have gone this route. But I discovered clik-elite, decided I wanted one, when I upgraded from my K200D to my K-5ii, I knew I would never had the opportunity or money to buy a clik-elite bag if I didn't buy it then, so I bought it.

[frogoutofwater]

Hiking is serious business. You need a very well-fitted bag or important discomfort could occur (even injuries in some cases).

My recommendation is always the same. Do not purchase a camera bag. Instead, purchase a real hiking backpack in an outdoors sports store. One that fits perfectly. Then, measure the dimensions of the bag, and get a fitted insert.

What I prefer is a bag in the 25-30 litres range, with a smaller, lower compartment. This gives you easy access to your gear, you simply find an insert fitting snugly in that lower compartment and you're all set.

For instance, I personally use the McKingley Lynx 28 bag, and an APE case insert (from Amazon, about 15$).

My bag cost me less than a dedicated camera bag, it fits better, and it's just as convenient.

That's the approach my husband took for his mountain-climbing trip this summer (regular backpack with a Crumpler brand insert). The downside of this approach was that it was sometimes hard to access his camera when he wanted it, mostly on the trip up to the main base and back down, when he was carrying a full pack. On the in-between days when he was carrying a day pack, the bag+insert worked better

The solution is going to vary depending on the person and the activity. If it's a hiking trip with some photography thrown in, then the regular pack + insert might work well. If it's a photography expedition with some easier hiking thrown in, then you might want a pack with fast/easy and balanced access to your camera and gear. But in either case, the most important things are comfort, fit and balanced weight distribution that suit your wife. (Women often have a different centre of gravity than men, so a bag that suits a man's frame might throw your wife off-balance.) She might find that in a camera bag designed for hiking, or a hiking bag supplemented for photography - trying it on loaded is the only way to figure that out.

[mtngal]

I need a hiking bag/backpack for my wife that will accommodate a K-5 with a 16-50 DA* and a 50-135 DA*.

The 16-50 will probably be on the camera most of the time, with the 50-135 mounted as needed.

Some additional storage for other things needed on the hike (food, water, etc) would be a plus.

Any recommendations?

Thanks

I'm glad I happened on this thread! There's been some neat things to come out since I last looked at bags. I can tell you a few things to think about/potential problems to avoid:

If your wife is like me, she will not bother taking gear out of a true backpack when you are moving along. That was huge for me when using a regular day pack when I was hiking. I wouldn't stop to take off the pack in order to get anything out of it. So side entry to camera stuff was a must. I've used a Lowepro Slingshot 200 mostly - the first one had the zipper stitching give out because I constantly over-stuffed it. I've got a larger bag now so the second one is holding up better (I only use it when its size is appropriate for what I'm doing). I've had no trouble with comfort, it fits me fine, but is definitely something to try on first. If she is going to carry a tripod, forget it. I came up with a couple of DIY ways of carrying one, but all of them were dreadful for any length of time. Another big limitation is that you can only use it on the right shoulder, a problem if you have a minor tear in that rotator cuff or other right shoulder problem. The top isn't really big enough for much as far as other stuff.

I then tried a Kata 3N1-30 bag, since the Lowepro is too small for the DA*300. I can fit everything but the kitchen sink in it, but it quickly gets too heavy, especially for the shoulder straps. I can carry it for a mile or two, then forget it (it has a hip strap but it's not enough to compensate for the padding in the shoulder straps). If she is only taking the camera, DA 16-50 and 50-135 then stick to either the 3N1-10 or 3N1-20. But I'd still wonder if they would be comfortable for a full day's hike.

I've tried combining a hydration pack I have with a photo fanny pack - I'm too short to make that work.

I really like the looks of the Clik-Elite and the Photo Sport bags - having the hydration pack would be a big plus for me but the Photo Sport bag looks like it would deal with the weight issue more.

I've been seriously thinking of going to some type of harness system (I once went hiking on a snowy day and figured I wouldn't change lenses much. I took the extra lens I thought I would use if it cleared up in one jacket pocket and extra battery/card in the other. What freedom, I just loved it!). I'm really small so a vest doesn't work - the ones I've seen are either way too big for me or else don't have much storage (or pockets at the back, inaccessible without taking it off). A harness system would mean I could take whatever pocket/lens case(s) I need for what I'm doing. But that takes a lot of thought to figure out what to buy and so on and I haven't actually done anything about it.

Good luck with your search! If you buy on-line make sure there's a liberal return policy unless she's tried on the pack before-hand.