H and I visited REI today on a backpack-replacement mission for an upcoming walking trip with his brother and family. We had bought two packs several years ago, but they are quite large (nothing says novice like wearing an enormous backpack to carry snack bars and a rain jacket).
In truth, neither one of us is particularly outdoorsy, but there’s something about this store that transforms us (at least in our minds) into Lewis and Clark. As soon as we walk in we start studying the tents, checking out the canoes, lusting after hiking boots… and, again, reaching for the biggest, most colorful backpacks on the shelf. As luck would have it, the first display we approached (pictured above) had packs stuffed so that we could see that we were already out of our league.
I heard H mumble, Well, I guess we don’t need to be in this area, and he wandered down to the next aisle. I followed behind, only to realize that he had discovered the packs with wheels (probably more our style). By this time we were laughing as we pictured ourselves pulling Rollaboards down the trail – a sight sure to trigger heavy-duty eye-rolling all around.
We finally asked for help from a trained professional who directed us to stylish and sensibly sized packs (with built-in rain covers!) to carry on our journey.
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