I walked 90 miles of the Camino de Santiago with this hiking backpack – it never let me down | Walking

By the second hour of climbing out of Vigo, I was questioning every life decision that had led me to Spain’s north-west coast. My calves were screaming as the trail tilted relentlessly uphill without shade from the sun. But I was thanking myself for the light 32-liter daypack floating on my back instead of the full trekking pack I almost lugged along. As someone of average fitness, I’m fairly certain an extra 10lbs would have broken me before lunchtime.

For the next week, as I hiked 90 miles (145km) on the Portuguese route of the Camino de Santiago, my backpack became so comfortable I could almost forget about it. Walking between 9 and 16 miles a day for six to eight hours sounds like the kind of thing that might leave your shoulders aching and your hips rubbed raw. But the Osprey Mira 32’s adjustable torso length let me dial in the fit, while the suspended mesh back panel kept air flowing even during long stretches through humid forests. I finished the trek with zero hot spots or friction points, something I didn’t expect after wearing the same backpack for seven days straight. And it served me well for the following week exploring Santiago de Compostela and Madrid.

Whether you’re planning to log long days on a trail, wander cities or live the one-bag life this summer, the Mira will earn its price tag. It carries a lot of stuff far more comfortably than a pack this size has any right to. Plus, scroll to the end to find the fast-drying towel, foldable hat, packing cubes and quick-dry shorts that kept my pack light.

The Osprey Mira backpack at a glance

Osprey

Mira 34 (women’s)

from $239.95

Osprey

Manta 34 (men’s)

$234

Note: The Mira 32 is discontinued, but the new 34-liter version offers the same features, as does the men’s version, the Manta 34.

A hold-it-all organizer on your back

The Camino’s terrain constantly changed. After surviving Vigo’s notorious climb, I wandered into the town of Redondela, known for its two 19th-century railroad viaducts. I stopped for a Spanish tortilla before checking into an albergue, the hostel-like dorms specifically for pilgrims walking the Camino. The next day, it rained on and off for the entire walk to the medieval town of Pontevedra. My backpack’s bright green rain cover, tucked into its own zippered pocket at the base of the backpack, took seconds to pull out whenever another shower rolled through. I used it repeatedly throughout the week, thanks to Galicia’s infamously unpredictable weather.

Seven exterior pockets provided a home for everything. A hidden pocket near the top kept my passport, credit card holder and earbuds secure. The super stretchy front shove-it pocket kept my rain jacket stashed without unzipping the main compartment every time the weather changed. The side pockets were deceptively roomy: one carried a large water bottle plus the bundled rain cover at times, while the other held protein bars, chocolate and whatever snacks I’d picked up in the last village. The hip-belt pockets were easy to reach while walking, perfect for lip balm, euro coins and my compact iPhone 14, though you wouldn’t be able to fit a larger phone in there.

One day I walked for hours through vineyards with Albariño grapes. Other days took me through dense forests, villages, rural roads and even along highways. Lunch was usually whatever the next village offered: pan con tomate, a bocadillo or one of the many “menus del peregrino”, or pilgrim’s menus.

Every day’s hike ended at a hostel or albergue, which made a daypack easy to use – I didn’t need to haul cooking gear or several days’ worth of food. In the evening I’d wash that day’s clothes and repack for the next morning. The Mira’s compression straps helped keep everything snug, though I mostly used the upper straps to secure my pink fleece for chilly evenings. Attachment loops scattered across the pack are technically meant for trekking poles, ice axes and bike lights, but I repurposed them constantly: clipping on my hat when the afternoon sun came out, tying on a fast-drying cloth after rinsing it, and even hanging my shower flip-flops to dry while I walked. From the little loop on the front pocket, I hung a scallop shell I’d bought from an unmanned roadside stand, a Camino symbol that bounced along beside me all the way to Santiago.

And yes … I brought my laptop too. My 14in Macbook Pro fit snugly inside the hydration sleeve, where I barely felt its 3.5lb weight. I suspected that removing and refilling the included water reservoir could get annoying, so I didn’t pack it; topping off water bottles at public fountains turned out to be simpler. The laptop emerged unscathed when I finally arrived in Santiago de Compostela (in the rain, naturally) to work remotely for a few days after finishing the pilgrimage.

I haven’t logged the same kind of mileage with other daypacks. But before buying the Mira at REI, I spent a while in the store testing 30- to 34-liter packs from Cotopaxi, Deuter, Patagonia and a few other brands, all loaded with the same weighted sandbags. This one hit the sweet spot: the most spacious without feeling bulky, and somehow the lightest on my back. By the end of those two weeks in Spain, the backpack had invisibly molded itself to my day to day, and that’s about the highest compliment I can give any piece of travel gear.

Osprey

Mira 34 (women’s)

from $239.95

Osprey

Manta 34 (men’s)

$234

Some packing tips from hiking the Camino

• Keep heavy items low and close to your back. Putting dense items close to your body makes the pack feel a lot lighter and more stable, especially on long climbs and descents.

• Pack for two or three days, not a week. Since nearly every stop has at least a sink (if not full laundry facilities), I rotated a few outfits and washed them often instead of carrying a week’s worth of clothes.

• Leave room to stash layers. Northern Spain’s weather changes constantly, so you’ll be taking a jacket on and off throughout the day.

Accessories that helped my daypack stay light

Thule compression packing cubes: A lifesaver! They kept my clothing compact and prevented my backpack from turning into a jumbled mess.

REI Co-op packable fast-drying towel: The full-size version is essential for hostel showers, while the mini version is surprisingly useful for wiping off sweat, and drying wet benches after rain. The full size also comes with a small mesh bag I repurposed to hold dirty laundry.

REI lightweight folding brim cap: Indispensable during those exposed stretches without shade and easy to stash when it got cloudy.

Sea to Summit pocket soap sheets: Without the weight and mess of liquid detergent, these let me wash clothes wherever I had water, which meant I only needed a few changes of clothing for the entire week.

Metolius mini carabiner: For clipping odds and ends to the outside of my pack. I packed several but ended up only using one.

Vuori fast-drying athletic shorts: Mine dried in a few hours after hand-washing, making it easy to rotate just three pairs.