[pct-l] To buckle or not to buckle

[msarahm at cox.net (msarahm@cox.net)]

A mountaineering friend gave me a tip a couple years ago that I've found helpful: unbuckle your hip belt before making a rock-climbing-ish move.  This prevents the situation where you're leaning forward and the pack weight suddenly flops over your head, interfering with your balance.  Without the hip belt buckled, the pack tends to hang heavily on your shoulders.

Maybe this is common knowledge, but it was new to me a couple years ago.  It's especially useful off trail.