Ir make the wheel attachment rotate 90 degrees when backpacking. Unless that wheel in the picture is plastic it would weagh close to a bike wheel.

I'm just starting to research the single wheel bike trailers, kids don't like riding in the burley trailer anymore so I'm listing it on craigslist. Have my son on a trailerbike behind my bike and my daughter is in a seat on the back of my wife's bike so single wheel bike trailer could be used behind my wife's bike for more gear hauling ability. I could adapt a backpack style like this and unhitch and take like that.

Sometimes our govt makes ridiculous rules that just make no sense. Okay, if they consider a single wheeled cart a mechanical device that is too damaging on the environment, then how about we just use a sled or a travois instead, and we can then drag our load through the wilderness. Since neither are a mechanical device, they should be just fine for trail use. Now, how much damage would two poles ploughing the trail do?

I really wonder where these people get these ideas. I can understand their motivation, but not their reasoning. Then again, the US F&W declared a local Arid Lands Ecology zone off limits to all hunting, even though a herd of about 800 elk live on it. To avoid overpopulation, once a year the dept sends a dozen agents up into the ALE in 4wd vehicles and helicopters to "cull the herd" for a week or more. Gee, those must be some special vehicles they use that leave no tracks in those delicate environmental areas. Oh yeah, and what do they do with the "culled" animals? Well, they leave some for the scavengers and give the rest to the local native american tribes to do with as they wish. Yep, your tax dollars going to pay for USF&W officers to hunt elk and on public lands and provide the tribes with free meat.

I have used one of these to haul out elk.

http://gametote.com/

Works even with down fall, (WORK being the operative word).

Still easier than making several 3 mile trips with backpacks.

Weight balanced on top of the wheels (gametote) like that will make it harder. You have all the weight going down on the wheel and a high center of gravity making it want to fall over.

a wheel hanging behind splits the load part on the wheel and part on you but also lowers the CG. If you get a large wheel then use a pair of bent arms to connect to the axel then come downward you can get the weight below the axle and make it more self balancing rather than wanting to fall over.

A quick image search found [url=thishttp://www.eaglematetrailers.com/images/empty_trailer.jpg][url=thishttp://www.eaglematetrailers.com/images/empty_trailer.jpg][url=thishttp://www.eaglematetrailers.com/images/empty_trailer.jpg]thishttp://www.eaglematetrailers.com/images/empty_trailer.jpg[/url][/url][/url] not a bike trailer or backpack carrier but see how the frame drops down below the axle? Use a larger daimeter wheel and drop the frame down some and put the weight down low making it easier to balance. Then the length of the bars coming up to you act as a lever laving the weight less but also the whole amount isn't on the wheel either

How would that work in downfall?

I've carried rucks in excess of 100 lbs... Alaska, arctic training, I was the radioman for the C.O. It royally sucked. And as we were using cold weather batteries worn on your chest, I was tethered to the ruck by the cable. Double royal suck.

But there is one downfall of this device, snow. That and I want to be able to tow/drag more than 100 lbs if I was using this thing. Wondering if the 100 lbs is the real max, or the suggested max.

I can tow a garden wagon for a lot cheaper and probably carry a little more.

The prohibition against wheels in wilderness has nothing to do with environmental damage. It's about appropriate use in designated wilderness areas, which, almost by definition, are roadless. No modern goodies allowed.

The basic problem with the Roller Pack is that it just wouldn't work on nearly all back country trails (not just wilderness) that I have seen. What do you do when you come to a three foot diameter log, with protruding branches, lying across the trail, on a steep slope. Obstacles like that can be quite challenging to a lightly loaded hiker.

Don't even think about going off trail in mountainous areas.

Has to be said: Wheels can/do compact soil and disrupt ecosystems. Tracks can be seen for decades after a single ill adapted vehicle passes. I have seen such tracks turn into washes when the rainy season comes around.

Narrow wheels highly loaded cause more damage than wider ones lightly loaded. The forest service rules on no wheels is far easier to enforce than debating the vast unwashed masses who would seek to comply the letter of the law while violating the spirit. Forest service vehicles are typically ATVs using large and wide flotation tires that usually cause less damage than a person walking as long as they are driven responsibly.

A travois is a viable choice but the FS guys will object as they leave tracks that can last for a century. I used one in an exercise. A handy way to move a load too heavy or bulky to carry. A sapling with the majority of limbs left on can be used as a crude travois and saves time because you don't need to limb a larger tree to make poles.

Come the first of the year you can play with discarded Christmas trees as a sort of field-expedient travois. Tie a piece of one inch webbing to the butt as a harness. Pulling the tree is quite easy. Depending on your strength and their weight dragging several kids on top of even such a makeshift travois can be easy, and quite entertaining for the kids. Moving several hundred pounds is not an unreasonable undertaking.

Something to keep in mind if you ever have to move someone, or something, in the woods. Note: cutting trees is usually frowned upon but you are pretty likely to get a pass in a real emergency.

I'm no pro, but that looks kinda silly to me. I can think of so many hiking situations where it just wouldn't go very well, that it cancels out any possible functionality for me. Also, I can't help but think if the guy tumbles down a hill or something, those poles could jab into his back or something, which would really put him in a bad spot! It might be good for urban survival, like if you decide to walk out of a city or something.

Looking in the local paper -

A national hardware store is having a sale - a 4 wheel garden wagon is on sale for $49.95, down $10. Max load is 450 lbs. Big thing, 4 tires, not wheels. Sides made of metal gridwork. Think flexible flyer on steroids.

While I wouldn't want to haul 450 lbs up a hill... it's still more bang for the buck.

On a related note - If it is truly a survival situation, who cares what the FS thinks/says about wheels? Better to ask forgiveness...