In South Africa, backpacking refers to the outdoor adventure activity where a backpack is used to allow a hiker to live outdoors for two or more days at a time, including overnight stops. In Europe, backpacking usually refers to touring from one youth hostel or lodging to another. The term  hiking is often used instead of backpacking, but the day hiker is not a backpacker, so hiking is a more general but less accurate term. The best description of what we mean by backpacking on this website is wilderness backpacking, and since mountains are involved, mountain backpacking is even more appropriate.

People choose to take up backpacking for one or more of the following reasons:

• They are adventurers and explorers at heart
• They enjoy solitude at least occasionally
• They enjoy being out in nature
• They enjoy the physical and mental challenges of hiking without the competition which goes with traditional sports
• They want a life sport that they can share with people of all ages
• They like to be self-sufficient and function independently of the trappings of modern life
• They enjoy being able to make themselves comfortable in an environment which most others try to avoid.