I have just used a nice ULA pack for a few miles and found that I really liked the handy-dandy pockets on the hip belt. Sunglasses, map, notebook, small camera, lipbalm, and so on. My question: are there smart ways to get such pockets attached on other packs, either on hip belt or on shoulder harness? Surely someone out there is the PCT pocket expert?
McIntyre
Were making some belt pockets for our Gossamer Gear packs. At Wally World I found, in the purse section, some cheap waste packs, $5, with a single small zippered pocket about the size I wanted; say a little larger than a Ramen pack. I cut off all the straps and belts and extras and sewed a loop onto the back with a stiffener made from a piece of milk jug plastic. So far so good. They’re larger enough to hold several full size Snickers, a map, GPS, snot rag etc. E-mail me if you want a pic.
BW
i have a couple of homemade pouches on the front of my hip belt…one is "envelope’ style (about that size, with a flap that folds over and attaches with velcro…it is non-breathable silnylon)…i sewed 2 “open-and-close” velcro loops on the back of the pouch which wrap around my hip belt in case i ever wanted to take it off (i’ve never needed to take it off, so i think i could have made it with a more “permanent” attachment)…i can put hat and gloves in there, or “lunch”…it will also hold a 15.2 oz. “minute maid” juice bottle sideways (i love the little bit of wide mouth on those bottles, as well as the lingering fruit flavor! :>) i need to tweak the design a bit, however, as really small items (like chapstick) can slide out under the flap…i suppose you could “glue” together (instead of “sew”) a little pouch such as this, as i believe there is some type of glue that will accomplish this (can someone make a recommendation?)…my OTHER pouch is one that paw-ee made and is used almost exclusively to carry another juice bottle…this is a very simple, regular nylon, drawstring sack…flat, it is about 9 x 4 1/2 inches and has a cord and cordlock at the top that runs through a simple 1/2 inch casing…i merely attached this little bag to the other side of my hip belt by sewing with a few strong stitches (button thread) through the belt and into the top of the bag casing! (this bag hangs down lengthwise, but not too far to restrict movement)…so easy!..you know why i love this little bag so much?..it makes my water bottle so EASILY accessible!..the drawstring opens easily, i remove the bottle (even while walking), and then just drop it back in!..i really don’t even need the cordlock, because gravity working with the weight of the bottle automatically closes the top!..you could probably find remnants at the fabric store on sale, or cheap nylon articles of clothing at a second hand shop to use for materials…you might want to fashion “mockups” for patterns from ANY old simple, “non-slippery” material (be aware that nylon CAN "sqirm’ around a bit when sewing on a machine…patience!..practice!)…hope this information helps…it really does make it nice i think to have a few necessities conveniently available while you hike!
maw-ee
Both Gossamer Gear and Mountain Laurel Designs make and sell pockets you can attached to packs.
Hiker
Go to the dollar store and find a zippered camera pouch, it might weigh 2 grams more than the silnylon ones. Or go to the thrift store and find a similar pouch. My local thrift stores has tons of old 35mm camera cases that would fit bigger items such as sunglasses and maps. I used rubber bands around the strap base to keep my pouch from bouncing around whenever I ran with my pack on.
Spigot
Z-Packs also makes cute little shoulder pockets, weighing 0.25 oz. each and just right for my digital camera, and hip belt pockets.
Grannyhiker
We bought long underwear that came in these little pouches made of mesh, and sewed those onto our packs for extra pocket space. Worked really well (we sewed them inside as a place to store cash/credit cards etc).
Brainwave