Meanings
- gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of fastpack
- uncountableRunning while carrying a backpack.
The bad news: fastpacking. The good news: cougars view swiftly fleeing humans as food. But seriously, fastpacking is the backcountry equivalent of a 9-day, 18-nation tour of Europe.
1997 February, Terry Morse, “Backtalk”, in Backpacker, volume 25, number 156, page 121 more example
Long popular in Europe, various forms of endurance sports are finding their niche on this side of the Atlantic as well. In addition to trail running, there is ultra running, wilderness running, mountain running and orienteering. Yet another offshoot gathering steam is fastpacking — running multiple days on the trail while carrying a pack with food and tent.
1993 June 18, Ad Crable, “Running wild”, in Lancaster New Era - uncountableBackpacking with the goal of maximising the distance covered each day.
The opposite of slackpacking is fastpacking, or powerhiking, which maximizes daily mileage by walking for long hours with only a few short stops.
2011, Chris Townsend, The Backpacker's Handbook, 4th Edition, →ISBN, page 12
Cite this entry
fastpacking. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fastpacking
“fastpacking.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fastpacking. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “fastpacking,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fastpacking.
Source: fastpacking on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.