slackpack

S1L1A1C3K5P3A1C3K5

verb

To hike on a multi-day trail without carrying a backpack. Typically, this is accomplished by having another person transport the backpack using a vehicle.

Scrabble 23
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

verbslackpack (third-person singular simple present slackpacks, present participle slackpacking, simple past and past participle slackpacked)

present singular third person slackpacks · participle present slackpacking · participle past slackpacked · past slackpacked

  1. To hike on a multi-day trail without carrying a backpack. Typically, this is accomplished by having another person transport the backpack using a vehicle.

    Some hikers choose to slackpack when they want credit for hiking the miles but do not want to carry full packs over difficult terrain.

    2012, Paul Stutzman, Hiking Through: One Man's Journey to Peace and Freedom on the Appalachian Trail, →ISBN
    1 more example

    Early on in my hike I ran into Sloop hiking south on the Trail. He was slackpacking. When we made eye contact, he looked down and very softly said, "You caught me."

    2009, George Sandul, The Road to Damascus... and Beyond, →ISBN, page 199

Origin

Blend of slack + backpack.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

slackpack. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/slackpack

MLA

“slackpack.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/slackpack. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “slackpack,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/slackpack.

Source: slackpack on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.