Tumplines

I have seen made and used Tumplies all over the world. While working as a Wilderness guide in Maine we used them on a daily basis while portaging canoes and gear.My good friend the Aeta and Batak in the Philippines use them and make them from rice sacks. I have seen them in daily use by the Hill tribe people in northern Thailand, Laos and Burma.

Not Long ago, While shopping at the central market, in Antigua Guatemala. I noticed Cargadores at work hauling various goods around for folks using a Tumpline or “mecapal” as it is locally called.

These tumplines are made from everything like leather or rawhide to woven natural agave fibers, or nylon. I watched a cargadore today make a quickie Mecapal from a grain sack to haul pineapples for a lady who paid him a few centavos for his effort.

Most of the cargadores gear appears to be a tumpline, poncho, and a leather belt similar to that which weight lifters use.

I am very impressed by the amount of weight these guys carry at a jog, most of the cargadores appear to be older than me to boot!

I bought 2 “mecapals” and will try them out down the trail.

 A tumpline (/tump-lyne/) is a strap attached at both ends to a sack, backpack, or other luggage and used to carry the object by placing the strap over the top of the head. This utilizes the spine rather than the shoulders as standard backpack straps do. Tumplines are not intended to be worn over the forehead, but rather the top of the head just back from the hairline, pulling straight down in alignment with the spine. The bearer then leans forward, allowing the back to help support the load.

Tumplines are often used to transport heavy loads across uneven terrain such as footpaths and portages. The voyageurs of the North American fur trade used tumplines exclusively to carry their cargo of pelts and rations across portages.

Backpacks for the military and recreational campers were redesigned to carry larger loads during the middle and late twentieth century, and tumplines have become less common in the developed world.

The Indians in Mexico (and other Latin American countries) traditionally have used the tumpline for carrying heavy loads, such as firewood, baskets (including baskets loaded with construction materials and dirt for building), bird cages, and furniture. In the 1920s there was a man in Mexico City who delivered pianos on his back using a tumpline. In Mexico a common name for tumpline is "mecapal". Modern highland Mayans of southern Mexico use tumplines for various pedestrian transport. During World War Two, the Canadian Army developed special supply packs for moving supplies over rough terrain where the soldier use the tump line.

They are called a Namlo in Nepal.

See you on the trail!

Col. Tomahawk