Rucksack?

I had a wonderful shopping trolley which held a week's shopping and was very easy to use. I just held it behind me as I walked, you'd hardly notice it was there. Obviously can also be used for just a few items. Can easily be dragged up stairs. It was great.
Hoppa Shopping Trolley

I use bags. The Costco ones are very big . Shopping trolleys provided by the stores mean you don’t have to actually carry anything, just wheel it to the car and unload then take the trolley back to the designated place in the car park. They don’t mind you using them here even if you don’t actually shop at that particular store. Probably if we lived right in the city they wouldn’t let you do that.

Good idea to use a rucksack. Holds quite a bit and less strain on arms/ shoulders than carrying bags

I imagine that regular use of a rucksack might spark off shoulder problems further down the line.
I witness children trooping along to the nearby primary school heaving a loaded rucksack on their backs and a carrier bag/sports holdall stuffed with the necessary 'stuff' for that day's lessons.
It can't be good for their physical health.

I sometimes use a rucksack to carry home bits and pieces from our local supermarket. It saves having to swap a bag from hand to hand and helps my balance. If I need more than a rucksack full I take the car.

I use a Rollster shopping trolley and have done for 6 years now. I was spending much money at an osteopath for painful shoulders, neck and back and she recommended using a trolley. I didnt for a long time...silly vain me....but once I did I haven't looked back.
I use a small leather rucksack for days out, but it is not very big.

I opened a thread a while back about choice of rucksack and several GNs recommended Roka which look really good. However I wanted to look at them and my nearest John Lewis didnt stock them sadly.
I don't think I would want to use one for food shopping as I always end up with more than I could easily carry.

Rucksacks are good for carrying heavier items I guess. The problem arises when the user is in a close environment or a crowded area……nothing worse than someone turning round with a loaded rucksack on their back, whacking you in the face and knocking your spectacles off!

I use my rucksack, not for shopping, but to carry items needed for one of my u3a groups. The only problem is I sometimes have difficulty getting it off my back..

I am another advocate for trolleys. There is such an immense range to choose from and they are not expensive.

I sometimes take a small black rucksack when I can't get everything in my across body bags. Once upon a time such items would be accommodated in one of my larger handbags, but I rarely use those these days.

I always struggle to get a rucksack on. I get one arm in but just cannot get the other in, especially when I am on my own. I wouldn't want to carry heavy shopping on my back either.
I have a folding trundle. It fold flat and lives in my car boot. Lots online to choose from and very reasonable.

My rucksack's a Jansport, a brand my children used at school. Mine's smaller than the ones they had back then.

Thanks for the replies.
I should have said I don't have a car.
I can carry 2 reasonably full carriers on flat ground quite well but after I get off the bus it's a long, steep road up to my house.
I've just started getting supermarket deliveries which is wonderful - stuff I want appears in my kitchen like magic! But of course I want to buy from other shops too.
I'll have a look at the trolleys suggested here.

And the rucksacks suggested!

Roka do a fantastic range of rucksacks/back packs in a huge range of colours. They are made from recycled plastic bottles and they have big chunky zips and are strong and indestructible.

NittWitt - if you get a trolley like the Hoppa I mentioned you'll wonder how you every managed without it. Plenty of room for everything in there, and so easy to use. Let the wheels take the weight. I have never been happy using a rucksack, awkward, uncomfortable things. They hurt my shoulders, although maybe it's just me.

Sorry my trolley is Rolser not Rolster cost about 55.00. John Lewis stock them and of course Amazon. I have a black and white stripe. Love it.

I too have a Rolser trolley. Mine is black, very smart. The handle is a good length, which is an important factor when choosing a trolley. If the handle is too short for your height it will cause neck and shoulder pain.

The Hoppa trolleys look good as well and cheaper than the Rolser. Also I spy a brolly holder on one of the Hoppas which my Rolser doesnt have which would be useful. As would be a holder for a coffee cup or water bottle. Not sure if the Hoppa has that.

Basically though my choice for what you need would be a trolley not a rucksack. Can you borrow one from a friend who may have one to do a test run?

They are easy to get on and off a bus and if you have supermarket delivery of heavy stuff, the trolley will be fine to lift on a bus and then pull up a hill.

Letnus knoe whst you do! OP

While staying with my mother several times last year, before she went into a care home, I used my rucksack when walking to and from the supermarket for her - about a mile each way.

It worked very well for me, and i was definitely able to carry a heavier load that way than I could in carrier bags, though I appreciate that not everyone could do that for various reasons.

In fact I was still able to carry a bag as well, in which I put the lighter things.

In that area, a trolley wouldn't have worked well at all, as apart from half of the route including steep hills, the pavements were in a poor condition, and im sure the wheels on a trolley would have kept catching on the broken-up parts and possibly tipped it over too.

Primrose53

Roka do a fantastic range of rucksacks/back packs in a huge range of colours. They are made from recycled plastic bottles and they have big chunky zips and are strong and indestructible.

Thanks I’m looking at these for a small rucksack instead of everything in my handbag. Then I will have hands free for the dog, children etc. They have some fabulous colour combinations.

ROKA have a sale on at the moment. Great quality bags.

I still say a trolley is best. With the weight all on the wheels you'd be surprised how light and easy it is to pull the Hoppa. I never had any trouble pulling it and I sometimes had a full load of a weeks shopping. I could never have managed to carry that much in a bag or a rucksack.

I think there's probably a place for both, depending on how much you're buying, whether you're going somewhere else before or after shopping, transport issues, terrain. I guess every trip is different and has different needs. All I know is I can't use a rucksack.