Welcome to the Backpacker merit badge guide for Fallout 76! As with all Possum badges, you’ll only be able to complete these objectives after you’ve unlocked the Possum rank, so make sure you’ve already done that. While this isn’t a particularly difficult merit badge, it certainly is time consuming, and may require you to obtain a couple of new plans. Before we jump into our suggestions, here are the requirements.

Pass “Backpacker” knowledge exam at an exam terminal
Craft a backpack
Boil water (x/20)
Consume Hotdogs (x/3)
Consume Pemmican (x/3)
Consume S’mores (x/3)
Build a camp fire in a Workshop or C.A.M.P.
Build a turret in a Workshop or C.A.M.P.
Build a tent in a Workshop or C.A.M.P.
Visit Central Mountain Lookout Tower
Visit Camp Adams Lookout Tower
Visit Dolly Sods Lookout Tower
Visit East Kanawha Lookout Tower
Visit East Mountain Lookout Tower
Visit East Ridge Lookout Tower
Visit Flatwoods Lookout Tower
Visit North Kanawha Lookout Tower
Visit North Mountain Lookout Tower
Visit Pioneer Scout Lookout Tower
Visit Ranger Lookout Tower
Visit South Mountain Lookout Tower
Visit Whitespring Lookout Tower

If you’re looking for help with the Backpacker knowledge exam, we have the questions and answers at the bottom of this article in an expandable tab. Crafting a backpack requires the Possum rank, and so you should have that already done. As a side note, if you’re above level 20, you’ll definitely want to craft a new backpack (at an armor station) as you rank up, because the higher level backpack you craft, the more carry weight it gives you.

The next requirements take a bit of cooking, eating, and building. If you haven’t earned your Cooking merit badge yet, you might want to wear your chef’s hat while you’re cooking to kill two birds with one stone. Boiled water is…well, boiled water, and if you don’t know how to handle that we’re not sure there’s much we can do for you at this point. Hot dogs can be found a couple of places around the map, but sadly, the ones you eat during The Chow Line daily at the amusement park don’t count. You can usually find some hot dogs by Morgantown Airport, right where you do the Collision Course event.

Pemmican can be easily obtained from the two scouting dailies. You can get the plan for S’mores from the Campfire Tales event at Camp Adams, or from player vendors on occasion, but if you know someone who already knows the plan, you only need to eat the S’mores, you don’t necessarily need to cook them yourself, so mooch away!

Building campfires and turrets should be easy enough, but depending on what Atom Shop items you’ve unlocked, you might need to pick up a tent plan which also can drop from the Campfire Tales event, or occasionally be purchasable from Responder vendors. Once that’s done, all that’s left is to visit all of the lookout towers around the map. If you haven’t already, it’s probably worth going to the top of each and surveying the area to unlock additional locations on your map.

Backpacker Knowledge Exam Questions and Answers

After collecting water from a natural water source that you intend to drink, you should let it boil it for…: One minute, at a rolling boil
Benjamin is lost in the woods. However, he has found a reliable water source. How long before Benjamin starves to death?: 3 weeks
Charles has accidentally stepped in a bear trap – what a klutz! How do you help Charles?: Disarm the trap and inject a Stimpak near the affected area
Josh discovers a cluster of mushrooms next to a tree. What should Josh do with them?: Make scientific observations, but otherwise leave them alone
Leave no…: Trace
Lizzie is out on the trail when she notices a baby bear in her path. What should she do?: Slowly back away and use a smooth calming voice while keeping an eye on the bear
Mary has just returned from the store with brand new camping supplies. What should she do with them first?: Familiarize herself with all of the equipment by setting it up before the trip
Molly has become separated from the rest of her group. What should she do?: Stay put and make noise, so that someone will be more likely to find her
Richie and Ted have been scouting campsites all morning. Which of the following would make the best campsite?: Close to a stream on a gentle hill
Ricky notices he’s being stalked by a Mountain Lion. What should he do?: Maintain eye contact, make himself look as large as possible, and make a lot of noise
Ryan has been hiking all day and notices his mouth is dry, his head is beginning to hurt, he’s fatigued, and starting to become dizzy. Ryan is likely…: Suffering from dehydration
Sarah and Jessie are hiking when they notice a giant snake on the path. What should they do?: Give the snake a wide berth while keeping an eye on it
The best reason to avoid drinking water from a stream is…: It might contain dangerous parasites and bacteria
Ticks spread what disease?: Lyme disease
What’s the best way to dress for a hike?: Wear several light, thin layers that can be removed or replaced as the temperature changes
What’s the safest place to store your supplies of food while you sleep at night in your camp?: Strung up above the ground between tree branches
When hiking in the woods, the best reason to wear clothing that covers as much of your skin as possible is…: It will help to protect your from poison ivy, poison oak, and sun exposure
When is the best time to start setting up camp?: Several hours before sunset
Which direction does the sun rise?: East
Which of the following is not a useful camping item?: Jangles the Moon Monkey doll