Once I agreed to the trip, Mr. Holland and I set off to shop for equipment. We bought a very expensive backpack, sleeping bag, foam thing for under the sleeping bag and hiking shoes. It's not nearly as much fun as shopping for clothes, but I did get to bring a lot of pricey stuff home. There's an irony about shopping for backpacking equipment. If you buy cheap stuff because you're not sure you're going to like the sport and don't want to make a major investment, then you won't like the sport.
Cheap stuff is heavy and uncomfortable.
If, on the other hand, you spend the money and get good equipment, you'll have a much more comfortable hike. But you still might not enjoy the sport and will have paid thousands of dollars on equipment that you won't use again. And there's not much you can do with hiking equipment other than hike. Although you can always make planters out of the boots. That way my pack would get lighter as we forged ever deeper into the woods.