Due to a generous gift toward gear I received for Christmas, I'm going to order a zPacks Nero for my upcoming Camino Frances hike. I'm uncertain regarding the padded belt with the hip pockets. Is this mainly a benefit for storage or does the padding significantly increase comfort? I wouldn't think that the belt transfers much if any load from shoulders to hip given that this is a frameless pack. I will typically have around 7 - 9 pounds in this pack during my hike so perhaps a hip belt is a non issue anyway. I don't really need the hip belt pockets for storage since I have zPacks shoulder pouches for things I need quick access to. Beyond the Camino, I might use this pack for short overnights, a function currently served by my ULA CDT which was what I was previously planning to take on the Camino but has more capacity than I require.

Thanks.