For years, I've questioned backpackers' rights to bulldoze through the urban landscape. Call them rucksacks, knapsacks or book-bags, these bulging carryalls interfere with the general ebb and flow of pedestrian traffic and often have the power to knock an innocent transit rider to the ground. But on a recent rainy day, in the heart of Toronto's financial district on Bay Street, I realized that my aggravation was slightly misplaced.