GEAR REVIEW Need Pack, Will Travel The long weekend: Which pack is right for you?

By Scott Shailer

Does size matter?

AS MOST PEOPLE cannot afford Goldilocks size-approved packs for each occasion, some sort of compromise must be made. Eighty litre packs are very common and are best suited for summer long-weekend to week-long outings or long-weekend winter adventures. But please remember, just because you have a moderately large pack you should never lug more than a third of your body weight, and less is even better. Suspension Design

For those who want a pack that does not impede movement, to allow for easier off trail scrambling, one with two aluminum stays is best. The downside of a pack with just two stays is a reduced load-carrying capacity, which is normally limited to a maximum of 18 kilograms. If you need to haul more gear or beer, then look for a pack with a thin “frame sheet” of polyethylene combined with internal stays to increase the load-carrying abilities. Packs with frame sheets do have one minor drawback in that natural body movement is somewhat inhibited due to the added rigidity. Another feature pack manufacturers use to increase the load-bearing capacity is the insertion of rods or a hoop made of fibreglass into the hip belt, which allows better weight distribution to the hips and aids in centring the pack. Back Padding

Parts of the body that come in contact with the pack should feel more like they are being caressed than mauled. The load-bearing components of the pack should be made of foam that is supportive in structure, but neither too firm nor too soft. Contoured, size specific, multilayered hip pads, which start off soft and become firmer with each subsequent layer, are ideal.

Mesh type pack panels and hip belts are cooler, but don’t expect that your back will be dry on a 32-degree day. If you hike in more humid climates or in winter, a pack with foam panels and accompanying air conduits is ideal to shed snow, and dries out more quickly, but tends to be hotter in summer. Access

For those who iron their underwear and own at least one shoe organizer, I would recommend a pack with panel access, a separate sleeping bag compartment and other external pockets. For the less orderly among us, top loaders are ideal for quickly cramming your gear in. Other factors that should be considered, but only if two or more packs are in a dead heat, are the availability of water bladder compartments, the number of pockets, a detachable fanny pack and finally, for the fashion conscious, colour.

Arc’Teryx Bora 80

Volume: 77L (size medium tested, also available in short and long and women’s short, medium and long) Suspension Design: Two internal aluminum stays in a v-shaped formation, frame sheet and hip belt rods. Back Padding: Full length contour foam with air channels Access: Top/panel/sleeping bag loader and kangaroo pocket Features: Detachable fanny pack lid, two water bottle holders, internal water bladder holder, daisy chains and ice axe loops. Weight: 3.1 kg Price: $320.00 Available at: MEC Pack’s motto: The all-seasons thrill seeker

CANADA IS BEST known for beavers, hemp-induced snow boarders and excellent outdoor gear manufacturers. The makers of this pack live up to our reputation. Arc’Teryx manages to place a lot of features on a relatively easy to use pack. The v-shaped suspension design is an example of one such feature, in that it allows for hip belt articulation while on uneven ground. This noticeably augments some frame stiffness associated with packs that combine internal stays with frame sheet and rods. The pack also includes a sculpted hip belt, and shoulder straps and a moulded back paneling that are on the firm side, but do an excellent job of following the curves of your hips and back. The result is a pack that can be worn on very rough trails while carrying monster loads.

Once loaded through top, panel or sleeping bag orifices, all the gear can be held secure using compression straps. Water bottle holders come equipped with a drawstring and can hold a Nalgene container or other trinkets securely. Quibbles

The sleeping bag divider closes with a drawstring. It is a simple and effective way to close off the pack, but it is a bloody nuisance if you don’t close it, as your gear will get caught up in the excess material or the draw cord.

The North Face Diligence

Volume: 88L (size medium tested, also available in short and long) Suspension Design: Two internal crossed carbon fibre stays Back Padding: Full-length self-contour mesh Access: Top/panel/sleeping bag loader and two side expansion pockets Features: Detachable daypack, water bottle holder, internal water bladder holder, gear loops on belt, daisy chain and ice axe loops Weight: 3.1 kg Price: $459.99 Available at: Trailhead Pack’s motto: Holy features Batman!

THE NORTH FACE routinely sponsors adventurers to allow them to go conquer regions of the world that are unrelenting in scope. The company also makes quality gear to get them back alive. This is one such piece of equipment. The carbon fibre stays and what the designers call the “maximum surface area” back panel are very comfortable and will conform to all the peaks and valleys of your spinal column. Your body’s natural movements are hardly restricted; due to the characteristics of the carbon fibre stays the pack seems to move along with you. The shoulder straps are thin but still provide some shock absorption, and the hip belts seem to be wider than most but are supportive and don’t hamper movement. The overall load-carrying capacity of this pack is very reasonable considering there is no frame sheet.

Should you find that 88 litres are not enough, this pack has no shortage of lashing options and the daypack doubles as a snow shovel holder. Quibbles

The water bottle holder is too small to allow easy insertion of a Nalgene water

GEAR REVIEW Serratus bottle while wearing the pack. Alpineguide A cycling water bottle, however, works Volume: 85L (medium tested, also available in well, and with the well thought out small, large and extra-large sizes) Suspension Design: Two internal aluminum water bladder holder option, the water bottle holder might never be an issue. stays, frame sheet and stabilization hoop Back Padding: Full length contour foam with air channels Access: Top/panel loader Dana Designs Features: Internal map holder, internal water bladder holder, two mesh water bottle holders, Glacier Volume: 85L (size medium harness tested, also available in short and long) Suspension Design: Internal aluminum stay, frame sheet and two fibreglass rods. shock cord and ice axe loops Weight: 2.8 kg Price: $295.00 Available at: MEC Pack’s motto: If simplicity is your mantra, I am your pack. Back Padding: Full-length mesh Access: Top/sleeping bag loader and two large pockets BURNABY, BRITISH COLUMBIA is Features: Detachable fanny pack lid that uses the pack’s hip belt, two mesh water bottle holders, daisy chain and ice axe loops Serratus’s headquarters and as a result, they design gear to handle the gamut of Weight: 2.6 kg Price: $459.99 terrain that is BC. These packs are built Available at: Bushtukah Pack’s motto: Thru-hikers delight for places with an abundance of snow and high altitude passes. The overall weight is

DANA GLEASON IS an innovator low, and the pack’s frame is stout with litwho has pioneered pack technology with tle in the way of torso length adjustments. such features as frame sheets and movBut don’t let that scare you off before tryable sternum straps, features that other ing it to see if it fits properly. The pack manufacturers quickly adopt. Another sports a thermo-moulded hip belt that is feature other pack makers borrow is the narrow but shallowly sculpted to snugly adjustability of Dana’s packs. When you fit over the hipbones and has a comfortfactor in the range of interchangeable able contoured shoulder harness. The hip belts and shoulder harness sizes, you pack’s load is transferred to the shoulders receive a custom tailored pack before and hips with a combination of internal leaving the store. The contoured hip belt stays, frame sheet and Delrin hoop, cradles the hips quite nicely and the enabling the wearer to easily carry their shoulder pads are comfortable, supportultra-light gadgetry. ive, and independently vertically and In the land of ice and snow, zippers horizontally adjustable. The suspension may freeze either open or shut and that is design is wonderful and provides for why there is no separate sleeping bag great shock absorbing capacity, provided compartment or external pocket. What is that the load does not exceed 20 kgs. left is a lightweight basic pack with a

This very lightweight pack will make back panel that sheds snow and rain those long uphill hikes seem a touch well, and leaves little chance of failure easier. While out on the trail, accessing on the trail. the water bottles is a snap and, should Quibbles you need some trail food, the rear testQuite simply, if this pack does not fit tube shaped pockets can hold containers immediately, it is not an option. If it does very conveniently. fit, it can be a great hassle-free pack. Quibbles Lowe Alpine

Whatever you do, do not lend the pack to a friend! When it comes back you will Sirocco II/Contour III (Women’s/Men’s) wear your knuckles bare on Velcro, tryVolume: 70L (size medium tested, also available in short and long and women’s short, medium and long) ing to get it how you had it before it was re-adjusted. Suspension Design: Two internal aluminum stays Back Padding: Full length mesh Access: Top/sleeping bag loader Features: Detachable fanny pack lid, two water bottle holders, internal water bladder holder, platypus type bladder, daisy chain and ice axe loops. SO YOU NEED A PACK? GREG LOWE’S 35-year adventure gear development experience can be simWeight: 2.7 kg Price: $324.99 Available at: Trailhead Pack’s motto: Minimalists will relish me HEAD OVER TO ANY ply defined as wisdom acquired. His OF THESE LOCAL OUTDOOR GEAR STORES AND THEIR packs have all the features needed, nothing more, nothing less. Suspension design FRIENDLY STAFF WILL BE ABLE TO SET YOU UP WITH ALL THE is simple, and as with most two-stay designed packs, welcomes off-trail hiking SUMMER GEAR YOU’LL NEED!

and will quite easily handle most loads. The mesh lumbar support found on this pack hugs your lower lumbar region quite well and allows the user to haul gear more comfortably. If you need to share the carrying duties with a friend, the torso length adjustment is quick and easy.

The water bottle pockets hold Nalgene bottles really well and are angled in such a manner that the pack almost assists in passing you the bottle. The ease in hydration is further complemented by the inclusion of a waterspout hole for the water bladder. Quibbles

The zippered sleeping bag divider may be a bit of a pain to initiate but does a superb job of isolating the sleeping pack portion, and virtually no gear will slide down.

Vaude Terkum 75 Volume: 75L Suspension Design: Injection moulded nylon frame Back Padding: Full-length mesh Access: Top/panel/sleeping bag loading with two side pockets Features: Two water bottle holders, built-in storable rain cover, internal water bladder holder, daisy chain and ice axe loops Weight: 2.9 Kg Price: $ 269.99 Available at: Bushtukah Pack’s motto: For frugal backpackers who demand features

WHAT HAS GERMANY ever given us? The international brewing standard, penned in the form of the beer purity law of 1516, was a start. This terrific affordable pack can be added to the list. The shoulder harness is quite comfy owing to great shock absorbing foam, and torso length and shoulder width adjustment. Out on the trail, the pack allows for a range of motion that is somewhere between a two-stay and a two-stay/frame sheet pack. With the wide belt, and despite the lack of bendable stays, one can pack a reasonable load for surprisingly little cash.

The gear inside the pack can be accessed from a back pocket through a drawstring-type opening that is useful in late morning for storing your jacket. If it rains, you may want to use the built in rain-cover to keep your stuff dry. Quibbles

There is very little to quibble about, considering the reasonable cost of this pack. If you don’t use a water bladder you will need to purchase carabiners to affix Nalgene bottles to the pack, since the bottle pockets are too short to securely hold them.