20 Best Backpack For Travel And Hiking (2022 Updated)

I just got back from 9 days in Thailand and needed a bag that would hold everything PLUS be carry-on approved. This bag held everything down tight and I had my laptop inside the computer compartment.

Loved all the extras you don’t notice until you get the bag. Security features are awesome and I wonder who thought of them because they rock. This bag is has super clean lines when everything is cinched down and made it super easy putting in overhead plane bins, bus bins, on ferry’s and carrying on my back when riding a moped.

The ability to hide the waist straps is really good. When traveling I saw so many other travelers with waist straps that just hang free. Why is this an issue? When stopping at bathrooms, for example, they put their bags on the floor and the straps are resting on really gross bathroom floors; in Thailand some of the toilets are just holes in the floor and a bucket of water to “flush.

” My bag straps where neatly tucked away. The top hard case is such an amazing feature and the hidden water bottle compartment. My girlfriend had a similar Northface bag and she keeps bugging me to buy her one of these.

Only thing I would change is something I read in another persons review; I’d change the orientation of the top hard safety compartment’s zipper. When the bag is laying flat, say on a bed, and the straps for the bag are on the bottom side, if one opens the hard case anything loose will fall out.

It’s not a big issue at all though. I also bought travel cubes and that made a huge difference. Twice I was stopped by TSA and they searched my bag; travel cubes made it SO easy to put everything back and get on my way! Long story short, do not hesitate to purchase this bag! I never leave reviews but felt this bag deserved it.

I am a minimalist and after some research in the 40L/carry on backpack category decided to try the landmark. The good news is that the bag does a good job on the main areas. The main compartment is big and deep, organization is minimal and other features are well built: For instance the straps can be hidden but without having the big, cover and zipper that other bags have.

Also, the bag does not have a real frame, which makes it lighter, but still holds together very well. However I ended up returning it. The safe compartment did not work for me. It’s too small and can not carry everything I need handy on a long trip.

Also, very annoyingly, it opens forwards, to the other side than the main zipper, so everytime you want to access it you need to finish packing, or at least close the main compartment if you don’t want things to fall.

To prevent some of that, the safe compartment has a net and a zipper that just makes it harder to use. Also while I like the design I found the front is crested and does not look as great as it could, in fact the pack looks funny if it’s not completely full.

I bought this bag for my trip to india and I wanted to keep both carryon and personal item on my back because I have a baby strapped on my front. The amount of stuff you can carry in this pack is just amazing.

The little pack will fit two full size nalgene water bottles on sides. It also has. proper laptop sleeve. This bag is super packable. Larger bag pack on the top , i kept like 4 sunglasses without cover.

They were well protected. reatbackpack for life.

I did lots of research and chose this pack for the capacity and the fact that it is sized for women with smaller torsos and narrower shoulders than the average man. I like all of these things and the pack is very comfy in those regards.

We are going to Patagonia and also on an Antarctica cruise. I will have high quality heavy camera gear so I bought this pack so I can trek around Patagonia or go see penguins on the ice with all my gear.

However I am amazed and disappointed that the waist straps are so short, that they won’t reach if I have some warmer clothing layers or a parka on. I will need warm clothes where i am going. I can only do the waist strap up with summer clothes and a light jacket.

I am not skinny but not particularly fat either and rather petit. These straps were not a fluke as we checked others in the store. I reached out to Osprey with the “Almighty Warranty” (NOT) and they are not shipping to Canada at this time or doing warranty work (WHAT??) So it was on my time and my dime to try and cobble up some longer straps for a $200+ dollar back pack.

So unless you never plan to go where you need some layered clothes and a warm jacket, or are as skinny as a rake, beware of those waist straps. Very disappointed in this as the cost to make them a couple inches longer would be minimal or non existent and it wouldn’t affect the function of the pack at all if they were pulled tighter on a person.

I paid a premium for this back pack and it has a major fixable flaw in the design.

I bought this bag back in 2017, meaning I’ve been using it for the past 5 years. Granted, during quarantine I was not using it at all, but I’ve brought this bag on 4 week long backpacking trips around the UK, a 2 week trip to Japan and just week trips to Mexico, everywhere.

I love the detachable day pack, such a great detail about this bag tbh. I’ve never checked in bag since buying this one. The main bag fits perfectly in the overhead bins and I’ve never been stopped by any of the workers for it being too big.

The day pack acts as my personal item and I board easily. I was only stopped once when coming back from Mexico for not being allowed to have 2 bags so I simply put the stuff in the day pack into the main bag and attached it.

The workers were definitely not happy lol because they wanted that money, but the looks on their faces was hilarious because they were not expecting that. All this to say, this bag is a great investment if you travel a lot and don’t check in bags.

Originally, I was between this and the duffel because I wasn’t sure if this was allowed as a carry on but I’m glad I went with this because there’s more space and walking around for hours with a backpack is a lot more comfortable than walking around with a duffel.

Also, the zipper on the front of the main bag that allows for you to view everything inside is great. No more digging around backpacks and dumping everything out.

My son is a Cub Scout and I am a Scout Leader. This review is written to show how this back pack is fantastic for both of those roles:Cub Scout: Lightweight, washable, durable, place for WATER, has a WHISTLE attached, has a small pocket at the top where we keep our FIRST AID KITS, the front pocket at the bottom is great for our FLASHLIGHT and SNACK, theres a nifty little loop on the strap for his HAT and other pockets to house SUN SCREEN and bug spray, and a Scout hand book goes very well in the inside pocket on the main section of the bad.

If you are involved in Scouting, you will notice that the 6 essentials are in all caps and where we like to store them. You will also appreciate the built in whistle since the Scouts love to drive us nuts with them, but tend to not be able to reach them while hiking.

Cub Leader: I use mine for all those things and am able to fit a few binders, notebooks, extra Adventure loop supplies, random office supplies and so much more. I can even fit a spare pair of shoes flat in the bottom with all those things on top and because the pack empty is so very light, all the added stuff is still pretty light! Its perfect for everything Ive needed to do with my Scouts.

Extra Mentions: It has some reflective spots on it which are easily caught by my flashlight when hiking at dusk or back to our tent or car when its dark. Id love more reflective on it, but the amount it has already works great.

The ability to cinch the pack down on both sides makes it a lot easier to make sure Im not shaking all my books up and throwing out my back. I also put a laptop in it and like that my books are secure enough to not constantly smack into it.

:Sizing for different size humans:My four year old is kind of petite, but everything sized all the way down fits her well. The bag with a couple things in it will hang down by the back of her thighs, but does not reach her knees so she can still hike with it.

My husband is 62 with an average build and it fits him w.

I had this backpack for three years two years of moderate use and one year of regular hiking and it is still holding strong. I initially came back to the page because I thought it was breaking, but as many comment, the water resistant lining will melt in hot environments.

Short of that, which wasnt great for a heavy rain storm anyway, there is only minor fraying which appears above the stitching anyway. The only other flaw is the zipper gets stuck in one of the flaps, but really you just need to hold the flap out of the way.

Considering how thin it is, im surprised it is still holding up. I believe this is the second longest backpack Ive had with all the others being much thicker and bulkier though others got more constant use.

The closest in compactness I had was a cheap backpack from walmart. It did not fold like this one and only lasted a year–maybedouble the regular use I give this one. For a foldable backpack I would repurchase this one should mine break sometime in the future.

Others Ive seen do seem to fold down more, but it looks to be at the cost of the shoulder straps. At that point I think I would just get a drawstring pack. This one has quite nice straps, which actually makes up most of the bulk.

Once folded, however, it can quite easily squish down further than it seems.

This went on a hike with us for the first time last weekend. It was plenty big for extra bottles of water, some snacks, phones, some band-aids just in case, with lots of room for extra sweatshirts and wind breakers.

It isnt big enough for overnight supplies, but perfect for 2 people on a day hike. The fabric is incredibly light weight so it doesnt add hardly anything to the weight of your supplies. Plenty of pockets to keep stuff organized.

The straps are just padded enough to make it comfortable without adding bulk, and lots of adjustability to fit most any adult. We switched off because carrying any pack will hold heat on your back, but this one doesnt have any foam to hold additional heat.

The stitching and seams seem to be well constructed, but if we run into an issue, Ill come back and edit this review.

The 2022 Paragon 68 has some nice features: (1) The suspension is very comfortable and does a good job of transferring weight to my hips. (2) The suspension is easily adjustable to fit my body. (3) The pack weighs only 3 3/4 lbs (MD/LG size), which is light for a pack with such a nice suspension.

I bought it for these reasons. Surprisingly, the pack itself is not well executed (in my opinion) for these reasons: (A) The zipper on bottom compartment goes around two curves that make it quite hard to zip.

Sometimes I end up not using the zipper and filling this compartment from the top, which makes the zipper extraneous weight and expense. (B) The side pockets are impressive when the pack is empty. But when the pack is full, the side pockets are too tight; it’s quite difficult to get anything into or out of them.

C’mon, Gregory! (C) The pack has no daisy chains and only a few tie points, and they’re not in the right place for my needs. My wife sewed on a tiny new tie point for my hard hat. (D) There are two tie points on the lid.

These are not useful for me unless there are four, like most packs. I understand saving weight but not losing functionality. (E) The ice-axe attachment point is just 8″ higher than where the ice-axe loop is sewn.

It looks like this span is not nearly long enough to prevent my ice axe from flopping around dangerously. This winter, I’ll have to find another place to attach it. (F) I wish the front mesh pocket were bigger.

Mesh pockets are great for wet items but only if they fit. (G) The lid has a lot of extra fabric. I wonder why. (H) With all that fabric, I wish the lid pocket were a bit bigger. (I) The side zipper is not useful to me (and is hard to operate when the pack is full) and is therefore extra weight and expense.

But I understand that we all use packs differently; I assume many folks use this zipper. (J) The pack’s circumference comfortably holds my BV 500, lying on its side. Oddly, the pack seems to taper down toward the top, so I can only put the BV 500 into the pack vertically, and then turn it onto its side.

This is a minor nuisance. (K) There are two toggles inside the pack that appear to be a vestige from previous Paragon models that included a lightweight daypack. The daypack hung on those two toggles and doubled as a water bladder holder.

The current Paragon model does not have a daypack; and does have a separate sewn-in pouch to hold a water bladder. I don’t yet know the remaining purpose for those inside toggles. An extra expense? (L) It’s good that Gregory included two straps at the bottom to hold extra gear.

These straps can hold my sleeping pad but not two things — e. g. , sleeping pad plus tarp. It would be nice if these straps were a couple of inches longer. (M) The rain cover is too small and doesn’t cover a fully loaded pack.

The rain cover has a strap that is supposed to clip around the back of the pack, but this strap doesn’t reach if the pack is loaded. Really? And, though Gregory included those nice straps at the bottom of the pack for extra gear, if you strap anything on, the rain cover won’t go over it at all.

(N) The body of the pack is made with various small pieces of fabric all sewn together, which means more seams and more expense. I can’t tell whether this serves a purpose. Overall, I love the suspension and the weight.

I wish the folks at Gregory had cured the minor annoyances, especially the dirth of tie points, too-tight side pockets, and too-small rain cover.

This is my second Paragon 58. My older one was a little worn and I am always on the lookout for updated features in any newer model. I’ve had many, many backpacks over the years from a variety of other manufactures, styles, etc.

The Paragon seems to continue to be the most comfortable. Achieving comfort for me is difficult as I have little in the way of hips/butt to support the pack as it should. My current model does nonetheless stay pretty much up where it should be and does not want to overly slide down where it shouldn’t be.

That does require that I keep to torso adjustment on the shorter side and the shoulder straps snug, but this does not seem to be producing any undo discomfort; just the normal feel of a pack on your back.

Downsides: The left side water bottle pocket is difficult to access, a common problem with just about every other pack out there. I solve this problem by attaching an auxiliary sleeve positioned for an easier reach.

Works just fine. Give it a consideration. As other reviewers have noted, the load lifters are impossible to adjust on the fly. They are hidden and made immovable by the tight top pack that fits over it and covers the load lifter straps.

My solution: I’ve dropped the top back back down and off the load lifters entirely. Now, I can loosen or tighten the lifters on the fly with ease. The top back now hanging down “behind my neck” is secure and unnoticeable to me.

Does not affect access to the mesh storage pocket beneath it. Overall, a pretty decent pack.

I bought this pack for a two week thru-hike in the UK. I chose this pack for its ability carry 30+ lbs/14+kg, lightweight construction and the design of the carrying system. I’ve used it for approximately 20 days so far.

The pros: This pack fits so well! I’m 5’6” and ordered the S/M. As other reviewer‘s have said everything is adjustable on this pack – the hip belt and torso length especially! This pack has great external pockets (fits 1L Nalgene on each side) and spacious hip belt pocket ( I could fit my phone and three days worth of snacks inside!!).

Once it’s on, the load transfer is amazing – carries the load well onto the hips and back! I thought the sunglasses strap on the shoulder harness would be gimmick-y, but not at all! Very secure and easy way to store glasses on the move.

There is little ventilation between the pack and hikers spine, but I liked that the load of my bag sat very close to my body, I think helping load transfer. Temps were never above 20C/70F, so this was never an issue.

The bags dimensions are perfect! It’s not too wide or too tall when carrying and inside is a uniform cylinder- making it easy to pack efficiently (no tapering to work around). The cons: The rain cover is a little small! Even with my bag 80-90% full, the rain cover either left the top or bottom exposed.

In persistent rain, it also let some water through. Lining the inside with a garbage bag was necessary.

I have been trying to travel lighter and lighter with the aim of going down to one backpack, plus a small sling bag for a 1 to 2 week trip. I wanted a bag that could also be used as carry on. I also wanted to have the option of packing my laptop.

I watched a number of videos on YouTube looking at various travel backpacks. As a result, there were a couple Osprey backpacks that made it to the short list, along with a couple of others. In the end, I decided on the Porter 46 because it can be used as a carry-on, when not over packed.

It has a laptop sleeve ( amuse have) close to the back of the pack and better for load distribution. It is also a clam shell design which was also a feature I wanted to enable efficient packing. The back straps are good, although the side straps were not as well designed as other Osprey packs.

Nonetheless, they’re functional. The stowage of the straps could be better, but adequate. A loaded pack was comfortable for moving around town and airports. You can easily pack two changes of clothes, as well as travel items (power adapters, GPS, toiletries etc.

) without overloading the pack. The outer straps allow for reefing the bag up to enable you to meet the more severe carry on limits. The pleasant surprise was the fact that the bag had a neutral greyish material for the interior, as version of the Osprey candidate bags shown on the YouTube vidoes used a bright yellow/green interior material that was almost a deal breaker for me.

I have traveled by train and plane with this bag and it has more than met my needs and expectations. I hope that its durability will match its flexible design and many features. Time and travel will tell.

I have yet to find my ideal backpack, but this one has many of the features that I would include in the design.

Bought this to go for 18 days in France. My wife and I decided to forgo checked baggage and only do carryon. With her carrying a smaller backpack. one small roller case and this we managed it, including 2 “dress-up” occasions.

Packed up, this was about 17 lbs and definitely workable on my back. I was able to cinch it down to fit into the overhead plane compartments. We moved accommodation 4 times, were on 4 planes, 2 cars, and two trains and this Osprey worked great every time.

I used some MEC packing cubes inside, used the “Ranger Rolling” method of packing, and loved the two duffel handles for lifting and carrying it when needed. I know this will now be my luggage for all international travel.

By the way, I am 76 and my wife is 75 and we did our form of “backpacking Europe” thanks to this Osprey bag!.

I bought this pack after retiring a smaller water proof back pack. I never check bags and when we travel as family we all take carry on back packs. I bought this prior to a trip to Big Sur. It easily accommodated a weeks worth of (lightly packed) cloths, my laptop and accessories and could even roll my coat in the back.

I like the various storage compartments and separators to store stuff. It has a sturdy waste band as well as chest band. Very comfortable and tough quality. I am hoping this will last as long as my previous pack without any failure to fasteners and zippers.

So far so good.

I wanted to love this pack, I travel for business and my wife has a pack with a detachable day pack. I, being the habitual 1up’r, wanted one with a little more room and a more comfortable day pack. On paper this pack was the one.

In real life it was not. The day pack was good. But the ergonomics of the straps and the ability to access things was horrific. When trying to fully access the pack you must always detach various clips, no matter if it is fully together or just the day pack alone.

I will say that it seems to be well made and I would speculate it is durable, I will never know. The frustration with this pack is in-excusable, stay away, dont give it a chance. If you do, order something else along with it.

I ended up with a Thule Landmark and love it.

The backpack is very well designed, the place of the pockets and the zippers are very convenient. It’s a good backpack if you’re not going to fill it to maximum capacity. The only flaw is that it’s a bit heavy to carry when attaching the two bags together on your back.

So if you don’t put too many stuff in both bags, it won’t look too big to carry on your back. But like that maybe some other 65l bags may be more spacious. Otherwise, if you really stuff both bags, you’ll have to carry them separately.

Amd the strap for the bag to carry on your shoulder is not very comfortable.

but it’s not well-executed. I bought this bag for an extended-duration, multi-flight work trip. This trip required me to pack two large checked bags, have a day pack while there, and pack enough stuff in my carry-on to be able to report to duty if my luggage was delayed.

In theory, the Ozone Duplex was the perfect bag- hands-free for handling luggage, small enough daypack to be manageable at work, and big enough carry-on for boots, a full change of clothes, and all my toiletries, meds, etc.

However, once it was fully-loaded, some critical flaws exposed themselves. The good: Hands-free through multiple airports; Durable and high quality- it still looks new, 10,000 miles later. The bad: -The frame necessary to carry both the backpack and carry-on means that the backpack isn’t very “squishable” under plane seats, no matter how empty it is.

-Access to the main compartment of the backpack is on the back, adjacent to the straps. The load lifters have to be disconnected every time you access the main compartment. -The shape of the backpack that is necessary to accomodate the carry-on means that it packs oddly and things tend to sink to the bottom.

The main compartment needs to be opened halfway or better to access the contents, making them prone to spilling -When connected, the weight is far away from your core, making it feel heavier than it is.

-Attaching the carry-on is about impossible if the backpack is full. The bulk of the backpack volume is near the bottom, which only exacerbates the problem. In hindsight, I should have bought a Fairview 40 and packed a small backpack (think REI Flash 18) inside it or inside my checked bag.

Quite a bit cheaper and less hassle. I appreciate that Osprey’s designers have tackled this travel challenge, but this is the first Osprey product to disappoint me. REI, can I return it?.

I bought this pack because I wanted a smallish day pack that still had reasonable storage for gear and food/drinks. I am 6 foot, 200# for reference. I also like the women’s colors better than the men’s (manufacturers take note!).

I ordered a men’s (Techno color) AND a women’s (Shadow moon) SCREE 32 to compare the fit. The only real difference I could see is the cut of the women’s shoulder harnesses (slightly curvier). I did notice when adjusted for height and chest width, the men’s straps slid more easily on/off my shoulders without having to change the length.

With the women’s pack I had to loosen the shoulder straps a little to get it on/off comfortably (minimal shoulder “squirming”). I actually section hiked the Appalachian Trail with a friend who loaned me a tent, sleeping pad and pillow.

Although the tent didn’t fit inside the pack, (we bungee corded it to the bottom exterior), the pillow and pad did. What I’m saying is it CAN be used for a single overnight stay in a pinch. This is a great pack for day hikes.

I love the way it “flays” open and kind of looks like an alien egg when loading it. The cinch straps are effective and it has 2 medium stuff pockets inside. The zippers are nicely rubberized to protect from rain entry, and the brain has 2 small pockets for quick access items.

Just enough tie-downs / compression straps as needed. Two external stretch mesh pockets perfectly fit Smart water bottles. The internal pocket for a hydro bladder is very tall and thin so there is no way you could substitute this pack as a laptop bag.

One of the best features is they added anchor points on both ends of all zippers so when you pull a zipper in one direction you hold the anchor at the other end for easier pulls. If the anchors weren’t there, pulling a zip would simply distort the bag and take longer to accomplish.

This pack is extremely well made, durable and lightweight. My only qualms are that the brain itself is heavy so if you don’t pack enough things in the main compartment, the pack looks like it’s collapsing under the strain.

Otherwise, great, if slightly unconventional design for opening. But I like to be different!.

I got this pack for a week long trip to DC and Virginia. We flew in and spent the day in the city with all our luggage. I was looking for a carryon pack that would be comfortable to walk around with for a day in the city, big enough for a week long trip but smaller than my backpacking pack.

This pack was perfect. It fit a large and med packing cube, toiletries, laptop, book, chacos, rain coat and water bottle perfectly. I had to pack pretty light but for a summer trip that was no problem.

When we boarded the plane all the overhead bins were full and I was able to squeeze it under the seat in front of me. It stuck out quite a bit and I bet if a flight attendant had noticed it they would have made me put it overhead.

The harness system was super comfortable and I was happy to be carrying it all day long. I am 5ft 5in, 150 lbs and I bought the M/L, the S/M probably would be better for me (straps are cinched almost all the way and the tails are very long) but I opted for the larger size so my boyfriend can also use it.

I really liked the accesibility of the zipper design, and all the pockets are well placed. I cant wait to use this pack for future day hikes, overnights, and who knows!.

I researched about a dozen backpacks between 24-36L for my upcoming day hiking adventures. Between YouTube, online journals and customer reviews I narrowed my list down to the Mystery Ranch Scree 32L and I couldn’t be happier with my decision.

I’m a big fan of the three zipper system to fillet the storage so that I have easy access to the bottom of the pack without emptying from the top down. The side pouches expand to hold additional gear or water bottles.

The interior side pouches aid with organization. I place emergency items (first aid and fire starting) in the right interior pouch and food, snacks, Sawyer Squeeze in the left pouch. The height adjustments help dial in the shoulder and waist straps for a comfortable carry.

The waist strap storage are conveniently located for grab and go items (sunscreen, lip balm, sanitizer, snacks etc. ). This is a well thought out and designed pack that continues to get me to and from my destinations.

Haven’t been able to take it back country camping yet but I did backpack through Morocco with it. Never any long distances but it was easy to organize everything in the bag. I appreciate all the different compartments and pockets available.

I tried on many different bags in store at MEC and this was the bag I settled on. It’s not everything I wanted but it was my best option at the time for what I needed. I was ultimately debating between the Gregory Deva and the Osprey Aura My one thing was that when it was packed entirely full, the top part of the bag felt like I couldn’t fully stand up right because it would hit the back of my head thus forcing me into an anterior pelvic tilt (aka I felt like I had to arch my back a bit).

When the bag wasn’t entirely full, it was perfectly fine. Also, this version of the bag that is sold here I believe is the newer version of the Gregory Deva. I had purchased the bag thinking that there was a removeable lumbar support, the additional day-pack inside the bag, and the custom fit bag/rain cover as I believe the previous version of the bag had (this is what I had seen in store at MEC and when MEC didn’t have my size/colour, I bought it off Altitude thinking it was the same bag but it is not).

When I checked the official Gregory website, you can see that there are 2 Gregory Deva’s on their site — one which was on sale and one which was not at the time which lead me to believe that the one that was not on sale is the newer version which matches what you see on the Altitude site.

This was rather disappointing knowing that Gregory made a “newer” version and decided to remove all the extra add-ons which were such a huge sell for me when I was trying on bags initially. TLDR: – Great pack for organization and comfort – Fully packed bag = awkward fit, feels like if I look up I’ll hit my head against the bag which then kind of forces me into an anterior pelvic tilt – Doesn’t come with the day pack, rain cover, and adjustable/removable lumbar support like the previous version did.

I bought this pack out in Glacier National Park, because the pack I brought with me (also a Gregory) was broken. The back steel alignment piece was completely snapped in half. (WE HAVE SINCE GOTTEN IT FIXED FOR FREE, thanks REI!) The pack I brought was my sisters that I was borrowing and I have never had a comfortable experience with this pack, and I do my fair share of backpacking.

It always gave me neck pain and pulled my shoulders back. Perhaps this was due to the broken piece, along with my sister being a different size than me, but all the same I would get aches and pains after a mile with this pack….

horrible. I bought THIS pack at REI, was fitted, and loved this one. It fits snugly around the shoulders and for someone who is short with a short torso like me, it was perfect and the belt sat right above my hips.

(I am 5’2 120lbs) When I brought this pack out into Glacier, I hiked about 16 miles using it with no issue at all, it felt light and didn’t pull my body down with drag. I later used this pack back home in Michigan at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore for a trip with my dad.

Although we were doing a base camping thing with only about a three mile hike in, we were carrying a lot of weight, because we were staying in the woods for about four days. This pack compressed the weight and made the trip more pleasant than it has ever been.

Definitely recommend this pack, but also I STRONGLY reccomend going into REI and having them fit you for a pack. Everyone is different and although this pack works GREAT for me it may be a nightmare for you.

Have them fit you and see what feels good, you don’t want to be having pain from your pack when you’re out in the woods.

My main reason for getting this pack was to carry the heavy loads necessary when ice climbing. I am replacing a brand X ice-specific 75L bag which would sag under heavy load and then weight my shoulders, despite it being the largest size (I’m 6’3″ with a 20″ torso).

The Baltoro 65 is a great improvement in many ways. In the size large it is taller, so I have no problems with my shoulders getting loaded; even with 50 lb in it the pack fits and rides well. The waist suspension is wonderfully comfortable and grippy (doesn’t slip down); it and the shoulder straps articulate well, so I don’t feel awkward pulling when I am scrambling, reaching, or leaning.

The versatility is really well thought through. I am always preaching the principle of “unintended uses”, meaning well designed packs adapts to weird and unexpected uses (which I am always doing). This pack can manage anything: e.

g. many ways to carry ropes, tents, pack rafts, crampons, skis, poles, shovels, dogs, auto parts, or whatever. I was impressed that they thought to configure the compression strap buckles to allow different ways to use the compression straps, e.

g. crossing them across the pack instead of up the sides. This adds a lot of diversity and capability when carrying awkward things–shows they have really thought this pack through. When climbing and camping, I like having some degree of organization and the Baltoro has about the right amount.

It has a couple outside pockets for gloves, hats, rain gear, etc that I may want without digging them out under all my other gear; it has a couple pockets on the top lid that are nice for head lamps, cordettes, extra biners, toilet paper, or whatever.

Another thing I’ve learned to be wary of with heavy loads is the overhanging moment they present if the pack is deep (i. e. stands far off your back, torquing it backwards). This pack is tall and narrowish, which keeps the load close to you and over the waist suspension as much as possible.

This makes it much, much better when carrying heavy loads. I also like the various ways you can get into the bag. I am always needing something that is buried, and I hate having to dig for things. This bag allows you 3 ways in: top, front, bottom.

Ice climbing with all the snow around, I don’t like just dumping everything out. Often the belays are tiny stances on slopes and things have a way of rolling downhill or getting buried in soft snow. This pack allows me to lay it horizontal and open it up like a front loader to get at stuff real nicely without anything falling out.

While loading stuff back up at the end of the day it is nice to just stuff it all in from the top. Even the raincoat they give you for the pack gets used. I haven’t used it for the pack yet (thought it may see that service), but I do use it all the time to sit on in the snow.

Ice climbing, I need to put crampons on and adjust my boots, gaiters, etc, requiring me to sit down in the snow. I use this pack raincoat to sit on so that my butt does not get wet (its also a bit warmer).

I also use the little day pack they include which duals as a hydration sleeve. I use water bottles, so I don’t use this for a water bladder, but I really like it as a climbing pack. Ice climbing is cold, so on the way up a multipitch climb I need a belay jacket, water, snack, and tagline.

I can put all these things in that little pack, and it fits nice and high on my back, staying well out of the way of the harness and all the gear that is going on and off the harness while climbing.

it carry’s the weight well. the airflow back is much cooler than I expected. Way more comfortable that the padded days packs. It’s a little small, but enough for a day hike with the kids. Sun and bug spray, first aid kit, water bottles and hats fit well enough.

collapsible trekking poles fit on the out side. Water bottle pocks are great as long as you are standing. If you lean forward to scramble up a hillside, metal water bottle fall out easy. The algene bottles stay in the pockets a little better.

But no big deal,.

This is the fourth Hikelite 26 I have bought through Altitude Sports for my husband, daughters and myself. Living near the mountains near Squamish, BC the backpacks are in use regularly for day hiking as well as snowshoeing.

We recently completed a 3 weeks hiking and trekking trip to Peru and the Hikelite 26 was our everyday backpack. We could easily fit a down jacket, rain jacket, extra layer, personal belongings, snack /food and 3 litres of water.

(our main ’stuff’ was transported by horses) The included rain cover is fantastic.

At first I thought there weren’t enough pockets, but now it feels just right! Love the bright orange colour for visibility, and it holds everything I need for a day hike, with extra room. I’ve taken it on many hikes already and it’s been holding up great; even in rain it was more water-repellent than I thought it would be, so I haven’t needed to use the included pack cover at all! I think it might not work for scrambling though because if I try to look up all the way, my head hits the hard back of the backpack.

I have the Men’s version and got the Raven 10 in gray for my wife. Overall, it is a good pack with great storage, good compartments, etc. I have to agree that on mine and on this one, the magnet that holds the drinking tube is not only weak, it will not fit the 3L bladder! How is that possible? We bought a couple of 3L for longer rides and the magnet is about 1mm larger in diameter so it will not stay attached.

Lastly, mountain biking is a muddy sport and our Camelbaks cleaned up better. A moderately aggressive scrub with a damp towel got 99% of the mud off of several generations of Camelbaks. The Ospreys are harder to clean and we are just accustomed to small mud stains all over them.

I do like the Hydraulics bladder design way, way better than Camelbak design and I like the tool compartment. When it comes to these, no one brand has the total package, they are all a compromise.

Best purchase for hydration and a few supplies. The air scape is a huge asset to cooling my back and keeping the ice frozen. We were out nearly three hours hiking in the triple digits. That pack kept the water ice cold.

Please put that feature in the trail running back packs. Please!!.

I have mine in Axis Purple and it’s a beautiful color. I work in healthcare and I use it for work daily. It can hold my everyday essentials and more. I can fit a notebook, my work gear, my lunch, an extra set of clothing, and other stuff inside comfortably without being cramped nor too roomy.

It also has a padded laptop sleeve which I use to keep important documents in. I love that it has 2 outer pockets for my coffee tumbler and water bottle, and that it has a bungee to keep my sweater which was handy in the winter! I love mine and I highly recommend it!.

I bought this bag to replace a cheap Muji backpack that was hurting my shoulders and also not water resistant enough to deal with NYC weather. I usually travel around town with my laptop, notebooks, and some gym clothes.

This bag is a little bigger than I need for daily life, but it is so comfortable that it’s worth it. The plus size is that it’s big enough for an overnight trip, or even a weekend trip if you pack light.