Which lightweight pack ?

If you must dress the same then that’s a class act. Especially for a woman who likes a hand knitted jumper and will cycle to literally the end of the earth to get one. :rolleyes:

Such hypocrisy, honestly.

I'm only commissioning a Galician jumper for myself sweetie :rolleyes:

I'm not carrying two back. :eek:

Class act, or no.. :bag:
 

cathyjc

Thru Hiker
I'm 5'4" (or there abouts) with longish legs which means a back length at the short end of the scale.
I spent years carrying packs with too long a back length - and being very very uncomfortable.
Get your back measured and find a pack the correct length. Don't compromise on this.
My experience is that adjustable packs are never going to be short enough - "One size fits all" usually means "one size fits no one".

Like @Mole I dislike the "trampoline" style mesh back arrangements - pulls the weight away from you = not good for balance.

After comfort - the number of pockets, size etc. are much less important. Bit like footwear then :D.
 
Coincidentally, I also have a Talon 44 but it has yet to be used. It will go out on our next trip. I'm interested in the way it will carry a water bladder between the pack and your back. If it works, this will be very useful for us. I suspect that the back won't be as cool as on the Exos, though.
Never used the water bladder pocket. Not a bladder person. Your suspicion is correct William, tho' it is certainly cooler than fabric straight on the back.:thumbsup::thumbsup:
Getting your bottle into the pocket is quite easy, if that is the reason you would use the bladder holder. Nearly as easy as an Exos.
 

Dave V

Moderator
Staff member
Never used the water bladder pocket. Not a bladder person. Your suspicion is correct William, tho' it is certainly cooler than fabric straight on the back.:thumbsup::thumbsup:
Getting your bottle into the pocket is quite easy, if that is the reason you would use the bladder holder. Nearly as easy as an Exos.

I used the bladder pocket for my map or waterproof jacket on my Talon 33.

That's one bit of gear I on and off regret selling. It was a good sturdy, light grab bag for many occasions, not just hiking.

The only issue was that fully extended, the back was only just long enough M/L for my frame.
 

TinTin

Thru Hiker
I've not gone ultra lightweight but you can get reasonably lightweight packs, that are really good in other ways, without breaking the bank. I have Exped Lightning 60 which I like a lot, 1120g, I paid around £120 for it. It has very adjustable back length function. If you have a sticky out spine and rounded back it might not suit though. I find the load is transferred very nicely to my pelvis by the waist belt and although the shoulder straps are not heavily padded I don't have any issues with these. I'm often carrying 12kgs on 15 to 20 mile days.

T'wife has an Osprey Eja 48 (1170g) that I spotted on their second chance website that came in at £62 delivered. You sometimes see amazing bargains on there - Osprey Second Life
 

WilliamC

Thru Hiker
Never used the water bladder pocket. Not a bladder person. Your suspicion is correct William, tho' it is certainly cooler than fabric straight on the back.:thumbsup::thumbsup:
Getting your bottle into the pocket is quite easy, if that is the reason you would use the bladder holder. Nearly as easy as an Exos.
I don't use a bladder as part of a hydration system, either, just as a collapsible water bottle. I'm quite happy to stop and have a rest when I want a drink. But often we have to carry a lot of water and I thought the option of one slipped in close to the back seemed a good way to carry it. In practice, a full 1.5 litre bladder pushed against the back too much to be comfortable this weekend. It wasn't so bad with only a litre in it.
 

ZenTrekker

Section Hiker
I don't use a bladder as part of a hydration system, either, just as a collapsible water bottle. I'm quite happy to stop and have a rest when I want a drink. But often we have to carry a lot of water and I thought the option of one slipped in close to the back seemed a good way to carry it. In practice, a full 1.5 litre bladder pushed against the back too much to be comfortable this weekend. It wasn't so bad with only a litre in it.
After becoming badly dehydrated while waling across the Carneddu some years ago, I became a convert to water bladders. Each to his/her own
 

TinTin

Thru Hiker
If you're going to buy a pack made for a fixed torso/back length I would recommend going and trying some on. One of the reasons I went for the Exped Lightning 60 was the fact that it is very adjustable and that increased the odds of me being able to make it fit me correctly.
 
I don't use a bladder as part of a hydration system, either, just as a collapsible water bottle. I'm quite happy to stop and have a rest when I want a drink. But often we have to carry a lot of water and I thought the option of one slipped in close to the back seemed a good way to carry it. In practice, a full 1.5 litre bladder pushed against the back too much to be comfortable this weekend. It wasn't so bad with only a litre in it.
Almost always drink while walking-200 mls on the half hour, so reachable bottle pockets are an absolute necessity for me.
Sounds like you might be in a dry climate as I am. All I seem to be doing is looking for water.
 

Enzo

Thru Hiker
Side water bottle holders are a slight saw point for me on many packs. I might be unflexible but I find many hard to get a big bottle out of and many not well sized. Part of the impetus to myog packs.
After a half dozen different iterations I'm happy. For me I find they need to be as low as possible, so my packs hang as low as I can make comfortable. A cm lower and they'd interfere with walking.
 
Side water bottle holders are a slight saw point for me on many packs. I might be unflexible but I find many hard to get a big bottle out of and many not well sized.
Yes, same here. Both my current sacks have (and must have) excellent on the go access. Must keep regularly hydrated and bladders involve too much stuffing around for my liking-tho' on my daypack a 10 Litre jobby, the bladder works well.
 

Dave V

Moderator
Staff member
Yes, same here. Both my current sacks have (and must have) excellent on the go access. Must keep regularly hydrated and bladders involve too much stuffing around for my liking-tho' on my daypack a 10 Litre jobby, the bladder works well.

I normally have 1 sometimes 2 600ml smart water bottles on my shoulder straps. I can see exactly how much water I have left without reaching or stretching.

I can also reach the side pockets on both my MLD packs but have struggled in the past with some.

On my Exodus I can grab and stow a 850ml smart water bottle with ease, I have also been able to grab my map and others things and put it back from the side pockets.
 

Baldy

Thru Hiker
Same here for the shoulder strap holders. Doesn't have to be a big bottle just refill when you have a stop.
 

Enzo

Thru Hiker
My preference for bottles is mainly so I know exactly how much I have left, and so i can use my sewyor, that and my current bladder tastes like drinking bleach. Should get a better bladder for when I go for a bit of a fast pack and use my laser 20.
 

Alf Outdoors

F.K.A tarptent
Not sure what you decided to get as this thread is over a year old now. One of the most important priorities for me when choosing a rucksack/backpack is whether it is waterproof or not. I don't want to have to carry the extra weight of an ugly waterproof cover, and in any case, rain covers don't allow you to go swimming with your pack on...So the main compartment of the pack that I chose is 100% waterproof, and yes, you can go swimming with it, whilst keeping everything inside bone dry!

External daisy chain webbing is another must have for me. Mine has two vertical daisiy chains, conclealed behind a flap on the corners, that allows me to tie anything that isn't going to be affected by exposure to water, securely on the outside of my pack. This means I can also use a smaller pack.

The weight was also important, but it was actually last thing on my priority list as what was more important was that it should be in a low viz colour scheme that would suit wild camping.

What clinched it for me was a video I found on youtube showing someone putting a live laptop into his backpack, rolling the top down, clipping it up, putting it on, and then falling backwards into a canal in Holland! He swam around for a bit, then came back onto dry land, opened the pack, took out a dry towel from inside which he used to dry his face, and then he took the laptop out and showed it to the camera, working as normal with not a drop of water on it!

The pack was a Mountain Hardware Scrambler RT35 Outdry. His was bright orange, which is obviously no good for wild camping, but I got mine in "Darklands" colour scheme, a sort of drab olive/dark sand colour, which is perfect for wild camping.

It weighs 785g empty, so not ultralight, but not that heavy either.

I am 6'1" and I find it extremely comfortable to carry, even when carrying over 10kg in it (used to go out with a pack weight of 11.5kg at times, but don't worry, I have got it down a lot since then) ...I actually forget I am wearing it!

It is made from really hard wearing material, and despite being used on numerous wild camping trips it still looks like new. I liked it so much I bought another one for my Son. My first one cost me £95...But the second cost me 85 Euros or about £70.

Alas, they have now been discontinued and replaced with a Mark ll version, that looks completely different, and that is not waterproof anymore.
This is what is looks like: https://flic.kr/p/2jc4TQQ and here is mine, packed and ready to go:https://flic.kr/p/2jc2di4 And here is video that clinched it for me:

 
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