America’s Best Backpacking and Outdoor Adventures
Snow Pack
Exped Glissade 35
$229, 35L/2,136 c.i., 3 lbs. 2 oz.
One size
exped.com
Making a pack for backcountry skiing, snowboarding, or snowshoeing day trips that’s lighter than most competitors is difficult to pull off without sacrificing support or features. But several days of backcountry skiing with the streamlined Glissade 35 in Idaho’s Boise Mountains and Galena Summit area convinced me that it makes few sacrifices while delivering all you’d want in a snow pack.
Backcountry Skiing/Riding Pack
Gregory Targhee 45L
$199, 4 lbs. (medium)
Sizes: S-L in 45L/2,746 c.i. and 32L/1,953 c.i. versions (fit torsos from 16-22 inches); one size in 26L/1,587 c.i. and 18L/1,098 c.i. versions
backcountry.com
For a multi-day backcountry skiing, riding, or snowshoeing trip to a hut or yurt, you need a pack with a split personality: It has to be big enough to fit all the food and gear you need for at least four days, yet morph into a smaller pack when you fill it only partially for day tours. The new Targhee 45L assumed both personalities convincingly on a four-day, backcountry skiing trip to the Baldy Knoll yurt in Wyoming’s Tetons, thanks to superior stability and a highly versatile design.
Ski and Snowboard Pack
Sierra Designs Ymir 55
$190, 55 L/3,300 c.i., 4 lbs. 4 oz. (S/M)
Sizes: S/M and M/L (60L/3,600 c.i., 4 lbs. 9 oz.)
sierradesigns.com
Finding an all-purpose backcountry skiing and snowboarding pack that excels at full-day tours and multi-day trips is a tall order. But after carrying the Ymir 55 with up to 35 pounds on a four-day backcountry ski trip to a yurt in Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains—including skiing downhill with the pack partially loaded—I think it’s possibly the most comfortable, versatile, and well-organized, big ski pack I’ve used.