backpack reviews

Gear Review: REI Flash 45 Backpack

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REI Flash 45
REI Flash 45

NOTE: Click here to read my review of the newer, 2017 version of the REI Flash 45 backpack.

Backpack
REI Flash 45
$129, 45L/2,745 c.i., 2 lbs. 3 oz. (men’s medium)
Sizes: medium (fits torsos 17-19 inches) and large (50L/3,051 c.i., 2 lbs. 4 oz., fits torsos 19-21 inches)
rei.com

For most backpacking trips, when I’m not carrying gear and food for my family, I pack as light as possible and walk long days: I like to see as much wilderness as I can. For those trips, I prefer a backpack that’s light but still has decent support; I find that the virtually frameless ultralight packs with minimal support pull on my shoulders too much over the course of a 10- or 12-hour day of hiking. On a recent three-day, 65-mile hike in Yosemite, carrying a max of about 25 pounds, the Flash 45 hit that nice middle ground: lightweight, yet comfortable with the amount of weight I threw into it, and very functional.

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Gear Review: Osprey Xenith 88/Xena 85 Backpacks

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Osprey Xenith 88-2
Osprey Xenith 88

Backpack
Osprey Xenith 88/Xena 85
$349, 5 lbs. 7 oz. (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s Xenith M-XL, women’s Xena XS-M; all adjustable, with custom hipbelts and harnesses in four sizes
ospreypacks.com

When loading the men’s Xenith 88 (the Xena 85 is the women’s model) with nearly 60 pounds of family gear and food for a six-day, 45-mile family hike in Sequoia National Park, I cringed, expecting my hipbones and hip flexors to protest loudly when I put it on. But the moment I shouldered the pack, I was surprised by how comfortable it felt. And it remained comfortable throughout several hours of hiking every day.

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Gear Review Update: Ribz Front Pack

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Ribz Front Pack
Ribz Front Pack

Pack
Ribz Front Pack
$60, 12.5 oz. (small)
Sizes: Small (fits waists 26-36 inches), regular (fits waists 32-46 inches)
ribzwear.com

The Ribz Front Pack won me over when I first started hiking with it more than a year ago because it keeps my DSLR, a second lens, and assorted smaller items in a readily accessible place: right in front of me. So it has replaced a bulky camera chest pack I had worn for years because it’s comfortable and holds more while being less obtrusive. I’ve carried the Front Pack on virtually every backpacking trip since. Now the newly updated version sports subtle but laudable design changes that actually improve upon a piece of gear that I considered nearly perfect before.

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Gear Review: Granite Gear Leopard A.C. 58 and Leopard V.C. 46 Backpacks

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Granite Gear Leopard A.C. 58
Granite Gear Leopard A.C. 58

Backpacks
Granite Gear Leopard A.C. 58
$250, 3 lbs. 12 oz. (men’s regular)
58L/3,540 c.i.
Sizes: men’s and women’s short (fits torsos 14-18 inches) and regular (fits torsos 18-22 inches). Unisex shoulder straps S-L, men’s and women’s hipbelts S-XL.

Granite Gear Leopard V.C. 46 with Klymit AirBeam Frame
$230, 2 lbs. 6 oz. (men’s regular with AirBeam pack frame)
46L/2,800 c.i.
Sizes: men’s regular (fits torsos 18-21 inches) and long (fits torsos 21-24 inches), four sizes of hipbelts for both men and women.
granitegear.com

Granite Gear Leopard V.C. 46
Granite Gear Leopard V.C. 46

How light do you want to go? With the Leopard A.C. 58 and the Leopard V.C. 46, Granite Gear offers nearly identical backpacks that both deliver a lot of performance for their weight and price. The main difference, besides capacity? One is a lightweight load-hauler with a traditional internal frame, the other a pack designed for ounce-counting ultralighters, with an optional upgrade to an inflatable frame. I wanted to compare the conventional plastic framesheet in the A.C. 58 against the air frame in the V.C. 46 with the AirBeam upgrade, which is one-third lighter.

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