Gregory backpack reviews

A backpacker hiking the Dawson Pass Trail above Pitamakan Pass in Glacier National Park.

The Best Ultralight Backpacks of 2025

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By Michael Lanza

Do you need an ultralight backpack? Many backpackers might answer “no” when, for many reasons, their answer should logically be “yes.” These packs aren’t just for thru-hikers. Typically weighing roughly between under two pounds and three pounds empty, ultralight packs have support for carrying 25 to 35 pounds—making them ideal for more than just ultralight backpacking. For many backpackers, that represents the range of pack weight they either carry on most trips—or could carry on most trips, with smart packing and reasonably light gear.

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A backpacker above the Cutthroat Lakes on the Doubletop Mountain Trail in Wyoming's Wind River Range.

The Best Backpacking Gear of 2025

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By Michael Lanza

Utah’s High Uintas Wilderness, Montana’s Beartooths, and Colorado’s Weminuche. Glacier National Park and the Tetons. The Grand Canyon (repeatedly). The Canadian Rockies. Southern Utah’s Owl and Fish canyons. The Wind River Range. The John Muir Trail and Wonderland Trail. Iceland’s Laugavegur and Fimmvörðuháls trails. New Zealand’s Milford Track, Routeburn Track, and Tongariro Alpine Crossing. These are just some of the places where I’ve recently tested the backpacking gear and apparel that I’ve reviewed at The Big Outside—so that I can give you honest and thorough, field-tested opinions that help you find the best gear for your adventures.

And that’s exactly how I came up with the following picks for today’s best backpacking gear.

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Gregory Baltoro 65 backpack.

Review: Gregory Baltoro 65 and Deva 60 Backpacks

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Backpack
Gregory Baltoro 65 and Deva 60
$330, 65L/3,966 c.i., 4 lbs. 14 oz./2.2kg (men’s medium Baltoro)
Sizes: three adjustable men’s and women’s sizes
Baltoro 65: gregory.com
Deva 60: gregory.com

If you tend to fill up a backpack with lots of stuff (read: beaucoup weight) on your backpacking trips, trying to do that with a pack that’s inadequate to the task will strike you as a fool’s errand before you get far up the trail. In reality, very few packs handle heavy loads well. From the Teton Crest Trail to the Sawtooths, the men’s Gregory Baltoro 65 once again demonstrated that it belongs in that elite stable of backpacking packs.

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The Gregory Focal 58 backpack in the Grand Canyon.

Review: Gregory Focal 58 and Facet 55 Ultralight Backpacks

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Ultralight Backpack
Gregory Focal 58 and Facet 55
$250, 58L/3,539 c.i., 2 lbs. 11 oz./1.22kg (men’s small)
Sizes: men’s S-L, women’s XS-M
gregorypacks.com

Starting my six-day backpacking trip in the Grand Canyon with more than the recommended max weight in my Gregory Focal 58 and planning some strenuous days of hiking up to 12 miles with over 7,000 feet of cumulative elevation gain and loss—including seven very steep off-trail miles—I knew I’d put this pack to a serious test. Not a problem for the Focal 58, though, which proved not only comfortable but has a nice feature set, too.

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The Gregory Zulu 55 backpack on the Teton Crest Trail.

Gear Review: Gregory Zulu 55 and Jade 53 Backpacks

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Backpack
Gregory Zulu 55 and Jade 53
$220, 55L/3,356 c.i., 3 lbs. 13 oz. (men’s S/M)
Sizes: men’s Zulu S/M and M/L, women’s Jade XS/S and S/M
moosejaw.com

Our first day backpacking the Teton Crest Trail in late August was a fairly big one: about 11 miles and more than 3,000 vertical feet uphill. Farther than I prefer to carry an uncomfortable pack (and I’ve carried many over more than two decades testing gear). Fortunately, I didn’t. In fact, throughout that 36-mile, three-day, absolutely glorious traverse of the Teton Range (one of America’s 10 best backpacking trips), the newly redesigned Gregory Zulu 55 proved to be a comfortable and user-friendly backpack, and my complaints about it were minor.

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