Osprey pack reviews

A backpacker at Evolution Lake on the John Muir Trail in Evolution Basin, Kings Canyon National Park.

The Best Backpacking Gear for the John Muir Trail

by

By Michael Lanza

So you’re planning to thru-hike the John Muir Trail and making all of the necessary preparations, and now you’re wondering: What’s the best gear for a JMT hike? Having thru-hiked the JMT as well as taken numerous other backpacking trips all over the High Sierra—mostly between late August and late September, which I consider that the best time to walk the Sierra, to avoid snow and the voracious mosquitoes and blazing hot afternoons of mid-summer—I offer the following picks for the best ultralight and lightweight backpacking gear and apparel for a JMT thru-hike.

Read on

The Mystery Ranch Coulee 30.

The 10 Best Hiking Daypacks of 2025

by

By Michael Lanza

Choosing a daypack for hiking can seem overwhelming when you see the dozens of choices available today, which range all over the map in terms of volume, weight, carrying capacity, features, and cost—as well as fit and comfort. Look no further. This freshly updated review spotlights the best daypacks for hiking and offers expert buying tips that explain the subtle differences between packs to help you find the right one for your own adventures.

Read on

The Osprey Exos 58 ultralight backpack.

Review: Osprey Exos 58 and Eja 58 Ultralight Backpacks

by

Ultralight Backpack
Osprey Exos 58 and Eja 58
$260, 58L/3,539 c.i., 2 lbs. 14 oz./1.3kg (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S/M and L/XL, women’s XS/X and M/L
Exos: backcountry.com
Eja: backcountry.com

Osprey’s men’s Exos and women’s Eja packs would seem like shining examples of gear proven to perform so well for so long that redesigning them risks customer backlash. As a longtime fan of the packs, I was eager to take the Exos 58 on a long cruise—nine days and nearly 130 miles through the High Sierra in August, mostly on the John Muir Trail with some on- and off-trail detours. I came away from that walk convinced that, with what they changed and what they kept in the Exos/Eja, Osprey done made these packs even better.

Read on

The 10 Best Backpacking Packs

Review: Osprey Atmos AG 65 and Aura AG 65 Backpacks

by

BackpackOsprey Atmos AG 65 and Aura AG 65$340, 65L/3,967 c.i., 4 lbs. 11 oz./2.1kg (men’s medium)Sizes: men’s S-L, women’s XS-MAtmos AG 65: ospreypacks.comAura AG 65: ospreypacks.com A backpack is a little like a relationship: It’s hard to tell what it’s going to be like when you first meet, and then you get to know each other much better over time. …

Read on

The Osprey Exos 58 in Glacier National Park.

Gear Review: Osprey Exos 58 and Eja 58 Ultralight Backpacks

by

Ultralight Backpack
Osprey Exos 58 and Eja 58
$240, 58L/3,539 c.i., 2 lbs. 11 oz. (men’s medium Exos)
Sizes: men’s Exos S-L, women’s Eja XS-M
backcountry.com

It’s difficult and sometimes dangerous to improve on a piece of gear that’s nearly perfect in its simplicity and functionality. So when Osprey rolled out the redesigned Exos for 2018, along with a women’s version, the Eja, with some changes to this popular model—which became an ultralight pack archetype when it was introduced in 2008—I immediately wanted to see whether the changes represent an improvement. Taking it on a six-day, 94-mile hike on the Continental Divide Trail through Glacier National Park, I found definite improvements—including that it carries better than the previous iteration—and I think some backpackers may miss one convenient feature that’s absent from the updated pack.

Read on