FAQ 21
I walk with a tripod attached to my backpack when not in use. I have a tripod bag but I don’t use it on hikes because it adds a lot of bulk and weight. I have been unable to find one of those great 2020 Deuter packs you recommend, the ones with strong fabric (in the middle of the front stash pocket) that prevents a tripod’s feet from ripping through. Also, I fear that the same tearing through would happen with the side pockets of the packs I am considering, since most are made of “stretch mesh.” Why do they do this?! What to do?!
You’re definitely not the only person to wonder about this. An industry source told me recently that torn mesh pockets are by far the most common source of backpack repairs and that they also generate a lot of customer discontent since such repairs are almost never covered by warranties. This is the real reason why some brands are beginning to go back to standard fabric pockets (but they still fail to include drain holes at the bottom… sigh.) Frankly, I struggle to understand why they don’t implement a different, easily repairable pocket attachment design but I digress… Bottom line, you’re not alone with this problem! Luckily there’s an easy DIY (Do It Yourself) solution.
But first a bit of history, just for fun. Decades before stretchable mesh was used on packs, wildlife photographers already had a problem with sharp spikes tearing through side pockets (often called “elephant ear pockets” and usually made of heavy canvass fabric like the rest of the pack) because they had to put their tripod’s razor-sharp feet, or other sharp tools of the trade, inside those pockets when shooting in ice-covered places like Alaska or the Polar Research Stations. What they did then, was to stick the tripod feet inside either a food can or an aluminum water flask cut in half.
What we do now is very similar except that we use plastic containers. Here is the DIY:
1) Find a strong plastic bottle with a rounded bottom edge and a diameter that’s about 1/2 inch larger than your folded tripod legs. Many 1 liter or 1.5 liter junk drink bottles will work just fine for this purpose.
2) Place the bottle inside the pocket, push it down hard and make a mark about 1 inch above the pocket’s top rim (don’t make the mistake I myself made some years back, which was to make that mark below the elastic… The plastic bottle’s fairly sharp top edge tore through the mesh pocket within a couple of hours!)
3) Make a clean cut at that mark around the bottle using sharp scissors.
4) Drill 4 holes at the bottom for drainage. A 1/8 inch diameter metal drill bit with pilot head works perfect for this.
Note that I strongly recommend also using this solution with fabric pockets If your tripod feet have metal ends.
FAQ 22
In Article 5, Solution 1, you said that using a backpack’s side pockets for “bridge cams, MFT rigs, compact cams, extra lenses, etc. works just fine” but I am finding it quite difficult to reach back there and grab even a simple water bottle since manufacturers make the top of the side pocket so high. What am I missing? Should I get another backpack?
I see how you would blame backpack designers but understand that making the top of the side pockets lower would result in lots of water bottles or other gear falling out. Owners of packs made this way often complain about this, and quite rightfully!
The good news is that there are two very effective ways of solving this problem:
1 – Lower the pack a little
When I wrote the section you refer to, I took it for granted that readers would know about a technique that we hikers have used on “automatic pilot” for eons, but which I now see some folks are not aware of. In a nutshell, what we do is simply (instructions for a right-handed person):
a) reach under the bottom of the pack with your left hand and lift the pack a little
b) loosen the right shoulder strap a little. This drops the pack by a few inches.
c) just lift your right elbow and grab or drop anything that's in the pocket. With a bit of practice you can even loosen and re-tighten the lower compression strap, assuming of course that such a strap goes over the top of the pocket (I always use one when for a bit of extra safety when I stash a small photo rig in one of my side pockets.)
d) Repeat step a and reverse step b.
The whole thing takes literally seconds and as you can see, you do not have to drop your pack! For reference, I would estimate that between water and gear grabs, I use this technique anywhere from 10 to 30 times a day on most of my hikes.
Still, there’s no denying that this technique is a bit more challenging with heavy loads (say, 40 pounds or more) and this is where you second choice comes in.
2 – Use a backpack with dual access side pockets
In the last few years some manufacturers such as Decathlon, Osprey, REI, etc. have started including pockets with dual access (top and side) or even only side access on some of their models, (example: Decathlon Quechua MH500 series) which I think is an excellent trend.
Still, some side access pockets are very poor (see Gregory Katmai/Kalmia review above) and some are great. How can you tell? What you want is a simple, front-facing opening with its lower part just a few inches above the bottom of the pocket, a design that keeps the bottle (or lens, compact cam, hat, whatever) at a slight angle to prevent it from falling out when you bend forward a little while hitting a steep slope or tying your shoes, and yet allows you to easily pull it out when standing straight up (I would strongly recommend that you read the gear reviews I previously published in this thread for all the details.) An additional way of securing the top of the bottle, such as the little elastic strap found on the MH500, is a great extra layer of additional security. This is the type of efficient design that can quickly make a big difference out on the trail.
FAQ 23
How do I go about sizing my new backpack? I have seen internet claims by some photographers who own a small size photo backpack (20 to 30 liters) that they use it with a ton of photo gear plus “all the essentials” for day-long hikes. Is that even possible? I’m in the market for a new backpack and I don’t want to buy one that’s too small.
I think that the best way to answer your question is to look inside my own daypack and give you the actual volume of the essentials typically used in shoulder season (spring or fall.) All items are compressed as much as possible inside my pack using straps or bungees (in order to calculate volumes, lay your compressed items on a table and measure Width x Length x Height, convert cubic inches to liters if needed):
– Health/safety kit: 0.5 Liter
– 3 water bottles: 1.5L Nalgene (2) + 1L insulated Thermos (1): 4.5 L
– small sealed food box: 2.70 L
– spare shoes (see FAQ 20), Hoka Ultraventure, size 10 (extra socks stashed inside to save space): 5 L
– rain jacket (Arcteryx size XXL): 3 L
– fleece jacket (North Face XL): 7.5 L
– Multipurpose fleece blanket: 0.5 L
– Gloves, hat: 1 L
– Spare clothes (windbreaker, shirt(s), shorts, pants, etc.): 3 L
– Miscellaneous: (knife, GPS, etc) : 0.3 L
Total volume: 28 Liters
Now that you have this factual information, you can see that I would only have 2 liters left for my photo gear with a true 30 L pack! Keeping in mind that many photo pack makers also list exaggerated volumes, I will let you draw your own conclusions about those claims you saw on the internet...
I would recommend that you look either for a 40 L TMP pack (this is what I personally use in mid-season) with an ICU for your photo gear if you like, or for a minimum 50 to 60 L TMP pack with good side compression straps if you will be using it year-round. Don’t be intimidated by such a “big size”, you will not feel the “dry” weight difference with a smaller pack if it is a good TMP pack that is easily compressible (see FAQ 5 and 11.)
Notes:
1) This volume can go down to about 20 L in the summer (I use a lighter fleece jacket, no gloves, etc.) and up to 35 L during the winter.
2) In both cases you can reduce the overall volume by about 25% by only using UL (UltraLight) clothing and other equipments, but be aware that such gear costs 2 to 3 times more.
FAQ 24
I’m desperate to find a couple of those awesome 2019-2020 Deuter packs you tested and recommended, one for me and one for my wife. We tried and returned the new ones because of the horrible shoulder straps. A friend of mine paid over $300 for his Vario! Why?! Can you help?
I get this question all the time and I’m afraid to say that there are now very few options left for you.
1) Contact all the large outdoors retailers or chains that carry Deuter packs in your country. Some of them do buy back older models when a customer “updates” to newer models and resell them as used gear… you may get lucky. The key here is patience.
2) Keep an eagle eye out for online sales of new and used backpacks, including both local sales and sites like Ebay. But be aware that some unscrupulous sellers list Deuter packs that are several generations old as newer ones. Also, there are at least two vendors in Asia that sell Deuter copycats.
Feel free to PM me a link to whatever product you are considering and I will be happy to help.
3) When Deuter switched to these new models back in 2021, I was asked by a bunch of overseas members of my community to buy 2020 models for them since stocks had quickly depleted in their countries but we still had good socks here in the U.S. Most came to visit, picked up their packs and reimbursed me but a few could not. Consequently I still have a few Vario and Futura packs at hand which I would be willing to sell for the price I paid (I loathe haggling.) I will not ship anything (I don’t want the hassle and you would not want to pay the sky-high non-commercial price for an insured package of that size anyway) but if you live nearby or if you travel through the area, we could perhaps meet not too far from where I’m based at the moment. I live out in the mountains but I’m willing to drive a little, say within a roughly 75 miles radius of the intersection of I-70 and I-81 in the eastern U.S. (I do also occasionally travel for work, which might present other opportunities.) If you are interested, PM me with your first name, desired pack volume and torso length so that we may discuss this privately.
PS: why this high $300 price, which is about 25% above MSRP? It's simply because more and more people have wised up to the fact that the Vario is a better choice than the AirTrek. This price is simply the result of low supply and high demand, a situation which clever sellers take advantage of.
FAQ 25
I shoot a lot of skiddish wildlife. What packs do you folks use for long and heavy rigs and how do you get those in and out of the bag? Also, how do you protect your rig in case of a bad fall?
Please note: This FAQ completely replaces my original FAQ 7, published in Article 6. Also, I will post its more technical aspects in my R4 Resource which from now on will also be dedicated to all things related to DIY (Do It Yourself) posts about improvements made by their owners to backpacks and certain other gear.
+++
Here are the inside measurements (collar raised and then slightly cinched for obvious reasons) for the packs we use the most with long combos (go back to Articles 1 to 6 for more about these packs):
DFP40: 18" to the bottom divider, 24" to the actual bottom with divider unzipped (the DFP44EL is about 3” longer)
DFV60: 22" to the bottom divider, 29" to the actual bottom with divider unzipped
The CP44 works well too with up to 27" to the actual bottom with divider unzipped
+++
Rig Protection
All 5 options below offer varying degrees of protection for your rig or main lens, should you ever experience a crash. Speaking of which, you may safely ignore the armchair fearmongers who claim that you should be worried about damaging your cam every single time you take a fall, unless you keep it inside a bag or pack that looks like Fort Knox. Why? Well, let’s look at what actually happens during the main types of fall (in other words, not based on internet gossip but on events I and others in my community have personally experienced):
A – Small crashes such as falling on your butt
This almost always occurs on steep, slippery downhills (mud, unstable rocks, ice, etc.) and it actually happens to me about 20 times a year. The pack sometimes hits the ground pretty hard, but it only travels 2 to 3 feet until impact and in decades of hiking I have never damaged a lens of cam inside my backpack, even though, as many of you know, I tend to keep my small to medium rigs inside a “portable ICU” (small photo bag or waist bag) in my pack’s bottom compartment. In other words, a simple padded bag or ICU sitting on top of the rain cover offers about 1 inch of cushioning, which is sufficient protection against minor crashes. Anything that sits higher up in the pack is, obviously, even more protected.
B – Medium to severe crashes
Bottom line: when you are loosing your footing and tumbling down a ravine or a cliff (which I would surmise has not happened to 99% of you, but I can tell you from experience that this always happens by surprise) the last thing you want to worry about is your gear! Such crashes exert violent forces and often result in injuries, even when roped in, or in death.
Okay, so… you survived that fall, but what about your photo gear? Understand that because camera inserts have thin walls and dividers (only made of 1/4” to 1/2” thick foam) plus occasionally a thin layer of cardboard or TPU (plastic), they can only offer minimal protection. There is not a single ICU out there, whether built-in (Kata, Atlas, Think Tank, etc.) or free-standing (too many brands to list) that can offer your precious gear sufficient protection from anything from a (not uncommon) side fall on some rocks, to a severe crash down the mountain. The only way to achieve this is by placing it inside a thick PE Foam Cradle or Foam Shield (see options 4A and 4B below) and inside your backpack or any other pack.
Option 1: rig facing UP inside backpack
Some of us place our long rigs facing up inside the pack. This makes it easier to keep the lens hood on. Cam access is through the top of the backpack for very long rigs or via the front panel for shorter ones. The rig is usually surrounded by padding made of clothing, various compression packs used as organizers, etc.
Note that most polycarbonate and aluminum / magnesium alloy modern bodies have excellent structural integrity (bodies are tested to handle weights that are multiple times that of the heaviest lenses) and while we have had cracked lens hoods when those were kept extended, facing down (see how to avoid this issue below) inside the pack, we’ve had zero damage such as a cracked LCD or EVF, even with very long and heavy lenses sitting on top of the body on long hikes, with the rig facing up. Nevertheless, it is wise to place your rig above a few sheets of closed-cell foam, a jacket, a sleeping bag, etc.
Option 2: rig facing DOWN inside backpack, lens inside hard tube
Others prefer placing their rig facing down, lens first, inside a plastic or cardboard tube that is a tad wider and longer than the lens and/or hood (look for such tubes at your local hardware or art supplies store.) The cam body rests on the top rim of the tube (do add a 3/4 inch gasket closed-cell foam or rubber gasket there to ensure that the fn or other buttons close to the lens don’t rest on a hard surface), making the rig super easy to pull out or drop in. The area around the tube is filled with clothes or food which are still easy to access if needed via the front panel. Filling the side bellows pockets (DFV60) with gear also helps to keep the tube centered. Here, cam access is usually through the top only.
Option 3: rig facing down inside pack, lens inside foam tube
Same as above except that the tube is made of closed-cell foam that comes from a standard, inexpensive camping mattress pad (see R2 for details.) The (obvious) advantages are:
– You can make one in about 2 minutes. Just cut the foam and secure with strong tape or rivets.
– Super low cost.
– You can make it as thin or thick as you like, from about 1/3 inch (the thickness of most camera inserts’ walls and dividers) to several inches.
– There is no need to add a foam gasket at the top
Option 4: DIY Foam Cradle (excellent protection) or Foam Shield (ultimate protection)
4A: Foam Cradle
You drop your rig, with or without additional lenses and accessories, lens pointing down, in one single block of foam out of which you have carved one or more cavities. You therefore have good to excellent protection, (depending on the thickness of the shield) on 5 sides: bottom, front, back, left, right.
This is the best option if:
– you require lightning-quick access to your rig(s).
– you are not satisfied with the flimsy protection offered by the sides and dividers shipped with bags or ICUs. In this case, making one or more Foam Cradles for your most used rigs and lenses is a fantastic alternative.
This option works great with a waist pack, a small bag, a Side Bag (URL) or a front-carry backpack.
– you do not want the pack to “collapse” when empty, which makes your gear very hard to drop back in (a common problem with all waist packs fitted with an ICU or dividers.)
Note that you it’s entirely up to you to decide what type of Foam Cradle you desire.
Option 4A1
If you want pulling your rig(s) out and dropping them back in, to be super easy, simply carve the holes just a bit wide (1/4 inch is fine.) For example, this works great for one of our members who has a Mountainsmith Day carried on his front with a double-hole Cradle: one deep cavity for his Olympus EM5.3 + Oly 100-400 rig (this one is tall and sticks out, the body is removed when the pack needs to be zipped) and one shallow cavity for his Oly EM1.3 + Oly 12-45 rig (that one is short and easily fits inside.) With such an arrangement you obviously need to be mindful while hiking very technical sections (in this case our friend simply keeps one hand on top on both Oly bodies.)
Option 4A2
If you prefer to never have to worry about gear falling out, either close the top of your bag (assuming it’s deep enough to swallow all the gear) or make the holes very snug (see Technical Guide referenced below.) Note that you will obtain a level of protection very close to that of a Foam Shield if you make the holes both snug and deep enough so that the top of you rig and/or lenses sits about 1 inch below the top of your Cradle.
4B: Foam Shield
This one is composed of two half-blocks of foam. You drop your entire rig, with or without additional lenses and accessories, inside the lower block, which you have built to size, and then place the upper block of foam on top. You then wrap and lock the whole shield with anything you like (bungee cords, webbing straps, etc.) You now have very good to outstanding protection (depending on the thickness of the shield) on all 6 sides of your rig: top, bottom, front, back, left, right.
This is the best option if:
– you need an enclosure that is both highly protective and a perfect fit for your gear.
– you use very long lenses/rigs for which no truly protective case exists (for example, a Canon 1D series with one of the monster tele lenses) or the case adds a ton of weight and volume to the rig, like the ones offered by Apache (Harborfreight’s home-brand), Pelican or similar brands which are also hard, slippery and very difficult to fit inside a backpack.
– you want the flexibility to place the foam block facing up or down inside your pack, without ever worrying about any damage whatsoever, including to the hood when it is attached to the lens in its extended position.
In summary, while option 4B is by far your best option (and, to be realistic, your only option) if you desire custom, lightweight, supreme crash protection for your gear, my community uses any of the 5 options described above for anything from city strolls to hiking, climbing, mountain biking, risky water sports (bag or backpack goes inside a dry sack), motorcycling, ice caving, etc.
What foam to use and how? Please go to the updated R4 thread for my easy-to-use TECHNICAL GUIDE AND DIY with all the step-by-step details and post any question you may have about foam cradles or shields in that thread, not here (again, I am re-dedicating R4, which has far more remaining posts than this R1 thread, to certain types of Do It Yourself projects.)
FAQ 26
A year ago my wife bought me a backpack for my birthday. She knew that I wanted a TMP pack and that’s what the store’s clerk said he sold her, but I wonder if it really is a TMP. It was okay when I used it in the winter but as soon as the weather turns warmer it feels like the “3D ventilation” has no ventilation at all. Am I crazy? Did the salesman lie? It feels like my back is sweating even more than with the Pressure Panel packs I’ve owned before. I tried using it bare chest but the mesh that covers the whole back panel is made of a hard plastic material that is so uncomfortable that I had to put my shirt back on after just 10 minutes. It’s too late to return the backpack but my sweet wife wants to buy me a better one. Could you explain what NOT to buy, so that I could share that with her?
You are not crazy. But, before you place the blame on the salesman, understand that the poor guy almost certainly had little training on TMP versus PP packs, or even not training at all. The problem is with the manufacturers themselves, who design and build a great product, but then completely fail to explain to their sales channels and to the public, why a good TMP is a far better option for most people. How bad is it? I have already pointed out in Article/Post 2 that some brands describe their own backpanels as “suspended” when in fact they are tensioned, which is most definitely not the same thing (a bedsheet hanging from a clothesline is suspended… to apply tension to it, one would have to tie its lower edge to a lower clothesline as well.) I have also been told that some Hiking Shops print out my Articles 1 to 6 and post them in their backpack section, because the manufacturers never bothered to provide them with anything that explains the difference between a TMP and a PP pack! Now that does not reflect very well on the industry, does it?
Fortunately, there are easy ways to spot these “fake” TMP packs:
1) Stand the pack up and have a close look at the backpanel. Do you see 1/2 inch to 1.5 inch of truly unimpeded space along its sides? Can you slip your hand freely behind this tensioned mesh panel and run it up and down? Same thing at the top of the TMP, is there significant open space between the shoulder strap insertion points that allows heat and moisture generated by your body to traverse the TMP, rise and escape at the top? If all the above points are true, you can be certain that it is a TMP pack that will provide efficient, topnotch back ventilation.
2) Pay attention to the “creative” marketing terms used by the manufacturer. Looking at what’s being offered on the market as of this writing, the following words, as alluring as they may sound, are in fact big red flags, i.e. dead giveaways that the pack provides back panel ventilation that I would describe as anywhere from very poor to non-existent:
3D, breathable, structured, die-cut, compression molded, freeflow, molded foam, ridged foam, slotted foam, airmesh, matrix, anti-slip, etc.
How bad is this type of misrepresentation? It’s unfortunately becoming more and more common. Here are a couple of actual tests just to give you an idea (these are just examples, other brands are no better and sometimes much worse):
A – Deuter Aircontact Lite versus Deuter Aircontact Pro
Observe these two pictures and you will easily notice the design of the foam pads, which includes a central channel that runs the entire length of the backpanel on the Lite, whereas the Pro has one big foam pad at the bottom plus another foam pad between the shoulders.
Deuter Aircontact Lite
Deuter Aircontact Pro
The end result? I’ve owned both these packs and there’s no doubt that the Lite is far less of a sweat bucket in spring/summer than the Pro (which ironically is a more expensive pack! Anyhow, this is why I ended up using my Pro only in cold temperatures.)
Why such a difference? Well, warm air rises… Duh! That big foam pad at the bottom of the Pro completely blocks air intake at the top of your buttocks, precisely where a considerable amount of heat and sweat is generated… Not good! As to the upper central foam pad, although slightly recessed, it also blocks whatever little air intake there is on the sides at the midway point… Not good either! Incidentally, this also explain why the foam pads, which get “sweaty” quickly since these are Pressure Panel packs, dry far quicker on the Lite (typically 15-20 minutes in full sun.) The Pro absorbs much more sweat and is a total pain to use in temps above 50 degrees.
Anyhow, all of this is “Ventilation 101”, a class I’m sorry to have to say, many backpack designers clearly failed or did not attend. Why so many packs fail to provide a 2 inches wide air channel that starts at the bottom of the panel and allows hot air to naturally exhaust at the top is simply mind-boggling. We are talking about very basic physics here.
Of course, none of the above is an issue with TMP packs. Here, Deuter’s smaller Futura models shine even more since they feature a wide opening underneath the bottom of the mesh panel, allowing an absolutely massive air intake which, in conjunction with the air flowing through the sides of the TMP, constantly cools your back. The difference with for example a small Gregory TMP or a Decathlon MH500, both of which ventilate way better than a PP pack but have the bottom of the TMP sewn to the backpanel, is very noticeable.
B – Mountainsmith Day, previous versus current version
Previous versions of this great waist pack had standard foam pads (a wide one, unfortunately not split with a central channel, at the bottom of the backpanel plus two long-ish ones on the upper sides, leaving a very nice inverted-Y channel in between for upper ventilation.)
The most recent version has a one piece, rectangular backpanel made of foam with “ridges” (think jagged profile) that run horizontally, covered with nylon mesh. This design is also found in the Osprey Talon as well as quite a few photo packs.
As we were testing the leading waist packs, we noticed a big difference in ventilation between the two MS (Mountainsmith) versions, with all testers saying that the new one “runs much hotter” whether you wear it on your back or on your front. You could easily tell by just sliding your hand behind the backpanel. One was lukewarm to the touch, the other one was hot. But one of our members, an engineer who uses high-precision temperature instruments at work, brought his gear to the trail and took a bunch of measurements. Here is a very revealing one:
Ambient temperature: 60 degrees Fahrenheit
Backpanel temperatures after 20 minutes of brisk walking:
old MS Day, 66 degrees
new MS Day: 87 degrees
Clearly, the “old” model has vastly better ventilation and therefore cooling. What happens with the new one is that your body heat is trapped inside these horizontal foam ridges since it has no way to rise and escape. This would obviously be far less of an issue if the ridges were oriented vertically, which by the way would also allow for sweat to drip down at the bottom as well (one of our testers, a profuse sweater, noticed that his sweat would accumulate in between the ridges, with nowhere to go. He had to turn the pack sideways to let the sweat drip out when we took breaks.)
The temperature differences are even worse on the Osprey Talon, which also has a horizontally-ridged backpanel, but it’s covered by a 1 inch tall piece of fabric at the top that entirely blocks whatever tiny amount of heat could have escaped upward…
3) What do experienced users consider to be real ventilation on a backpack?
Here are the long-requested results of a poll I ran in my (now over thousand members strong) community about true, tested, actual backpack ventilation.
Does this matter? I remember a large poll conducted in Europe, where far more people walk and hike than anywhere else: over 95% of participants stated that they only hike in warm or hot weather so yes, true ventilation does matter!
Ratings are from 0 to 10 (worst to best.)
Deuter Vario and Futura, Vaude Brenta 50 / Cosyspeed Photohiker 44, etc.: 8/10*
Deuter Aircontact Lite: 4/10
Most other hiking/backpacking PP (Pressure Panel) packs: 3
All photo packs (all are PP except CP44 above which has a TMP suspension): 0-3
* Why do the class-leading Futura Pro or Vario TMP models not reach a score of 10? It’s simply because while the TMP itself offers near-perfect ventilation, the same cannot be said for the shoulder straps and padded hip belt. To this date, manufacturers have not been very inventive when it comes to providing sufficiently efficient ventilation systems for these other critical contact areas (I’ve designed a few myself, just for fun, so hey, it can definitely be done!)
Still not sure if a pack is an actual TMP? Do not waste thread posts by asking here, simply send me a PM with a link to the pack you are considering and I will be happy to help.
FAQ 27
What is the best-quality backpack brand?
Just like for most other industries, not only is there is no such thing as “the” best-quality brand, but this is an area where nothing is written in stone, even within a brand!
Think about it… Ford made, at the same time, some really great cars and their awful Pinto. Out of Renault’s assembly lines came the fantastic Alpine and the crappy Renault 5, etc. (I could go on and on.)
What I can tell you for sure is that all backpacks from the top brands are of similar and very good quality. The reason is that most are manufactured in Vietnam, a country that has not only a long tradition of excellence in stitching and sewing, but a very well trained workforce (high skills are a must here since some backpacks are made of over 200 different parts!) Their QC (Quality Control) is also usually very good.
Packs made in China, on the other hand, are a complete crapshoot. I have seen inexpensive ones with very decent quality and QC, such as the ones from Decathlon, and quite a few expensive photo and hiking bags with low quality that start showing problems after a few hundred hours of use, compared to many thousands of hours with, for example, our top-rated Deuter packs.
Whatever pack you buy, make sure it has a solid warranty and always check the “small print”!
FAQ 28
Most of my hikes involve lots of rain and wind (I don’t mind it because I grew up in this kind of weather.) I use some nice rain pants (no problem with those) plus my dad’s old fisherman jacket (it’s a bit snug for me but it’s still completely waterproof after so many years!) and either a daypack or a waist pack. What bothers me the most is that I always get “wetter inside” than outside, my top layers are just drenched with sweat within an hour or two! The rain ponchos I’ve tried leave my legs and forearms wet and that drives me crazy. How do you guys handle this? Also, when I use my backpack I like to keep my wide angle camera in a hip belt pocket but it’s only moderately waterproof. Is there a way to protect it other than using a plastic bag inside the pocket?
1) Rain jacket
I understand how attached you are to that old jacket you inherited from your dad, but I’m afraid you would be better off using it only for short outings in town. The problem is that any rain jacket that is snug traps your body heat. As you walk, even minimal perspiration (our “natural cooling system”) produces significant condensation inside the jacket, which has nowhere to go and in turn soaks the clothes that are trapped inside. Forget all the “breathable” marketing claims which are pure BS and look for a rain jacket that has the following features:
– seamed, waterproof and windproof fabric
– one to two sizes larger than what you normally wear (this varies widely with brands) which allows you to move freely and permits enough air circulation. In other words, if you are a size L, buy XL or XXL.
– an elastic cinch cord at the bottom, which is your “fresh air intake” to keep loose most of the time and only cinch tight when you are facing extreme winds or cold.
– sufficiently long “pit zips.” These are two-way side zippers that should run roughly from below your elbow to the middle of your sides. These are your primary “moist air exhaust conduits.”
– an easily and precisely adjustable hood cinch mechanism. This is important because the lower part of the hood (chin area) is your secondary “moist air exhaust conduit.”
– a wide, rigid and adjustable built-in visor (brim.) These are great and ideally give you a bit of protection from rain and wind as you compose your shots. But, because I’m yet to find one that is deep/long enough (4 inches would be best) I have resorted to use an old trapper hat with a large brim in the winter, and a tennis visor which I waterproofed with silicone spray in spring and summer.
– A truly waterproof front zipper with a generous “zipper garage” at the top. Without this, water can enter via the zipper carrier, run down your chest and then wet your pants (not a pleasant experience!)
Tips:
– There is no way to prevent the area underneath the shoulder straps from getting soaked with perspiration, but you can greatly attenuate this issue by using your pack’s load lifter straps (see FAQ 20) a few times every hour in order to let air circulate in that area (yet another reason why manufacturers should include real load lifters on all backpacks!)
– Always buy your rain jacket locally. Put your normal underlayers on and head out to your outdoor retailer(s) to try it on.
2) Poncho
Like most others in my community I have used tons of those but I will tell you that the only poncho out there that does a good job in your type of weather is actually a one-piece backpack cover/rain jacket combination called The Packa (http://www.thepacka.com/why-the-packa.html.) It was designed by a smart gentleman named Edward Hinnant, a hiker based in the USA. It’s the kind of simple, brilliant design that has almost completely disappeared in the outdoors industry (the Deuter Vario torso adjustment system is another, rare example.) Before you start your hike or walk on any “iffy-weather-day” you simply place the Packa on top of your backpack as a pack cover. If and when the rain starts, the ingenious Packa system allows you to quickly pull the rain jacket section over your head, without dropping your pack! It’s also got great ventilation, plus it folds into a nice little pocket that makes a pretty comfy pillow as long as you cover it with something soft (I use a fleece shirt or sweater) among other qualities. As I discovered after finding nowhere to pitch tent at dusk on a steep mountainside during a fierce storm with non-stop rain and high winds, the Packa also makes an excellent shelter: I laid my z-mat down, slipped my legs inside my emergency bivvy and leaned against my backpack which was itself leaning on a large rock. When I started up again after that cold and sleepless night, I was very sore but I had remained bone dry.
The only downside I can think of for the Packa is actually common to all ponchos. Just like rain jackets it does not have a satisfactory visor and I use the same tricks as described above.
I would strongly advise choosing the 30D fabric option. At around $100 shipped in the USA (but Mr, Hinnant occasionally runs sales on existing stock, see http://www.thepacka.com/contact-us.html ) the Packa is twice the price of those crappy, flimsy ponchos but about only one third the price of a quality rain jacket with the features listed above. It may well last you a lifetime and I’ve never seen anything on the market that remotely competes. I have crossed path with countless thru-hikers with a Packa on the trails and I highly recommend it.
3) Hip belt pockets protection
This is an old trick that you can use to cover and protect those hip belt pockets, which a backpack’s standard rain cover obviously does not. Simply cut a couple of 12 inch long sections from the sleeves of an old (but still waterproof) rain jacket or poncho, or from the legs of old rain pants and slide them over the waist belt pockets. You want them to be wide enough to allow for a quick pull backwards when you need to access items in your belt pockets. Use a clip or a rubber band to tie the front end to your main waist strap to keep the front section from sliding forward too much. When not in use, I just keep these sleeves in my pack’s lid pocket, where they hardly take up any space.
4) Hiking Umbrella
These work great for sun or rain protection for some people. See FAQ 17 for the DIY. As long as there’s little to no wind, this solution could work for you as well.
FAQ 29
I am just back from a tour of my area’s hiking stores and I have a bunch of questions!
1 – I was interested in some of the new backpacks, especially from Osprey and Gregory. I liked some of what I saw but I’m an Engineer and one thing I do not understand is why many of their models compress via jagged (Z-shaped) side straps. Aren’t those less efficient than horizontal straps? Why do they use this design?
2 – What to think of the 2022 Baltoro 65? It has a new backpanel with a big center rubberized area at the bottom.
3 – Some of the packs I liked have the lower compression straps run over the middle or the top part of the side pockets. Does that not make it hard to access a water bottle or a camera when the pack is loaded and compressed? Could I fix that myself?
4 – Lastly, what do you think of those whistles that are integrated to the sternum strap on some backpacks?
1 – Side compression straps
Yes, “Z-routing” is very inefficient since the straps run at 45 degrees instead of the optimal 90 degrees (I had touched upon this already in Articles 2 and 3) which means among other things that you need to exert far more force to compress a fully-loaded pack (lashing a tripod or anything to the side straps can also be quite difficult.) But since they have made those long Z straps much thinner, they are too flimsy to handle the compression forces and they can break. This is not uncommon on the Osprey Exos/Eja models (they still haven’t fixed that on the 2022 versions, go figure…)
Frankly, I could not begin to understand why both brands use this poor system. What everyone can see is that these two companies have been copying each other’s designs (good or bad) over the last few years, so I would surmise that they just “keep on keepin’ on.” For how long? The holding group “Helen of Troy” bought Osprey last year (a 414 million dollars transaction) and has recently taken over their upper management. Time will tell what happens next with their product lines but based on industry cycles, I would not expect to see anything really new or different until 2024.
2 – I haven’t tested the 2022 Baltoro 65 myself yet, but one of my mentors recently used one, first in the Rockies and then in the desert, where he has a residence. Here’s a short summary of what he told me: “The new shoulder straps are awesome, they can finally pivot, like the Deuters have done for years, and they are possibly the most comfortable ones ever made for a backpack. The new backpanel is okay in cold temps but really bad in hot temps. It’s got extremely poor ventilation and that “ComfortGrip lumbar pad “ rubber patch at the bottom is one of the most egregious things I have ever experienced on a pack. The last thing a hiker needs is to have any part of the backpanel stick to his body! That creates a hot and sticky pressure spot and that can also become dangerous when you’re scrambling with a loaded pack because that part of the backpanel is stuck and does not follow your spine’s movements. My whole lower back area turned into a nasty and sticky mess every time I went into the desert. They have kept that awful torso length adjustment with a small chunk of velcro. And the new price is way too high, I had to buy the rain cover separately and the whole kit set me back nearly 400 bucks with tax.”
Here’s my suggestion: if you want a Gregory pack in this volume range, try a Focal 58 instead. The shoulder straps’ comfort is a notch below the new Baltoro’s (but still okay) and there are flimsy Z-straps on the sides, but the backpanel is a TMP with very good ventilation, the dual-access side pockets are awesome as long as you don’t bushwhack across thorns and the hip belt pockets are much bigger than the puny ones Osprey put on their new Exos 58. If you can live with top-access only, the Focal is a very nice pack (the Zulu 65 has triple access but the ventilation is better on the Focal.)
3 – Yes, the “over only” design definitely does make it hard to access a water bottle or a cam when the pack is loaded and compressed. This is not a problem on the Deuter Vario which has a clever “over/under” lower compression strap design but it’s a pain-in-the-rear on many packs, including other Deuters.
There is a reasonably easy fix but I don’t think you can do it yourself (unless you are very good at sewing) so you probably want to take your pack to a sewing or upholstery shop. Here is what needs to be done for 3/4 inch straps, which is the standard width:
a – tighten the strap over the side pocket, lift it a little and make 2 one inch long marks on the pocket, about one inch away from each edge.
b – loosen the strap and disassemble it. Using a sharp knife or cutter, make two 2 one inch long cuts where you made the marks.
c – use one of two techniques to prevent the edges of the slits from fraying, which can quickly rip the pocket and make it unusable. The first one is to make multiple rows of a tight sewing pattern around the slit, which will prevent fraying. The second (much stronger) one is to make an identical slit on a 2x2 square of nylon or leather, and then stitch that to the pocket as above.
d – run each end of the strap though a slit, reach through the top of the pocket and reassemble the strap. You now have an “over/under” strap which you can compress as much as you like while still being able to access whatever is in the pocket.
4 – Those strap whistles are extremely weak and pretty much useless.
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Reminder about Private Messages
I have no problem helping fellow photographers via Private Messages. In fact, given DPR’s limitations to the number of posts on each thread, I encourage it and I have helped many people this way. Here is what really helps me… help you!
When you PM me for advice on backpacks, etc. make sure you provide me with these few facts:
– your torso length (see R1 thread, FAQ 2)
– links to product pages for the packs you are looking at
– your country (if in U.S., your state often helps too)
– I also appreciate knowing your first name. You know mine, and this makes the conversation more friendly and less impersonal.
