Backpack Reviews

The Gregory Jade 53 is a women’s ventilated backpack that features female friendly shoulder straps and a hip belt. Weighing 3 lbs 9 oz (3 lbs 1 oz minus optional extras) it’s one of the lightest weight but fully featured women’s packs available today and well worth a look if you’re …

The REI Traverse 70 Backpack is a multi-day ventilated backpack with an adjustable-length frame, swappable shoulder straps, and interchangeable hip-belts, so you can get a custom fitting pack that matches your unique size and shape for optimal comfort. Weighing 4 lbs 14 oz, the Traverse 70 is definitely not an …

The North Face Women’s Banchee 50 is an adjustable-torso length backpack specifically designed to fit a female torso with breast-friendly shoulder straps and hip belt padding that adjusts to the curvature of your hips. Loads of pockets make the pack easy to organize, with plenty of straps and loops to …

The Mountainsmith Scream 55 Backpack is a multi-day backpack that’s well-featured, quite durably built, and relatively inexpensive. It’s undergone some design changes this year, including a sturdier frame and a new U-shaped front panel opening that will appeal to overnight and weekend backpackers, as well as travelers. It’s also over …

The Marmot Gravitron 58 is a ventilated, internal frame backpack that weighs 2 lbs 15 ounces. It is a combination top loader and panel loader, good for backpacking, as well as travel, because you can quickly access gear deep in the pack without having to pull everything out. The Gravitron …

The ULA CDT is a frameless backpack designed for ultralight backpacking, day hiking, and travel with a manufacturer maximum recommended load of 18 pounds or less. Weighing 19 to 24 ounces(with optional pockets), it’s a streamlined backpack with limited closed storage (36 liters in the main bag+extension collar/54 liters total). While the …

The Six Moon Designs Minimalist is a 48 liter ultralight style backpack that weighs 34 oz. The pack has an adjustable torso length and can be outfitted with a variety of shoulder straps and hip belt lengths so you can get a near-custom fit. It’s also available with vest-style shoulder …

The Granite Gear Crown 2 Backpack is a roll-top, multi-day backpack with an optional top lid pocket. An upgrade to the first generation V.C. Crown 60 backpack (See Best Ultralight Backpacks), this new model includes large zippered hip belt pockets, an optional top lid, and adjustable-length hip belt. These are all …

The Katabatic Gear Onni V40 65L is a 34 ounce rolltop backpack that’s designed for challenging multi-day backpacking trips. It’s made with a water-proof laminate called V40 (XPac) which is slightly heavier than cuben fiber but less expensive and more abrasion resistant. Katabatic Gear offers all of their packs in …

The ULA Circuit Backpack is a streamlined lightweight backpack with a surprising amount of flexibility for many types of backcountry adventure. Made with bomber fabrics and feature-rich, the Circuit is tough enough for year-round use in 4 season conditions. Internal Storage and Organization With 68 liters of total capacity, the ULA …

The Mountain Laurel Designs Exodus is a frameless 58L backpack that weighs 16 ounces. With a max recommended load of 20-25 pounds, it’s well sized for three-season thru-hiking and ultralight backpacking, when you need a higher volume pack to carry a bear canister or bulky hammock insulation. But the thing that …

The Seek Outside Gila 3500 (57L) is an 2 pound 15 ounce external frame backpack capable of carrying heavy loads, up to 100 pounds. It’s made with a waterproof laminate fabric called XPac which is more durable than Dyneema Composite Fabric (formerly called cuben fiber) and less expensive. While the …

The Seek Outside Divide ($349) is a 4500 cubic inch (74L) lightweight external frame backpack capable of hauling 50, 60, and even 70 pound loads even though it only weighs 44 ounces. Best suited for backpacking, packrafting, hunting, fishing, and expedition style trips, the Divide fills a niche that isn’t addressed by any …

Hyperlite Mountain Gear (HMG) specializes in making backpacks and shelters with Dyneema Composite Fabrics (formerly called cuben fiber.) Their distinctive white and black colored backpacks are quite popular and easy to spot in the backcountry. One of the things that sets Hyperlite off from other cottage ultralight gear manufacturers is their …