Thread: What backpack turns you on for skiing backcountry?

Originally Posted by grubbers

I really like my Kode 30, thinking about upgrading to the 38 when I move west this spring to give myself more space for longer tours. It carries great, I barely notice it when riding. I don't really have any complaints about it, but then again I'm not extremely picky about my packs.

It's good to hear that you like the Kode. I'm leaning toward that (I really like Ospreys hip belts) and the Silo 30 (which I can customize with an Osprey hip belt).

Intuit: I like the looks of the Deuter pack (at least from photos) but I've always had a disdain for the nylon-bungy-webbing-holder thingy some companies put on their packs. I tare them to shreds in minutes, but I guess I could take a scissor to it.

Originally Posted by Intuit

Replaced my DaKine heli pro which got shredded in just over a year with a Deuter Freeride Pro 30 which has now done 2 winters and has not a mark on it. Pack carries snugly to my back and the carry systems are well thought out and robust. Good selection of pockets and access. Not the best back ventilation for summer mtb. Am stoked with this pack for day tours and as a do everything pack.

If you want ventilation, The Deuter Futura packs are good choices. I particularly like the swiveling hip belt. I think that makes a big difference for how easy it is to ski with an internal frame pack. However, the pack is really meant more for light packing in the summer and lacks any ski specific features. It's also not the most robust fabric. Since most of my BC skiing is sunny California days, I'll take the ventilation advantage.

If I could persuade myself to carry less crap, I'd take a long look at the Osprey Manta 30. It's a great all round day pack.

Both of these are not 100 day a year packs, you pay a price for lightweight construction. But if you've got the $$$ to buy a Manta and out of shape enough to care about pack weight, you probably work enough that you can't BC ski 100 days a year.

you mentioned the nirvana pack in your first post. I purchased the RAS version this winter (size 30). it carries quite comfortably but mammut forgot to use the right material on the front side of the pack. already have a 2cm cut in the shell from using the diagonal ski carry (hard snow - sharp edges...). will need to glue some PU coated fabric onto it. otherwise, a very fine pack thats hardly noticeable when skiing.

packs i've previously used were a millet totem 15 (light and very durable, and they used PU coated stuff for the hard wearing parts) use it every day in the city, too; and a haglöfs rand 38 which has really great support for heavier loads (I do most of my summer multi day touring with that pack as well) but the back is kind of short.

I liked the Silo 30 and 40, but found them lacking in any useful compartments. More importantly, they would not fit my avalanche shovel (Black Diamond Transfer Shovel). Too bad, they seemed very lightweight - maybe a little to thinly made for my liking. I noticed some other people reported the same thing about other shovels fitting on the backcountry.com reviews/

I tried a lot of packs on for fit at shops and settled on the Black Diamond Outlaw in a M/L (32L) size. That fit my longer torso the best and also has really good fabric constriction. Also, it holds all my avalanche gear in a separate drained compartment and also has a back pad access zipper that opens for quick access.

I really like the included back-pad that prevents avy gear, thermos and obtuse contents from jabbing me in the back.

Limited for back-country/resort snow use only. Otherwise a really good pack:

http://www.rei.com/product/776564/bl...alung-ski-pack

I got the blue one on sale somewhere. Mine was the non-avalung model, so a bit cheaper.