norseman Posted July 25, 2019 Admin Share Posted July 25, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiiawiwb Posted July 25, 2019 Author Share Posted July 25, 2019 That's too bad about your bad experience back in 2013. I think the company has come a long way since then. I've put mine through the mill without a hitch. Having said that Kirafu is popular and well built so if that works for you I would go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norseman Posted July 25, 2019 Admin Share Posted July 25, 2019 4 hours ago, wiiawiwb said: That's too bad about your bad experience back in 2013. I think the company has come a long way since then. I've put mine through the mill without a hitch. Having said that Kirafu is popular and well built so if that works for you I would go for it. It wasn’t my bad experience bud. Just stuff I was reading. I trust your experiences over random posters over there. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hikingcoyote Posted July 27, 2019 Share Posted July 27, 2019 On 7/25/2019 at 11:54 AM, norseman said: The first time you have a bear act like this? Your house of cards will fall. And then the stark reality that yer gonna dance with the devil comes into full view. Just like the school yard bully that encounters someone meaner and tougher fer the first time. Its an education. The situation you should be planning for with each encounter isn’t if the bear will run..... but what if it doesn’t? A beacon will be helpful to authorities looking fer yer body. And bear spray is helpful if the wind is right and the surrounding foliage doesn’t get in the way. A large bore handgun by comparison is like having the starship enterprise in yer pocket. If you practice, practice, practice? Your gonna come out on top 99.9999% of the time. Guns are mechanical objects and they can fail. Cold steel is an option. They are always loaded. And they typically do not fail. It served the forester well. But you have to be close to be effective.... too close. Close enough fer teeth, hooves and claws to do damage back. I will take the pistol. Guns are great, can't agree more. But I personally find it unnecessary for my method of getting big miles with an ultra light set up. In the Sawatch of Colorado its very hard to get to those dense closed alpine valleys far from trails. Every ounce matters. Even bear spray is over kill for me, but I cut off my stubbornness and carry it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norseman Posted July 27, 2019 Admin Share Posted July 27, 2019 7 hours ago, Hikingcoyote said: Guns are great, can't agree more. But I personally find it unnecessary for my method of getting big miles with an ultra light set up. In the Sawatch of Colorado its very hard to get to those dense closed alpine valleys far from trails. Every ounce matters. Even bear spray is over kill for me, but I cut off my stubbornness and carry it. I would rather carry a Glock 10mm and a spare mag, a belt knife and ditch everything else..... I can whack grouse over the head and spit them on a fire. And use pine duff and fir boughs to crawl under at night to sleep. That stubbornness can get you killed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pdub Posted September 8, 2019 Share Posted September 8, 2019 I picked up a new Osprey Atmos 65 (actually 68L in large size). I’ve only gotten to use it twice so far this season but so far it’s great. The suspension system is really slick, lots of little adjustments you can make and only weighs 4lbs 10oz. Also had nice attachment points in the outside. So much more comfortable than my 15+ year old Kelty 80L and it actually seems to carry the same amount of gear due to better use of space. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiiawiwb Posted September 8, 2019 Author Share Posted September 8, 2019 (edited) That's a really nice backpack. Two of my sasquatching buddies got new Ospreys a year or two ago. One did a 65L or 70L and the other did a 50L. I don't remember the specific models but both of them like their packs and use them all the time. Technology has definitely provided the opportunity for both weight savings and design choices. My McHale which I got in the 90s is bombproof but a heavy. Today, he offers packs in full Spectra and I believe his Super SARC, in that material, can be had for the mere price of only $1,969: http://www.mchalepacks.com/ultralight/detail/SuperSARC P&G 42.htm I'm now a believer in the external-frame pack for hauling weight more comfortably. My Seek Outside (pictured below sans belt pouches). after adding a top lid and two pouches to the waist belt, has a capacity of ~130L. That enables me to put light, large-volume items in the pack without having to perfectly compress them to fit just right. There's no right or wrong to all of this. It''s finding the shoe that fits your foot the best and wears comfortably. I've found mine and hope others do as well. We all want to be fresh and without pain when we begin our sasquatching! Edited September 8, 2019 by wiiawiwb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pdub Posted September 10, 2019 Share Posted September 10, 2019 Wow, checked the link that’s a sweet pack but $2k for a pack is just ridiculous. Can’t imagine that is a big seller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiiawiwb Posted September 10, 2019 Author Share Posted September 10, 2019 (edited) Dan makes incredible backpacks and they're nearly custom. When I ordered mine back in the 1990s, I had to send a bunch of measurements to him. The backpack I got was masterfully built, will last three generations, and can haul 125 lbs or more. That said, I think companies like Seek Outside are revolutionizing the industry. Exceedingly lightweight packs that are waterproof, can comfortably haul out elk quarters (I don't hunt), and,, in my opinion, are far more user friendly than any "backpacking" pack I've ever owned. Being a McHale backpack owner, that's saying something. I'll never go back to an internal-frame pack again. An external offers too many options unavailable with an internal. Breakaway capability for starters. Moreover, the modern-day external-frame packs are not the flat, aluminum-tube externals from decades ago. My pack has 130L+ capacity, is fully waterproof without a cover, can carry whatever weight I can hope to haul, rolls down into a small bag to act as a day pack, yet weighs about 4.5 lbs including the extra pockets. Edited September 10, 2019 by wiiawiwb 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madison5716 Posted September 13, 2019 Share Posted September 13, 2019 (edited) I have my summer hiking stuff in a little Osprey daypack. It's light, has the bare minimum of enough pockets to be useful and a hip belt with pockets for my headlamp on one side and my lip balm/cloth tissue/tiny measuring tape in the other. https://www.osprey.com/us/en/product/tempest-20-TEMPEST20_307.html I'd like to find a lightweight, waterproof bag for fall/winter/spring that's a bit larger (to carry my puffy jacket and more food etc), so I'm looking. I don't need a large size hiking pack - I am not able to do overnight hikes because of my kid and pets. Just a bigger, waterproof, light day pack. Edited September 13, 2019 by Madison5716 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MIB Posted September 13, 2019 Moderator Share Posted September 13, 2019 I'm always looking for a better pack. Never quite finding what I hope to find. For day packs I like a lot of organization, something with many pockets so I know where each thing is. Also so things like my audio recorders can run without accidentally the off button. Though heavy, some of the tactical packs are pretty decent. I've used 511 Tactical's Rush12 and Rush24 packs. My only beef with them is lack of a waist belt. Add 3L of water and by end of day your shoulders will be talking to you. There are attachment points for a belt, you could cobble something together, but I haven't had a lot of luck so far. Another I've used some is the Eberlestock H3 "Sawed Off". It's a good hydration pack with some extra storage. It has a little bit of very good organization, just doesn't go far enough. It has a waist belt but it rides very high on me so it stabilizes the load but does not carry weight. There are a couple other packs I like ... Kelty Redwing 32 and The North Face Terra 35. The Kelty has fair organization but isn't quite long enough, max torso length is 18.5 inches. The Terra 35 hauls a load of water, etc very well but doesn't have much organization. I've used both when I was doing a lot of trail cam work. One of my favorite packs for just wandering around .. not packing trail cams or the like, just a bit of water, a jacket, and a small camera, is Badlands "Pursuit". No waist band, but in the days I was using it, I was not carrying enough weight to matter. None of these is waterproof. I've either used a pack cover or put the pack contents in small trash bags to keep them dry. The waterproof packs I've looked at seem like they'd make you sweat and not ventilate thus defeating the intended purpose. MIB 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madison5716 Posted September 13, 2019 Share Posted September 13, 2019 (edited) I currently have my gear in a zip bag inside a trash bag, inside my small pack. This one is the Tempest 30 with a lid, and the other is the Tempest 20 with a zip top. The 30 is about the right size, but I don't like the lid - when I put stuff in the lid pocket, it hangs off the back awkwardly. You might be right about the waterproofing. IDK. Edited September 13, 2019 by Madison5716 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madison5716 Posted September 13, 2019 Share Posted September 13, 2019 I like the look of the Kifaru paratarp, norseman. Any experience with their tarps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlackRockBigfoot Posted February 20, 2020 Share Posted February 20, 2020 I used an Osprey Stratos 24 all summer for short outings. Most comfortable hot weather pack I have ever worn, but space is an issue. The frame/webbing design is an absolute dream come true for my sweaty back during the Carolina summer. I was going to get a Hill People Gear Umlindi or Ute, but I tried on an Osprey Kestrel 48 last week and was sold. It is an extremely comfortable pack. Going to put it through its paces this weekend. Osprey seems to be like Merrell...one of those companies that I just can't seem to escape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7.62 Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 I don't hike for extended days so I just use a over the shoulder sling pack . It has room for what I need but I also have a a bunch of packs of various makes I've collected over the years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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