The Murmur

looks really light!

Not as light at the Whisper, but with the added support of a bladder and side pockets, it should be worth it.

Paul,
Can you let us know your thoughts on this pack once you get some wear out of it? I almost bought it the day it went on sale, but I hadn't even used the Whisper I bought from another BPL member at the time. I have since and I like it, but that pocket on the side for a bottle would be nice. A mesh pocket on the back for wet gear would be nice too. I'm still contemplating a Murmur. I'd just rather hear experiences of others before I drop the cash on another pack. Maybe I just need to learn to sew beyond crude field repairs.

I used a beta Murmur that Glenn loaned to me for several hundreds of miles on the Appalachian Trail back in April. I also have substantial hiking miles with both the G-5 and The Whisper. I believe the best way to think about the Murmur is that it is simply a smaller and lighter version of the G-5. It has all the features of the G-5 that the Whisper lacks including sit pad/sleeping pad pocket, sternum strap, hip belt, water bladder internal pocket (upgrade from G-5), and several external pockets but weighs only 7.5 ounces. My G-5 was too big for most of my trips and my Whisper lacks some key features I really like. The Murmur is the perfect size for 90% of my trips and is now my go-to pack. Here is the comparison with the other Gossamer Gear packs from their website: http://www.gossamergear.com/cgi-bin/gossamergear/pack_matrix.html

Looking solely at the specs, the Murmur seems a pretty small (1700 ci). Have you all had any problems fitting loads into it that would have fit into a Whisper?

Adam

Hi Paul,

Could you give us an idea what you carried? Not a detailed gear list, just kind of a summary.

I ask because while the pack looks interesting, the capacity specs make it sound like a tiny pack (1325 cubic inches in the main body), which is considerably less than the G6 whisper. I realize that there are the pockets, pad goes on the outside, etc, but just curious how much fits inside.

Thanks!

To respond Chris and Daniel's questions, I completed a short section of the PCT with the Murmur this past weekend.

Bottom line: I am impressed with this new pack.

I was especially pleased to find that all the gear that would normally fit into my GG Miniposa fit nicely into the Murmur. The only exception is that I went cookless, and did not pack my regular kitchen setup (MSR Kettle Pot and Esbit stove). However, it too would have fit.

Here is a list of some of the items that made up the 7.5 lb base pack weight:

Montbell SS 50 degree bag
GG Nightlight torso pad
Clothing in a small GG Stowlight
GG The One
Patagonia Puffball vest
O2 Rainwear hooded jacket
GG Sitlight pad
1 liter Platypus
2 liter Platypus

I wanted to test the pack’s recommended max 20 lb limit so I made sure I started the trip with 3 liters of water and 7 lbs of food.

Here is a self portrait of me wearing the pack. I used a nifty new device, the “Stick Pic”.(http://www.thestickpic.com/). It fits on the tip of a trekking pole.

Additional pictures of my trip:

http://picasaweb.google.com/beemancron

Happy Trails

Been thinking about purchasing a Murmur. Nice.

oh and the Stick Pick, saw it and purchased one right away. What a great idea!!!!!!! Thanks for the heads up!

Looking at my ~3600ci Mountainsmith Ghost and the consideration that I have a full length Prolite 3…I'm not entirely sure I could fit into one of these…