Women’s GoLite packs 46-55% off at Sunny Sports

fwiw, i purchased an item from SUnny Sports and the next day the item went on sale. contacted customer service, and they issued a partial refund to match the sale price within minutes.. te-wa approved!

Thanks,

Just ordered one for my wife. I have been waiting for availability on the Gorilla, or the ohm but this was too good to pass up.

Thanks for the heads up on this sale. I just ordered a Women's Small Jam for my 8 year old daughter. She outgrew her REI kids pack last summer.

Thinking about picking up a Pinnacle up for my wife. Should it be enough room for up to week treks if we have all UL gear (don't currently so it's hard for me to understand if we can get that low).
What's the difference b/t this model and the 2009?

It is a large pack, and depending on the gear(UL/compact), it should have plenty of room for 'up to a week' trips. The question is, will your wife feel comfy with a loaded Pinnacle on her back for up to a week? Some women I know would prefer to carry a pack with a frame when nearing the Pinnacle's largish(for UL'ers)capacity, rather than a frameless model. The majority of that weight is on their shoulders. Maybe a smaller pack for the wife, and you carry the brunt ;) If your wife really wants to carry the lot, and can likely fill a pack as large as the Pinnacle, then maybe she should consider a lightweight framed pack. Granite Gear's Vapor Trail is super comfy when I have 3000+ cubic inches of gear on my back… and I found mine on flea-bay for cheap.

As to the differences between the older model Pinnacle at Sunny Sports… lighter weight and no hip belt pockets. There are other details, but at that price… who cares ;)

Good luck, and enjoy it out there!

Well most of starting trips are only going to be 3-4 days probably. She's not a big girl (5'0, 140lbs) but definitely not a princess either. She has pretty broad shoulders for a girl but most of her muscle is probably in the lower body.
I've heard a lot of good things about Granite Gear for women….but those aren't massively discounted right now :|
If the Pinnacle has a large volume capacity but cant carry a lot of weight what is the point? Why not just get the Jam?

I always tell her that you're only as fast as the slowest person in your party. Even though she wants to carry her own load, it makes more sense for me to carry more to keep us going at a faster pace. We'll both wear out evenly.

>>>If the Pinnacle has a large volume capacity but cant carry a lot of weight what is the point? Why not just get the Jam?<<<

Most people do get the Jam and that's what I would recommend for 3 seson trips of 3 to 4 days up to a week with all UL gear.

The extra volume the Pinnacle offers is a nice option for winter where you will be carrying bulkier insulation but not necessarily a ton more weight.

I purchased a Pinnacle to have as a ultralight pack for my girlfriend and as a loaner for when we have any other less-prepared female hiking with us. We did a first trip — just an overnighter — recently with my sister carrying the Pinnacle. Believe it or not, we actually made use of all the space in that pack. I shoved a Z-Lite in there as padding and to take up room, and by the time I added a zero degree bag (~4 lbs), her extra clothes, some water and a share of the cooking stuff, it was pretty much full.

I'm in that stage where I have a pretty decent UL setup for me, or for just my girlfriend and I, but I don't ever plan to have enough extra UL gear for other people… but the Pinnacle seems to scale well even as the load size is reduced. And for a lot of people — especially if you are using foam pads — you can quickly fill a lot of room in a pack without actually adding that much weight.

In my limited experience with a Pinnacle, I wouldn't recommend a fully loaded weight (including consumables) of anything more than ~25lbs, however with a foam pad and a synthetic or 600-fill cold-weather bag, it is really easy to fill all that space.

Bottom line: if you ever plan to take the pack four-season camping, I'd totally go with the Pinnacle over the Jam. And if your wife/girlfriend is a cold sleeper and needs a higher-rated bag and a foam pad, then you might need it for 3rd season camping as well.

IMHO the biggest drawback is not having hipbelt pockets — I LOVE the pockets on my Jam. But that's not a make-or-break issue, especially not for less than $60.

Careful on the Pinnacle. My wife is 5'2" and we couldn't get any use out of the load lifters on the PInnacle. It's rated for a 15" torso, but on my wife it just slumped over at the top when we applied tension to the lifters. We even tried different pads, tent poles, etc. to get the load to transfer better. Nothing worked and we sent it back. The Jam doesn't even have the lifters, so it's imperative you get the weight under control.

10-4
thanks for the input!

Yes, most do get the Jam. It's a great pack for 50-ish bucks via Sunny Sports.

What they said. I can certainly see a use for the Pinnacle if we are talking winter treks… lofty sleep bags, lofty layers, bear canisters, and kitchen sinks.

The Pinnacle does compact well(as does the Jam)… but, if we are talking warm weather 2-3 nighters where you will carry a larger portion of the gear ;), then I say Jam. My girlfriend limits her backpacking experiences with me to warm sunny Southern California summertime overnighters… so I don't mind giving her the Ion to carry a few things while I carry the rest.

My Pinnacle has been nice for bulky, but light winter loads. Except when I forget to pull the compression straps, and it sags in the middle. I also put a piece of Coroplast in the backpanel to help transer some weight.