Hi Tod,
I have on an Optic 55. I’m 5’7″ with longish torso and short legs. From my readings, I knew that Michael Lanza of the Big Outside (formerly a writer for Backpacking.com) were the same size. I emailed Mike and he confirmed that the Small Optic would fit me. He was spot on. With the Optic and I can transfer some weight to the hipbelt. By comparison, the Osprey packs are a bit too long in the torso in size Medium. If I’d known that prior to purchase, eh? I really do love all of the features on the Gregory Optic. By way of comparison, for short weekend trips I use a Gossamer Gear Kumo, 35 liter pack. Features are nearly the same. Main difference is pack volume. The Optic better handles winter with more bulky gear, the Kumo is fine with a 3 season load. If can only justify one pack, I would say the Gregory Optic 48 can handle pretty much any load a lightweight backpacker would carry. There are plenty of other cottage industry packs that can do the same, but they don’t have the Gregory/REI guarantee. The Optic is a good stepstone pack moving from traditional to lightweight, thus the Optic is great for the occasional weekend backpacker. I’ve tried most of the similar Ospreys and in my mind the Optic is a more comfortable, useful pack for a lightweight internal frame pack. To go frameless, such as the Kumo, you need to have your kit well dialed in. For under 25 pounds, the Kumo and similar areĀ boss. For a load over 25 pounds, the Optic rocks!
