Best Daypack for Peak Bagging?

[Mustard Tiger]

Looking for recommendations for a pa k that would be ideal for day trips to say Half Done or Mt. Whitney, Colorado 14ers, etc.  Something fast and light, may need to carry an ice axe and crampons occasionally, but mostly for long day trips that would entail long miles and an early start, long day in the mountains.

[Philip Tschersich]

Side bottle pockets? Minimal frame? Hip belt? Hip belt pockets? Zip/roll/drawstring top closure? Fabric type (light vs durable)?

Some guidance as to your preferences would help steer the discussion.

 

[Bruce Tolley]

The packs I use for such adventures from Osprey and ULA are not made anymore.

If you expect your travel to be technical and to be on snow and want to access gear quickly, I would recommend a pack that zip opens at the top and therefore evaluate 20 to 30 liter climbing packs from Osprey, Mountain Hardware, Patagonia, and Black Diamond.  If you are mostly hiking on established trails, and want to go light, I would look sub 25 liter frameless packs from MLD and its cottage competitors.

Are you thinking you might also need to carry snowshoes, then switch to crampons? That would lead me to looking at framed packs.

[christopher witter]

I recently replaced my Golite Ion with a MLD Hell pack. It was a toss up between the Hell and the Core. The Hell pack was more feature rich with slightly more storage and way more versatile. You can’t beat their craftsmanship either.

[Philip Tschersich]

I’m a bottle drinker, and cannot imagine owning a pack that lacks side bottle pockets that I can reach while underway. The right pocket is for the bottle, and the left is where I put a hat and gloves for temp regulation while hiking. I carry my 1nReach, bear spray, phone clip, and zoom camera (or some combo of those) on my shoulder straps, so a full daisy chain up the shoulders is a must. I like zip access for the main compartment. A basic, removable/stowable hip belt is a good option.

If you know your preferences like those, it will quickly narrow the search. For me, the HMG Daybreak checks all the boxes. I’ve used one for ~4 years now.

[Brad W]

I use a REI Flash 22 with JustinUL water bottle holder and it’s done great for me. I made a sit pad from old z-lite and I stuff it in the back pad sleeve. Adds some support and takes up no room really. I have thousands of miles on it and just some of the mesh on the side water bottle pockets is frayed.

 

[Mustard Tiger]

I’m tempted to just use my Kakwa 40 for a long day in the mountains for stuff that’s just hiking/scrambling and doesn’t really require any technical gear. It’s lighter than most smaller packs and even though I won’t be anywhere near filling it up, it’s still pretty low profile with the roll top completely rolled down. Would think it would be a great Whitney and Half Dome pack for a single day ascent.

[Matthew / BPL]

Do you have an old Ridgerest or blue foam pad? You could fill a lot of volume with one of those to keep things from getting floppy.

[talagnu]

black diamond distance series. I have the distance 15 for day hikes and summits

[Adrian Griffin]

Try the zPacks SubNero. I just got one to use as a daypack when I need pockets to carry tools for trail maintenance. Carries weight well because the fabric and seams give it some stiffness. At 9.3oz, it’s much lighter than any of the other daypacks out there.

[Glen L]

“I use a REI Flash 22”

“Do you have an old Ridgerest ..? You could …keep things from getting floppy.”

 

I put this concept together with a Flash 18, took out the original ccf back pad and cut the Ridgerest to exact size. This gives the very lightweight pack a superb structure so the belt works to hold most of the weight right on the hips the way I require. Makes a great backrest when sitting and leaning against a boulder. Got a zillion miles on it, bagged peak after peak and haven’t looked back.

[Terran Terran]

I have a Geigerrig day pack with removable hip belt. Very comfortable and very heavy duty. It’s not ultralight. It’s heavy Cordura. They have a pressurized hydration bag which is actually kind of cool.

Day packs aren’t heavy anyway. The pack fits well and will carry a little bit of weight when extra water is needed.

Utah company. Great service in the past. I had a little seam problem on the shoulder strap and the sent me a new pack.

I often just use my bigger pack. Except for the frame sheet and the stays, it folds down.

[Monte Masterson]

I too love my ZPacks Sub Nero but for peak bagging I think the ZPacks Bagger 25 would certainly be best. As its name implies the Bagger is perfect for steep ascents. More of a concise design and not as long profile which is optimum for scrambling or high-angle profile gradients. Won’t flop around and will just plain ride better (short, wide and deep beats long, narrow and shallow). Also if you’re already into ultralight, 25 liters should be plenty capacity for day climbs. Bagger has nice side pockets and weighs only 10 oz in Ultra 100 or 10.7 oz in Ultra 200. Zip top closure is far handier than a roll top when you want to access items on steep grades.

[bradmacmt]

My wife and I have used Gregory Zulu 30’s for the last four years. I’ve had a LOT of daypacks going back to the 1970’s. The Zulu is as comfortable and great an all-around daypack as I’ve ever used. I use a Men’s M/L, my wife uses the Men’s S/M which she found fit her better than the Women’s. It has ample room for late season peak bagging.

On sale now at a real discount, the version we have:

https://www.gregorypacks.com/packs-bags/day-packs/zulu-30-1115ZUL30.html?dwvar_1115ZUL30_color=Mantis%20Green&dwvar_1115ZUL30_apparelSize=MD%2FLG&cgidmaster=packs-day-packs

Or, the newest version at 25% off:

https://www.gregorypacks.com/packs-bags/day-packs/zulu-30-145ZUL30.html?dwvar_145ZUL30_color=Halo%20Blue&cgidmaster=packs-day-packs

 

[Josh B]

I like Mystery Ranch’s Coulee line. They’re heavy but I don’t care about that for day hiking.

[Mustard Tiger]

Thanks everyone for their recommendations and suggestions.

I ended up ordering a Mountain Hardwear JMT 25. Was looking at a Gregory Zulu 30 and Mystery Ranch Coulee 30, but keep thinking 30L is a bit overkill for my needs, while 20L seems too small. 25L seems to be the sweet spot for me, so I’ll give the JMT 25 a go.

 

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