Help choosing a pack that can handle lots freshly downed trees

I’m new to backpacking, but “help choosing a pack” seems a bit like asking for help on choosing underwear or shoes – It’s deeply personal… :)

Maybe an Alpine? You would lose water bottle pockets, but they’re pretty slick, without much “stuff” to get caught on downed limbs.

My current 7-day a week pack is a Patagonia Ascensionist 35L. Holds a 17″ laptop, change of clothes, lunchbox, and plenty of other things. Plenty of room for weekend hikes as well. Will work as an airplane carry-on.

I’ve stripped it of the exterior bits, though they can be quickly added back to hold an ice axe (never) or trekking poles, or an umbrella. The brain pocket is pretty generous, and it has an internal zipper pocket as well. Comes in 35L & 55L sizes, and the booger-green color is on-sale at many places.

If water bottle pockets are a must, then this probably won’t be helpful.

https://www.patagonia.com/product/ascensionist-climbing-pack-55-liters/47991.html

If you don’t need a frame, this was an excellent pack that I used for fifteen years before my kid stole it:

https://battlelakeoutdoors.com/product/headwaters-kletter-sac/

The side and back pouch are removable. It’s very tough.  But no frame.

I spend a lot of time off trail, going under and over trees, etc. Years ago I recall reading reviews recommending against the mesh front pocket of a ZPacks Arc Blast because they would get snagged and damaged. I ignored those reviews and decided to take my chances, and it has never been a problem for me. I find that people writing or recording reviews are usually full of BS and are just trying to find something to complain about.

I am not a fan of packs with a lid/brain. Just extra fabric and zippers. I used to think the extra compartment was helpful for organization, but I found it was easy to learn to live without it. As I scaled back the weight and volume of my gear, I found that hip belt pockets were more than enough for the things I needed at hand.

Brain alternatives.

Etsy

Companion

Tailgate

I burrow through a lot of brush (alder and salmonberry) and very poke-y trees (Sitka spruce). I have had mesh side pockets get pretty frazzled after heavy use, but solid material side pockets basically fixed that. They just need to have adjustable bungee closures on top so that once they are snugged flat against the pack body, there is little to catch and nothing falls out. I get hung up more by the ‘front’ stuff pocket when crawling under low branches or windfall. The new modern UHMWPE fabrics like Ultra from Challenge Sailcloth would be something to invest in for the pack body as they are highly abrasion and tear resistant while still being very light. Anyway, here are 2 suggestions.

Seek Outside Flight 3 in Ultra 200 (55L, $360)- I have been using this pack (the original Flight in Ultra 200 fabric) for years. This is my main non-hunting pack for coastal Alaska. Great for backpacking and big enough for my packrafting trips, though I am a pretty efficient packer and carry my packraft in a bag under the bottom of the pack. They come in 2 sizes and offer lots of torso adjustments. SO also makes a top lid for an extra $35, so pretty cheap.

Superior Wilderness Designs Rugged Long Haul in Ultra 400 (50L, $380)- Very similar to the SO Flight in design though it arguably has a better hip belt interface. In fact, I bought a SWD hip belt and converted my Flight to that type of system. These are built to order and might take a while. They would accept the SO top lid easily.

If you wanted to skip the outside pockets entirely, you may want to look at ‘alpine’ style packs. The HMG Porter or Headwall might fit the bill, though they are expensive and lack any sort of suspension sophistication or adjustment. And you would need to be a little creative to add a top lid, though this certainly would not be insurmountable.

The HMG Porter was my first thought. Good for bushwhacking. It starts loosing comfort at 25 pounds.

The SWD would be a great choice. They use the draw string pockets, but you might check. Get an Ultra back pocket or delete it. Long lead time.

Another that comes to mind and a little cheaper is the Exped Work/Rescue with no pockets.

Ezped

Cold Cold World Packs. I Dont think you can rip them, lol.  So comfortable too with loaded weight.

I use the Chaos in deep winter when Im carrying everything!

The main things you want to avoid are:
(1) Stretch mesh – especially basic lycra mesh
(2) Exposed elastics. When pockets sew elastic edging to the top edge instead of hiding it inside a folded hem, that exposed elastic can have the stitching damaged pretty easily and then start to detach.

I had a Zimmerbuilt Quickstep custom made for this reason. Removed all mesh, made pack out of Xpac and mesh pockets changed to ultragrid. It’s been fantastic. No issues with durability.