High Sierra Long Trail 90 Pack
Test Series by Kurt Papke
Tester Information
Name: |
Kurt Papke |
Age: |
55 |
Gender: |
Male |
Height: |
6' 4" (193 cm) |
Weight: |
220 lbs (100 kg) |
Email address: |
kwpapke at gmail dot com |
City, State, Country: |
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA |
Backpacking background: mostly in Minnesota - have hiked all of the
Superior
Hiking Trail and Border Route.
Preferred/typical backpack trip is one week. I do periodic
dayhiking in
Michigan, Wisconsin, Utah,
Colorado and Oregon. I mostly backpack in the spring/Fall
seasons.
I am a comfort-weight hiker: I try to carry as few items as possible,
but do
not go to extremes to reduce the weight of items carried.
Initial Report
Product Information
Manufacturer: |
High Sierra Sport Company
|
Year of manufacture: |
2008 |
Manufacturer website: |
http://highsierrasport.com/ |
Listed weight: |
6.1 lbs (2.77 kg)
|
Weight as received: |
6.3 lbs (2.86 kg)
|
Standard volume:
|
5500 in^3 (90L)
|
Color tested:
|
422: Pacific, Tungsten, Black
|
Size tested:
|
Available in one size only
|
MSRP: |
US $215
|
Product Description
The
High Sierra Long Trail 90 pack is described by the manufacturer as an
"Expedition-style frame pack...for multi-day climbing or hiking".
Its voluminous capacity and comfort features should appeal to me when I
want to carry large loads for a long time.
The Long Trail 90 pack achieves its volume by segmenting space and
extending
itself in all dimensions: horizontally, vertically, and to the
front. There is a sleeping bag compartment with zippered
separator as shown at the bottom of the picture on the left,
and
above the water bottle holders are two half-zippered (the zippers
extend only along the front) small vertical
side pockets. The pack lid is spacious (two zippered pockets),
adjustable front and rear to accommodate variable collar extensions and
removable. I was a little surprised that there are no
hipbelt pockets. The main compartment is huge: it is the first
pack I have ever been able to easily fit my bear cannister into.
The two substantial removable
stays shown in the above photo have been removed from the pack and set
alongside. These can be bent
for a custom fit, something I plan to
experiment with during the test cycle.
The
bottom compression straps shown in the above photo can be used for
external sleeping pad
storage, and the hook-and-loop trekking pole straps are located on each
side. The front pockets are behind the nicely-illustrated
cardboard feature card in the front photo. The two water bottle
pockets are also shown on
each side in the picture. The one on the right is holding a 1L Platy
bottle which can be seen extending well past the
side
pockets. The pocket on the left that is barely visible is holding a 1
qt Gatorade bottle. The pockets are elastic, but lack a
drawstring. Both bottles fit very snugly into the pockets.
They are not going to fall out, but they don't slide in easily either.
There are two stacked front pockets. The outer pocket is
small with a vertical zipper. The inner pocket is larger with a
semi-circle zipper and an interior pouch -- perfect for rain
gear.
The interior of the inner pocket is shown in the photo at right with
the zippered access to the main compartment right behind it. As
shown in the photo, the bear cannister fits with room to spare.
The orange plastic inner pocket liners seem like they would be quite
water-tight. Perhaps they would be a good place for wet raingear, a
tarp, or a rain fly.
The
picture to the left shows the back view including the substantial
molded foam back. The air channels which allow the back to
breathe
are shown in the photo. Note that the shoulder straps and the
huge
hip belt
are generously padded. The rectangular lumbar pad is good sized
and comfortably padded.
Not visible in the picture is a self-tensioning sternum strap that
combines an elastic with an nonelastic strip that limits the stretch.
On the left strap (right side of picture) is the removable
shoulder strap "media pocket". The pocket is a very tight fit for
my Garmin eTrex Legend GPS, but my iPod Nano and cell phone fit
nicely. The pocket was too small for my camera, so I will attach
my accessory shoulder strap pocket to the right strap during the test
period.
In the center of the picture are the strap loops for the adjustable
("ERGO-FIT") shoulder harness. Adjustments are very simple: peel
back the hook-and-look strip, move it to the desired set of strap
loops, and re-attach the hook-and-loop strip. A second attachment
point for the load-lifter straps is located behind the top of the
shoulder straps, to be used if the harness is adjusted
significantly lower. I will not be using the adjustable harness
features during the test period, as my pack arrived adjusted for a long
torso and fit me perfectly out of the box.
All hydration sleeves are not created equal. The
picture on the right shows the huge sleeve which extends to the bottom
and both sides of the pack. The sleeve is so large that it will
be
important to attach a reservoir to keep it from sliding around.
The hook shown at the top of the picture appears to be intended to
perform this function, but I find it curious that there is only one
hook. All the reservoirs I am familiar with have two holes for
hanging.
The sleeve is so large that it may prove useful for storing wet gear
in, keeping it separated from the dry compartment.
The two webbing straps in the picture are where the aluminum stays
go. The stays are removed by lifting the two hook-and-loop
webbing flaps.
Above are two views of the pack cover. In the photo on the left,
I have removed the cover from its hook-and-loop closed pocket and
spread it out on the floor. Note the strap attaching it to the
inside of the storage pocket. In the photo on the right the cover
has been wrapped around the pack and cinched down with the
drawstrings. The handy luggage tag is in the middle of the
picture. High Sierra notes that the cover is useful when checking the
bag as luggage.
The left photo shows the sleeping pad compression straps attached
criss-cross. The Long Trail 90 pack has the straps quite far
apart
for my rolled up Therm-a-Rest pad. By crossing the straps the pad
doesn't fall off the pack.
Lastly, the photo at
the right shows the bottom of the pack. Note that the compression
straps extend across the bottom of the pack to attach to the
back. The most interesting item in the photo is the assymetric
loops for ice ax and/or trekking pole attachment. There is one
large loop on the left, and two smaller loops on the right. This
is a configuration that I have not seen before. Perhaps this is
intended for an ice ax on
the left and two poles on the right. I'll have to experiment with
this a bit to see how this works out.
Initial Impressions
Quality of materials and "fit and finish" of the pack are
excellent. I could find no instances of poor workmanship, missewn
seams, nor frayed threads.
After filling
the pack with gear I hoisted it up onto my back and
walked around the basement (photo at left). The picture was taken
before I had symmetrically adjusted the shoulder straps... I was
very favorably impressed with the
comfort. The hip belt padding felt very pleasant and supported
the pack weight well. The back panel was also a good fit with no
pressure points. All the strap adjustments were obvious in their
use and allow the pack to accommodate varying torso lengths, waist and
chest sizes. The sternum strap is also visible in the photo.
Most notable in the picture is the setting of the hipbelt clips. I
have the hipbelt tightened as far as it will go. I have a 38 in
(96 cm) waistline. Someone with a smaller waist will not be able
to snug up the hipbelt satisfactorily. Oddly, the High Sierra
fit/sizing sheet lists this pack for waist belt sizes "up to 40
inches". In fact that would be at the lower end of the range, not
the upper limit by any means. What is not visible in the picture
is the excess hipbelt webbing hanging down to my knees. It'll be
interesting to see where I go with the excess!
The Long Trail 90 pack seems very full-featured with the exception of
the
hipbelt pockets already mentioned and perhaps a zippered pocket with
keyring attachment for car keys and valuables. In fact, there are
so many features that I had to restrain myself from overdoing the
photos in the Initial Report. There are many compression straps
and rings for attaching gear everywhere on this pack.
It seems like the biggest challenge with this pack will be keeping
myself from filling it with too much weight. I recently spent a
week in Isle Royale National Park in the Michigan Upper Peninsula, and
my companion had a similarly-sized pack that weighed in at 63 lbs (28.5
kg). His comment was "I could fit all this stuff in here so I
thought I should take it". By the end of the second day he had
blistered feet and sore legs from humping up and down the Minong
Trail with that load. Hopefully I will have more restraint when
using the Long Trail 90 pack.
Test Plan
I have
plans for a week-long October trek through the Porcupine Mountains of
Michigan. This trip should be long enough to assess
comfort levels over a moderately long period as well as getting an
initial indication of durability. I will attempt to assess:
- Comfort: are the shoulder straps comfortable? How well
do the hip belts carry 90
liters (5500 in^3) of gear including lots of food? How well does
the molded foam backpanel mate with my back and
shoulder blades after a week? I have a tendency to play with the
load lifters
in the afternoon as I get tired. Am I able to vary the load with this
pack? Do I find it worthwhile to re-bend the stays?
- Usability: how easy is it to pack my gear in the various
compartments? In particular, the side pockets seem quite small,
will I be able to use them effectively? How easy is it to attach
my trekking poles in the
afternoon when I often stop using them, and do they stay on? How
easy is it to get a
reservoir in the hydration sleeve and thread the tube?
- Accessibility: can I actually reach my water bottles in the two
provided pockets without taking the pack off? As mentioned, they
are pretty snug, I will be interested to see how easy it is to get
bottles in/out of the pockets while in motion, especially with gloves
on.
- Reliability & robustness: how well does the pack survive
abrasion? I am not
gentle when hoisting my pack. How well do the straps hold up?
There are lots of zippered pockets. Do they snag or break? The
zippers are quite substantial and require quite a bit of effort to use,
how well do they work in cold weather?
- Functionality: how effective is the compartment design? Am
I able to use the various compartments effectively with no wasted
space? How well placed are the sleeping pad compression straps?
Does my pad fall out? How well does the
collared storm shield keep water out of the pack?
- Moisture control: does the pack cover keep contents dry?
Does the hydration sleeve keep any leaks out of the pack? Does
the lining in the front pockets contain any moisture there?
- Aesthetics: its a clean-looking pack. Does it
still look that way after 4 months of wear and tear?
This concludes my Initial Report on the High Sierra Long Trail 90
backpack.
The Field Report will be appended to this document in approximately two
months.
Field Report
Field Locations/Conditions
During the
Field Report period my first use of the backpack was on a
4-day backpacking trip along the Southern end of the
Superior Hiking trail in Northern Minnesota from October 13-16.
This trail section varies in altitude from 650 to 1200 ft (200 to 365
m). The terrain is forested with granite outcroppings.
Temperatures ranged from a high of 60 F (16 C) to a low of 28 F (-2 C)
at night. My starting total weight was 50.7 lbs (23 kg) including
3 qts (3 l) of water.
The photo at left shows the pack at a rest break on the Pine Ridge
overlook. The remarkable aspect of the photo for me is there is
nothing tied to the back of the pack! On all my backpacking trips
I have my sleeping pad, camp shoes and rain jacket/pants strapped to
the back of my pack. I was able to put all of my gear in the pack
without even having to extend the collar to fit. The only
items on the outside of the pack are the things I want there: water,
and my knife/thermometer dangling from the zipper in the back.
Second use was
December 8-10, 2008, a 3-day trip to the Superior
Hiking Trail along the Beaver Bay to Penn Creek section.
Beginning pack weight was 46.8 lb (21.25 kg)
including 7.8 lb (3.5 kg) of food and 3 qt (3 l) water.
Temperatures ranged from a low of -2F (-19 C) to a high of 15F (-9
C). Elevation ranged from 750 to 1250 ft (230 to 380 m).
This was clearly a winter camping outing (see photo at right), and I
was happy for the capacity of the pack. Even with its copious
capacity, I still ended up strapping my camp boots and snowshoes to the
back of the pack.
I was pleased that my 0F (-18 C) synthetic fill sleeping bag fit in the
proper compartment of the pack. However, it took some cramming to
get it in there, and my Hennessey
SuperShelter open cell foam pad would not fit into the sleeping bag
compartment with the bag. It had to go into the main
compartment. The good news is the main compartment of this pack
is so large it swallowed the pad with aplomb.
Observations
- The pack fit me very well - I was able to carry virtually all the
weight comfortably on my hips.
- There are a lot of
nooks and crannies, hooks and loops to store things in this pack.
One of my challenges was remembering where I put things.
- The side pockets are small. They are large enough to be
useful, but only about 60% of the size of the side pockets on another
pack I have. They are too small for a 1 l (1 qt) insulated
Platypus bottle. I did find them useful for storing hats, gloves,
mittens and other items I needed to access on hiking breaks without
opening the pack or accessing the front pockets which had gear strapped
over the top of them.
- The small vertical front pocket in the picture above (with the
knife & thermometer dangling from the zipper) is very
small (thin). About all I could fit in there was a package of
cigars,
and it was good they were small cigars.
- The hydration sleeve is huge.
It is so deep, that once I forgot to hang my reservoir on the hook, and
it slid to the bottom of the pack. The result was the drinking
tube was so shortened (reaching to the bottom of the deep pack) that I
could hardly get it in my mouth.
- Some of the zippers required substantial effort to work,
particularly on the side and front pockets. They never snagged,
but they required a lot of force to open or close. They worked
well in frigid weather, and never froze up on me during extreme cold
weather.
- The adjustment for the right shoulder strap started to slip after
the second day on the trail. By the end of the 4-day trip just
moderate bouncing caused it to loosen more than I would have
liked. By the second trip both
shoulder straps slipped constantly, which annoyed me greatly and caused
the pack to tilt backwards.
- The shoulder strap padding was not as comfortable as I expected
given the weight carried in the pack. The sparse padding
plus the slippage mentioned in the previous point resulted in some
pretty sore shoulders.
- The pack felt and looked a bit top-heavy. It was odd to
twist my neck, look behind me and see the pack cover looming behind
me. Once I got used to carrying it, the weight distribution
seemed fine, but it definitely took some getting used to.
- There are two zippered pockets in the pack lid. I cannot
figure out why the top one (the smaller pocket) is felt lined. I
intend to use it for goggles and sunglasses on my next trip, as
the liner should protect the lenses.
- I found a use for the media pocket: two energy/protein bars fit
very nicely in there. I appreciated being able to grab a snack
without putting the pack down.
- The pack fabric seems really durable. I was slinging it
down on granite outcroppings without a care, and so far it has suffered
no ill effects.
- The extension collar has a draw cord around the base and the
top. I never used the one at the bottom, but the one at the top
worked well and allowed me to corral my gear in the main
compartment. The top compression strap was effective in squeezing
my gear down.
- I found the pack cover to be most useful at night. I
enjoyed being able to just pull the cover up and over the top and not
worry about my gear getting wet or full of snow. It was large
enough that I could stash boots and other gear under the cover.
Nice!
Big Pack Syndrome (BPS)
Me at the grocery store before the trip: "Yeah, another bag of Peanut M&M's,
that'd be good. Ooooh,
let's throw a jar of Nutella in there too." When packing a
90 l pack, I found I had little or no self-restraint. For me to
have a pack that weighed that much for a 4-day trip is a bit of an
embarrassment. This is not the fault of the High Sierra Long
Trail pack - it did not hypnotize me into loading up like that. I
just have to learn that its OK to use the compression straps on the
pack to tighten it up when its not full.
Busted
In preparation for my December backpacking
trip I was stowing my hydration reservoir in the sleeve and heard a
"pop". The photo at left shows the broken reservoir hook which
was the source of the popping sound.
The good news is that the reservoir I was using is large enough to sit
in the sleeve with no support needed from the hook. To prevent
any
further damage from sharp edges, I snipped off the hook with
diagonal cutters.
Summary
Likes:
- I liked having the integral rain cover, which I mostly used to
cover the pack at night. As a hammock camper I do not have a
vestibule in which to store my pack, and I appreciated the
self-protecting
design.
- The hipbelt padding was very comfortable, and effective at
transferring the load directly to my hips.
- The main compartment, sleeping bag compartment and pack lid are
all huge and can swallow lots of gear.
- I appreciated the neat look of having all my gear inside the pack instead of hanging
off the front.
- The combination of draw cords and compression straps on the
extension collar, combined with the adjustable straps for the pack lid
made a very effective system to configure the pack for varying amounts
of gear.
- There are few packs that can accommodate strapping snowshoes to
the back. This one can.
- This is a durable pack. I don't coddle my packs, and the
Long
Trail 90 looks brand-new (except for the broken hydration hook) after
all my field use.
Areas for
improvement:
- No pack should have shoulder strap buckles that slip and loosen
up.
- The very front pocket and side pockets could be bigger to make
them more useful.
- The hydration sleeve is perhaps too big. Reservoirs just
don't come that size, and things can get lost in there. This
issue is compounded by the sole hydration reservoir hanger, which in my
case broke off. That meant my reservoir sunk to the bottom of the
sleeve, which goes all the way down to the bottom of the pack.
- The zippers require excessive effort to operate.
- The hipbelt padding wrapped around to the front of my abdomen
more than it needed to. My stomach is already sufficiently padded
on its own, such that having padding on the belt pressing against it
seems
overkill, and could prevent someone with a smaller waist from
completely tightening it.
- The hipbelt webbing straps are too long. The previous point
about the length of the padding contributes to this. As a result,
I had to tuck the excess straps behind the padding to keep them from
flopping around in front of me.
This concludes my Field Report for the High Sierra Long Trail 90
Pack.
Long Term Report
Strap Slip
Prior to any use during the final two months
of testing, I decided that correction of the shoulder strap slip was
necessary. I was about to embark on some Winter backpacking with
heavy loads, and I was unwilling to use the pack on these trips with
the malfunction. After correspondence with other gear testers, I
settled on the use of tri-glides. These little pieces of hardware
would prevent future strap slippage without permanently altering the
pack, so if necessary the alteration could be undone. I visited
my local gear store and purchased four 1-inch (2.5 cm) tri-glides.
I removed the strap from the buckle, looped it through the tri-glide,
back through the buckle, then down through the tri-glide again.
The result is shown in the photo at left, the added tri-glide
highlighted with a red rectangle. The position in the photo is a
little misleading, as there is a fair amount of slack in the strap
moved up into the buckle. Under tension, the tri-glide does not
touch the buckle.
This process was repeated four times: once for each load lifter, once
for each shoulder strap near the base of the pack.
The downside of this additional hardware is that the load lifters and
strap tightness cannot be adjusted while the pack is worn. I have
to take the pack off, adjust the webbing passing through the tri-glide,
then adjust the buckle. This seemed like an acceptable trade-off
to me, as once my straps are set the way I like them, I rarely change
them except if I change jackets or other upper-body clothing that
impacts the strap fit.
The tri-glides prevented all strap slip once attached. I
went from tugging on them every half-hour to not touching my straps at
all. Now that my shoulder straps could be properly adjusted and
stay that way, my shoulders felt much better when using the pack.
Test Locations/Conditions
Dates
|
January 11-13, 2009
|
February 12-14, 2009
|
Location
|
Superior Hiking Trail (SHT) near
Finland,
Minnesota
|
Porcupine Mountains, Michigan Upper
Peninsula
|
Altitude
|
1322 ft to 1726 ft (400 m to 525 m)
|
778 ft to 1600 ft (237 m to 490 m)
|
Temperatures
|
High of 15 F, low -27 F (-9 C to -33
C)
|
Daytime highs of 30 F (-1 C),
nighttime lows around 15 F (-9
C),
|
Terrain
|
Forested with lakes and rivers
Rolling hills with no steep ascents
|
Forested with lakes and
rivers. The trail was along an escarpment with some steep grades.
|
Pack weight
|
Part one: 47.2 lbs (21.4 kg)
Part two: about 50 lbs (23 kg)
|
47.0 lbs (21.2 kg) including
3L (3 qts) of water
30 oz (0.9 L) white gas fuel
Food for 4 days/3 nights
|
Superior Hiking Trail
The January snowshoe & backpacking trip was based around the
Superior
Hiking Trail (SHT) Finland Rec Center trail head where our vehicle was
parked. The plan was to hike North toward Sonju Lake on day one,
return back to the trail head on day two to resupply and continue East
towards Leskinen Creek, spend day three continuing East towards Section
13 and the big beaver pond at the bottom of the cliffs, then hike out
on day four. We were aware of potential extreme cold after the
first night; predictions were for lows at night around -22 F (-30
C). We knew we would have to be flexible.
I carried all my gear in the Long Trail 90. My hiking partner
Sean used only a pulk sled for the first leg, then switched to sled
plus backpack for the second leg.
Day one of the trip provided perfect snowshoe conditions: 15 F (-9 C)
with only very light winds when we hit the trail at noon. Due to
deep, powder snow of 2-3 ft (60-90 cm) and an unbroken trail, we didn't
make nearly as much distance as we hoped and stopped for the night at
Egge Lake. Distance was 3.3 miles (5.3 km), and we alternated
leading due to the effort of blazing the trail. The snow was so
powdery that our snowshoes sunk over a foot (30 cm) with each step,
which meant lifting them quite high on each stride.
I was pleased at the way the Long Trail 90 handled in this
situation. I had no load shifting, and the pack stayed very
stable on my back despite the inevitable body rocking that comes from
taking big steps in snowshoes. Properly adjusted shoulder straps
that did not loosen while hiking contributed to the stability.
On day two we backtracked to the vehicle, topped off our white gas and
gathered up additional gear for what was supposed to be a wickedly cold
night. From there we departed East on the trail and made 6.4
miles (10.3 km) for the day, not bad considering that on the second leg
we were breaking trail again. Once again the Long Trail 90 pack
performed admirably, this time with additional weight and bulk for the
cold conditions.
We made Leskinen Creek about 3:30PM and set up camp quickly as the
temperature was dropping and the sky clearing. As it turned out
the temperature dropped to -27 F (-33 C) that night.
The next day we decided to hike out and cut the trip a day short, as
some dog sledders in the parking lot warned us it was supposed to get
dangerously cold with wind chill warnings the following evening.
Better to quit while we were still having fun.
Porcupine Mountains
This was a solo trip. Starting from the ski chalet around
lunchtime I hiked up the
Escarpment Trail in 3-4 ft (1-1.3 m) of snow, breaking trail all the
way. This was a steady uphill climb, with most of the vertical
gain in a 1 mile (1.6 km) section. Camped that night in a wooded
area on the escarpment.
Day two was an out-and-back to the Lake of the Clouds overlook.
Again, breaking trail all the way out, the trail was an up-and-down
section along the escarpment. From the overlook I hiked back to a
campsite just East of where I camped the night before.
Day three was an easy morning hike downhill to my car.
This trip was the first time I really attempted to use the front-load
capability of the pack, in this case for stowing and accessing my stove
for a hot lunch. I tend to pack my gear very tightly, and though
I was able to remove the stove OK it wasn't easy to cram it back in
again after the contents shifted and settled.
I also used the
pack cover extensively in the evening. As a hammock camper, I do
not have the luxury of a vestibule. I sometimes put my pack
beneath my hammock for protection, but that makes it a hassle to access
the contents as I have to bend over and crawl underneath the hammock
and tarp.
As can be seen from the photo at right, the cover protected the pack
and all my gear from the night's snowfall. I appreciated the
ability to "stash" things under the pack cover while I was changing
clothes while it was snowing. It was easy to lift the cover and
throw something under there for a few minutes to keep the snow off.
I also used the pack cover a few times as a ground sheet to sit or
stand on for a few minutes. It was a little chilly standing on it
in my socks, but while changing pants it was pretty handy.
It was very easy to deploy the pack cover, just undo the hook-and-loop
strip and pull it out. It was also easy to pack back in, just a
quick fold, stuff it in the pocket, and press on the hook-and-loop
strip.
Observations
Winter camping
requires substantially more bulky gear
than other seasons. The result can be seen in the photo at left
taken on the last morning before hiking out to the Finland trail
head on the SHT trip. A number of items had to be strapped to the
outside of the
pack.
On the bottom are my SuperShelter foam pad in the green bag, and my
down sleeping bag in the orange bag. My main sleeping bag is
inside the pack in the compartment. Note how the pack straps are
long enough to be criss-crossed, a technique that holds gear very
securely. I was able to pack my main sleeping bag in the
compartment without using a dry sack for the first time, as there is no
danger of rain in these conditions. I appreciated the separate
compartment giving me the ease of packing the bag directly.
On the left of the pack is my 1L (1 qt) Nalgene bottle in a blue
insulating sleeve. This hooked nicely to one of the compression
straps. Though I could not reach it while hiking, it was quickly
accessible at breaks when I took off my pack. It would be nice if
this insulated bottle fit into the side pockets, but it did not.
My Exped MultiMat can be seen vertically strapped to the right side of
the pack, in this case with two of the compression straps. This
worked perfectly and allowed quick access to the mat for use as a sit
pad for breaks.
The black insulated hose from my Platypus Insulator hydration reservoir
can be seen coming out of the hydration port at left.
Last, note the red 20 oz (0.6 L)
MSR gas cylinder in the left water bottle
holder mesh pocket. This worked very well giving me access to the
fuel when
making a hot lunch. Not visible in the picture is a 20 oz (0.6 L)
Gatorade bottle in the right water bottle holder pocket. Both of
these items fit nicely in the pockets, and were easy to stow and access.
During the Porcupine Mountains trip I used a 1 qt (1 L) Gatorade
bottle, which also fit nicely in the pocket. I used a 30 oz (0.9
L) MSR gas cylinder on this trip, which was a snug fit beneath the side
pocket.
Summary
The High Sierra Long Trail 90 has proven to be a capable Winter
backpacking piece of gear. Its large volume, load bearing
capacity, and facilities for strapping gear to the outside allowed me
to carry enough gear for several days in the backcountry in very cold
conditions. The built-in pack cover is very effective at keeping
winter snow off the pack. I was impressed with the way the pack
handles when traveling with
snowshoes. Though my hiking partner had the advantage on
downhills with his pulk sled, I was able to clamber up steep grades and
cross bridges more easily with this pack. On the solo Porcupine
Mountains trip I had to climb some very steep slopes and handle some
difficult lateral grades on snowshoes, and I never felt that the pack
constrained my movements.
Once I solved the strap slip problems with the tri-glides my feelings
of pack comfort improved greatly. Clearly some of my prior
experiences with sore shoulders were the result of the pack tipping
back from my shoulders. Other than the early failure of the
hydration reservoir hook, the
reliability of the pack has been excellent. All the zippers,
pull-cords, elastic, buckles, etc. still work like they were new.
For my use, the jury is still out on the front-load capability.
The zipper adds some weight to the pack, and considering how little I
used it (once) I question whether it's worth the additional weight.
I intend to continue to use this pack after the test period is over on
trips where I need this kind of capacity. I would recommend it to
any backpacker who needs the space and load-carrying ability, has a
large enough waistline for
the hipbelt to fit properly, and who is willing to make some
adjustments to prevent the strap slippage.
Many thanks to High Sierra Sports
and BackpackGearTest.org for the
opportunity to
test this product.
Read more reviews of High Sierra Sport Company gear
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