Reviews > Packs > Frameless Backpacks and Day Packs > Gregory Halo > David Sowards-Emmerd > Field Report

Field Report - Gregory Halo Pack
July 26, 2004

Personal Information:
Name: David Sowards-Emmerd
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Height: 5' 8'' (1.73 m)
Weight: 150 lb (68 kg)
Waist: 33'' / 84 cm
Torso Length: 17.5'' / 44 cm
Email Address: drunken_marmotATyahooDOTcom
Los Altos, California, USA
Date: July 26, 2004

Backpacking Background:

I began backpacking semi-frequently about three years ago, soon after moving to California. I generally take weekend (1 night) trips, and occasionally take 3-4 day trips. Most of my backpacking experience is at moderate altitude, 6,000'-12,000' (1,800-3,650 m), in conditions ranging from dry desert to hail/heavy snow in the mountains. In winter and spring I split time between Southern California (SoCal) deserts and snowshoeing/snowcamping in the mountains. Summer and fall I tend to stick to the high country. My pack weight has generally been in the 60-90 lb (27-40 kg) range (including food/water and a bear barrel) over the past few years, but recently I've been buying lighter gear. So now before each trip I'm stuck deciding whether to go lighter, or just carry more 'toys' to make up for the lost weight.

The product was received on May 10, 2004.

Product Specifications:

Manufacturer's Specifications:
Volume: 1600 cubic inches / 26 l
Weight: 3 lb 3 oz / 1.4 kg
As measured by tester:
Pack Weight: 3.0 lb / 1.36 kg

Product Description:

Field Use:

I've used this pack almost every other day since I received it. Aside from the occasional drip inside the caves and a bit of snow when glissading on the return from Mt. Conness (and of course perspiration), the Halo has not been exposed to wet or rainly conditions.

Bicycling to work:
Location: Los Altos/Stanford, CA
Elevation: 200' / 60 m
Conditions: ranged from foggy and 50 F / 10 C in the mornings to dry, sunny and 95 F / 35 C in the afternoons (never hot AND humid though)

I've biked to work (12 mi / 19 km roundtrip) with my pack more than twenty times since the testing period began. Generally I wear the Halo much looser cycling than when hiking since my back is more extended when biking than standing up. I always use the sternum strap for stability. The loads I've carried ranged from completely empty and very compressed up to 20+ lb / 9 kg when carrying clothes, a laptop, and an 3' / 1 m poster tube. The combination of the front access and crossover compression straps make this pack very versatile for accomodating odd shaped loads. Biking was an ideal test of ventilation - good breeze and steady exertion (20-25 mph / 32-40 km/h for most of my commute). Overall, the ventilation was good. I generally stay pretty dry except by the back pads, waistbelt and shoulder straps. These parts of the pack dry out very quickly.

Day Hiking:

Location: Pinnacles National Monument
Date: 16 May 2004
Elevation: 1,400-2,700' / 430-820 m
Conditions: 80 F / 27 C with a slight breeze

This was a fun 3/4 day hike loop through the park with lots of ups and downs and a bit of scrambling. I carried a 96 oz / 3 l water bladder, a loaf of cheese bread, climbing guide, etc. for a load of a little over 20 lb / 9 kg.

Location: Black Mountain, Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve, CA
Date: 25 May 2004
Elevation: 500-2,800' / 150-850m
Conditions: A warm, sunny evening

This was a quick and dirty ~3 hour 10 mi / 16 km conditioning hike with a bit of elevation gain (and a nice warmup biking to the this usually parked-full trailhead). I don't remember exactly what I carried on this hike, but it was definitely a full pack.

Caving:

Location: Lava Beds National Monument
Date: 3-5 July 2004
Elevation: 4500' / 1400 m
Conditions: Sunny and 80 F / 27 C, cool and damp inside the caves

I used the halo each day for caves that required longer approaches (0.25-3.5 mi / 0.4-5.6 km) carrying climbing gear and two static lines (one inside and one outside the pack), a climbing helmet (over the top of the static line and secured with the top crossover compression strap), lunch, water, lights, jacket etc. Weights ranged from 10-30+ lb / 4.5-13.5 kg.

Mountaineering/Scrambling:

Location: Sawmill to Mount Conness, Inyo National Forest, CA
Class 2/3 climb
Date: 10 July 2004
Elevation: 10,000-12,500' / 3,050-3,800 m
Conditions: Clear and 60 F / 16 C, breezy at times

This was a fun drive-out-from-sea-level and hike solo trip I took while my wife was out of town. The hike involved a brief crampon and ice axe hike up a steep snow filled gully (and back down a different one) as well as some fun exposed climbing on rock. Really this was the only trip where the stability of the pack was important.

General Use:

I carried the Halo on a 5 day trip to Denver, CO, and used it each day for hiking around town and to my conference - my hotel was 1.5 mi / 2.4 km from the convention center. The one time I used the pack without the waistbelt turned out to be the day I carried the heaviest pack (~25 lb / 11 kg, including two 4-packs of Flying Dog Barleywine! mmmm) around 15 mi / 24 km.

Other generic trips include use as a gym bag for several trips to three local climbing gyms, and for two bouldering daytrips in Bishop, CA.

Observations:

Durability:
So far so good. The pack has seen plenty of use over the past two months, but doesn't show any signs of wear - except where the shoulder straps bend, but this effect seems to be common to most packs I own. The foam back pads also seem like new.

Upper Suspension:
The shoulder straps are comfortable, and the daisy chains on each are convenient. But, the straps are thin enough that if I attach a carabiner through the daisy chain, the bulge it creates in the shoulder strap quickly becomes uncomfortable. The shoulder stabilizer straps allow the curve of the shoulder straps over my shoulders to be adjusted and allow some load transfer between the shoulders and hips. I generally need to use the sternum strap, since the shoulder straps tend to slide away from my neck otherwise. However, the sternum strap allows me to adjust exactly where the straps rest and vary this during the course of the hike.

Waistbelt:
The removeable waistbelt is comfortable, but the sizing seems to be a bit off - with a 33" / 84 cm waist, I have 15 " / 38 cm of webbing hanging down when the waistbelt is tightened. When biking, I tuck the extra underneath the waistbelt stabilizer straps.

Waistbelt stabilizer straps:
The left one conflicts with the waistbelt pocket. The strap pulls on the waistbelt pocket material when pulled tight enough to be useful - namely to start to pull the pack against my back.

Ice axe attachment:
The pack easily carries two ice axes without compromising the use of the side pockets or front access.

Waistbelt Pocket:
This small stretch pocket is just that - small. I generally carry my keychain in this pocket.

Fleece-lined pocket:
This pocket has been great for my sunglasses, MP3 jukebox, HID bike light, and cell phone. Even my big glacier glasses (think Stevie Wonder or Elvis) easily fit in this pocket. The zipper is a little annoying - I frequently need two hands to open or close it all the way. This is an issue since I am usually grabbing/putting away glasses while hiking (not stopping to give the mosquitos a chance!), so I have to hold the pack by the haul loop and open the zipper with the other hand --> usually need to creep the hand holding the haul loop down the loop and grab the pack itself to be able to open (or close) the zipper all the way.

Side pockets:
The stretch side pockets can easily be reached while wearing the pack, and the lower side compression straps can be positioned over the side pockets to help secure the contents, or they can be positioned just above the side pockets against the side of the pack body to secure other items (or cross over the pack). The side pockets are large enough to hold a 32 oz / 1 l water bottle, but I don't trust them to keep it secure.

Hydration Bladder Sleeve:
The sleeve is just slightly small for a full 96 oz / 3 l bladder so that the top of the bladder sticks out just a bit, but this works just fine for me. The sleeve is not seam sealed at all though, so if the bladder leaks, the water will leak into the rest of the pack. I will SeamGrip this myself once the testing period is over.

Front Panel Interior Pocket:
This is the standard place (only convenient place) to store my wallet, cell phone, etc. Unfortunately, when the front access is unzipped, the whole strip falls down. However, keeping the top buckle (or hook and loop fastener) attached, the pocket is still accessible. Easier still would be to remove the zipper pull strap so that just one side of the panel could be unzipped and the panel pocket can be accessed easier.

Daisy Chain:
Aside from climbing shoes on the bouldering trip and an occasional carabiner, I have avoided using the daisy chain for two reasons: first, whatever is hanging from the daisy chain just bounces on whatever is in the front panel pocket and second, the zipper pull strap barely fits over a carabiner (let alone a cordelette) when the pack is full.

On a side note, the daisy chain was very useful when I had a 3' / 1 m poster tube sticking out of the pack. In that case I fed the top crossover compression straps through a daisy chain link and the zipper pull strap to make sure the pack would not open any further on my ride home.

The suggested rope carry method (described on the manufacturer's website) is not a reasonable way to carry a rope. I may be interpreting the method wrong (''cross-over compression straps hold a rope securely to the back of the pack''), but putting a 9 lb / 4 kg (or heavier) rope as far away from my body as possible is NOT a viable method to carry it. The traditional method of 'over the top of the pack' is also not an option with this pack. On future trips, I will either carry the rope separately in a rope bag, or in a coil over my shoulders.

What I like:

• Streamlined design - not much to catch branches/rocks on Stretch side pockets (except for the small hole in the side which my sunscreen lip balm fits through).
• Versatile compression straps
• Front access method
• Durable (so far!)
• Removable waistbelt
• Carries a load very comfortably - except when heavy objects (e.g. rope) are strapped to the front of the pack

What I don't like:

• Front access panel flops around
• No good way to carry a rope (it is marketed as a climbing pack)
• Stretch side pockets do not have ski-tail pass-throughs as advertised by the manufacturer's website
• No gear loops, although the lower ice axe attachments can double as these if not carrying an axe.

Future Testing:

The test plan described in my Initial Report is still valid.

Respone to the Manufacturer's Comment:

The buckle at the top of the daisy chain is claimed to prevent accidental unzipping (via snagging the zipper pull strap, etc.) from opening the front access to the pack. However, as mentionned in my Initial Report, the hook-and-loop fastener patches, located at the top of the front panel and on the underneath the top buckle also serves this purpose. Additionally, this problem would be removed by using the zippers on the front access panel separately instead of using the zipper pull strap. Removing the zipper pull strap is another modification that I'll make after the close of the testing period.

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