Owner Review - Marmot Eiger 36 Pack

Greg Mehojah

November 17, 2005

Biographical Information:

Name:              Greg Mehojah

Age:                 33

Gender:            Male

Height:              6’ 1” (1.85 m)

Weight:             210 lb (95 kg)

Email:               gmehojah3@comcast.net

City, State, Country:     Albuquerque, New Mexico

Backpacking Background:       

I began backpacking this year to reintroduce myself to the outdoors, and introduce my 10 year old son to backpacking.  My trips are typically 1-2 nights with my son and 2 nights when I solo.  My first season has taken me through desert terrain and high-altitude meadowlands throughout New Mexico, as well as day hikes of the foothills and ridgeline trails of the Sandia Mountains in Albuquerque.  I tend to carry most of the gear when I hike with my son, so I am not a lightweight hiker, but plan on moving that direction as my son gets older.

Product Information:

Manufacturer:               Marmot

Year of Manufacture:    2005

URL:                            http://www.marmot.com

Listed Weight:              3 lb 6 oz /1.5 kg

Weight as Delivered:     3 lb 6 oz /1.5 kg

Volume:                        2400 cu in. (39 L)

Size:                             Large

Available Colors:          Blue, Gold, Red, Black

MSRP:                         $99.00 US

The Marmot Eiger 36 is a technical daypack marketed for “climbers, hikers and skiers” to fill the gap between smaller daypacks and larger weekend packs.  The Eiger 36 is constructed using 420d Broken Twill nylon, and reinforced with 860d HT nylon.  My Eiger 36 is blue, but is also available in gold (yellow), red and black colors.  The interior is accessible only through the typical top opening, which closes through an internal drawstring and an extension collar (that also has its own drawstring).  The contents can be further secured with the 1" (25 m) compression strap.  The extension collar provides additional expansion room for larger loads.  The top lid has two zippered compartments, is secured to the pack with a single 2" (50 mm) nylon clip, and is completely removable.

One side of the interior of the Eiger 36 is lined with bright yellow fabric to make finding gear easier in dark conditions (especially with the dark colored packs) and also includes a simple hydration sleeve.  The pack also has 2 ice-axe loops and 2 small shock cord loops for securing the ends of the axe handles, a sturdy daisy chain, 2 side pockets, and 2 compression straps on either side of the pack to stabilize the contents or, alternatively, for lashing on additional gear. 

The waist-belt is made from Marmot’s Dri-Clime fabric, and is unpadded.  The belt, which includes load stabilizer straps, is attached to the pack with a substantial amount of hook-and-loop material, allowing for easy and complete removal from the pack.  The shoulder straps are “S” shaped, which Marmot claims allows carrying of loads up to 25 lbs (11 kg) comfortably.  The included sternum strap has elastic fabric built into it to provide flexibility for breathing without constriction.  The load of the pack can be snugged to the wearer’s back through the use of the load lifter straps.  Finally, the Eiger 36 has a molded back panel, supported by a single aluminum stay that can be removed from the interior of the pack.  Access to the aluminum stay is through a pocket in the hydration sleeve.  The pack does not feature adjustable torso length, so purchasing the right size is an important factor for getting a good fit.

Field Use:

I originally used this pack to get in shape for the upcoming summer backpacking season.  I loaded the pack with a solid 35 lbs (16 kg) of gear and water for 10 mile (16 km), intense day hikes.  My first trip was an early spring day-hike up a popular local mountain trail that gains three thousand feet (914 m) in 4 miles (6.4 km), experiencing temperatures that ranged from 65 degrees (18 C) at its base, to 45 degrees (7 C) at the top, where I trudged through a snow field for the last mile.  I found that the Eiger 36 carried this load remarkably well, and quite a bit better than I expected.  The slim design proved very useful during some unexpected bush whacking through alpine thickets, and didn’t show a single snag after some moderate abuse.  I have since used this pack exclusively for hiking up my local mountain trails.

After a few day trips with the pack, I found that I could fit all my gear into the pack for a two night solo trip.  While this required strapping my sleeping pad and tent poles to the pack using the side compression straps, I was able to shave 2 lbs (0.9 kg) by using the Eiger 36 rather than my standard weekend pack.  The bottom interior of the pack is actually larger than the rest of the upper compartment, which makes stuffing in gear more efficient.  I can slip my down sleeping bag and solo tent side-by-side into the bottom of the pack.  I am not a light and fast hiker, but the Eiger 36 easily swallowed all of my standard gear.

I used the Eiger 36 on my first solo overnight trip to Bandelier National Monument in April.  My pack weight for this trip was about 33 lbs (15 kg). The initial climb out of Frijoles canyon was made very comfortable and stable by the sway-free load carrying of the pack.  I did find, however, that over the course of the first leg of the hike, a moderate 8 miles (13 km), the waist-belt began slipping and transferring more weight to my shoulders.  Even though the shoulder straps are very comfortable, my shoulders along the collar bone area began getting sore.  This appears to be due to the flimsy nature of the included waist-belt.  Admittedly, the pack is not designed to carry this much weight, and I certainly overloaded it beyond the manufacturer’s specifications.  Despite this fact, my descent back into upper Frijoles canyon down slippery, icy conditions was not at all unpredictable.  Again, the slim lines of the pack proved very useful while crawling over and under downfall on the trail.  I was a bit concerned that the fabric was taking too much of a beating on this trip given the amount of downfall that I had to negotiate.  Because the fabric on the pack was stretched taught due to cramming in all of my standard gear, I worried that a snag on a branch or thicket might easily tear the pack rather than just create snags.  However, the pack, though it has some snags, proved to be very tough and still looks brand new.  Subsequent use of the pack for solo overnight trips and long day hikes have not shown any significant wear to the pack.  Even at higher than intended weight loads, the pack has not shown any hint of tearing at the waist-belt stabilizer straps, nor at the shoulder strap attachment points.  I have about 120 miles (190 km) on this pack from this season.  At the end of each use, I simply wipe the pack down with a wet rag and it looks nearly brand new.

I have found the Eiger 36 to be a solid performing pack that is durable, comfortable, and pretty sway-free in carrying loads up to 25 lbs (11 kg).  While the Eiger is a bit on the portly side for its size compared to similar packs in its class, the durability easily makes up for the weight.  I did find that the waist belt becomes less comfortable at heavier loads, transferring more weight to the shoulder straps.  Subsequent test trips with the pack tended to show that this is the case when carrying anything above 25 lbs (11 kg).  I resolved this issue by ordering a waist belt from Marmot sold with their larger Eiger 45 pack.  This solved my heavy load issues, and I can now switch between the two belts depending on the route and load size.  I also found that the side pockets become useless when the pack is fully loaded, and the lid does not cinch down tightly when the pack is not fully loaded.  This is easily remedied by simply removing the lid, which also shaves nearly a pound off the overall pack weight.  I generally now take the top lid off for day hikes that do not require the pack to be fully loaded, and keep the lid attached for over night hikes.  I would also like to see dog-bone patches on the bottom of the pack for lashing on additional gear.  Finally, the Eiger is not waterproof, but any water that leaked in through my garbage bag rain cover did dry fairly quickly.

Summary:

I am very impressed with both the durability and versatility of this pack.  I especially like the ability to use different waist-belts for carrying different types of loads.  I definitely plan on continuing to use this pack for long day hikes and solo, lightweight overnights trips.

Things I like:

1.         Durable Construction.

2.         Removable Top Lid.

3.         Removable/Replaceable Waist Belt.

Things I did Not Like:

1.         Lid Does Not Cinch Down for Undersize Loads.

2.         Unpadded Waist Belt Uncomfortable at loads Greater Than 25 lbs.

3.         Side Pockets Useless When Pack is Fully Loaded.