Reviews > Packs > Internal and External Framed Backpacks > Granite Gear Nimbus Latitude Pack > Thomas Peltier II > Initial Report

I have been in the outdoors since I was a toddler. My mother introduced me to backpacking when I was in the backpack. I in good turn joined the Boy Scouts to get away from Mom on the weekend hikes. My first backpack trip with the Boy Scouts was down a dirt road to a park and campsite. That was my last trip with the Boy Scouts. Since then I have been backpacking mostly in the Sierra Nevada.

I have been a professional river guide and kayak instructor for the last 11 years; however, I currently work at a family establishment in Bakersfield, California. Working a "Real Job" keeps me away from the outdoors a bit more than I would like. My summers are busy between city work and river guiding. Much of my packing is done on the river in the summer. This has driven me to long winter trips and short summer trips for the last several years. I took up snowshoeing to help get into winter packing. I have found that less is often more in my backpacking and my summer trips I find myself as happy in a pair of Chacos carrying my pocketknife as I do with a heavy pack and big boots.

The Nimbus arrived in a large cardboard box. Inside the box I found the backpack with labels attached, an owners manual and a catalog full of other Granite Gear products. The pack is black and teal and looks quite small with all the straps pulled tight. Very sleek looking. When I first pulled the Nimbus from the cardboard container I immediately took notice of the texture. A stretchy nylon that feels a lot like a soft wet suit. I also noted the strange zipper configuration; two zippers running parallel from top to bottom, several inches apart. Upon closer inspection I saw that both zippers are double zippers, meaning they can unzip from the top, the bottom or both, all at the same time. This makes for some pretty versatile entry options when the pack is full. When the front panel is completely unzipped and out of the way either at the top or the bottom the entire pack is exposed to you. The first time I began filling the pack with my gear I saw the beauty of this system. Everything seemed to fit snuggly in the pack and all of it was accessible. Packing is a breeze and the more I stuffed into the pack the more the pack grew. Pretty soon I was all packed up for a nice little backpacking trip including five days food. Up goes the pack and over my shoulders, clip the hip belt, shake it out, pull the chest strap together and snug it up. Hey, this feels kind of nice, smooth across my back, very snug and my neck is not kinked or my head pressed forward by the pack. So far so good, now just a little tug on the load lifters and ah, there we go, yeah I think I'm going to enjoy this pack. Before I get ahead of myself let me back up and tell you a bit more about this pack.


The Granite Gear Nimbus is an internal framed pack. It is comprised of several pieces including a framesheet, shoulder straps, belt, and pack. The Nimbus Latitude is a front panel backpack with one large compartment. Gear is compressed by two sets of horizontal compression straps. There is a top pouch stuff sack that is stored inside the top of the pack and is removable. There are stretchable pockets on both side panels for easy access to whatever is stored there. Something I really like is that all the stitching is very strong. The stitching on the shoulder straps goes all the way through and the straps are securely fastened to the frame and pack. The zippers are high quality sturdy zippers. The pack features load lifters and hip stabilizer straps, as well as several compression straps inside and outside of the pack.

According to the owners manual:


3D Tepex frames are engineered to flex like your back but never 'wash out.' Unlike a system with aluminum stays that can only flex evenly from top to bottom, our Tepex frame sheet is engineered with three distinct zones of flexibility. The lumbar zone is downright springy, absorbing the shock of each step. The mid-back zone is semi rigid, transferring weight evenly downward toward the belt while allowing the perfect amount of torsional flex. The upper zone is rigid, allowing the load lifters to pull the whole load close to your back. The 3D Tepex frame can flex but always returns to it's original shape - never deforming like aluminum stays frequently do.


The framesheet is removable from the pack, and following the directions it is not difficult. You do not need to remove the framesheet in order to make adjustments to the shoulder straps or hip belt. If you want to adjust the shoulder straps you will need a screwdriver. As the Owners manual indicated the frame does have three distinct zones. The bottom is very soft and spring like. I can easily bend the bottom third of the frame all over the place and it will spring right back into place. The upper two sections are much stiffer and do not flex so far or so easily. The frame is contoured to the shape of a back and a thick pad separates the frame from your back.

The constructions of the pack looks to be very solid The framesheet comes in two sizes Short and Regular Torso.





	Short Torso fits	14 in - 18 in	36 cm - 46 cm
	Regular torso fits	18 in - 22 in	46 cm - 56 cm

The back pad is open cell foam that has been covered in Durastretch with Vapex. This is a breathable, waterproof material that dries very quickly and protects the open cell foam from getting wet. All of the padding is stuffed into the sleeves (Pack Pad, Shoulder straps and belt), instead of the sleeve sewn around the foam. This makes for a very tight fit. There are no lumps or irregularities. There is a seam down the center of the pad, the seam is recessed and aligns with your spin when the pack is on.

The shoulder straps are molded and contoured inward at the chest. The straps fit comfortably and do not rub against my neck. The top of the shoulder strap is connected to a pivot point. Granite Gear calls this their Pivot Point hardware. The owners manual says that this is to allow the straps to fit the exact angle of my shoulders.

The shoulder straps come in a wide range of sizes. There are two widths, Trim and Regular. Each width comes in small , medium, large or X-large. My setup is regular, medium.

There are two styles of belt. According to the owners manual the standard belt has an exoskeleton that "forms a cup over your hip bone and does a great job of transferring the load to your hips." I have the Nimbus Light belt, which is the only model that does not have an exoskeleton. The belts are connected with the same Pivot Point hardware as the shoulder straps. This allows the belt to pivot with the hips.

The Nimbus Latitude has one large compartment and two side pockets. Access to the compartment is from two zippers that run parallel each other and vertically from top to bottom. This creates a center panel that may be unzipped and moved out of the way. The zippers are double, opening from the top or the bottom. Once the center panel is removed two center compression straps are visible. These straps run horizontally and keep the gear in place when the pack is opened up. At the top of the pack there is a storage pouch.

The Side panels are made from lightweight nylon. There is a large pocket on the bottom half of each side panel. The pockets are made from the same material as the center panel. There are two compression straps on each side. The top compression strap has a buckle. The bottom compression strap has no buckle and it goes across the middle of the pocket. This seems like it may make it difficult to use the pockets. On the right side panel at the bottom seam there is an axe loop.

At the back of the pack there is a water bladder pouch. The pouch has been laced with stretch cord to keep its contents tight against the framesheet. There is a slot near the top center of the pack for a drinking tube to pass out.

The pouch is a short fat stuff sack with a semi rigid bottom and it is detachable. It is a 12 X 8 in (31 X 20 cm) oval, made from lightweight nylon, with a foam disc in the bottom to make it stiff. The pouch is about 9 inches (23 cm) tall with a drawstring at the top. It connects to the pack via two plastic buckles at the top of the frame sheet. The pouch rides at the top of the pack and does a nice job of framing out the pack.

The owners manual is, in my opinion, an important part of my backpack. In the owners manual I can find all the important information about how the system was designed to work and what to do if I have a problem or something does not fit. The Nimbus Owners Manual is short, simple and clear. The manual covers the Cirrus, Stratus and Nimbus packs. It is 14 pages long and the first page has a picture of a bare frame sheet so that you can see what it looks like. It then describes the components and has directions for how to fit the pack, adjust length and sizing for the shoulder straps and hip belt. The owners manual has instructions for removing the framesheet should that become necessary, even though the pack may be adjusted without removing the framesheet. The directions also describe how to put the pack on, fit it, tighten it, and take it off again. It then describes how the pack should feel when properly fitted,
What you will notice immediately with our CIRRUS, STRATUS, and NIMBUS packs is amazing comfort. The load is evenly distributed over your back and onto your hips. You have plenty of room to tilt your head back and look up. The fit feels like it was made custom for your body. The ride is very well cushioned and stable. The pack feels in tune with your natural body motion and shape. And finally, the ride is stable; no swaying or sagging, and you can totally control the load. After you've been on the trail for a day, you will appreciate this pack even more! Your back muscles should still feel good, you shouldn't have any hot spots, and you should have a minimum amount of hipbone fatigue.

So I filled the backpack up and put it on to see how it would feel. Once again I got the feeling that this pack just keeps growing and growing. Soon enough I had gear and food for several days of walking all inside the pack. My feeling is that I will be able to scramble and climb fourth class while wearing this pack. I have freedom of movement in my shoulder and neck region. The pack fits snug against my back and the weight rides on my hips. I feel like I can control the load and I am comfortable. In my field report I will let you know how my back muscles feel after a day of hiking.

I plan on using this pack at every opportunity during the next six months. I have several weekend trips planned in the Sierra Nevada. The temperature on these trips will be between 32 F ( 0 C) and 90 F ( 32 C). I have at this time one long trip planned during the test period. The location has not been finalized but since it's summer on the west coast I do not expect the temperatures to be any different than shorter trips I'll be taking. I will be backpacking and using the Granite Gear Nimbus Latitude from Sea level to 12,500 ft (3810 m); or someplace there about.

I will be looking for many things while testing the Nimbus Latitude. The pack seems easy to use sitting in my living room. I want to know how I feel after three days on the trail. Does the panel loading system really work as well as it seems? Am I successful at getting gear from the pack without disrupting everything? Can I put it back? How well does the top pouch work? Can I get to it? Can I find my gear? I want to know how the pockets and compression strap work out on the trail. I will also be looking for durability. How does the pack hold up over time? Overall I feel good about this pack. It fits well and is comfortable.

1. The way it looks
   
2. The weight
   
3. The panel loading system
   
4. The suspension system
   
5. The stitching
   

1. The bottom strap over the pockets
   

The build is sturdy and the shape is good. I am looking forward to sliding this pack on my back and heading out on the trail. I'm excited to see just how my back feels after walking several miles in the pack. This is a nice pack and I'll be back in two months to tell you how things are going.

Tom Peltier

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Reviews > Packs > Internal and External Framed Backpacks > Granite Gear Nimbus Latitude Pack > Thomas Peltier II > Initial Report