During the field testing period, I have put the Gregory G Pack through
the grind. I have used it at the upper
weight limits recommended by the manufacturer (35 lb/15.9 kg)
and I have found that it held up nicely and it was very
comfortable to wear. Both of my backpacking trips with the pack were
of the mid-length variety (a five-day trip and a six-day
trip). When I had received the pack, I wondered if I
would be able to pull-off a multi-day
trip with it. I initially thought that maybe it would
suffice for an overnighter or two-night outing, but most
of the trips on my calendar were much longer in
length. The Gregory G's capacity is 2700 cu in (48 L), this is
far smaller than any pack I have ever used for a lengthy trip.
In fact, I normally take a 4800 cu in (79 L) pack for similar
adventures. I set myself up to the challenge of seeing if I could
use the pack for these longer trips. Would I have to scrap some of the gear
that I normally take with me?
Trip 1 - Rock River Canyon (5 day) -
September
This trip had its own set of challenges. I not only had
to pack five days of gear but I also needed to carry a rock helmet as I
would be exploring backcountry caves - would I be able to carry that much gear
in a lightweight pack and be comfortable? I wanted to find out if it
was possible. The weather forecast looked good. September is one of those
marginal clime months in Michigan when anything could happen - even
nights below freezing were possible.
Would the pack accommodate all my gear? My style of packing
involves using silynylon stuff sacks for all of my gear. They insure
water tightness plus the slipperiness of the sacks makes it easy to
push smaller sacks into tight spaces of the pack without wasting any
space. I decided to carry my light-weight hammock in combination
with a silnylon tarp for this trip. The only other bulky item that would
take up room inside the pack would be my sleeping bag and a light insulated
jacket and fleece pants. I brought my 25F (-4C) down
bag to insure warmth at night, because I would be sleeping off the ground
and subject to cooler temps. And the food of course, there was lots of it with
five days of regular rations plus extra meals for back-up. I stowed the food
inside the pack in two separate silynylon stuff sacks.
The top lid pocket of the pack held my rain gear, sun hat, light
gloves, book, more snacks, toiletries and the like. The lid pocket has a two
pull-tab zipper arrangement so that the contents are accessible from
either side. I would later find this to be a handy feature.
I slipped a three-quarter length closed-cell pad into the
center air-mesh pocket on the outside of the pack and lashed my rock
helmet on the outside of that. The rock helmet would of fit
in that pocket itself, but I decided to put the pad in there instead.
There aren't any attachment straps across the back of the pack where
I could carry a sleeping pad otherwise. I didn't have any room to stow
the pad inside the pack but that would certainly be a possibility if I had
been utilizing the pack for a shorter trip with less cargo. Two
standard one-quart (liter) water bottles were stowed in the side
mesh pockets. The pack does have a hydration sleeve inside, however I
chose to use the exterior aforementioned pockets instead.
The mesh waist belt pockets held my usual array of
bug-repellant, sunscreen, lip balm, snack bar, gum, and sunglass case.
Although this may seem like a lot, I find the pockets to be invaluable.
I normally would have to either attach a floating "rib" pocket to the
front of my other packs to make items accessible, or stop and take my pack off
to reach items that were stowed in a top pocket. I have easy access to all of
these items and I hardly notice the light layer of bulk on top of the
waistbelt, it doesn't interfere with my stride or get in my way. I love these
pockets! They are so convenient and I no longer have to attach a bulky "rib"
pocket in front of my waist that once hindered my movement.
Overall, the food stores were the heaviest part of my
load but I started the trip complete with 2 quarts (liters) of water at
34 lb (15.4 kg). The website chart indicated the extreme end of a load limit
for the Gregory G at 35 lb (15.9 kg). I was happy to find that I didn't need
to sacrifice any gear for this trip. Everything fit nicely - I have to admit
that there wasn't any "extra" room, but it was a good test for the material
and the seams especially.
One of my initial concerns with the packs was the narrow and
thinner-than-most harness and waistbelt. I was pleasantly surprised to find
that both of these lightly padded features were still comfortable with a heavy
load throughout each day. During this trip I wore a Supplex long sleeve shirt
but when it got too hot, I wore a long-waisted sport top. The shoulder harness
was very comfortable against the bare skin of my shoulders.
The weather for this trip was unusually warm. In fact in was in the
80F ( 27C) range for the first few days. Being rather humid as well, I was
impressed with the air flow that I experienced with the Chimney-Ventilated
Backpanel. While my back got a little hot, it was mostly comfortable and
I didn't experience much dampness on my shirt when I took the pack
off at rest times.
In preparation for any trip, I usually attach a map pocket to the
side adjustor straps of a backpack. Most of my trips are off-trail and I need
to have my USGS Maps handy for navigation purposes. The compression straps on
the sides of the Gregory G do not have a buckle and clip opening like many
packs but have an adjustment feature or slider. I tried to move the strap
completely out of the slider so that I could thread my map holder through the
webbing. I could not seem to pull the webbing through the slider. I tried
numerous times, but it seemed to get hung up on the hardware. Finally in
frustration, I decided to attach cordage to the loops on the map holder and
tie them on with a simple bow-line knot. I have since worked with the webbing
more, and they just needed a bit of flexing to make them more pliable. I can
now pull them through the slider and slip the loops of my map case through the
webbing.
This was my first bushwhack adventure with the G Pack, so I
wondered if the fabric and mesh netting would hold up to the abuse of such
travel. In addition, there would be much contact with backcountry sandstone
caves formations. Although the fabric and netting picked up a fair amount of
sandstone debris, it was easy to brush off for the most part. At the end of
the trip, I only needed to take a damp rag to wipe off the rest of the dirt.
There was no damage to either the G70 fabric or the mesh netting.
I did notice at higher load levels that the waistbelt has a bit of
a slippage issue, I had to re-tighten it several times during the first few
days of the trip. However, when the load was decreased by several pounds due
to declining food stores, it no longer became a necessity. It is also harder
to adjust the Wraptor Stabilizer when the load level is at maximum. I do like
the mechanical advantage of this system though, as pulling up on the strap is
much easier to facilitate than a downward motion that is commonly used
on many packs. The stabilizer "hugs" close to my body and really keeps
the pack from unnecessary movement. I can really appreciate the saving of
energy by not having to expend extra energy to balance the pack.
Trip 2 - Porcupine Mountains Wilderness (6
days) - October
This was a "different" type of backpacking trip than I
normally take. Although it was a backpacking trip in cooler conditions, I
would be staying in different back-country rustic cabins with
bunks each night. Because I didn't need to carry any sort of shelter,
an insulated pad or heavy insulated gear, I was able to fit all of
my supplies for the six days in the Gregory G Pack. I again started the trip
with a maximum load level of nearly 35 lb (15.9 kg). I quickly eliminated 2
lbs (0.9 kg) of water as there was abundant water everywhere on this
trip, so it wasn't necessary to carry the normal amount of 4 lb (1.8
kg).
Like most packs, the comfort level was directly related to how I
arranged my belongings in the pack. I once again brought my 25F (-4C)
down bag on this trip. Even though we had a wood-burning stove in our cabin
each night, I didn't know how often we would tend it and I wanted to be sure
that I would be warm throughout the night. The vast majority of my pack weight
was food stores. I most likely had close to 15 lb (6.8 kg) in food due to
additional desserts and the like. I also decided to take my
Trangia alcohol stove and necessary fuel which is heavier/bulkier
than my normal Esbit stove and Esbit fuel for a similar trip. I packed
the food low in the bag next to my back and filled in the outside areas with
lighter belongings such as the down bag. This seemed to work very well with
this pack as it stayed close to my back and I experienced little to no
shifting of the pack. This was especially important when I had to don my
sandals to wade the river a few times during the journey. It also was a plus
when crossing some of the old several-feet-high, elevated but shaky
boardwalks.
Since I wasn't carrying a sleeping pad, I decided to use the center
back mesh pocket to stow my water sandals and a small ground cloth
that I had brought along to sit on during trail breaks. I carried the
majority of my snacks in the top lid so I didn't need to get into the main
body of the pack during these breaks.
Once again, I stowed my water bottles in the side mesh pockets. The
diagonal compression straps are somewhat of a nuisance as I can't
get the items out of the side mesh pockets without loosening the straps.
However, the combination of the elastic-edged mesh side pockets and the
compression straps makes the possibility of losing gear almost impossible.
This is a perk when bushwhacking through thick vegetation. The compression
straps would also be useful for stabilizing a smaller load in the pack.
Day Trips - North Country Trail - October
18 and October 22
During the month of October, I took two day hikes to explore the
outstanding fall color. My day trips took me to parts of the North
Country Trail. The trail varies with rocky outcroppings, river-side views,
old-growth forest and a fair share of ascents and descents. Both of my day
hiking trips were in typical 50F(10C) to 60F(16C) fall temperatures.
Distances for the trips were approximately 8 mi (13K) and 6 mi
(10K). I packed the G Pack with additional layers of clothing, a small
tarp, rain gear, lunch, snacks, emergency supplies, maps, camera,
and the usual small items that total around 15 lb (6.8
kg) including water. I really didn't need to utilize the top
pocket, but left it in place anyway. As the day trips progressed, I
decided to stow a few items - my gloves and my hat. I thought about taking the
pack off my body to stow those items in the back mesh pocket, but
instead I decided to reach over my shoulder to see if I could open the
top lid pocket. It was easy to open the double pull-tab zipper and I
quickly stowed those items and pulled the zipper shut. It was a neat maneuver,
and probably best accomplished when the top lid is not overstuffed
with contents. Using the G Pack with a lighter load is simply fun,
I sometimes forgot that I was even wearing a pack.
