My first impression of the Keeler is that it is a huge pack. My size large is 5300 in^3 (87 l), larger than any pack I've used in the last few years. My second impression is that the Keeler looks very smooth and streamlined. Even though it has several outside pockets, they have been integrated into the pack in such a way that there few joints or seams.

Given that I am a generally lightweight hiker, why would I want to test a pack that is significantly larger and heavier than I normally use? One word: winter. Like most hikers who venture forth in cold weather, two things happen to my load on winter hikes: it gets a little heavier, and a lot bulkier. Depending on the trip, for winter hikes in the southeastern United States, my base pack weight (without food and water) increases to 25 to 28 pounds (11 to 13 kg). Worse, this stuff takes up a lot more space: down jackets, a full-length closed-cell-foam pad to go under my self-inflator, more fleece, two sets of hats and gloves, a larger stove and pot, a much larger sleeping bag, and extra food. Add a weekend's worth of food and a couple of liters of water, and my pack weight starts pushing the 35 lb (16 kg) mark -- just right for the Keeler. And the extra space inside the pack should easily gobble up my winter gear.

As I noted in my test application, I have a fair amount of experience with Gregory products. This is my third pack in the Escape Series: I still use a Chaos X, the smallest Escape pack at 2900 in^3 (47.5 l, now discontinued), and I owned a Reality for a while. I still have my ten-year-old Shasta, which I used to carry heavy loads backpacking with a young family. I am looking forward to testing the Keeler, and comparing its features to these other packs, and to my imaginary "ideal pack."

Main Compartment: The Keeler has a large main compartment with a horizontal divider which creates two separate 'rooms.' The lower compartment is designed for a sleeping bag, and has a U-shaped zipper that allows access to the contents. The upper compartment has the usual top access, with a double drawstring closure and a 9 in (22.8 cm) extension collar, which is covered by the lid pocket when closed. There are large panel-access doors into the main compartment on each side of the Keeler. These doors have waterproof zippers, and small zippered mesh pockets built inside each door. These panel-access doors are easily mistaken for exterior pockets.

The sleeping bag compartment has room for a large synthetic sleeping bag, and easily swallowed my 10-F (-12 C) down bag, my bivy sack, and a light jacket, with room left over. This compartment is an odd shape, however, and my bag didn't want to fit inside at the bottom. I may have more success if I don't use a stuff sack, and instead simply stuff my bag in as-is, pushing it into the far reaches of the compartment. I would want to line the compartment with a trash bag if I did this. The horizontal divider which separates the two compartments can be unhooked to combine them.

The top lid pocket (left) is a floating design, using 3 adjustable straps on the back of the pocket which allow the lid pocket to 'float' as high as necessary and still cover the top of the pack. The pocket has two straps on the front of the pack with quick-release buckles for access into the top of the main compartment. The lid pocket has an unusual U-shaped waterproof zipper which opens the entire pocket at once. I originally thought that everything would fall out when the lid was opened, but the pocket is designed in such a way that I have access to everything, but nothing can escape on its own. This is a cool feature. There is a key clip inside the pocket.

The lower side mesh pockets (center) are 8 in (20 cm) tall and 8 in (20 cm) wide at the top, tapering to 5 in (12.5 cm) at the bottom, with elastic at the top to hold them closed. The pockets are large enough to hold a 1-l Nalgene bottle, but a lot of the bottle sticks out above the top of the pocket.

The panel-access pockets (right) are another unusual feature. They look like pockets, but opening the waterproof zipper all the way provides a large 'door' into the main compartment. Since I have always lined the inside of my pack with a heavy-duty trash compactor bag, their utility remains to be seen. Inside each door is a zippered mesh pocket. These look quite small at first glance, but one pocket easily swallowed my water filter, and the other took my toilet articles. Even with my gear inside a trash bag, I think I will be able to store small items inside these 'doors' and quickly gain access to them.

There is a large front pocket on the main compartment, with a single vertical zipper running down the right side. The pocket takes up the entire front of the main compartment of the pack above the sleeping bag, measuring 18 in (46 cm) tall and 11 in (28 cm) wide, with a large bellows providing plenty of room for gear. This pocket is large enough for my 8x10 ft (2.5x3 m) tarp, stakes and guy lines, my rain shell, gloves, and a hat -- it's almost large enough to be a pack all by itself. When I first examined the pack, I worried that filling the main compartment would close up all the space in this pocket, but it is designed to provide all its usable space even if the pack is overstuffed.

The Keeler has an internal water bladder sleeve. The sleeve can be removed easily to save 2 oz (57 g) for hikers who don't use bladders. There is a single drinking tube exit port that routes the tube out on the user's right side.

Other Features: The Keeler has three ways to compress the load. There are two main compressions straps, one on each side of the pack running over the panel access doors, with a quick-release buckle to allow entry through the panels. These straps are the usual Gregory 'V-Pull' compression straps, and tighten from the bottom. They do a good job of compressing the main body of the pack (see center photo above).

A top compression strap runs over the main body of the pack to a quick-release buckle under the lid pocket. This strap pulls the load in tight against the internal frame, and can be used to secure a large object like a climbing rope under the lid. The bottom half of the strap has been made into a daisy-chain for securing gear.

There are two pad straps running under the bottom of the pack and over the sleeping bag compartment. The straps are designed in a way that gear can be attached either under the pack, or at the bottom front, in front of the door to the sleeping bag area, or both. It is common to see a sleeping pad or a tent attached to the pack in this manner.

All of these straps serve a dual purpose: in the event that one of the zippers blew out, the compressions straps would hold the panel access or sleeping bag compartment door closed, keeping the pack contents safely inside.

The Keeler has two reinforced gear loops on the lower sides, consisting of nylon webbing covered with thick plastic tubing. These look like they might be useful for carrying skis or some climbing gear. There is a single ice axe loop in the bottom center of the pack, with a retaining loop at the top of the daisy chain.

Hip Belt: The Precurved 'Wilderness' hip belt appears to be made of two layers of foam, with a stiffer layer on the outside and a softer layer on the inside. The belt ends with 2 in (5 cm) wide nylon webbing and a quick -release buckle. The webbing ends are folded and sewn down so they don't slide off when I loosen the belt too far. The foam is quite stiff right now, even on the inside, but I expect it will soften with use.

There are stabilizer straps on each side of the hip belt, using 1 in (2.5 cm) webbing. The webbing is very short, and the end is unfinished, so the webbing slips out of the buckle easily when adjusting the tension. Since I had to take the pack off in order to replace the strap, this has a high annoyance potential.

The hip belt is available in three different sizes. Based on the Gregory web site and my past experience, I ordered the size Large, which fits from 34 in (86 cm) and up, and which should fit my 36 in (91 cm) waist. I wouldn't want the belt to be any larger -- it would be a close fit if I had a 34 in (86 cm) waist. The padded part of the belt is longer than the other Gregory packs in my closet.

Shoulder Harness: The 'Auto-Cant' harness consists of two padded, S-shaped shoulder straps attached top and bottom to connectors that swivel, which allow the harness to adapt itself to the user's body shape. These connectors are made of a hard plastic, and appear to be bolted directly to the framesheet (right). At the top of the pack, each connector has two slots, providing two separate torso-length adjustments. The Keeler is available in four sizes, and each size can be adjusted for two different torso lengths. At the bottom of the pack, the two plastic connectors are used to attach both the bottom of the shoulder strap, and the hip belt. All of these hard plastic connectors are hidden behind the padded back panel. The bottom half of the shoulder harness consists of 1 in (2.5 cm) webbing attached to the top (padded) half with a plastic cam-lock buckle. The end of the webbing is unfinished, and an overly enthusiastic tug on the buckle when loosening the pack separates the two pieces.

There are two load lifter straps at the top of the shoulder harness. Load lifters allow the user to shift the weight of the pack from the shoulder harness to the hip belt: loosening the harness puts more weight on the belt, and tightening the lifters draws the pack closer to the wearer's back. Lifters are an essential part of a comfortable internal-frame suspension. The lifter straps are exceptionally long.

The Keeler has a sternum strap, which can be adjusted to any one of 6 different positions over a 12 in (30.5 cm) range. Running down the front of each shoulder strap is piece of nylon webbing, which is sewn down every 2 in (5 cm) to keep the sternum strap in place. One side of this strap is elastic, making it more comfortable to wear, and the strap is completely removeable.

Back Panel: The Keeler has a foam padded 'Flo-Form II' back panel, which incorporates a lumbar pad in front of the hip belt. The padding is much softer than that on the hip belt and shoulder straps, and it has longitudinal grooves to allow some ventilation. Everything that touches the wearer -- the back panel and the inside of the hip belt and shoulder straps -- is covered in a smooth wicking fabric.

Test Plan:
I plan to use the Keeler as my main pack for backpacking and day hiking trips for the six-month test period. I have several long weekend winter trips planned in the next two months for the Field Test period, in addition to a couple of day hikes each month. I have several areas that I would like to test:

Features: The Keeler is a feature-laden pack, a far cry from my usual sleek, simple top-loaders. It has a profusion of pockets and doors which add weight, but do they add functionality? Given all these pockets and doors, will I even remember where I put everything?

Comfort: Gregory has a reputation for building comfortable packs, and the Keeler certainly seems to live up to this reputation around the living room. I will be very interested to see how it feels at the end of a 15 mile day with a full winter load.

Durability: One of the reasons I prefer simple packs is that there are fewer things to break. The Keeler has several curved, water-resistant zippers on outside pockets -- will they blow out under stress? The fabric appears bombproof -- will it hold up to six months of heavy use? What about the mesh pockets, or the heavy bottom fabric? Will the crampons on my snowshoes leave gaping holes in the pack? (I'll be careful -- I promise.)

Thanks to BackpackGearTest and to Gregory Mountain Products for the opportunity to test the Keeler.