Tester Bio
I live outside a small town in northeast Alabama. I have access to a good hiking area right out my front door, a large tract of woods called Pall-Mill Hollow (pronounced holler). It has a creek flowing through it with several good swimming holes. Caves abound in the area. I spent my youth climbing around the bluffs, swimming in the creek and exploring the caves. I also enjoy hunting, fishing, canoeing, and most other outdoor activities.

Backpacking is my favorite pastime. I consider myself a knowledgeable backpacker but I am not an expert. I enjoy hiking with my friends and family or solo. I limit my hiking to areas fairly close to home, usually within a day’s drive of home. I hike throughout the year and actually hike the least in the hot humid months of summer. My style is slow and steady and my gear is light. However I will sacrifice weight for comfort and durability. A typical 3 season load for me is around 20 lb (9 kg) not counting food or water. I usually sleep in a hammock and cook with an alcohol stove. My backpacking trips are usually 2, 3 or 4 days in length.

Product Information

Test item,	Gregory Z™ Pack
Manufacturer URL,	http://www.gregorypacks.com/
Year of Manufacture,	2003
Size Large,	3950 cu in (65 L)
Weight Listed,	3 lb 5 oz (1.5 kg)
Verified Weight,	3 lb 5 oz (1.5 kg)
Load Range,	25 to 35 lb (11 to 16 kg)
Color,	Castor Gray
MSRP,	$169 US

Product Description
The Z™ Pack is one of four packs in the Anti-Gravity Series of packs. As the name implies, Anti-Gravity series packs are Gregory's answer to the growing demand for lighter weight packs. The Z™ Pack is the next to largest pack in the series. Gregory describes the series as "The new benchmark for light weight weekend to week-long packs." A heavy packer would probably classify it as a weekend pack.   However, with a volume of 3590 cu in (65 L), the individual user can put it in whatever class of packs they see fit. The web site mentions the load weight range as 25 to 35 lb (11 to 16 kg).

The Z™ Pack features 4 separate compartments not counting the hydration sleeve located inside the main compartment. There are also numerous attachment points for lashing on extra gear. The compression straps (2 on each side) can also be used to attach extra gear onto the pack. For pictures of the the Z™ Pack please see my Initial Report.

Testing Locations and Conditions
Testing was done on several overnight hikes in Northeast Alabama. I also day-hiked a lot with the Z™ Pack for my exercise. Trip lengths were mostly in the 3 to 5 mile (5 to 8 km) range. My upcoming longer multi-day trips will be covered in the Long Term Report. I experienced some precipitation on a few of the hikes but most were just cold. The coldest temperature encountered was 22 F (-6 C) and the warmest was 61 F (16 C) on a day-hike one nice winter day.

Field Testing Results
Over the past few years I have adjusted my gear to the point that I no longer need a massive load monster pack to accommodate my gear kit. However, I still need a pack flexible enough to go from an overnight pack to a 3 or 4 day trip pack. Now that my 4 day 3 night pack is usually around 25 lb (11 kg) (including food and water) a lightweight pack is obviously worth considering.

It's no secret that there has been a tremendous proliferation of lighter packs in the past few years, and thus picking one out has become harder. I have even been using a similar size and weight pack for the past year. So, in testing the Gregory Z™ Pack I concentrated on things I saw as pluses and minuses to help anyone interested in this style pack make an informed choice.

I guess the first and maybe most important things I look for in a pack are; will it hold my gear and then ride all day without hurting me? If it does not meet both these criteria, I need to keep looking. Fortunately the Z™ Pack did extremely well at both. Actually, I was able to do some winter camping by utilizing the compression straps to hold my 2 foam pads.

My winter gear is not the most compact available by a long stretch. So to be honest, with the winter gear I used, I could not get several days worth of food in the Z™ Pack. It was packed full with every nook and cranny (inside and out) stuffed. However, with a little money to spend on some high quality down pants and jacket, I could have easily gotten everything in. Is this just speculation on my part? In a way yes, but when a high quality down jacket and pant each stuff to the size of a grapefruit, it's not a long jump to conclude there will be a lot more room for other gear and food than my hunting bibs and 3 lb (1.4 kg) down jacket presently give. One other note: My winters here in Northeast Alabama and winter in say Minnesota are 2 entirely different things. I'm sure I would need even more clothing in a harsher climate.

I'm not exactly sure why the Z™ Pack seemed so comfortable to me. The S shaped shoulder straps and the hip belt are thinner than what I was accustomed to. Perhaps the hour glass shaped frame sheet or the single aluminum stay just fit me perfectly. All I know it that this pack fits me like a glove. It was rock solid on slippery trails where I was sliding around and stumbling. I could negotiate with ease around some places I normally would be tempted to remove my pack.

So, was the Z™ Pack perfect at all loads I tested? Not quite! I had to work hard to come up with a 35 lb (16 kg) load for testing. I did and I won't again if I can avoid it. It's hard to describe, but the difference in a 35 lb (16 kg) load and a more moderate 25 lb (11 kg) load was considerable. I still felt agile with the pack at 25 lb (11 kg). With 35 lb (16 kg) the shoulder straps dug in after an hour of hiking. I tried to adjust the load lifters to transfer more weight to the hip belt and it worked for about a mile but would slowly start to dig back in. The suspension just felt like it was being overpowered by 35 lb (16 kg). When I went even lighter than 25 lb (11 kg) in the Z™ Pack it became one of, if not the most comfortable pack I've ever used.

After fit and room I have a hard time rating what I find most important in a pack but I must say, I like to have a way to keep my gear organized. The Z™ Pack certainly has enough pockets and pouches for organization. So let's look at how I used the Z™ Pack, what worked out well and what I felt could be improved.

The main compartment on the Z™ Pack is not fancy. It has the funny curved zipper to access it from the side but I found very little use for it. I never needed to get anything out of the main compartment until it was time to set up camp. Once in camp, it does not really matter to me what I get out first unless it's raining. I always pack my hammock on top of my load so that if it is raining I can get it out first. Then I can get under the fly and decide what I want to do next. I'm not saying the side access zipper isn't useful. To me, the side access zipper just isn't all that useful. It is just one more place extra weight could be eliminated, and an extra seam for possible tears or zipper troubles to crop up. The drawstring and cord-lock closure functions OK and is still in good shape.

The bucket pocket is similar to what some call a shovel pocket. I haven't used it for a shovel. However, I kept my umbrella here and on one hike my wet hammock fly was relegated to it so I wouldn't get anything wet inside the main compartment. On another hike I placed my 2 piece fishing rod (vertically) and a small tackle box inside it. The reel with its protruding handle slid in easily due to the center section being made of solid fabric. I had to remember that the rod stuck up about 2 in (5 cm) higher than the Top Lid though. The bucket pocket is a very nice addition and now that I've used one, it will be high on the list of extras I look for in a pack.

My biggest gripe has to do with drinking water accessibility while underway on the trail. I can't see why the Z™ Pack doesn't incorporate water bottle holders. The way the bucket pocket wraps around the side of the pack doesn't give much extra room in this particular area (where a bottle pocket is usually located) because of the way the mesh is stitched down to the pack here.   In other words, where the bucket pocket is open across the back, it will accommodate various sized objects. On each side where it comes on around the pack down near the bottom, it will barely hold a pair of socks. A top opening pocket placed here would hold a lot more. Very little, if any usability of the rear bucket pocket would be sacrificed by changing the configuration and incorporating a water bottle pocket on each side. Fortunately, I started out years ago using a fanny pack, worn backward, for my water bottles. The Z™ Pack also has a hydration sleeve.

I found the Top Lid the perfect place for my water treatment supplies, a few snacks, and other items I wanted handy during the day. The secondary back pocket was also another good place to put small items I might need during the day.

The 140d Dyneema® body fabric used for most of the Z™ Pack is really holding up well so far and seems to be quite water resistant. The pack has been scrubbed on limbs and even a few rocks when I made my way off trail down the creek to a good fishing hole. The water resistant zippers are still functioning properly and have kept out light rain. I have not hiked in a downpour yet. Needless to say, I would be using my umbrella in a downpour so it is not that important to me anyways.

Summary Thus Far
The Z™ Pack has a nice suspension for moderately heavy loads of around 25 lb (11 kg) and the compression straps helped stabilize the smaller bulk loads. The tall narrow profile seemed to make balancing the pack easier and the hour glass shaped frame sheet made walking with my hiking poles a breeze. To say that Gregory Z™ Pack has gone up a notch in impressing me would be an understatement. I have found it to be just about the perfect sized pack for the type trips I normally undertake. I am also very pleased with how the pack carried on all day hikes with moderate loads. I did find a few things I would have preferred different in the pack design, but overall I am more than tickled with the performance of the pack.

I invite you to check back and find out how the Z™ Pack performs as summer, with its warmer weather, gives me more chances to take longer hikes. Will I still find the pack size just right? Will the hot weather prove the venting Y shaped grove in the back panel padding works? My impressions so far are very favorable. Will any of my opinions change?



Read more reviews of Gregory gear
Read more gear reviews by Coy Ray Starnes

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