I have been backpacking for twelve years, all of it in the Southern Appalachians. I am fortunate to live within a two-hour drive of the Mt. Rogers National Recreation Area, and I try to hike in that area at least once a month year-round. I have completed several hundred miles of the Appalachian Trail in two-day to two-week sections, and along with my family have set a goal of completing the entire trail over the next decade or so. Like many backpackers, I started out carrying far too much gear, but over the years I have pared down my pack weight to a more reasonable level.

Product Information:

	Manufacturer:	Osprey Packs
	Year of Manufacture:	2003
	URL:	Osprey Packs Website
	Listed Weight:	3.5 pounds (1.6 kg) (Large)
	Weight as Delivered:	3.5 pounds (1.6 kg) (Large)
	Capacity:	3900 cubic inches (64 liters) (Large)
	MSRP:	$200

Field Information:

Location(s) where test was conducted:

I used this pack along the Appalachian Trail in North Georgia and Southwestern Virginia on several hikes in a variety of weather conditions, on trips ranging from overnight to more than a week. The trail here is often rugged and steep, with the highest elevations in the 4000-6000 foot (1200-1800 meter) range. Weather conditions ranged from early summer, with highs near 80 F (26 C) and lows near freezing, to a recent winter trip with highs in the low 20s F (-6 C) and lows near 0 F (-18 C).

Product Review:

Description

The Osprey Aether 60 in size Large provides almost 4000 cubic inches (64 liters) of capacity in a 3.5 pound (1.6 kg) package. The pack is available in 3 sizes to accommodate different torso lengths; a women's version called the Ariel 60 is also available in several sizes. I have a long torso at 22 inches, and the large Aether 60 fits perfectly.

The suspension consists of a narrow but well-padded hip belt, a very well designed shoulder harness, a padded back panel, and two thin composite rods that support the load. The hip belt is sewn in place, but the shoulder harness can be moved up and down using a large hook-and-loop patch inside the back panel, allowing for several inches of travel to fine-tune the fit. Different harness sizes are available for a custom fit. The hip belt uses a standard plastic quick-release buckle, but it has an unusual tightening system, which Osprey calls the ErgoPull. The free end of the hip belt doubles back on itself, and the tightening cams are located on the sides of the belt. This provides some additional leverage when tightening the belt, but it takes a little getting used to.

The shoulder harness is shaped in an S-curve so the edges don't dig into the wearer's neck, and has a non-removable sternum strap with a neat built-in clip for a water bladder hose. There are two load-lifter straps that connect the shoulder harness to the top of the composite rods on each side of the pack. Load lifters are designed to control the angle of the pack and help shift weight from the shoulder harness to the hip belt. When they are correctly implemented, lifters allow the user to loosen the shoulder harness and bring the pack back closer to the body, placing more weight on the hips. The load lifters on the Aether 60 are anchored high enough on the pack body to work properly. I have tried many different lightweight packs, and the Aether 60 is the first one that has truly usable load lifters.

The composite rods run along the outside edge of the pack, and while they are similar to aluminum stays in other packs, they are lighter and more flexible. Some users of earlier models of the Aether 60 reported problems with the rods ripping out under load, but this appears to have been fixed. My 2003 model has reinforcements around the rod pockets top and bottom.

The entire suspension system weighs 9 ounces (250 g) according to Osprey. Verifying this would require destroying the pack, so I am unable to do so.

The pack bag is long and narrow, with one opening at the top (there is no separate sleeping bag compartment nor any other access to the inside of the pack.) There is a large floating lid pocket, which is large enough to carry my rain shell, hat, gloves, a large first aid kit, maps, and snacks. Inside the pack, there is a top strap designed to compress the top of the load and pull the pack away from the head. The top of the pack closes with a small flap and a drawstring; note that there is not an extension collar on this pack. When I use the internal top compression strap, there is just enough room left inside the top of the pack for my camp shoes or a water bladder before closing the drawstring top. The internal construction appears to be very high quality. My pack is made of dark blue and black fabric, and the interior is very dark.

There is one small mesh pocket on each side of the pack. Each pocket will hold a 1-liter Nalgene bottle, but a lot of the bottle sticks out above the top of the pocket. These pockets have two openings: one at the top, and one at the back (the point closest to the wearer). Osprey claims that you can use this back opening for access to a small water bottle, but when I tried that, it poked me in the back. I worry that smaller items are going to fall out of the pocket through this opening.

There is a large mesh pocket on the front of the pack. I carry my toilet articles, a large silnylon tarp, groundsheet, and other small items in this pocket. It is also large enough for camp shoes (Waldies) or even a solo tent. Below this pocket are two removable sleeping pad straps designed to carry a small sleeping pad horizontally. I don't like to carry a pad this way, so I removed them.

Osprey has designed an unusual way to compress their packs. Instead of the more common compression straps on the side of the pack, Osprey uses two large fabric panels with compression straps across the front of the pack. This makes it very easy to strap on a sleeping pad or a small tent. The straps will easily carry a very large closed-cell foam pad, including my extra-large Ridgerest pad. The quick-release buckles make it easy to remove the pad for use as a chair when taking a break, or to gain access to the front mesh pocket. Osprey has added another unusual feature, providing fixed buckles near the frame of the pack that accept the compression panel buckles. Using these buckles, it is possible to greatly compress a smaller load, although I haven't found the need to do this yet.

Using the Pack

The Aether 60 is similar in design and use to my other internal-frame packs, and it didn't take long to fine-tune the size and fit. Osprey offers detailed instructions on pack sizing and fitting on their web site, as well as on a hang-tag sold with the pack.

The hip belt is made of fairly soft foam, and I was worried that it wouldn't carry the load well. However, the hip belt has been very supportive with loads up into the 35-40 pound range (16-18 kg). Loads over 40 pounds (18 kg) caused the hip belt to twist and sag, reducing carrying comfort.

The composite rods run along the outside edge of the pack body, and can be pulled in tightly at the hip belt and at the top with the load lifters. As this pack doesn't have a stiff framesheet or aluminum stays, I was concerned with the comfort and load support of this very lightweight suspension system. These concerns were groundless: this pack is one of the most comfortable I have ever worn. From lightweight summer loads of 15-25 pounds (7-12 kg), to a winter weekend load of almost 40 pounds (18 kg), the Aether 60 carries its load well. I am able to fit it snugly into the curve of my back, and fine-tune the fit while hiking using the suspension components.

Conclusion

Things I Like:

1. Weight and size. At 3.5 pounds (1.6 kg), the Aether 60 is not an ultralight pack. However, I have found that the extra pound or so of pack weight provides two major advantages over a frameless ultralight rucksack:

A frame that can comfortably carry up to 40 pounds, compared to 20 pounds or so for a frameless rucksack.
A larger capacity of 3900 cubic inches (64 liters); many ultralight rucksacks are less than 3000 cubic inches (50 liters).

While my base weight for summer hiking is in the range of 15-20 pounds (7-9 kg), adding in 3-5 days of food and two liters of water often puts me near 35 pounds (16 kg) at the start. The Aether 60's extra capacity makes it much more comfortable after a resupply, and allows me to use it year-round in the Southeastern U.S.

2. Hip belt. After I got used to the ErgoPull system, I found that it really makes a difference in the comfort of the hip belt. It's easier to make fine adjustments, and to make it very tight when necessary.

3. Big top pocket. I can stuff a lot of gear in the lid pocket for easy access. I have found this particularly important on a pack that doesn't have easy access to the inside.

4. Big front pocket. The large mesh front pocket also holds a lot of useful gear.

5. Load lifters. I really like load lifters - they make a pack much more comfortable to wear and use for long periods of time. Most lightweight packs have lifters, but they are designed in such a way that they don't really function properly. The lifters on the Aether 60 work well.

Things I Don't Like

1. Tiny side pockets. There is plenty of room on the side of the Aether 60 for large mesh pockets. I would like to have pockets that can easily swallow a 1-liter Nalgene bottle with no chance that it will fall out. I may see if I can have someone modify my pack to add larger side pockets.

2. No internal pocket for water bladder. The side pockets are too small for bottles, and there's no place for a bladder. This is annoying, especially since the larger Aether packs appear to have a built-in bladder pocket inside the lid pocket.

3. Sternum strap can't be removed. I don't use the sternum strap, and I can't remove it without cutting the plastic connector on the shoulder strap, so it flops around.

4. Minor sewing issue. The elastic edging started coming off the external pockets on the first trip, and now two of the three pockets show this defect. It's a minor sewing problem, but it's still something that I have to fix.

Conclusions

This is my fourth internal-frame pack, and it's by far my favorite combination of weight and carrying capacity. It's large enough to carry a big load out of a trail town after resupply, or for a winter weekend hike, while being small enough for lightweight summer trips. It carries the load well, has enough pockets to stay organized, and is comfortable even after long days on the trail.

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