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Owner Review: REI Venus Backpack (Women)
08 April 2006
Me
Name: Val Olson
Age: 23
Gender: Female
Height: 6' 0" (183 cm)
Weight: 210 lb (95 kg)
Email address: volson2@yahoo.com
City, State, Country: Claremont, CA, moving to San Francisco, CA, in May.
Backpacking Background:
I spent four years running an on-campus outdoors club leading and participating in trips from hot springs to mountain climbing to leader training. I have been backpacking and hiking in all kinds of terrain from mountains to desert and just recently developed a serious interest in rock climbing and mountaineering, including completing Level I Avalanche Training. I am also joining a Mountain Search and Rescue Unit once I move up to San Francisco. Mountains tend to be my favorite place to play, but I just like being outside.
Product Info
Manufacturer: REI
Year of Manufacture: 2005
URL: http://www.rei.com
Specs
Material: Nylon
Volume: 4,500 cubic inches (73.74 L)
Fits Torso: 15-21 in (38-53 cm)
Fits waist/hips: 30-50 in (76-127 cm)
Pockets: 7 + main; (two in removable lid, two mesh side pockets, two zipper side pockets, one zipper front pocket)
Stays: 2
Frame: Aluminum
Weight: 5 lb 10 oz (2.5 kg)
Access/Loading: Top/Panel
Sleeping bag compartment: Yes
This is an internal frame backpack. It has top and panel loading capabilities, a number of pockets, and some pretty handy features. There are a few less-than-handy features, as well, many of which are due to my personal preferences, but some I feel are issues with the pack itself. Here is a picture of the pack, front and back. This is an internal frame backpack. It has top and panel loading capabilities, a number of pockets, and some pretty handy features. There are a few less-than-handy features, as well, many of which are due to my personal preferences, but some I feel are issues with the pack itself. Here is a picture of the pack, front and back.
Features
All "THEM" from the REI site.
THEM: "Not just a smaller men's pack, this features a slimmer width and height plus anatomically angled and ergonomic shoulder straps to fit a woman's shape"
ME: I'm pretty barrel chested, and with the straps tightened down properly, it rubbed and pinched a bit on the sides. It curved nicely to fit around breasts, which was comfortable, so I wonder whether this would probably fit better than it does on me for someone with a narrower torso.
THEM: "Dual access to pack with top loading plus a horseshoe zipper front panel opening, like a duffel, giving complete view of contents"
ME: This was usually useful. It's harder to use if the pack isn't full, and going back and forth between side and top loading occasionally messed up my packing system or awkwardly distribute stuff inside the compartment. But even with that, I use both pretty extensively. It gets exponentially more useful the more clothing I have packed as opposed to hard gear, but that isn't as useful when backpacking as when mountaineering or in the colder environments.
THEM: "Utilizing seven buckles, the pack's streamlined compression system let you cinch and strap down loads for jostle-free carrying"
ME: These didn't cinch down very far for much compression on a small load, but with a half-full or more pack, it works very well. The straps go over the zippered access to the main compartment, which secured the zipper, but required the entire uncompressing of the entire pack to get access. Using these straps to lash things to the bag (which I did) was somewhat irritating at times, as I had to unlash everything to get to the zipper, then re-lash everything afterwards. I got around this by mostly using the top access while on the trail and the duffel at night.
THEM: "An REI exclusive, backpanel features a quick adjust torso system that is light and durable providing 4" [10 cm] of adjustment per size"
ME: This is very, very easy to adjust, and then holds securely until the next adjustment. I've had to play with this a bit, and I really like this feature.
THEM: "Removable top lid doubles as a hip pack for shorter jaunts when you don't need a lot of gear"
ME: I've never removed the top, but then again I've never gone off on a shorter jaunt when I didn't have a day pack around specifically for that purpose. I use that pocket for things like gloves, sunglasses, and a warm hat just to have quick access. But checking out the straps, it is very easy to take off and put back on.
THEM: "Zippered pocket under lid stores maps and keys, plus doubles as a hydration pocket for reservoirs"
ME: Not quite big enough for a hydration reservoir that holds all that much, and the holes on the side to let out the nozzle and hose always make me fear that any smaller things I put in there might fall out. But for flat things that are frequently accessed, nice pocket. I've kept a package of beef jerky in there.
THEM: "Front panel features an oversized zippered pocket protected with a waterproof zipper for storing often used gear"
ME: Oh, man, ever so very handy. I love this pocket. It fits a big thermos with warm drinks, or a snow shovel and probe, or sunscreen and first-aid kit. It's more long and narrow, so smaller things tend to all sink down to the bottom and can be hard to dig out without unpacking the pocket, but still amazingly handy.
THEM: "Internal sleeping-bag compartment with a zippered divider separates it from gear and clothes in the main compartment"
ME: I haven't used it for a sleeping bag, but it is nice for general compartmentalization. A sleeping bag would be rather difficult to get out of the pocket without unloading some gear, since there is only the very bottom of the U-shaped zipper with access to that pocket which goes another 4-6 in (10-15 cm) down. Hard to get to that stuff.
THEM: "Both sides feature dual accessory pockets that are sized to fit gloves, water bottle and other items"
ME: These pockets are weird. They're not attached to the bag but by either edge, making a sleeve on either side. If this were closed at the bottom, giving another pocket, I'd be pleased as pie, however they're just hollow sleeves. Perhaps they could be used for skis or hiking poles or something else long and slender, but the tie-down points don't line up with them, and there are only two reinforced lashing points (something else with which I have issue), so I'm really not sure of their intended function. They're also strangely shaped, but relatively big. Here's a picture of them. The only thing I had handy to demonstrage the sleeve characteristic was my huge wooden spoon, but it does the trick.
THEM: "External mesh side pockets hold water bottles, energy bars, and other essentials you want close at hand."
ME: These are wide and a little shallow, in that there is not much extra fabric to make it a real pockety pocket. With a full pack, water bottles don't sit in them very well. I've had a Nalgene in each pocket, and both fell out before I got the from my room to the car to leave on a trip. With a less full pack, they do OK, and it's pretty easy to reach them with the pack still on, but much harder to put them back.
THEM: "Allowing you maximum visibility, the concave head pod at the top of pack frees up your head for ultimate freedom of movement."
ME: I adore this feature. It makes it easy to grab the haul loop, exceptionally comfortable on the head to wear, and in no way limits motion or visibility. Compared to some other packs I've worn before that kept thumping the back of my skull, this was awesome.
THEM: "Waistbelt features a quad-buckle with four webbing cinches for precise adjustment to hug the waist"
ME: This drives me nuts. I'd get one set of straps tightened, but as soon as I let off tension to pull on the others, it loosens some. It takes a while to get it tightened at all. It took me a while (say, fifteen minutes or so) to get the whole pack adjusted right every time I took it off and put it back on. At least the hip belt and the shoulder straps have to be loosened every time the bag is removed, and then it takes a while to get them both re-adjusted right along with the sternum strap. Once it all settled in and adjusted, it was an incredibly comfortable pack, but there was some dancing required to get it all right. Sometimes it would get mostly adjusted, then come out of adjustment while hiking ever so slowly that I wouldn't notice until it was quite uncomfortable, then I'd have to go through the whole dance again. This is most likely because the pack didn't quite fit right.
THEM: "Shoulder straps feature ultra-breathable BROCK Foam giving exceptional cushioning and cooling comfort, on and off the trail"
ME: Yep.
THEM: "Extending storm collar on main compartment gives an additional 300 cubic inches of volume"
ME: It does, indeed. It's fairly sturdy material and holds stuff just fine. There's a cinch at the top of it and at the top of the main compartment, plus it can be arranged for a fairly water tight seal on top of the pack.
Additional comments: The pack has a few strange quirks that don't quite fit with my style of backpacking (I like more, smaller pockets on the outside, and plenty of places to lash things and tie in), and it doesn't quite fit me right. However, it is a solid pack in general with lots of room, some conveniences, and a number of very well-engineered features. This pack is most useful on a trip when what is needed is a very streamlined pack with easy front access, that organizes a lot of clothes, and fits a narrower torso than mine.
Field Information
The main location I used this pack was during 9 days of traveling solo through France and Switzerland in the Alps the latter half of May. It held a surprising amount of gear very well (I waaaay over-packed, forgetting that after I presented my work, I'd then have to carry all my nice clothes around, as well as misjudging what the weather was going to be like in May in the Alps and taking completely unnecessary and bulky warm clothing), carting around 40+ lbs (18+ kg) of gear with no undue stress or failures. The pack was stuffed to the gills (all 4500 cubic inches or
73.73 L of it) in pretty much every pocket, including having clothes and climbing gear and the like lashed everywhere. However, the cost of that sturdiness is a hefty weight of over 5.5 lbs (2.5 kg). The duffel feature was quite handy in hostels for fetching clean clothing without having to unpack everything.
My longest trek with the full pack was from Grindelwald (3408 ft, 1039 m) up to Kleine Scheidegg (6672 ft, 2033 m) and down into Lauterbrunnen (2608 ft, 795 m) (the most beautiful place I have ever been ever) over the course of two days. The trail was about 13 miles (21 km) the first day and 10 miles (16 km) the second. I can't possibly imagine better hiking weather. It was absolutely gorgeous, very sunny and warm right on up to the highest elevation I hit, with a nice breeze. although there was some snow on the ground and at the even higher elevations.
The trails were mostly fire-roads and well-kept, wide-if-steep trails with the occasional foray onto slightly less civilized terrain. The backpack stayed very well balanced, and the adjustable straps where the pack attached to the shoulders worked nicely to help counter-balance. I haven't taken this pack out into heavy precipitation, although it has been misted or gotten damp on a few occasions without getting anything inside wet.
Summary
According to REI, the Venus pack is specifically built for women on the idea that women have narrower and shorter torsos. Therefore, women with narrower and shorter torsos than most men (namely, not me) are probably better people to wear it. It is a solid pack with a large capacity, the duffel zipper makes it especially convenient for lots of clothing, and the head-dent just makes me happy. It comes with the REI lifetime warranty and satisfaction guarantee, as well. However, I think it is a better pack for staying at a hostel and not actually backpacking with it, as it takes some time to get adjusted correctly, the pockets are a little quirky, it's heavy, and there are few well-placed and reinforced points for lashing. The pack did its job and performed its function adequately; I believe most of the issues I had with it were based on the pack not fitting with my preferred packing style and the not-quite-right fit.
My pack is currently available as a clearance item, since they updated the pack for 2006. The new model appears (from the pictures and description on the REI site) to have addressed many of the issues I bring up.
Read more reviews of REI gear
Read more gear reviews by Val Olson
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