Backpacks for Women

imported
#1

Hi,

My sister is new to backpacking, and she has given me the job of finding her a good backpack. I’m looking for something in the $100-$150 range (her budget). I want to get her a pack that will allow her to carry 30+ lbs comfortably. Her torso size is 18". I’m trying to keep it close to 1000ci/lb, and I’m looking for something in the 3500-4000ci range. I’ve looked at Kelty’s women’s packs, but they are all 12"-17" torso size. Mountainsmith has her torso size, but none of their women’s packs goes over 3100ci. Does anyone have any suggestions for me? My eyes are starting to cross looking at all these packs.

Ardsgaine

#2

There’s a slew of postings about this same topic from a couple months ago. I love my Granite Gear Vapor Trail. It rocks despite not being female specific.

Sharon

#3

I’m pretty sure that GG makes a womens version of the Vapor Trail. Try both on with some weight in them as some women are less curvey and find the mens pack fits just fine.

Big B

#4

I’ve gone back to look at the archives, and found a thread on the Virga vs the Vapor Trail. I’m hesitant to go with the Vapor Trail, because I’m not sure if she can get her pack weight below 30lbs. Going lite can be heavy on the pocketbook. I’ll look into it some more. Thanks for the feedback.

Ardsgaine

#5

Osprey makes a whole line of women’s packs: Luna, Aura, Ariel. Check out www.ospreypacks.com

JohnM

#6

I took a look at the Ospreys and they seem to be both heavy and expensive. I might be able to find one marked down, but is there a good argument for carrying the extra couple of pounds?

I’m really trying to find something that’s in the middle between GoLite and GoHeavy. I thought I had found the perfect pack when I saw the Kelty Shadow. The Illusion looks good too. Kelty’s women’s packs only fit 12"-17" torsos though. I don’t understand that. My sister’s torso is 18", and she’s about 5’-5". Does that mean that Kelty only sells packs for women 5’-4" and under? Or do they expect taller women to buy the men’s packs? Aren’t there other differences between the packs besides just the torso length? If the torso length fits, what are the drawbacks for a woman wearing a man’s pack?

Ardsgaine

#7

Try ULA.they are based in UTAH.Small outfit,quality,lightweight.

Old in the way

#8

To be honest, I’m not sure there are many drawbacks to wearing a mens pack unless you are a particularly curvy woman. The main differences tend to be 1) shorter torso lengths, 2) more padding in the waist belt, 3) slightly different configuration in the straps. I tried lots of women’s packs before buying a Vapor Trail and none of them fit me comfortably. Many were also heavier than the men’s packs, which is silly because it leaves a woman carrying a high percentage of her body weight.

Sharon

#9

Hmm. I’m not sure how curvy is curvy. She does take after the side of the family that has hips, but she’s not wasp-waisted. Maybe I shouldn’t worry so much about whether it’s designed for a woman or not. That would definitely simplify the search.

As an aside, has anyone else noticed that you can’t trust the volumes listed for packs at retail websites? When I check them against the manufacturer specs, a lot of times they are significantly different. That’s kind of irritating.

Ardsgaine

#10

I’ll second the recommendation for ULA. I used a Catalyst on the CDT this year and was very happy with it. I’m a 5’ 6" - medium sized female. My base weight was about 22 lbs - but I carried up to 8 days food or a gallon of water (never had to carry both at once - but I did have five days food and a gallon of water a time or two.)

Ginny

#11

If you don’t mind an external, Campmor has the women’s
Kelty Trekker for $109. It has 3900 cu in and a torso length of 13-21 in.
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=9497&memberId=12500226

My sister uses an external women’s specific Kelty and has been well pleased
with it.

gamtns2000

#12

Having fitted thousands of packs on women, and having refitted hundreds of women who bought packs that are too long, I would recommend first that you re-check the torso length. That sounds unusually long for a woman. The torso length does not measure down to where most women consider their hips to be: if you ask her to “cop an attiude” with hands on “hips” you will find the general location to measure to (i.e. not halfway down the butt or where low rider pants sit). Then try the pack on, being sure the “hip” belt is placed in the “cop an attiude” location.
I especially like Granite Gear packs because they are reasonably adjustable without compromising comfort: the Nimbus Ki has been on sale.

YouGoGirl

#13

for the help, guys.

The ULA packs look nice. They are a bit out of her budget right now, unfortunately.

She had a girl at work measure her, but I told her about how to rest her hands on her hips and then measure from the bump at the base of her neck to a line between the thumbs. Before I gave her those explicit instructions, she came up with a measurement of 22". I knew that couldn’t be right, so I had her do it again, and told her exactly how to do it. She’s about 5’-5" tall, so is an 18" torso that unusual? I’m 5’-6", and my torso length is just over 19". I did expect hers to be more than an inch shorter, though, because I have a long torso (in proportion to my legs). I guess I need to get her over here so we can double check it.

Ardsgaine