Any Mountainsmith opinions?

Looking at a large technical daypack.
need lots of pockets, esp. internal, ways to keep only frequently used stuff accessible without making all the emergency gear fall out, hooks, belts, straps for externally bolting on stuff.

Mountainsmith was recommended. Anyone have experience with these packs? Durability?

http://mountainsmith.com

billski said:

Looking at a large technical daypack.
need lots of pockets, esp. internal, ways to keep only frequently used stuff accessible without making all the emergency gear fall out, hooks, belts, straps for externally bolting on stuff.

Mountainsmith was recommended. Anyone have experience with these packs? Durability?

http://mountainsmith.com

Click to expand...

I've never had one, but they have been around for a while and had a good name back in the day. Their stuff looks nice at least.

billski said:

Looking at a large technical daypack.
need lots of pockets, esp. internal, ways to keep only frequently used stuff accessible without making all the emergency gear fall out, hooks, belts, straps for externally bolting on stuff.

Mountainsmith was recommended. Anyone have experience with these packs? Durability?

http://mountainsmith.com

Click to expand...

I have a large internal frame MountainSmith backpacking pack. Well made, has never failed or come apart with many 60lb+ loads over many miles. Not sure if their new stuff is still made in the USA or not. Another brand that might fit your needs better is Eagle Creek. They always have lots of nice compartments and well thought-out designs.

I looked at Eagle Creek line and it looks too limited and gentrified.

I am considering the Approach 3.0 daypack


This pack seems to be very well thought out, it's into "revision 3) and I think they got it right.

As a daytripper, I do a lot of exploring, so you never know when I might need tools, rope, lights, etcetera. So I carry alot of stuff with me. It seems like the more I explore, the more stuff I bring. I don't want it falling out all over the place when I'm just looking for my sandwich. I want to compartmentalize my emergency gear, electronics, bury my wallet and keys, foodstuffs, and electronics, so I only access one thing at a time. I often have to add/remove clothes, so a quick pocket for clothes access is important. I find a need to tether larger stuff outside. I'm still not real happy with my water stowage - I drink a lot, and like it to be handy - I just hang it off the bottom of the straps. I also like having hooks to hang clothes outside the pack, especially if they get extra wet.

I don't need pencil and travel document pockets. I need a strong space to hold breakable things like certain electronics, eyewear, etc. It has to be a hardy pack, it's going to get scraped, dropped, pulled.

I would have like to have found ski straps too, but I think that's asking too much of one pack.