Contour 35

I purchased this to take on longer hikes/through hike. I currently have the Hyperlite 22L, but needed a bit more space. This has tons of room and fits me very well (I am 5’4”, 118lbs, bought a medium with the padded hip belt). I really love Hyperlite packs - well designed, crazy light, very comfortable. Back in the day, I had an Osprey. Used it until a bear tore it up. Then had a crazy heavy Arcteryx, and I’ll never go back after carrying the Hyperlite packs. 22 great for 1-2 nights out, but very minimal. 35 is downright spacious. Very durable. Thanks for making great gear!

This pack is an obvious choice for the UL thru-hiker, but less obvious for supported treks and hut-to-hut adventures. I own the Elevate 22 and Southwest 55. A daypack and multi-day backpacking backpack, respectively. I needed something in between size wise and functionally wise.

The Southwest works well for everything! It is highly versatile and if you need a one-quiver bag then this is your choice. But, it is too big for supported treks and hut trips. The Elevate 22 is too small for high elevation treks where you need to pack a puffy jacket and pants. It does not do well on carrying bulky items that require volume. It is best for day hikes and warm weather treks. The other major issue I have with the Elevate is the sloping bottom. You cannot get cubes or a sleeping bag in this section and when you remove the pack you cannot set it on the ground without it falling over, which makes it difficult to get into the pack to retrieve layers.

In comes the Contour 35. I added the hip pouch belt for more stashing of essentials, which is helpful for treks and hut trips. Cubes and sleeping bags fit the large flat bottom perfectly and the bag sits on the ground without tipping over. There is plenty of room in this pack for warm, bulky layers which are typical on high altitude treks and hut trips where you need layers and choices of clothing/rain gear with the varied weather in these regions. This backpack is also great for hut treks when you don't have to carry all the cooking…

I'm a wildlands ecologist and mountain runner and this is the best/most versatile pack I have ever owned. At work I spend most of my time roaming around remote field sites carrying all sorts of gear and field guides through raspberry thickets and young balsam fir stands. This pack is perfect - light, durable, spacious, easy to access/store gear. My running pack was too small to fit all the equipment and first aid gear that I bring into the field, but my backpacking pack was definitely overkill, and this pack fills its niche perfectly. I use it to commute to the office, for long days in the field, and even weekend backpacking trips or traveling to a conference. In a pinch, I could use it as a running pack, and it cinches down real nice when carrying little volume.