I thru hiked last year with an old Gregory; it sucked then and as you can imagine it sucks even more now. I'm in the process of getting new gear that is up to date, more compact and doesn't smell as bad.
What I'm looking for in a pack is something best described as "on the verge of being a day pack" First and foremost, I'm looking for one without a top loader, brain thing. My last pack had one, they are cumbersome and I hate them. So yeah, that's pretty much my criteria right now. Of course, ultimately, the volume of gear going into the pack will determine what exactly I get, but I'm just looking for some starting points. I've been checking out the Osprey Atmos 35 (could the colors be any worse?) and the Kestrel 32, but I'm not so sure yet.
I don't necessarily have an affinity for Osprey, I'm just modeling my search after a guy I thru hiked with that had an extremely light weight set up and he happened to have one of those small Ospreys. So I am definitely open to other brands. Any other suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!