View Full Version : Women's Backpack
shades of blue
01-16-2004, 22:32
Anyone can answer this....but extra points to any women hikers. My friend is looking for a good pack. This will be her first pack. She wants to be able to hike on the AT, and she isn't an ultralite hiker. Do you think the packs made especially for women are worth buying, or is it just what fits you best? Thanks!
Alligator
01-16-2004, 23:52
No bonus points here, but the packs that are made for women are "cut" for women. Think blue jeans. My wife and my friend's wife both have women's packs and they fit much better. Hip belts and shoulder straps curve in the right directions. Women's packs are often not different in price. My wife has an Osprey Ariel (60?) and it generally costs the same as the Osprey Aether 60. My friend's wife has a Mountainsmith Chimera. Both are very nice packs, I believe in the 3300 cu. in. range. This size is just about right for a Lightweight hiker, 2-3 day trips. We "share" gear, so with my +60 lb and +11" size difference that works out to about a 100 to 0 split for shared gear. In other words, all her stuff fits nicely in her pack. Is your friend intending to thru hike? How tall/big is she? Some of the solo women hikers on site may be able to gauge pack size needs.
I agree, no extra points here either. I tried quite a few packs and returned quite a few packs--finally landed with two Osprey packs, one 60 and one 75 liter. These fit my body better than any other pack I've had on my back. They are padded and cut differently. I also believe, however, that people have to find what fits them, whether its a gender-specific pack or not--its just my experience that the women's packs fit me best. This makes a huge difference on long distance hikes especially, when you are virtually married to the darn thing for days and days. :banana
I opted for the Chimera after finding the Ghost would not hold all my equipment. The shoulder straps certainly fit me better than a mens or nuetral pack. I have not tried it outside a store yet so I can't say how the waistbelt will feel after a long day's hike, but it seems to dig less at my hips in the store than packs not made for women do.
My advice is for her to try different packs and see how she likes them. Different women have different bodies and that affects pack fit. Be sure to try them loaded: stores often have weighted bags to use.