Osprey Aether 60 (men's)

[Zachsdad]

I'm interested in comments from anyone who has used the Osprey Aether 60 on a thru hike. Thanks.

[tat44too]

I ordered one today, so I'm not gonna be much help to ya...

[Wags]

fwiw i saw A LOT of them on thru hikers at the midway section of the trail (PA)

[4shot]

i used one (70l) last year.had to switch hip belts midway due to weight loss. No complaints with mine, you do see alot of them as the poster above said. They do start to smell bad after about 2 months though.:)

[Papa D]

I hiked the Long Trail with that pack - 273 miles - I thought it was just perfect - not too many extraneous pockets - just right - my base weight was around 19 pounds and I was usually around 28 lbs with full food and water. I use a Osprey 70 liter pack for winter backpacking - for me, it would be too big for a thru-hike. I do see 45 liter packs on thru-hikers but they often have stuff strapped to the outside - not sure the point - I like everything INSIDE (except maybe my crocs).

[stranger]

I have an Osprey Aether 60 and think it's a great pack, I've also come from a background in the pack industry, with 10 years of professional pack fitting experience, product testing and design consultant work.

In 2008 I took this pack on a 540 section hike of the southern AT.

I absolutely love this pack from an all-around perspective, you will not find a better designed pack for general backpacking use.

I also have a ULA Circuit and although I use the Circuit more than the Aether, that's just due to weight savings...the Aether is a better pack hands down in my opinion. However, I'm out there with 23-24lbs, not 30-32, so lugging around another pound in pack weight doesnt' make much sense to me.

I also really like the Granite Gear Nimbus Ozone and Gregory Z55, all worth a look.

[Bootstrap]

I can only agree with everyone else here. It feels great on my back, carries a lot of weight well, feels good with smaller loads, and has places for everything. What's not to like?

I sometimes think about lighter packs. But I really like this one ...

[Rick500]

I haven't thru-hiked. But I've used my Aether 60 on quite a few hikes lasting between 1 and 5 days.

I love the pack. It's not the lightest pack in the world, but I think it strikes the right balance between comfort (padding) and weight for me.

Pros: Carries well. Easy to adjust where the weight lies...I usually tweak the load lifters and hip belt every now and then during the day to shift the load a little higher or lower depending on how my back/shoulders/whatever are doing. Just the right amount of room for my stuff. Airflow to the back is relatively good. I like having the top compartment too.

Cons: A little heavier than I would like, but like I said, the level of padding is welcome. I have the 2009 (actually it might be 2008) version--so this may have changed since, but I can't reach the side pockets when the pack is on. Would also have been nice to have side or back access to the main compartment. But if you pack thoughtfully you won't have to pull everything out to get to what you need.

[Zachsdad]

Many thanks to all of you for your comments on the Aether 60. This pack looked great on paper, and all the online reviews were very positive, but there's nothing like feedback from actual users. Thanks again!