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- Verified Buyer
It's just the right size for heading out for the day on foot deer hunting, and carrying everything that I do as my be prepared - which includes the very real possiblity of having to spend the night if not longer out there. In the area I live in northern New England, it's vast mountain ranges with ridges, rocky terrain, steep inclines and declines, and I can leave my house on foot, cover miles and miles in any direction and never once see any signs of other human existence. I know, AWESOME right? It is, to me- and to many in theory. But it's not for the feint of heart, weak of mind or body, and certainly no place for the unprepared.That said, this is the smallest of the packs I will take. I got this one for the days I know I will be within my circle of approximately 1500acres. Where I have tree stands for different times of the season, conditions, even time of day.About this pack: The realtree® edge™ is what I would describe as perfect for most areas. I buy most of my camo in realtree edge. That's the color, and it blends in nicely. Performance is good for the money - it's not like it was $400+ like most of my trekking, mountaineering, climbing/ice climbing packs, uses are more like hiking the the Appalachian (which I live on in the area of VT - NH - ME) and the comfort is a classic "get what you pay for" fit here. Example: This is 1 size fits most. Except I have an extra long torso - 24" - and that means the harness (waist belt, shoulder straps) is small, and over my gear, it's just not what I would want to be hauling 60Lbs for several months with. Of course it's only a 28.5L so the weight is never more than 30lbs, even then it is awkward to negotiate over fallen timber, over rocks, under branches etc., because it's not like the harness in my lowe alpine Manaslu 80L, which has the VTPLUS system - it literally puts all the weight on your waist belt at the center of gravity like paxka are meant to. The shoulder straps are just to balance the load, and the chest strap is only there to keep the shoulder straps from shifting and sliding down off your shoulders. The L-XL is the best fit, adjusted to the 2nd to last setting (I'm 6'2", 185, and again, torso is 24") so the thing that has been the best about the VTplus system is the waist belt pivots with you, just enough to make the necessary maneuvers without the load shifting.This pack, (its weird actually) the waist belt has Velcro behind it, like it's supposed to be adjustable, but it's not-- it's hard sewn in place in the 2 seams that meet the edge of the pack. Regardless, A. It's not their fault nor a flaw in design because of me being on the tall side of the average men on the spectrum (nope no NBA in my future, especially when the age cutoff was almost 30 years ago for my old arthritic λ§§) nor was it their fault I've got a disproportionately long upper body to lower body ratio.And it's not like this is a big pack, let alone an expensive one. For the cost, quality, and use- I am very happy with it. And the bottom line is: I RECOMMEND IT!Thanks for your patience with my ramblings - I have been writing reviews for 7 hours straight on a SATURDAY no less! haha. Take care and be safe out there!!~Emjey