Winter Backpacking Packs are extra specialised than common three-season backpacks, with a stronger emphasis on carrying heavier weight masses, exterior attachment factors, and sturdiness for dealing with cumbersome gear with sharp factors, equivalent to snowshoes, skis, ice axes, and crampons. In addition they favor extra pockets and the flexibility to entry and put away gear rapidly, so you’ll be able to keep away from standing round between gear transitions and getting chilly. Pack volumes can fluctuate wherever from a minimal of 50L to 80L.
Listed here are our picks for the perfect winter backpacking backpacks:
The North Face Cobra 65L
The North Face Cobra 65 is a flexible winter backpack appropriate for climbing, multi-day mountaineering-style winter journeys, and backcountry snowboarding. Like many specialised winter packs, it may be configured in a number of other ways, relying in your journey wants, with elective elements that may be eliminated in the event that they’re not wanted. It comes with twin aspect compression straps which can be utilized to carry snowshoes or skis, twin ice axe holders, a prime lid with rope carry, a crampon pocket, and a hip belt with a pocket and power carry.
Learn the SectionHiker Cobra Backpack Evaluation.
Hyperlite Mountain Gear Ice Pack 70L
The Hyperlite Mountain Gear Ice Pack 70L is a winter backpacking and mountaineering pack made with ultralight Dyneema DCF material, which doesn’t soak up water and could be very sturdy. It gracefully combines a minimalist sensibility with a roll-top design and options an built-in crampon pocket, hip belt gear loops, quite a few exterior attachment factors, and daisy chains. A bolstered again panel is supplied to haul heavier masses. Hyperlite presents this pack in 70L and 55L sizes. For day mountain climbing when much less quantity is required, we additionally suggest the
Hyperlite Prism 40, which has a prime lid pocket.
Osprey Mutant 52L Backpack
The Osprey Mutant 52 packs a wealth of nice options right into a mountaineering and climbing backpack. It contains a floating lid, wand, and ski carry system, a hipbelt with gear loops and daisy chains, ice software and shaft holders, and a helmet attachment possibility. The highest lid and hip belt are additionally fully detachable, permitting for weight financial savings or use with a climbing harness. Priced at $230 (a steal), the 52 oz Osprey Mutant 52 is a superb winter backpack for fast-and-light or hut-to-hut journeys the place you’ll be able to streamline your gear checklist. We additionally suggest the smaller quantity
Osprey Mutant 38 for winter day mountain climbing or mountain climbing.
Learn the SectionHike Mutant 52 Evaluation.
Black Diamond Mission 75L Backpack
The Black Diamond Mission 75L is a top-loading, mountaineering backpack with a floating lid, entrance crampon pocket, hip belt loops, and a full-length aspect zipper for simple gear entry. It’s absolutely strippable with a detachable waist belt, lid, and framesheet. A steel dogbone ice software attachment offers a safe attachment for technical ice instruments and mountaineering axes, whereas a tuck-away rope strap secures much more gear to the skin. The mission is
additionally out there in a 55L quantity. Each packs are made with 420d ripstop nylon material with a UTS coating for bomber sturdiness.
Mountain Hardwear Direttissima 55L
The Mountain Hardwear Direttissima 55L is a flexible top-loading mountaineering backpack with an adjustable torso size, which is uncommon in alpine backpacks. It has a floating lid with three safe zip pockets, a detachable crampon pocket, rope carry, bolstered webbing haul loops on the hip belt for pulling sleds, and an A-frame and diagonal ski carry. There may be additionally a big zippered entrance pocket for storing avalanche instruments, aspect pockets to safe alpine necessities like tent poles, pickets, and wands, and wrap-around compression straps to lash gear to the skin of the pack. The pack is made with a 210d nylon ripstop with an 840d nylon base able to withstanding something you’ll be able to throw its approach.
Chilly Chilly World Chaos Backpack 60L
Likelihood is you’ve by no means heard of Chilly Chilly World Backpacks earlier than, however their packs are well-known in New Hampshire’s White Mountains.
The Chaos is a frameless, top-loading backpack that includes a floating prime lid, entrance crampon pocket, ski loops, gear loops on the hip belt, twin ice ax loops with shaft holders, and a number of daisy chains, permitting you to lash gear to the skin of the pack. It options an inside sleeping pad pocket, permitting you to make use of a foam pad as a body. A inventory Chaos weighs in at simply 3 lbs 12 oz, which is kind of respectable for a pack that’s this technical and sturdy.
Learn the SectionHiker Chaos Evaluation. The 50L
Chilly Chilly World Chernobyl can also be a winner, particularly for gear-intensive winter peakbagging.
Exped Lightning 60L
The Exped Lightning 60 is a flexible trekking pack with DNA appropriate for light-and-fast mountaineering targets. It’s a roll-top pack with an adjustable torso size, that includes quite a few exterior attachment factors for securing cumbersome mountaineering gear, together with technical or strolling axes, to rope and tent our bodies. It has two aspect stretch pockets able to holding tent poles, pickets, and wands, and contains glove-friendly {hardware} so you’ll be able to regulate with out exposing your fingers to the chilly. The Lightning is out there in two volumes: a 60L and a 45L mannequin.
Learn the SectionHiker assessment.
Mammut Trion 50L Backpack
The Mammut Trion 50 is a rolltop backpack with an elective floating prime lid pocket and vest-style shoulder straps with exterior mesh pockets. It options rear full-zip entry to the principle compartment, a separate pocket for avalanche security tools, a removable hip belt, aspect ski carry, and holders for trekking poles and ice axes.
Granite Gear Blaze 60 Backpack
The Granite Gear Blaze 60 is a superb roll-top backpack with an elective prime lid and entrance zippered entry to the principle compartment. Weighing simply 48 oz, it options an adjustable torso size and a hip belt with adjustable sizing, permitting for simple carrying of a great deal of 50+ lbs. Quite a few compression straps make it simple to connect snowshoes or a foam pad to the skin of the pack or to haul ice instruments, ropes, and avalanche rescue gear.
A lady’s Blaze 60, that includes gender-specific shoulder straps and a hip belt, can also be out there.
Learn the SectionHiker Blaze 60 Evaluation.
Sierra Designs Flex Capacitor 60-80L
The Sierra Designs Flex Capacitor 60-80L is a top-loading backpack with a singular prime lid and compression straps on the perimeters and entrance that allow you to modify the pack’s quantity or strap cumbersome gear to the skin. That is complemented by a stiff but light-weight body that allows the hauling of heavy masses, far exceeding these that may be carried by equally sized inside framed backpacks. Along with prime lid storage, aspect compression straps, and twin ice axe loops, what makes this pack stand out is its expandability. It’s excellent for non-technical journeys when it is advisable carry numerous additional gear, equivalent to a bigger sleeping bag, a tent, extra cooking gas, and additional meals.
Learn the SectionHiker Flex Capacitor Evaluation
Methods to Select a Winter Backpacking Pack
Backpacks tailor-made for mountaineering and winter backpacking use have a distinct characteristic set than most 3 season packs. What follows are the options that I’ve discovered most helpful for winter journeys in mountainous terrain. Whereas I feel these translate pretty broadly throughout winter locales, it is advisable be the decide on the options you imagine are most related on your wants.
Quantity and Weight
When you plan on taking weekend-length cold-weather journeys, you’ll most likely desire a pack with 55-80 liters of inside capability. The candy spot is roughly 70 liters, however you could possibly cut back it to as little as 50 liters if you happen to carry much less gear or require much less insulation. Attempt to get a pack that has satisfactory compression so you’ll be able to shrink its quantity if not wanted, whereas retaining the burden of an empty pack below 5 kilos. Pack and kit weight is much more essential in winter situations than at different instances of the yr since you’ll be carrying and carrying much more of it.
Exterior Attachment Factors
Mountaineering and winter backpacking packs require a number of exterior attachment factors to hold sharp, pointy, or cumbersome gear (microspikes, crampons, shovels, and snowshoes) that received’t match inside the principle storage compartments of a backpack. Probably the most helpful exterior attachment factors embrace compression straps, daisy chains, hip belt webbing or gear loops, and ice ax loops with shaft holders.
Compression Straps
Compression straps serve two functions: to assist compress a load and produce the burden nearer to your core muscular tissues, the place it may be carried extra simply; and to connect sleeping pads, snowshoes, avalanche shovels, or skis to the perimeters of your pack as a substitute of the entrance, in order that the load doesn’t pull you backward and off-balance.
When selecting a backpack, attempt to discover ones which have two or three tiers of compression straps that run horizontally throughout the perimeters of the pack. The compression straps must be adjustable and straightforward to undo whereas carrying gloves, so you’ll be able to slide winter instruments below them. Keep away from packs which have compression straps that zig-zag backwards and forwards on the backpack, utilizing one strap to avoid wasting weight. These are very tough to make use of, particularly when carrying gloves.
Daisy Chains
Daisy chains are sometimes sewn onto mountaineering and winter packs and can be utilized to lash additional gear to the again or sides of the pack utilizing canvas or velcro straps. They often have many loops sewn into them that run the size of your pack from prime to backside.
Ice Ax Loops
There are two sorts of ice axes on this world – straight strolling axes and curved climbing axes. If it is advisable carry a strolling ax, search for a pack that has no less than one ice ax loop on the base of the pack and a shaft holder, each off-center alongside the again of the pack. The shaft holder could be a easy wire lock like these discovered on many Osprey packs, or a extra strong buckle. When you plan on carrying two climbing axes, search for packs with two ice ax loops and shaft holders.
Hip Belt Webbing and Gear Loops
Some climbing-oriented packs characteristic canvas or plastic gear loops on the skin of the hip belt, permitting you to clip climbing carabiners to them. Whereas not an alternative to a correct sit-harness, these loops could be fairly handy to rack climbing gear.
Crampon Pockets
Crampon pockets are a handy and protected place to retailer crampons once you’re not carrying them. Positioned on the aspect of the pack farthest away from you, they hold the crampon factors away out of your legs and arms, your head, and your gear, the place they’ll do actual injury.
Floating Lids
In winter, it may be very useful to have a backpack that may increase in quantity to hold extra gear. A technique to do that is to purchase a pack with a floating lid, sometimes that includes a prime pocket that may detach from the principle physique of the pack however stays secured by 4 straps. Additional gear, say a coil of rope, could be sandwiched between the pocket and the highest of your pack on this method.
Zipper Entry
Zipper entry to the entrance or aspect of the backpack is a extremely fascinating characteristic for winter use as a result of it makes for a lot sooner stops, eliminating the necessity to pop open a prime lid and dig round your backpack searching for gear You don’t need to stand round for very lengthy on winter journeys, however to get transferring so your physique can generate warmth to remain heat.
SectionHiker by no means accepts fee for gear opinions or editorial protection. If you purchase by means of affiliate hyperlinks on our web site, we might earn a small fee at no additional value to you. Assist us proceed to check and write unsponsored and impartial gear opinions, mountain climbing and backpacking FAQs, and free mountain climbing guides.
