User Review: Lowe Alpine Contour 60+10 Hyperlite

Lowe Alpine Contour 60+10 Hyperlite
Above: The current Contour 60+10 Hyperlite, which may differ slightly from the version reviewed.

Reviewed September 26, 2006 by Alan Young

Rating:
Design: top loading, internal frame pack
Size: 3600+60 cub inches (60+10 litres)
Number of Pockets: 2 - main+sleeping bag
Max. Load Carried: 42 lbs(incl pack)
Height of Owner: 5'-10"
Price Paid: Cdn $169

I already owned a Lowe Alpine Expedition 70+20 and was very impressed with the comfort and built-quality but felt it might be a bit heavier than I wanted, so before taking on the West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island last summer, I purchased an L/A Hyperlite 60+10.

I was packing around 42lbs including the Hyperlite, when I started out, including:
tent+fly = 5.5lbs
sleeping bag+sack = 2.5lbs
stove+cook'g gear = 3lbs
food = 10lbs
fuel = 2lbs
clothing, safety gear, cover, guide/map etc = remainder.

The pack itself weighed a little more than advertised being close to 5 lbs and it was noticeable that the padding was thinner and the excellent L/A Torso-Fit system had a bit less range of adjustment. Otherwise it was just a scaled-down Expedition pack.

On its first trip out, I had no problems getting all the gear in, even when I took the tent out of its sack and stored it inside to make the load more compact and stable. It handles it all well and I would have no doubt that this pack will do anyone on a 7-day trek, especially with today's light-weight gear.

The separate sleep-bag compartment was handy for the s/bag, plus rainproof pack-cover and even a lightweight water proof jacket.

The only thing I didn't carry, to my regret, was a sleeping pad and it would have been worth the extra 0.5lbs.

The pack handled all of the varied terrain of the WCT; trolleys, ladders galore, mud, log-bridges, sand and rock shelf beaches with no problems and remained stable for all hazards.

My only quibbles would be the depth of the water bottle pockets, although no bottle ever fell out(I didn't use the H20 system pouch feeling it's a bit redundant in cooler zones). The Torso-Fit adjustment did slip a bit for the first few days and had to be adjusted each day until the pack was broken in, otherwise it did well and has been a good buy, if a bit more expensive here than the price in the USA.

I'd give this pack a solid 4 stars, for comfort, quality of materials and construction and its only demerits being the adjustment slippage, the bottle holder size and maybe it could do with one accessible exterior pouch for snacks on the trail.

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