Good youth-sized pack

[kimberbakos]

My son is 13 but short - only 4'6 at this time. He is planning to go on his first high adventure this coming summer. Our troop does a week long backpacking trip, so he will need a backpack to hold what he needs for a week or so. Does anyone have any experiences, good or bad, with any of the youth sized packs out there? I'm thinking to have his grandparents get him one as a Christmas gift and want to make sure to recommend a good one.

[FrankJ]

Kelty makes a good external frame pack that is adjustable so it will grow with him. The trick is to make sure the hip belt can made to fit him.

Internal frames small enough to fit probably will not hold enough.

[kwildman]

go to an outfitter and try on different packs and have them check the fit. Then when you know what you want look online for bargains.

[wagionvigil]

ALPS Mountaineering

[alex gregory]

Gregory z55 (Men Small)
REI Meteor (Youth)
North Face Youth Terra 55
Osprey Ace 48

All very nice internal frame packs with excellent engineering and all the nifty features. The added advantage is that as your son grows all of the above packs will grow with him and become his favorite pack for ultralight backpacking or skiing.

The great thing about a small pack is you really have to think about what you don't really need. Don't forget a sleeping bag that you can compress down to nothing (single largest bulk item for most).

If you want an external frame go with the Kelty. Personally, I hated external frame packs as a kid and would never reccommend one to anybody.

Week long troop backpacking! You guys are so cool!

[kimberbakos]

Week long troop backpacking! You guys are so cool!

They will decide tomorrow where they are going: Rid River Gorge in KY, the North Country Trail in Michigan's UP, or Boundary Waters in MI. WHich would you vote for and why?

[wagionvigil]

The Boundary Waters as I am a Kayaker

[kimberbakos]

The boys chose Red River Gorge in KY - 5 days of hiking, one of canoeing, and a day at Mammoth Cave. So we'll really need to buy that pack for him now!

[kwildman]

check out the "via ferrata" course at RRG for your more adventurous scouts.

[cballman]

Red River Gorge is an awesome place. Our troop averages going there about 2-3 times a year. It is only about 2 hours away. Via Ferrata is a great place to go also but check out their website for more info.

[fritz1255]

I'm probably too late to affect the purchase of the original poster, but for any others.... Several boys in our Troop including my son have the Jansport Scout, which is adjustable. and can grow with the boy as he grows. The adjustablity is provided by moving some of the crossmembers up or down. Your boy won't be the fashion statement of the trail, since this is an external frame pack rather than a more trendy internal frame. However, it has many innovative updates from the packs of yesteryear, such as all main compartments zip open from the front, a shelf on top for heavy equipment, etc. Sorry, no integral hydration bladder, but if you're looking for trendy, go with an internal frame.

[alex gregory]

Sorry, no integral hydration bladder, but if you're looking for trendy, go with an internal frame.

Hmmm . . . sometimes "trendy" is the result of improvements.

[fritz1255]

Sorry, no integral hydration bladder, but if you're looking for trendy, go with an internal frame.

Hmmm . . . sometimes "trendy" is the result of improvements.

We're off the original subject, but in the case of my internal frame pack, trendy is mostly just trendy. It has several straps and loops of cord that have no function that I can fathom, let alone use. But it does have an ice axe loop - I'll use THAT on my next climb up Everest. I realize now that we must have always been terribly dehydrated back a few years ago before the days of hydration bladders. Most people that I see with them today are no further than 100 yards from their cars - I had no idea we were in such danger.

All ranting aside, internal frame packs are more comfortable, I just wish they made them for the average domestic backpacker rather than trying to appeal to the Edmund Hillary wannabees. My guess is that you won't be able to buy a hydration bladder 10 years from now, but time will tell. Anybody remember the hiking boot phenomenon of the 1970's? Everybody (including me) had to have $100 climbing shoes with waffle soles to walk around campus. Boy did I catch it from my Mom when the mud from outside would disgorge from the soles onto the kitchen floor.

[joat]

All ranting aside, internal frame packs are more comfortable ...

I had no idea my external frame pack was so uncomfortable!! The internal pack sits right on the back, blocking air circulation, resulting is profuse sweating that soaks your shirt and contents of pack as well. THAT to me is uncomfortable! With my external frame pack, air circulating freely across my back seems to keep me cool and comfortable, but I could be wrong!

[FrankJ]

The fact is both internal & external packs can be made comfortable or uncomfortable. For a pack to be comfortable,the hip belt need to fit so that it can carry the weight of the pack. The distance between the shoulder straps & the hip belt needs to be adjusted to suit the torso length of the wearer. The back supports or padding need to properly adjusted. The muscles in the back need to developed to handle the new strains from wearing a pack-- until that happens it will be a little uncomfortable (or a lot). The advantage of an external frame for a small person is that they tend to be wider which enables the pack height to be shorter.