Outdoor Discoveries

A rucksack for a weekend?

Alan Sloman may have been carrying his the length of Great Britain this time last year but I always thought that my penchant for carrying two SLR cameras (one film, one digital) with me precluded my using my Osprey Atmos 50 for anything other than day walks. However, this past weekend’s escapade in Scotland has changed my mind. Apart from walking boots, the Atmos swallowed all that I was taking and I was able to put most things on my back so that my hands were free while wandering along glen, by loch and under ben. In fact, I was left wanting for nothing and that was without my putting anything in the cavity formed by the curved back.

Heretofore, my weekend pack was a heavyweight Karrimor Cougar that I recently have adjudged to be overkill for the task. Thoughts of its replacement had percolated into my brain only to be thrown into confusion by last weekend. Before then, options such as GoLite’s Quest or Osprey’s Aether 70 made their way onto a tentative shopping list. I now am inclined to regard a 70 litre sack as being too big for a weekend or a few days away and contend that 55–60 litres would be sufficient if I need something a little bigger than the Atmos. That means that Gregory’s Z55 and Osprey’s Aether 60 come into the frame but, for the moment, I will continue to assess my current needs and what I may need in the future. While that’s going on, the Atmos may be seeing a few more weekend outings yet.

Update: I have discovered since that Osprey make an Atmos 65 and I wonder if any have made it across the Atlantic. I’ll be sticking with the “50” but, on paper, its big brother doesn’t seem that dissimilar in its characteristics apart from the volume and weight that it can carry.