Mammut Spindrift 26
Best backpack for organization from the Fall/Winter 2018 Gear Guide.
Digging through your pack for snacks or layers in cold weather is no fun. Get what you need fast with the Spindrift’s gargantuan, contoured hipbelt pockets. “They swallow a small daypack’s worth of gear, including food, a midlayer, a headlamp, sunglasses, and a rain-shell, and can fit skins,” said a tester after completing the Tofana di Rozes traverse in the Italian Dolomites. The pockets follow the entire hipbelt curve but don’t interfere with arm swing—even when stuffed to capacity. (Tightening the hipbelt doesn’t create too much tension to access the pockets.) Bungee cords on the right hipbelt wing and shoulder strap let you stash poles in seconds; you can also store them, along with an ice axe, on the backside of the pack with gear loops.
THE DETAILS
Access the Spindrift’s 22-liter main packbag via a U-shaped zipper that flays open the backpanel and another smaller one in front. A separate pocket holds avy gear. The pack has diagonal ski carry (no splitboard carry). Testers praised the mesh water bottle holder on the left shoulder strap, which can fit bottles 16 ounces or smaller, for easy hydration, though it’s not insulated.
TRAIL CRED
“I love the way the hipbelt wings wrap my hips, minimizing sway on downhills when the pack’s full,” one tester reports.
Weight: 1 lb. 14 oz.
Volume: 26 liters
Size: One size
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See more Backpacks for Winter 2018
See the entire Winter Gear Guide
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