Day Pack Suggestions

I own a tactical style pack and for some short day hunts it's great. But it's just too small, especially if you are out all day and possibly have to pack out an animal/weapon, etc. Suggestions on something that is good, strong and has enough room for your daily equipment/supplies. I have a 5600ci pack for packing in my camp, I don't have an idea on what size a day pack would be. I would also be interested in purchasing either a new pack or a used pack. Thanks

I ran a Eberlestock X2 for years and it served me well. Not much of a meat carrier, but a good pack. I bought a EXO K3500 and love this pack. It compresses down to nothing and is a true meat packer when you need it. Steve is a backcountry hunter and it shows in the design.

Are you hoping to still haul meat with it? Something like a Seek Outside Divide or Stone Glacier Solo would be able to do that.

Kuiu icon pro 1850 worked good for me this last year, but I’m considering getting the 3200 bag for a little more room.

No hoping more for hauling the daily essentials, with some food, raingear, burner and gas, cleaning supplies (if I do harvest an animal), spotting scope, tripod, etc.

Schaaf said:

Are you hoping to still haul meat with it? Something like a Seek Outside Divide or Stone Glacier Solo would be able to do that.

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I currently use a Blacks Creek lumbar pack. It is an interesting pack. It is not large, 1200 in capacity. That is enough to haul my stuff plus 100 oz camelbak for a day hunt. It is different in that it is designed also to haul meat. If you go to their website there is a video which gives a better idea of how the pack accomplishes this. I would caution you on two things. First, the pack has a myriad of buckles and straps and I played around a bit before I found the " combination" that suited me. Second, it is a lumbar pack and with a load, it seems to use different muscles than a regular frame pack. It could be that I am just getting older, but, it took me a few trips before I stopped feeling it in my back.

Other than that, I love the pack. I usually haul out 30-60 lbs of meat with it.

My old daypack bit the dust and I wanted a new frame anyway, so I went with a MR Meltcalf. It will carry all my daypack stuff up top, and then have the frame to pack out meat. My daypack was always strapped to my frame anyway, so I just went with an integrated solution.

I just received my Eberlestock X2 about a week ago. I haven't put it through a hunt yet, but I did take it over to one of my hunting spots, unbuckle it, put a 50lb bag of corn onto the back, buckle it all back up, and mount the pack to my back. After adjusting for proper fit it was pretty damn comfortable, and I went half a mile through some uneven, scrubby terrain to deposit my 50 pounds of corn into a pile that I put a trail camera over to spot some hogs I believe are running around. It certainly feels durable so far, and while it will cinch down nice and small when needed, it expands outward and carries all that I'll need for a day hunt, with the ability to strap camp supplies to the outside for a longer trip if I'm two-manning it.

Alternatively, keep an eye on Camofire.com and see which of the Mystery Ranch packs you like, such as the Crest or Pintler. They've been re-running the same sales every few days and probably will until they're sold out.

If you call camo fire directly, they will usually honor a past saw if they have it.