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the GHOST,
and 1600 cu. Less the EMS 550).
Its internal frame is designed to hug the hiker's lower back - just
like RB's pool-side
sketches! If my current pack weighed 8 lbs. and this one weighted 3-lbs.
6-oz, it would cost me
a mere $72 per weight-saving pound if
I bought the AETHER 60.
Without a calculator… This seemed like a deal!
Of course… It's 2:00 AM Wednesday morning
and there's no apparent way this pack can get to me by Thursday evening
for our trip on Friday morning. A distressing call to RB
in AZ (thank goodness for that 3-hour time difference) prompted him
to ask the following question, "Gary, have
you ever heard of overnight shipping?"
Later that morning I called Travel Country in FL and they UPS-ed the Aether 60 to me. It arrived on Thursday at 3:00 PM. At 5:45 PM it was loaded with gear. At 5:50 PM I'm hiking around the living room. At 5:55 PM I'm headin' out the door to Sarah's soccer game. And, once again… I'm "the happy hiker."
THE TEST
The Aether 60
held all of my gear. (This is good.) I knew my
hike into The Great Gulf (NH) would be a pack-learning experience. I'd
learn about the personality of my new pack, and make whatever adjustments
were necessary.
Prepared for winter weather and some extra staples,
my pack weighted in at 50 lbs. I didn't scrimp on the luxuries, as the
4.5-mile hike to our base camp would be only a moderate challenge. Contrary
to the hike-in, I loaded the AETHER 60 very
differently on the hike-out, four days later. Here's what I learned:
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Given the unique internal frame design
that's intended to hug your lower back with a lightweight, wide
hip belt, I realized my use of compression sacks (for my tent, sleeping
bag and clothes) contributed to a poor pack/lower-back fit. The
compression sacks, although great on saving space, actually created
inflexible bulges in my pack that prevented a uniform fit to my
lower back.
-
On the hike-out, I simply stuffed
my tent and sleeping bag in nylon sacks, and pushed them down to
the bottom of the pack. From there, I stacked progressively lighter
items from bottom to top.
-
The new "stuffed profile" made
all the differences. As I bolted out to the trailhead, I felt comfortable
and "lighter-then-air."
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I also learned how to adjust the
various pack straps. I loved the wide, very comfortable hip belt
that sat on the broad area above my hips; the pack weight hugged
my back and placed zero weight on my shoulders. The hip belt has
an unusual cinch mechanism, which allows the wearer to pull 2-straps
out to tighten
the belt. I've only seen this amazing feature on one other pack
(Steve-the-Knee's).
The two side pockets on the bottom of the pack allowed for easy
entry and exit of small items, and they following the body-hugging
contour of the pack.
On my two, day hikes, the Aether
60 demonstrated its
antigravity feature.
Designed to fold over itself, it conveniently converted to a smaller pack.
The design of the pack allowed me to carry a lot of warm, seemingly heavy
gear and water with no appreciable strain or weight. The weight sat very
comfortable on that very wide hip belt.
Although "Big
Blue" took me through some fantastic hiking
trails, the AETHER 60
would take me further!
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