About ten years I ago I went on a long weekend bouldering trip to Enchanted Rock, one of the more unique climbing areas in Texas. As I drove to each of the three houses to pick up my climbing mates, we joked about forgetting climbing shoes or other important gear. One by one as I helped my partners load gear into my truck I quizzed them to make sure they had everything. Of course the last guy I picked up insisted he had everything stuff into his misshapen crash pad. He didn't bother with an actual pack. "No worries! Everything is jammed in there! Clothes, shoes, food, camera. Everything!" I took him for his word and proceeded on to the 4.5 hour drive to Enchanted Rock. Day 1 of climbing: "I FORGOT MY SHOES!" It was same guy with the janky crash pad full of "everything". We all made fun of him for a few minutes but then offered to let him borrow rock shoes. None of our shoe sizes were a good fit, so he proceeded to climb barefoot. He sent harder routes than all of us, completely barefoot. I'll never know if he was driven by embarrassment or maybe barefoot climbing is the new beta. Either way, he shut all of us up and we stopped making fun of his forgetfulness!
When I was 11 years old my family took a trip to Africa and Europe (I live in Iowa). There were a couple packing things that happened. First off, admittedly, I was still very attached to my baby blanket. I never slept anywhere without it! And when I was sitting on the plane halfway over the Atlantic Ocean, I realized I had left it at home! Came home a month later and never touched it again. The other thing that happened: we took 7 people and 11 suitcases on the London tube during rush hour. I almost got left behind when we got on the train, so to get off the train we stacked all of the suit cases up in front of the door and the minute the door opened we all started just throwing and shoving bags out onto the station! (followed by the kids next!) Thanks for the awesome videos, best part of my Friday! (Except climbing of course)
i´m using the trad 35 from ortovox ... i was looking for a light and minimal but also multiuse backpack. after hours of searching i found the trad 35. you can attach your rope, ice axes and even a roll mat at it and still it is light and comfortable to carry. but the best thing about this rucksack is the zip, that runs around the frontside so you can open it on the top and also like a suitcase. and here is my backpack story: i was on the go with some friends to do a via ferrata. we spent hours of hiking to find the start of this damn via ferrata and when we nearly broke up searching we found it. so we quickly got our harnesses on and were about to start, when this friend of mine suddenly could not find his car key. we told him to look in the small bags on his waistbelt but he told us that he looked at them and they were empty. he was our driver so we all got stressed. we searched through his complete rucksack, tried to find it on the whole way we had made, which was a long one, we nearly body-searched him. after loosing a eternity of time he suddenly nonchalant said: i have it, it was in one of the bags on my waist belt. we got furious ... our yelling must be heard everywhere in the valley.
I also have the Trad 35 and I love it. Use it for trad, ice and single day skitouring. It can take two half ropes or even two skis. Great backpack! It has a few holes now from whippers on gear but that's the users fault.
Back in my search and rescue days we had a 2 week training exercise. Most of us were hikers, climbers, outdoor enthusiasts, etc. well we had a class going over proper packing. Like putting heavier items closer to your hips and lighter towards your shoulders. At the end of the class we had a shake down (where you lay out your gear to show what you have) and the class was going to go over everyone's gear and help repack it. Most of us had the same kind of stuff, Water bladders, protein bars, vacuum packed food, extra pair of shoes, socks etc. then we get to "that guy" the 1st clue he had too much was when his pack weighed 110 lbs (49kg) he starts laying everything out and that's when we see a fold up cot and Arctic sleeping bag (the low temperatures never got below 60f (18c) and he's food was in Tupperware dishes and even had a casserole in a Glass pan. Most of us lost it at this point. Needless to say, after this exercise he took a good long look at his packing method.
While on a one week backpacking trip that included rappelling a huge storm hit, the worst thunderstorm I've ever been in, Wednesday night into early Thursday morning. We weren't allowed flash lights and were camping next to a river. At 2am one of the guys in the group yelled, "We have to leave now, the river is flash flooding!" We leave as quickly as possible leaving our gear behind and start a 4 mile hike in the pouring rain, thunder, and lightning with only glow sticks and the flashes from the lightning to see the trail. All in all, no one was hurt and it was one of the most fun trips of my life!
Well, it was only my second journey out the door with my sport climbing gear crag pack. It was a 40L Mammut pack and I had no idea yet how much to pack (or NOT pack) for an approach of any length to speak of. I was a beginner, so I packed everything! First aid kit, surgery kit, suture kit, harness, slings, carabiners, quickdraws... You name it, I had it in that pack! I packed every piece of gear that I owned into that pack! We could survive the end of the world with what I had in my pack!!! My climbing partner and I were only going to a crag an hour and a half away for the day. I wore my helmet and attached my climbing shoes to the outside with a carabiner, then carried this 60+ pound pack and a rope bag up a long, steep approach and when we finally got to the crag, I was so tired that I could hardly climb! I ended up having to crawl up the approach on my hands and knees on the way back with that pack on. Lesson learned. Pack a bit lighter...
Last year I was cycling through Iceland. My tent was in its own drybag on the bike trailer. The route I took involved 30+ unbridged rivers. Through the deep ones I carries everything, through the shallow ones I pushed the bike, and was always concerned that the current might grab on to the trailer if the water was deeper than I expected. Needless to say, the water was deeper than expected, but luckily the trailer didn't float. However, one of the screws holding the trailer together had rubbed through the tent's drybag, so I flodded my tent on several occasions. Which is bad in Iceland, because nothing really dries off, like ever.
Osprey variant is one if the best climbing packs ive ever used. Holds rope, harnesses, shoes, draws, Crampons, axes, screws, cams, food, clothes, skis, poles and it can be stripped down to be 45 liters.
One time we were going climbing in an area that hadn't seen use in a long time. We had all our bags, filled to the brim with all the gear we might possibly need. A single rack of cams and nuts, about a dozen quickdraws, a single 70 meter rope, as well as a shorter rope, as a precaution. We're lugging all this gear and kayaks on top of that when one of the guys realizes he'd forgotten our map. We're about a mile from our cars and he tells us to continue on. Without leaving his bag, which had the majority of the hard gear (45 L full) he starts running back to the cars. We make it to the ramp and he meets up with us with the map, breathless, but ready to climb.
I used to use a pretty small backpack for my climbing gym bag. Being so small I could really only fit chalk and my harness inside so I attached by shoes to the back with a carabiner. One day I was in a rush to the gym and walked in the front door and the door closed behind be, with my shoes still outside. I was stuck in the door and had to call a staff member over to come free me from the jaws of the front door. Needless to say, I got a larger backpack after that!
I used to own a 42l backpack from REI and I loved it used for trad climbing, backpacking, everything really... but the aluminium frame broke and them my cliffs poked a hole in it and eventually I had to stop using it. but I saved a bunch of parts from it and made, among other things a new backpack(with some old jeans and some more fabric I had laying around), some straps for my twin ropes and a chalk bag belt for my wife! so in a way I'm still using it after all these years!
Once when I was climbing a multi pitch route I had too little quickdraws on my harness. So I decided to only clip every second bolt. It was no big deal, because the route was not that hard. When I was finished with the route and put everything back in my backpack I realized that I had a few more quickdraws in my backpack, that I was wearing the whole time on my back.
Given few choices several years back, I hacked up my Gregory 35L. Added in 3 gear loops to the inside. This keeps the heavier gear closer to your back. I then added a bottom zipper to access helmet, webbing etc without having to sift through the entire bag. Super happy to see more bags providing side access or bottom access zippers. I haven't had the pleasure of trying out a Norrona bag but I'd imagine that the quality is as good as their clothing.
BACKPACK STORY: I usually carry my trad rack in a 45L with first aid kit, waterproofs, lunch, water etc just some extras for more comfort. Went to do my first multi-pitch at St.Davids Head pembrokeshire. Arrived lunch time-ish, thought I we would abseil in and have lunch at the foot of the climb and that's it. As we finished lunch realising we have our packs with us and were climbing out of this crag and not coming back. I don't really want to climb with packs on, so the first person led and then hoist bags up for the second to clean. Hoisting the bags up the first pitch absolutely tore the bags to shreds, waist belt in two pieces, holes in the side of the pack, resulting to us climbing with out packs on to stop them from disintegrating.
With the blue ice pack I am not sure about the twisting ice axe loops. Why not insert the axe handle first into the loop so it is hanging down below the pack and then pull the bottom up and into the top attachment points. Quite difficult to describe but hopefully you get what I mean
i'm a big fan of the BD speed sacks! I've got an older 30l modell for single day and weekend climbin trips and another, newer 40l for longer venues. Using the 40l netzt week for a trip to Switzerland, including climbing gear and food for 7 days. Absolutely loving them!
I’ve got one of norrönnas other bags (falketind 35l) I have been using for the last few years for both climbing and ski touring. It got a pretty good fit and the feature set of it is very hard to beat. Its easy to fit skis to it for bootpacking and the ice axe can be acessed easily when the pack is still on your back if you for example feel a bit insecure on a steep ski. However I do feel the quality of materials could be better. I’ve not had any major issues but considering the high cost I was expecting better durability. I’ve gotten a few holes and some seams are looking a bit tired but the main thing is all the straps. They have become very sun bleached and stiff in almost no time. So really my point. The norröna packs have really good features and solutions but I think the durabilty could be improved considering the rather high cost and it is worth having in mind if you are interested in buying one. (I should however mention norrönas clothes have a lot better durabilty than their packs in my experience and can really recommend them)
I was doing a photo shoot with a few of my friends on a multi pitch, and my bag was full of climbing gear as well as shooting gear. Anyways, I managed to borrow my teachers 70-200mm canon lens (about $2000). Anyways, we were on a ledge and I was grabbing the entire lens out of my bag, which was also in another padded bag itself, and it slipped right out of my hand. My friends lunged for it as did I and we watched it tumble to the ground about 400ft up. I rapped down to see the damage and was sure I had a 2000$ dollar bill when I get it, but thanks to the small case it was in, the lens was perfect with no damage:)
Hey Matt, I've been watching climbing daily since before you started hosting and I just wanted to say you've really grown as a host since you took over. Keep up the good work!
Well there was that one time when I had to wake up at 5am in Chamonix to climb Petit Aiguille Verte and forgot not one but both my pickaxes! It was an awkward lift ride down to the campsite, next time I'll try to pack my bag the night before...
The Norrøna bag is top up and nothing really comes close for similar features other than the Mystery Ranch Sceptor ice climbing bag. Both fully mental.
What about the Mountain Hardware Multipitch bags? I got the 25 for summer alpine in Colorado. It can fit a helium bivy, neoair xlite pad, 20* synthetic bag, rain pants and jacket and a puffy on the inside with no problems and there's still extra room for some food. Also really like the rope strap, dual daisies and stowable mesh shoe pouch. It also is made out of some super tough material that could actually withstand some moderate hauling.
Most of my friends know that I carry two beverages whenever I'm out for an adventure, one bottle of water and the other an isotonic drink, usually in the stretchy side mesh of my backpack. They didn't know that I also have an FUD ( Female Urinary Device). One night there was a thunderstorm and I decided to put it to good use in my tent answering natures call. The following morning as we were all packed up and ready to go, a friend of mine picked up my bottle from my bag and was about to quench his thirst when he mentioned to me that my gatorade looked really diluted. Told him 2 things: That one shouldn't take things without permission and that's not gatorade, that's my pee! Since then i've thrown my rubbish into a clear disposible bottle that also seconds as my pee bottle instead of using a ziploxk bag. None of them touch my stuff without permission anymore. Fun fact: pee keeps you warm on a cold wet night. Just be sure to cap the bottle properly. Hehe.
I can't make out what you are saying at 1:04 so I turned on the closed caption and it quotes you saying "for years about a big guy died eventually sold it". Is that actually what you are saying?
I recently spent 4 days living in robin hoods cave on Stanage edge (i'm sure you're very familiar) for this little foray away i ended up packing just under 40kg of stuff (i weigh 65kg) this included 10 liters of water in a bag stuffed inside a bouldering pad on my pack with a 90 liter duffle stuffed to the brim resting between my head and bouldering pad, it sucked on so many levels as i ended up getting dropped off by a taxi to the wrong car park so i had to walk all the way from burbage car park all along the bottom getting completely lost as to where i was along the way constantly dropping my bags running along to see if i could figure out where i was. It was the single most uncomfortable and exhausting experience of my entire life and ended up taking about 3 hours to walk what was probably at most a mile straight there. Now i want you to bear in mind I was literally clueless as to what i would find having taken a train from Devon to climb on grit for the second time in my entire life. I then got a taxi to Stanage and having no guide book i mooched off everyone i could find taking pictures of pages on my phone of various things i thought i wanted to climb (i have more of stanage popular and plantation in there) and when my phone got dangerously low on battery i simply mooched guide books full stop (thankgod there were people everywhere) In the end i got probably about 250 routes climbed (if you include all the down climbing i did), and every single bit of this was entirely self supported from what i could stuff into a bouldering pad and a 90L duffel. HOWS THAT FOR A STORY ABOUT LUGGAGE!!!
What was the Black Diamond bag you were wearing at the gear show? (It may have been a bag from last year or something). That being said, it looked like a good one as well.
... i once went hiking up to a cave (Cueva de la Virgin, La Huasteca, NL, MX) with my girlfriend, and our plan was to rappel down the cliffside once we wished to return (so as to make it quickly and see Game of Thrones, because #priorities). So I hauled the equipment in my bag (70m rope, rappel devices, anchor chain and PAS, even prusik in case shit happens), yet we totally forgot one tiny, albeit crucial piece of equipment... our harnesses. We realize that basically at the mouth of the cave, after hiking a considerable (and steep) distance. And thanks to Murphy's Law, it started to drizzle, making everything especially slippery. So there we were, with heavy equipment, no harness, and the new GoT episode incoming. We finally said "Fuck it, the Lord of Light will protect us" and started our hike down the cliff, falling on our asses continuously. Some bruises, a ripped pants and some laughs later, we were happily and safely screaming at our TV as someone died horribly on GoT.
when i went climbing with a budy one or two weeks after christmas i brought my brand new rope and ropebag which i get for chistmas. After climbing with my new rope we decided to do a short boulder session for completion, so i put my ropebag to a shelf and we went bouldering. When we finished the session and went back to the shelf i could not find my ropebag. There was just a similar one. Because it was brand new and my first own rope and ropebag i was close to crying. So we told the gym staff the story and they took the other ropebag and wrote down my number. After 5 or 6 Days luckily i get a call that someone brought my ropebag back.
Semjon Borzutzki I was very scared while I was reading your story😂 that kind of stuff has happened to me before when you just get something new and then you lose it as soon as your get it
2 friends and I all have the same Lowe Alpine pack in the same colour, it makes getting up in the morning for Scottish winter an even greater challenge haha
last weekend i went on a backpacking trip with 10 college age kids, and we were doing a 2 night 10 mile backpacking trip in colorado. I brought my massive backpacking backpack, and so did 2 girls. everyone else brought jansport backpacks and carried their sleeping bags. i ended up carrying all of the food, and 2 sleeping bags and tons of water for everyone else. Somehow no one died, but 5 of the kids only slept about 3 hours for the two nights combined. the trip had so many more cringe worthy terrible stories.
i was once scrambeling in the isle of skye with some friends. we were having an easy day until someone (I can't remember who) had the bright idea to put rocks in my bag as a joke. I realised after a kilometre and took them out. it was quite funny. but so started a day long battle of putting rocks of increasing size in eachother's Rucksacks until nobody would leave their Rucksacks unattended. great day tho 😂
Jonathan Watson my brother used to put rocks into my chalk bag but stopped after he realized i made it ammunition when he was belaying me! ur comment reminded me of those times...lol
after travelling from my home in chesterfield to Sheffield ,then to hathersage and then a long walk to stanage edge. once i got my chalk bag out of my bag i realized that i'd left my climbing shoes on my bed at home so had to climb in my walking trainers not approach shoes...which was interesting.
I was going on a canoe trip up in Northern Canada and we had stoped for a bite to eat on the way up. However, my wallet was in my bag so I took my bag out of the vehicle, got my money, grabbed some food, and off we went. We reached Naiscoot Lake, and realized I had left my bag with all my gear out in the parking lot 2 hours away we're got lunch.
hi everyone! well my story is not simple 'cos a girl was involved, my girlfriend 😨 before we went to climb, both have been talking if you understand me haha about wich kind of backpack Carry on so after a "while" we've decided and go to climb not to far from home but good enough to not return in a few days. once we where at our destiny and ready to climb, our sorprise was that we forgot the backpacks, ay the bigining we get angry you know, like it's your foult, no it's yours and after a few minutes we start to lough and spend a great week toguether without climbing 😭 but haveing an incredible Moments, so we felt more in love and always we Made a good check up for everything on the climbing list before we go, i mean Always 😉 hope you enjoyed my packing story and congrats for the channel, keep doing and greetings from Queretaro, Mexico 😊
I know the contest is over but for me I wear a pair of slippers while I'm driving and I put on my approach shoes at the crack well I packed all my stuff up got everything in the car and I drove an hour and a half to the Crag only to realize I forgot my approach shoes and instead of going back I hiked in in my slippers. It really sucked
last week I went on a hike in austria with friends. at base camp some of us played a little game: packing weird stuff in the bags of the others. after several hours at the peak i wanted to grab my jacket out of my (lowe alpine) backpack and realised that i carried a big hammer, some rocks and booster cables (they are heavier than one may think) up the mountain. it was very funny, at least I had a little training :D
i was hiking with my friens in the mountains and I I took off my backpack to take food but i remembered that it was under the rope so i opened the backpack and what i found?My food. The first think i thought was that the ropes was under the food but nothing.
I forgot everything, I normally keep my bag packed but I needed it for going away to keep cloths, sofew days after I got home I picked it up forget everything was unpacked and I had cloths in the bad instead, sk I left got to the gym opened the bed to find a bunch of my week old dirty cloths, opps
me and some friends went deep water ssoloing the other day on the cap d'Antibes and every time we put our hands behind our backs to take chalk we realised we didnt have chalk bags.!! it was soooo funny but i guess you had to be there and this is a rubbish story sorry Matt.
i whos i the climbing gym and i hat too catch a train sow i leve the gym and when i get out the door i remember i have forgaten my bag sow now i am in a huri becos i do not have a lot of time befor the traine levs sow i run down to the gym get my back and run op to the stasion og when i get there i see that the traine is delayed sow can just make is
About ten years I ago I went on a long weekend bouldering trip to Enchanted Rock, one of the more unique climbing areas in Texas. As I drove to each of the three houses to pick up my climbing mates, we joked about forgetting climbing shoes or other important gear. One by one as I helped my partners load gear into my truck I quizzed them to make sure they had everything.
Of course the last guy I picked up insisted he had everything stuff into his misshapen crash pad. He didn't bother with an actual pack. "No worries! Everything is jammed in there! Clothes, shoes, food, camera. Everything!" I took him for his word and proceeded on to the 4.5 hour drive to Enchanted Rock.
Day 1 of climbing: "I FORGOT MY SHOES!" It was same guy with the janky crash pad full of "everything". We all made fun of him for a few minutes but then offered to let him borrow rock shoes. None of our shoe sizes were a good fit, so he proceeded to climb barefoot.
He sent harder routes than all of us, completely barefoot. I'll never know if he was driven by embarrassment or maybe barefoot climbing is the new beta. Either way, he shut all of us up and we stopped making fun of his forgetfulness!
When I was 11 years old my family took a trip to Africa and Europe (I live in Iowa). There were a couple packing things that happened. First off, admittedly, I was still very attached to my baby blanket. I never slept anywhere without it! And when I was sitting on the plane halfway over the Atlantic Ocean, I realized I had left it at home! Came home a month later and never touched it again. The other thing that happened: we took 7 people and 11 suitcases on the London tube during rush hour. I almost got left behind when we got on the train, so to get off the train we stacked all of the suit cases up in front of the door and the minute the door opened we all started just throwing and shoving bags out onto the station! (followed by the kids next!)
Thanks for the awesome videos, best part of my Friday! (Except climbing of course)
i´m using the trad 35 from ortovox ... i was looking for a light and minimal but also multiuse backpack. after hours of searching i found the trad 35. you can attach your rope, ice axes and even a roll mat at it and still it is light and comfortable to carry. but the best thing about this rucksack is the zip, that runs around the frontside so you can open it on the top and also like a suitcase.
and here is my backpack story:
i was on the go with some friends to do a via ferrata. we spent hours of hiking to find the start of this damn via ferrata and when we nearly broke up searching we found it. so we quickly got our harnesses on and were about to start, when this friend of mine suddenly could not find his car key. we told him to look in the small bags on his waistbelt but he told us that he looked at them and they were empty. he was our driver so we all got stressed. we searched through his complete rucksack, tried to find it on the whole way we had made, which was a long one, we nearly body-searched him. after loosing a eternity of time he suddenly nonchalant said: i have it, it was in one of the bags on my waist belt. we got furious ... our yelling must be heard everywhere in the valley.
I also have the Trad 35 and I love it. Use it for trad, ice and single day skitouring. It can take two half ropes or even two skis. Great backpack!
It has a few holes now from whippers on gear but that's the users fault.
Back in my search and rescue days we had a 2 week training exercise. Most of us were hikers, climbers, outdoor enthusiasts, etc. well we had a class going over proper packing. Like putting heavier items closer to your hips and lighter towards your shoulders. At the end of the class we had a shake down (where you lay out your gear to show what you have) and the class was going to go over everyone's gear and help repack it. Most of us had the same kind of stuff, Water bladders, protein bars, vacuum packed food, extra pair of shoes, socks etc. then we get to "that guy" the 1st clue he had too much was when his pack weighed 110 lbs (49kg) he starts laying everything out and that's when we see a fold up cot and Arctic sleeping bag (the low temperatures never got below 60f (18c) and he's food was in Tupperware dishes and even had a casserole in a Glass pan. Most of us lost it at this point. Needless to say, after this exercise he took a good long look at his packing method.
While on a one week backpacking trip that included rappelling a huge storm hit, the worst thunderstorm I've ever been in, Wednesday night into early Thursday morning. We weren't allowed flash lights and were camping next to a river. At 2am one of the guys in the group yelled, "We have to leave now, the river is flash flooding!" We leave as quickly as possible leaving our gear behind and start a 4 mile hike in the pouring rain, thunder, and lightning with only glow sticks and the flashes from the lightning to see the trail. All in all, no one was hurt and it was one of the most fun trips of my life!
Well, it was only my second journey out the door with my sport climbing gear crag pack. It was a 40L Mammut pack and I had no idea yet how much to pack (or NOT pack) for an approach of any length to speak of. I was a beginner, so I packed everything! First aid kit, surgery kit, suture kit, harness, slings, carabiners, quickdraws... You name it, I had it in that pack! I packed every piece of gear that I owned into that pack! We could survive the end of the world with what I had in my pack!!! My climbing partner and I were only going to a crag an hour and a half away for the day. I wore my helmet and attached my climbing shoes to the outside with a carabiner, then carried this 60+ pound pack and a rope bag up a long, steep approach and when we finally got to the crag, I was so tired that I could hardly climb! I ended up having to crawl up the approach on my hands and knees on the way back with that pack on. Lesson learned. Pack a bit lighter...
Last year I was cycling through Iceland. My tent was in its own drybag on the bike trailer. The route I took involved 30+ unbridged rivers. Through the deep ones I carries everything, through the shallow ones I pushed the bike, and was always concerned that the current might grab on to the trailer if the water was deeper than I expected. Needless to say, the water was deeper than expected, but luckily the trailer didn't float. However, one of the screws holding the trailer together had rubbed through the tent's drybag, so I flodded my tent on several occasions. Which is bad in Iceland, because nothing really dries off, like ever.
Osprey variant is one if the best climbing packs ive ever used. Holds rope, harnesses, shoes, draws, Crampons, axes, screws, cams, food, clothes, skis, poles and it can be stripped down to be 45 liters.
One time we were going climbing in an area that hadn't seen use in a long time. We had all our bags, filled to the brim with all the gear we might possibly need. A single rack of cams and nuts, about a dozen quickdraws, a single 70 meter rope, as well as a shorter rope, as a precaution. We're lugging all this gear and kayaks on top of that when one of the guys realizes he'd forgotten our map. We're about a mile from our cars and he tells us to continue on. Without leaving his bag, which had the majority of the hard gear (45 L full) he starts running back to the cars. We make it to the ramp and he meets up with us with the map, breathless, but ready to climb.
I used to use a pretty small backpack for my climbing gym bag. Being so small I could really only fit chalk and my harness inside so I attached by shoes to the back with a carabiner. One day I was in a rush to the gym and walked in the front door and the door closed behind be, with my shoes still outside. I was stuck in the door and had to call a staff member over to come free me from the jaws of the front door. Needless to say, I got a larger backpack after that!
I used to own a 42l backpack from REI and I loved it used for trad climbing, backpacking, everything really... but the aluminium frame broke and them my cliffs poked a hole in it and eventually I had to stop using it.
but I saved a bunch of parts from it and made, among other things a new backpack(with some old jeans and some more fabric I had laying around), some straps for my twin ropes and a chalk bag belt for my wife!
so in a way I'm still using it after all these years!
that tan though!! haha love the vid
Once when I was climbing a multi pitch route I had too little quickdraws on my harness. So I decided to only clip every second bolt. It was no big deal, because the route was not that hard. When I was finished with the route and put everything back in my backpack I realized that I had a few more quickdraws in my backpack, that I was wearing the whole time on my back.
Given few choices several years back, I hacked up my Gregory 35L. Added in 3 gear loops to the inside. This keeps the heavier gear closer to your back. I then added a bottom zipper to access helmet, webbing etc without having to sift through the entire bag. Super happy to see more bags providing side access or bottom access zippers. I haven't had the pleasure of trying out a Norrona bag but I'd imagine that the quality is as good as their clothing.
BACKPACK STORY: I usually carry my trad rack in a 45L with first aid kit, waterproofs, lunch, water etc just some extras for more comfort. Went to do my first multi-pitch at St.Davids Head pembrokeshire. Arrived lunch time-ish, thought I we would abseil in and have lunch at the foot of the climb and that's it. As we finished lunch realising we have our packs with us and were climbing out of this crag and not coming back. I don't really want to climb with packs on, so the first person led and then hoist bags up for the second to clean. Hoisting the bags up the first pitch absolutely tore the bags to shreds, waist belt in two pieces, holes in the side of the pack, resulting to us climbing with out packs on to stop them from disintegrating.
With the blue ice pack I am not sure about the twisting ice axe loops. Why not insert the axe handle first into the loop so it is hanging down below the pack and then pull the bottom up and into the top attachment points. Quite difficult to describe but hopefully you get what I mean
i'm a big fan of the BD speed sacks! I've got an older 30l modell for single day and weekend climbin trips and another, newer 40l for longer venues. Using the 40l netzt week for a trip to Switzerland, including climbing gear and food for 7 days. Absolutely loving them!
I’ve got one of norrönnas other bags (falketind 35l) I have been using for the last few years for both climbing and ski touring. It got a pretty good fit and the feature set of it is very hard to beat. Its easy to fit skis to it for bootpacking and the ice axe can be acessed easily when the pack is still on your back if you for example feel a bit insecure on a steep ski. However I do feel the quality of materials could be better. I’ve not had any major issues but considering the high cost I was expecting better durability. I’ve gotten a few holes and some seams are looking a bit tired but the main thing is all the straps. They have become very sun bleached and stiff in almost no time.
So really my point. The norröna packs have really good features and solutions but I think the durabilty could be improved considering the rather high cost and it is worth having in mind if you are interested in buying one. (I should however mention norrönas clothes have a lot better durabilty than their packs in my experience and can really recommend them)
i bought one of these packs, then realized that i dont even ice climb.
Got to the climbing route after driving 45 minutes and hiking up a very tough approach only to find I had not packed my harness in my pack ugh!
I was doing a photo shoot with a few of my friends on a multi pitch, and my bag was full of climbing gear as well as shooting gear. Anyways, I managed to borrow my teachers 70-200mm canon lens (about $2000). Anyways, we were on a ledge and I was grabbing the entire lens out of my bag, which was also in another padded bag itself, and it slipped right out of my hand. My friends lunged for it as did I and we watched it tumble to the ground about 400ft up. I rapped down to see the damage and was sure I had a 2000$ dollar bill when I get it, but thanks to the small case it was in, the lens was perfect with no damage:)
Hey Matt, I've been watching climbing daily since before you started hosting and I just wanted to say you've really grown as a host since you took over. Keep up the good work!
Well there was that one time when I had to wake up at 5am in Chamonix to climb Petit Aiguille Verte and forgot not one but both my pickaxes! It was an awkward lift ride down to the campsite, next time I'll try to pack my bag the night before...
The Norrøna bag is top up and nothing really comes close for similar features other than the Mystery Ranch Sceptor ice climbing bag. Both fully mental.
What about the Mountain Hardware Multipitch bags? I got the 25 for summer alpine in Colorado. It can fit a helium bivy, neoair xlite pad, 20* synthetic bag, rain pants and jacket and a puffy on the inside with no problems and there's still extra room for some food. Also really like the rope strap, dual daisies and stowable mesh shoe pouch. It also is made out of some super tough material that could actually withstand some moderate hauling.
While the Dragonfly is a great bag, I would have loved to hear your thoughts on the Blue Ice Warthog.
what compartment of norrona is the best to keep the rope while climbing?
Most of my friends know that I carry two beverages whenever I'm out for an adventure, one bottle of water and the other an isotonic drink, usually in the stretchy side mesh of my backpack. They didn't know that I also have an FUD ( Female Urinary Device). One night there was a thunderstorm and I decided to put it to good use in my tent answering natures call. The following morning as we were all packed up and ready to go, a friend of mine picked up my bottle from my bag and was about to quench his thirst when he mentioned to me that my gatorade looked really diluted. Told him 2 things: That one shouldn't take things without permission and that's not gatorade, that's my pee! Since then i've thrown my rubbish into a clear disposible bottle that also seconds as my pee bottle instead of using a ziploxk bag. None of them touch my stuff without permission anymore. Fun fact: pee keeps you warm on a cold wet night. Just be sure to cap the bottle properly. Hehe.
I can't make out what you are saying at 1:04 so I turned on the closed caption and it quotes you saying "for years about a big guy died eventually sold it". Is that actually what you are saying?
Heading out for my first trip to cham today! Problem is I did all my packing last night when quite drunk. I have no idea what I've packed!
I recently spent 4 days living in robin hoods cave on Stanage edge (i'm sure you're very familiar) for this little foray away i ended up packing just under 40kg of stuff (i weigh 65kg) this included 10 liters of water in a bag stuffed inside a bouldering pad on my pack with a 90 liter duffle stuffed to the brim resting between my head and bouldering pad, it sucked on so many levels as i ended up getting dropped off by a taxi to the wrong car park so i had to walk all the way from burbage car park all along the bottom getting completely lost as to where i was along the way constantly dropping my bags running along to see if i could figure out where i was. It was the single most uncomfortable and exhausting experience of my entire life and ended up taking about 3 hours to walk what was probably at most a mile straight there.
Now i want you to bear in mind I was literally clueless as to what i would find having taken a train from Devon to climb on grit for the second time in my entire life. I then got a taxi to Stanage and having no guide book i mooched off everyone i could find taking pictures of pages on my phone of various things i thought i wanted to climb (i have more of stanage popular and plantation in there) and when my phone got dangerously low on battery i simply mooched guide books full stop (thankgod there were people everywhere) In the end i got probably about 250 routes climbed (if you include all the down climbing i did), and every single bit of this was entirely self supported from what i could stuff into a bouldering pad and a 90L duffel.
HOWS THAT FOR A STORY ABOUT LUGGAGE!!!
What was the Black Diamond bag you were wearing at the gear show? (It may have been a bag from last year or something). That being said, it looked like a good one as well.
... i once went hiking up to a cave (Cueva de la Virgin, La Huasteca, NL, MX) with my girlfriend, and our plan was to rappel down the cliffside once we wished to return (so as to make it quickly and see Game of Thrones, because #priorities). So I hauled the equipment in my bag (70m rope, rappel devices, anchor chain and PAS, even prusik in case shit happens), yet we totally forgot one tiny, albeit crucial piece of equipment... our harnesses. We realize that basically at the mouth of the cave, after hiking a considerable (and steep) distance. And thanks to Murphy's Law, it started to drizzle, making everything especially slippery. So there we were, with heavy equipment, no harness, and the new GoT episode incoming. We finally said "Fuck it, the Lord of Light will protect us" and started our hike down the cliff, falling on our asses continuously. Some bruises, a ripped pants and some laughs later, we were happily and safely screaming at our TV as someone died horribly on GoT.
when i went climbing with a budy one or two weeks after christmas i brought my brand new rope and ropebag which i get for chistmas. After climbing with my new rope we decided to do a short boulder session for completion, so i put my ropebag to a shelf and we went bouldering. When we finished the session and went back to the shelf i could not find my ropebag. There was just a similar one. Because it was brand new and my first own rope and ropebag i was close to crying. So we told the gym staff the story and they took the other ropebag and wrote down my number. After 5 or 6 Days luckily i get a call that someone brought my ropebag back.
Semjon Borzutzki I was very scared while I was reading your story😂 that kind of stuff has happened to me before when you just get something new and then you lose it as soon as your get it
2 friends and I all have the same Lowe Alpine pack in the same colour, it makes getting up in the morning for Scottish winter an even greater challenge haha
last weekend i went on a backpacking trip with 10 college age kids, and we were doing a 2 night 10 mile backpacking trip in colorado. I brought my massive backpacking backpack, and so did 2 girls. everyone else brought jansport backpacks and carried their sleeping bags. i ended up carrying all of the food, and 2 sleeping bags and tons of water for everyone else. Somehow no one died, but 5 of the kids only slept about 3 hours for the two nights combined. the trip had so many more cringe worthy terrible stories.
i was once scrambeling in the isle of skye with some friends. we were having an easy day until someone (I can't remember who) had the bright idea to put rocks in my bag as a joke. I realised after a kilometre and took them out. it was quite funny. but so started a day long battle of putting rocks of increasing size in eachother's Rucksacks until nobody would leave their Rucksacks unattended. great day tho 😂
Jonathan Watson my brother used to put rocks into my chalk bag but stopped after he realized i made it ammunition when he was belaying me! ur comment reminded me of those times...lol
after travelling from my home in chesterfield to Sheffield ,then to hathersage and then a long walk to stanage edge. once i got my chalk bag out of my bag i realized that i'd left my climbing shoes on my bed at home so had to climb in my walking trainers not approach shoes...which was interesting.
Patagonia ascensionist???
I was going on a canoe trip up in Northern Canada and we had stoped for a bite to eat on the way up. However, my wallet was in my bag so I took my bag out of the vehicle, got my money, grabbed some food, and off we went. We reached Naiscoot Lake, and realized I had left my bag with all my gear out in the parking lot 2 hours away we're got lunch.
I was packing for a Sumer camping trip and I new it would be very rainy and wet and the one thing I forgot was my rain jacket.
hi everyone!
well my story is not simple 'cos a girl was involved, my girlfriend 😨 before we went to climb, both have been talking if you understand me haha about wich kind of backpack Carry on so after a "while" we've decided and go to climb not to far from home but good enough to not return in a few days. once we where at our destiny and ready to climb, our sorprise was that we forgot the backpacks, ay the bigining we get angry you know, like it's your foult, no it's yours and after a few minutes we start to lough and spend a great week toguether without climbing 😭 but haveing an incredible Moments, so we felt more in love and always we Made a good check up for everything on the climbing list before we go, i mean Always 😉
hope you enjoyed my packing story and congrats for the channel, keep doing and greetings from Queretaro, Mexico 😊
I like the organic crag pack it does everything within my realm of climbing and i even strap up groceries to minimize my trips up stairs
when i finaly packt to many stuff in my back and finally began walking all the stuff felt ride out because i didnt close the bag good enough
I know the contest is over but for me I wear a pair of slippers while I'm driving and I put on my approach shoes at the crack well I packed all my stuff up got everything in the car and I drove an hour and a half to the Crag only to realize I forgot my approach shoes and instead of going back I hiked in in my slippers. It really sucked
I prefer the Norrona Pararanger 120 liter bag
last week I went on a hike in austria with friends. at base camp some of us played a little game: packing weird stuff in the bags of the others. after several hours at the peak i wanted to grab my jacket out of my (lowe alpine) backpack and realised that i carried a big hammer, some rocks and booster cables (they are heavier than one may think) up the mountain. it was very funny, at least I had a little training :D
Oau.. that first black diamond loocs just like the Simond alpinism 22.......that's 15euro on decathlon
i. m at second one and its amazing
what happened to the crux bag
i was hiking with my friens in the mountains and I I took off my backpack to take food but i remembered that it was under the rope so i opened the backpack and what i found?My food.
The first think i thought was that the ropes was under the food but nothing.
The Norran bag is the best
I forgot everything, I normally keep my bag packed but I needed it for going away to keep cloths, sofew days after I got home I picked it up forget everything was unpacked and I had cloths in the bad instead, sk I left got to the gym opened the bed to find a bunch of my week old dirty cloths, opps
I've seen a bag expload I over packed a really old bag to tight and Ka boom
I have forgotten and had to buy a toothbrush 3 times :/
new osprey variant ????????
me and some friends went deep water ssoloing the other day on the cap d'Antibes and every time we put our hands behind our backs to take chalk we realised we didnt have chalk bags.!! it was soooo funny but i guess you had to be there and this is a rubbish story sorry Matt.
salewa apex climb 25l backpack
i whos i the climbing gym and i hat too catch a train sow i leve the gym and when i get out the door i remember i have forgaten my bag sow now i am in a huri becos i do not have a lot of time befor the traine levs sow i run down to the gym get my back and run op to the stasion og when i get there i see that the traine is delayed sow can just make is
Mammut Gear is the way to go.