Osprey Tempest 44L Womens Lightweight Hiking Backpack - Daypack for Travel Camping Red Pampas Coal Grey M L

This backpack comes in two lengths. I bought the pack that fits my height. It was comfortable and I was able to fit what I needed into it. Read more

Have you owned or tried an Osprey backpack before? Skip this paragraph, but I will cover some things here that are, in my experience, universal to their packs. First, the Airscape system, in all its variants, is always a joy, consistently one of the most comfortable back panels ever made (as long as you don’t overload your pack, check weight limits people) and this one is no exception. Along with the back panel, the straps are nicely cushioned and designed, both for adjustability and weight distribution. Also, like every Osprey I have owned or seen, the materials and construction are top tier, everything looks clean and correct (one or few special mentions will occur below though). In short, Osprey quality and comfort is omnipresent, this is a pack that will be easy to wear for years and years. Now, on to specifics of this pack. 44L is an interesting size, a bit small for longer solo trips in my opinion, but fine for traveling with a partner or group (due to shared items being distributed across) or shorter (under a week) solo jaunts. Maybe you are more or less efficient packer than me, so I guess I will say it’s 44 very usable liters, you can really squeeze out every cubic centimeter of this pack and there are some external pockets and attachment points to boot. Some of that comes from the very simple “one big compartment” design that I am always here for. I will say, interestingly enough, the design actually makes for easier access from the bottom of pack, as the floating lid is a slight impediment and the drawstring can be finicky, meanwhile the bottom zipper is edge to edge. For example, the pack will swallow a BV450 comfortably enough, but infinitely smoother to load and unload from the base. Speaking of the floating lid, it is notable for being divided into two compartments. Doesn’t stop me from getting everything I want into the external fast access portion, and you can fit a small amount in the mesh interior pocket for what I will call “quick but not fast” access, so that's a nice win. Moving through the other external pockets, I have some thoughts. Except about the ice axe holster loops, because I don’t have one (I just don’t go that hard) so I can’t comment on it. The best of the bunch are the hip pockets, they are super generous, no notes. The mesh pocket on the back is also nice, great for drying out wet items, and this iteration of the mesh feels more durable than the last Osprey I had, though I can still see it getting snagged on thorns or branches and getting a run or tear potentially, just less easily than older versions. Sadly, the side pockets suffer from the compression strap placement, it can be tricky to feed a water bottle in and out while on the move unless you keep that side looser than it ought to be. You also get a lot of external straps (I guess the ice axe bit could have gone here), but here I am less of a fan of layout. The trekking pole bungee is just weird to use in my opinion, maybe it will grow on me but I currently don’t like it very much. It works and is easy to operate, but I feel like I am going to get stabbed by a carbide tip. There are also a pair of similar bungees above the side pockets (I actually use one of these for pole storage instead), another spot to hang items that need drying or whatever you can use a small loop for (camp shoes for me). The bottom sleeping pad (intended use but I definitely have found others) straps are nice in they can be adjusted to quite long or removed (which I would recommend if you aren’t using them as they impede the bottom zipper access) but I do think they sit a bit high on the pack for my taste. That’s subjective but I also think if they were shifted below the zipper it would be significantly better. Now, my few quibbles. Holy zipper pulls Batman, these things are enormous. Maybe the argument was they wanted them to be comfortable to use with gloves but I could operate these with motorcycle gloves covered by oven mitts. That’s a bit of hyperbole but they are obnoxiously large and irk me as they dangle and swing everywhere. Second, what is this extra strap at the top of the main compartment about? There is hang strap for a hydration pouch (not my choice in a backpacking pack, that’s a daypack/fastpack thing in my book, but I know some people want that feature), but above that is a long red strap with buckle closure that spans across the aperture. But why? Extra security? If you are using the floating lid and the drawstring, how would anything fall out, even if you turned the pack upside-down and shook it? It feels like nothing more than an impediment. Which leads to probably my most meaningful critique. Certain aspects of this pack make it hard to use through the day. The compression straps interfering with the side pockets, the slightly awkward drawstring and floating lid, the “dreaded red strap” I just mentioned, the pad straps being over the bottom zipper rather than beneath it, these make main compartment and side pocket access lackluster. This is somewhat alleviated by fabulous hip pockets, the nice mesh pocket, and the double compartment lid. It just takes a bit more planning or less midday needs, but I had to mention it, especially because it feels like a catch-22 of either use the hydration pouch which is hard to access and replenish during the day or fight with a water bottle in the side pockets constantly. Despite that long paragraph that focused in on the flaws, my verdict isn’t changed: this is a great pack, arguably amazing at this price point. You can really wring all 44L out of it and then some, the Osprey build quality is fully present, Airscape and design makes it a breeze to wear all day even fully loaded. It’s also worth mentioning this Airscape is actually infinitely adjustable within its range, unlike previous Ospreys I have owned, for further comfort. My gripes are largely related to having to adapt my packing style from my other large pack, I am sure I can devise a system that fits this one better as I use it more. Read more

This overbuilt OSPREY TEMPEST LIGHTWEIGHT WOMENS' BACKPACK (Small) gives us some serious options to consider for our next multi-week backpacking/camping trip to France. For our last couple of similar hiking/camping trips, we have both used, and been satisfied with our lightweight 40-liter packs. This Osprey 44 L, I believe, has a 42 liter capacity in the women's small size. At about 3.5 lbs., it outweighs my wife's 40-L pack by 15 ounces, mine by 8 ounces. That's a trade-off. But, what you get is the luxury of a huge interior capacity. The Osprey's main interior compartment is a huge 27" deep. My current pack is only 22" deep, my wife's is only 20" deep. She straps our double sleep quilt to the outside bottom of her pack, I strap our tent to the outside bottom of my pack. While I haven't fully loaded the Osprey, pretty sure either of us would be able to fully pack our normal loads completely within it's interior space. FYI: her pack goal is about 25 lbs. including the pack, mine about 30 lbs. including pack. The large main compartment has decent access with a large top opening that you can cinch to close, and a big zipper at the bottom, giving you full access at the bottom. But it is still basically a top-load pack, with the added convenience to access stuff at the bottom via the bottom zipper. In contrast, my wife loves her current pack's feature of a full perimeter zipper that opens the back of the pack like a suitcase when laid down, much easier for loading and unloading. Me, I'm used to my top loading pack, and the hassle of having to unload the whole thing to get the item you need at the bottom. The Osprey features a large number of adjustable straps to fine tune the fit to your personal dimensions and your load. My wife and daughter are both about 5'4", they each quickly found comfortable fits. At about 5'10" 165 lbs., the Women's Small was just a little tight on me, but if it was the only pack available, I think it would work even on an extended hike. I really like the idea of the extra capacity this pack gives us. If you're disciplined enough to stick to a strict weight limit regardless of capacity, it's really nice to have the capacity to shove in the baguette, cheese and champagne you picked up along the trail. Read more