Pack Cover query
Original post
Guys, anyone have a Zpacks pack cover and had it out in really bad NZ conditions?
I'm keen to know how they go.
Last time I saw someone use a pack cover was some 20 or more years ago. We got out of the bush on the way to Powell Hut and the wind got the cover off his pack. It was last seen climbing rapidly into the clouds some 100 meters away. Pack liners do a better job of keeping your gear dry and the pack gets a wash every time it rains
Yeah I hear you. I'm in Oz and it's actually rare for me to use a liner except in Tassie, but I do use a pack cover.
I always use both in NZ and I'm curious about the Zpacks cover which is a heavier form of Dyneema. They should be pretty waterproof. But, as you say, one of those strong gusts could carry it into the clouds.
I had a mate use a cover once. Disappeared somewhere on the Manson Tops. I would have called the conditions poor but not terrible and it was fixed to his pack in some fashion. However, that didn't stop it taking flight.
None of us saw it depart but I don't think we could have stopped it even if we did!
Not sure about a Zpacks specifically but I just got a cheap pack cover from China and sewed a very tough leash with a carabiner to it. I use it in the Tararuas, so it needs to be windproof!
Its better to keep the rain off your pack - even if you have an internal liner. My last pack - a Macpac Ascent was made of a heavy canvas-material. Once it got wet, Im sure it added about 1.5kg to the packs weight - it sure felt like it.
3
Look for a cover that has a middle attachment point, 2 elastic chords that clip together behind your shoulder blades or behind the pack harness if you stick them back there. With one of these you'll never have it blow off your pack. My large Osprey cover has it, but I haven't looked at their other sizes to see if all Osprey covers have them.
2
Yep, the Zpacks cover has 4 clip points, two for the top and 2 for the bottom around your hip belt. I'm familiar with the Osprey covers (at last count I had 6 Osprey packs), they're pretty flimsy. I'm hoping the dyneema (cuben fiber) will be a bit tougher.
I just bought mine from macpac
With attachment cord in the middle to avoid to cover to fly away
Pack covers work very well for what they are intended to do - shed the majority of water away from your pack. Regardless of whether or not you use a liner or waterproof roll-down sacks inside, it's better to have a dry pack and dry gear than a soaking wet pack and dry gear. Gear weighs more when wet, more so that the 60 grams the cover weighs.
As for Zpacks rain cover, DCF is 100% waterproof, and they have a cord that goes underneath your shoulder straps so your cover cannot blow way. Although to be honest in about 5000kms of long-distance hiking, I've never had an issue with a pack cover being blown off, and I've only seen it once while riding in the back of a truck.
I can see how they might work on great walks or when you have the luxury of clear open tops. But has/does anyone use them for more typical nz tramping? Surely they get hooked up on every bit of vegetation you need to walk/push/crawl through?
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| Forum | Gear talk |
|---|---|
| Started by | roysta1 |
| On | 18 February 2019 |
| Replies | 25 |
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