After plenty research and drooling on the keyboard. I finally picked up a new pack for overnight adventures. I decided on a Kelty Redwing 50L panel-loading pack. The Kelty 44L would have been perfect, but they are not available in a Large size. I'm 6'-4" tall and the Kelty M/L frame fits perfectly. I'm going to snap more pictures this week, but I took a comparison photo with my day packs for the time being. This pack will serve my overnight hiking needs and work well for those big hauls to the range. The last hike, to our private range, consisted of loading the ATV with gear, because of the mud and our packs were overfilled. I finally found the tent that I want and I'll be ordering it in a few weeks (The North Face - Storm Break 2). My buddy has the same tent and we gave it a test run the other day. At 5 lbs, it's hardly noticeable in this pack, which is a huge plus for me since I have two herniated discs
Size Comparison with my Maxpedition Sitka Gearslinger and Camelbak Cloudwalker (Discontinued Model)
The Kelty Redwing 50 is technically considered an internal frame pack, because of the single aluminum "spine" located between the back padding, outside of the pack, but it is inserted by opening slots inside the pack. You can see a better view in the second picture. You can also see the back padding, which is quite comfortable, and the "Dynamic Airflow" to help cool you down.
There is a bungee loop on both straps, to keep your hydration tube in place. There is also a loop on the chest strap for the same purpose. You can see how I mounted a small knife and firesteel on the load lifter strap. I can easily remove the knife sheath and put it on my belt, if I need it when I take my pack off.
The hip belt is placed through a slot in the back padding with velcro and has webbing sewn in for attachments. I picked up a Condor i Pouch that is going to strap on here.
The front compartment has two aluminum beads attached to the pulls, for easy recognition.
I may end up removing these and adding them to a knife lanyard
With the compartment open, you can see the numerous pockets for organization. I keep a Field Notes book, Mora, hydration pouch cleaning kit, and some other doodads in there for now. The two plastic tubes are actually Crystal Light tea pack containers repurposed to hold snacks or a fire kit.
On each side of the pack, there are large vertical pockets that can hold more gear. I prefer to use them for food/water or something that is tall. They are large enough to fit a full size Nalgene or Camelbak 1L Chute.
Beneath each vertical compartment, behind the hip belt, is a bungee pouch that will also hold a Nalgene or Chute.
One particular feature that I happen to love, is that the compression straps pass through the bungee pouch.
Back to the top of the pack, there is a small opening that leads to a fairly large compartment. I store headgear, gloves, and a headlamp here. You can see the hydration tube opening well, in the first and second pictures. The hydration pack hangs from the sewn in straps inside the pack. There are two clips to accommodate different bladders.
Another feature that I love about the pack, is that the main compartment doesn't open all the way when the upper compression straps are clipped on. This works well if you just want to stuff the pack or grab something quickly.
With the pack fully open, you can see how spacious it is. It's very easy to load and get everything nice and tight.
