Adventuridge 65L and 70L Hiking Backpacks

Adventuridge Hiking Backpack

I admit it......I'm cheap. I don't mind paying real money for something I love and am going to use over and over (like skis), but I definitely balked at paying over $200 (Osprey Aura) for a backpack that I wasn't sure I was going to use more than once. I kept searching for something affordable that had the features I wanted; 60-70 liters storage, a well padded hip belt with at least 1 pocket, a separate sleeping bag compartment, a top hood pocket, hiking pole loops, and a water bladder pocket.

Imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon the Adventuridge Backpacks at Aldi's - of all places - during a shopping trip, for $30. Yes, that's $30!! I grabbed a purple 65L for myself and a green 70L for hubby, figuring that even if they only lasted through one trip, they were cheap enough to allow us to learn if backpacking was something we were going to want to do on a regular basis and to learn what features we liked or didn't like for possible future purchases.

 

 

 

Features:

• Double aluminum internal frame
• Padded and Velcro adjustable shoulder harness with chest strap
• Padded hip belt with a zip pocket on the right side
• Padded and air channeled back panel
• Plastic reinforced grab handle
• Separate sleeping bag compartment with a zip separator (unzipping it makes the inside of the pack one large compartment rather than 2 smaller ones)
• Internal, separate bladder pocket with a right sided hose port
• Oversized and super stretchy side pockets (big enough for Nalgene bottles)
• Triple side compression straps and adjustable, quick release height compression/hood closure straps
• Expandable depth with double drawstring closures and adjustable hood height
• Hood pocket and lashing bungee
• Double front daisy chains with pole loops and movable Velrcro straps
• Adjustable, quick release sleeping pad/tent straps
• Load lifter adjusters
• Top load with zip front access
• Small front accessory pocket
• Plastic loop zipper pulls
• Built-in rain cover

Specs:

• Ripstop Nylon
• 65L in red or purple, 70L in turquoise or green
• 65L=12.5 x 8.6 x 25 inches, 70L=13 x 9.8 x 26.5 inches
• Both with a loaded capacity of 44.1 lbs
• Made in China 

Fit and feel:

I found the Velcro torso length adjustment (S, M, L) easy to use and pretty secure once set. All the adjustable straps seemed to stay exactly where they were set, with no creeping. The hip, shoulder, and back padding was soft but not squishy, and air flow seemed adequate. The hip belt and padding is massively wide. The sleeping bag compartment is large enough for my 50 degree low-loft bag, self-inflating pillow, camp shoes, and tent repair kit. The small pocket on the front is only big enough for a small pack of wet-wipes and a few Off wipes, but the side pockets are HUGE and seem to be made of pretty sturdy stretch material, rather than the usual mesh with an elastic top band. The hip belt pocket is only big enough for a snack bar or two, or a very small camera. The zipper pulls are easy to grab and most of the zippers work flawlessly, with the exception of around the curves on the top of the sleeping bag compartment opening.

Of course, this shouldn't matter at all, but I am a girl, so I had to mention that the colors and color combinations are just stunning - rich and vibrant with nicely contrasting or coordinating trim. The turquoise and orange combo is especially eye-catching.

On The Trail:

I loaded her up with a full 2 liter bladder, sleeping bag, self-inflating pillow, camp shoes, tent repair kit and extra clasps, sliders, and toggles, extra clothes, water purifier, full first aid kit, emergency kit, 2 days of dried food and eating utensils, down puffy, rain jacket, 6 lb tent (under the hood with poles on the side under the compression straps), self inflating sleeping pad (in the lower outside straps), a tripod stool (under the compression straps on the other side), snacks, Gatorade, head lamp, saw, flashlight, multi-tool, Epi-pen, and sanitation stuff; all-in-all about 30 lbs worth of gear, and I still had some room inside.

On my test-jaunt of about 3 miles, I found the pack rode well and stayed put, although I also found that I originally set it up too low on my "butt shelf" making my hips ache early on. At the 1/2 way point, I hoisted the pack farther up my back and tightened the hip belt more, bringing the weight further up and easing the pain in my hips and shoulders. Once snugged up, bending over to tie shoes or make other adjustments resulted in no shifting of the pack at all. My back remained cool and pain free the whole trip.

Complaints:

My OCD really, REALLY wishes this pack had at least one organizational pocket! I'm also finding I hate the backwards-pull hip belt adjustment. Since I'm bigger, there's just not enough extra belt material to really get a grip, plus I'm so totally spoiled by the forward-pull adjustment on my day pack and higher end large packs that the back-pull is just irritating and frustrating. While hiking, I found that the lower end of the shoulder harness padding isn't connected to the adjustment strap and it tended the roll out or fold under during use. I also wish there was a hose port on both sides, as I prefer my drink hose on my left side due to years of mountain biking (you REALLY want to keep your right hand on the handle bar for shifting and braking!).

Truly though, for a mere $30, I have no serious gripes with this pack. Obviously, I'll update this review more as I get bigger mileage in with the pack on and loaded.

Actual pics of mine fully loaded:

Back padding, air channels, rain cover

Expandable main compartment

Hip and back padding, harness adjustment

Front view with tent under the hood

Side view