When I hear 'lightweight', I think: compromise. Whether it's the strength of the fabric, the comfort of the harness or the number of features: in a lightweight pack, something has got to give. Traditionally. For my part though, the new Lowe Alpine Nanon 50:60, which weighs in at a tiny 1.26kg, has not compromised on anything I value in a pack. Not a minimalist fanatic, I aim for a balance between light weight and comfort... and maybe a little luxury. I found that the Nanon had it all.
I used the Nanon on an attempt at the 3 Peaks challenge, a rugged off-track circuit from Katoomba through Kanangra and back. The challenge, if you choose to accept it, is to complete the 90km route (including 5,000m vertical rise and fall) in 48 hours. We set off with our 12kg packs on what turned out to be the hottest day since January. We didn't complete the challenge, but we did have a great adventure and put the Nanon through her paces!
Designed for lightweight hiking, the pack is a top-loader with a handy side entry zip. There are two compression straps on each side, and two for the top pocket. There are also attachment points for two walking poles. All of the webbing is very thin, saving weight without adversely affecting performance. Despite the impressive weigh-in, there is no shortage of storage for those inclined to compartmentalise: apart from the main pack there are two lid pockets, a front pocket and stash flap, and two generous stretchy side pockets. There are also two super-handy pockets on the hip belt - perfect for museli bars, chocolate or whatever you might want to keep close. I'm not sure where the extra 10L in the name comes from, but it could be all of these pockets! Otherwise, it's in the double storm throat, which has two draw cords which can be cinched for different capacities.
The women's specific harness is adjustable with colour-coded back lengths, and it's easy to tweak the load with tension adjustment straps. The harness, which is reinforced with a stiff plastic sheet, is perfectly capable of carrying 12kg comfortably, and I would happily load it up more. The narrow shoulder straps with small cutouts for ventilation combined with the airflow mesh back were fantastic in the 30 degree conditions we encountered, letting the welcome breeze through as we gained each ridge.
The hip belt may have been my favourite thing about the pack. Which is a good thing, considering that the majority of the load is carried there. The padding is concentrated in the top half of the hip belt, which I found made it sit exactly where I wanted it, and prevented it from slipping down. It was the perfect width, and kept the weight up high, away from my glutes, which was awesome!
The fabric is dyneema, and although lightweight it handled 80kms in the rough Aussie brush, (and being dropped on sharp sandstone) like a trooper. Unlike a lot of Lowe's packs, the base panel is not reinforced with a tougher (heavier) fabric, but I didn't find this to be a problem. As a side point: the purple/maroon colour with a small white grid pattern, looked great against the green trees. Super important in the bush!
The Nanon doesn't include a raincover, and the material is pretty much waterproof. Like most packs though, the seams aren't sealed, so I used a lightweight waterproof liner.
On the whole, I rated this pack very highly. It might be the most comfortable pack I've ever worn walking. Which is saying something after plodding with it along the Narrow Neck fire trail twice in two days! Happy hiking!
Written by Nina Gallo.
