Pick up the Columbia Endura 65-litre backpack and the first thing you notice is its weight – or lack of it. It has a host of features: trekking-pole and water-bottle holders, rain cover, sleeping-bag and mat straps, pouches and pockets… basically everything you could possibly demand from a modern multi-day trekking backpack.
Right off the bat, Columbia tries to wow you with technology – these guys have a name or acronym for each bit of fabric and style of cut and a tiny TM sign to prove ownership. Practically though, I liked the huge horseshoe-shaped zip that allows front access to the kit inside. It’s an unusual feature in this genre and I liked that the compression straps were configured to take the packing strain off said zip. The shiny silver lining inside ‘to easily see inside your pack’ seemed a bit too much, but was actually quite effective when compared to dark fabric lining.
All these things are nice to have and very impressive on paper – it probably sells Columbia a lot of packs – but a few kilometres into the test hike in Table Mountain National Park they distilled in the heat of an uphill trek. That’s when I began mostly to appreciate the wider, more comfortable, aerated foam core shoulder and hip straps. These distribute pack weight across a larger area of the body. Meshed inserts and the raised back panel allow more fresh air to circulate where there would usually be a hot sticky mess. All this elevates the pack range from good to great.
Costs R2 299 from www.columbiasportswear.co.za
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