Flex PR Plus Pack Rafting Backpack

I just wrapped up an 8 week bikepacking trip where this pack once again proved its versatility. We had to cross some rivers raging from snow melt, so I strapped the empty bike to the pack to keep the entire bike out of the water and my hands free, then held on to trekking poles to shimmy across the river with 4 points of contact on the river gravels. Worked so well I portaged everyone's bikes across.

On that same trip when the single-track got technical on the downhill or the uphill became super steep I simply strapped my bike bags to the pack to lighten the bike and make it more agile and easier to push. No need to repack my bike bags. I never did bring the dry bag specific for the pack.

Previously I have used this pack for bushwhacking through rain forests, mixed pack-rafting down rivers and over land, and trekking across arctic tundra and alpine. The pack works well everywhere.

This pack is NOT for everyone however! If you only want to fill a bag with your stuff, this is not it. For each scenario, it takes extra time and thought to adjust the abundance of buckles.

I purchased this pack to replace my 10 year old Gregory Baltoro 70. I wanted a pack that I could use to haul meat when backcountry hunting, but was also light enough to use for backpacking with the family. The new version with water bottle holders and expanded pockets is almost perfect. My only complaint is that the 50L version is only available in bright yellow, which is not ideal for hunting. I opted for the 75L version in gray instead, but that means I have a lot of extra bag to roll down when not in full 7+ day expedition mode, and I will probably get a second dry bag like the 40L Load Cell dry bag from Stone Glacier for day trips up to weeklong backpacking adventures.