REI Flash 65 Pack

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

Used this pack for the entire 2660 mile, 4 month, Pacific Crest Trail Thru-hike.
My average pack weighed 30-40lbs - Max weight ~50lbs.
I am 6'5" 180lbs and used a large Flash 65.

I did not use this pack in a typical fashion, as it was in use for 4 months straight and took much more abuse than many will give to it in a lifetime. The packs performance met and exceeded my expectations – it did everything I needed and didn't fall to pieces. The following are simply things I noticed during the course of my hike and may only occur over long-term, heavy use.

WHAT I LIKED!
Its HUGE! Will hold more stuff than you'll probably need. The dual mesh pockets held everything I threw at them and never let anything get out. Its lightweight...ounces = pounds and pounds = pain – so a lot less pain! Abundant accessory straps, loops and dilly-dallys to attach whatever wherever.

DESIGN FLAWS AND ANNOYING THINGS
The lower attaching clips for the lid reside within the mesh pockets, thus, when rearranging things in the pack or in the pockets, the clips fall down into the pocket and are 'lost'. Finding and extracting them from the pocket once you've stuffed your pack is annoying.

The hydration pouch should be sewn into the back of the main compartment, otherwise it gets in the way of loading/unloading.

The hip belt needs to be exchangeable. Im tall and skinny and when the size of the pack and the girth of the hip belt are proportional, one is left with a pack that fits the torso length, but not the waist. I had to keep the belt as small as it would go to get any benefit out of it.

After prolonged use with heavy weight, the top 4" of the plastic frame/back became warped, allowing the lid to slip over the frame and rest on the main compartment.

The mesh-like hip and shoulder strap padding does a good job of cooling and padding, but becomes rough and the outer surface will fray. Also, the mesh-like material holds odor and will stink after a couple weeks (washing didn't make it much better) and is prone to allow pine needles and burs to embed themselves.

The width of a normal sleeping pad (ridgerest/z-rest) attached to the bottom-most straps (where it makes the most sense to put them) is wider than the pack, creating an open space between a pack cover and backpack. This allows water to get in and puddle in the bottom of the cover with your pad/tent etc.

WEAR AND TEAR:
The seams attaching the hip belt to the pack began to tear/separate after about a month, but only slowly continued to do so after.

The outer mesh pockets snagged on various things, creating larger and larger holes (1" largest).

The interior material separating the plastic frame from the main compartment tore along the seams within the first month(only food in ziplocks was sorted there).

The floor/bottom material of the main compartment lost its waterproof/resistant coating quickly, even though a sleeping pad protected it on outside from the ground and only ziplocks with food were on the inside.

I Liked it so much im getting another: a medium this time so I can use the hip belt!

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

I had an old hand-me-down Dana Design pack from the 90s that I had been using but decided it was time to upgrade. The day before I left for a hiking trip in Utah, I bought the Flash 65. I'm very happy with how it performed on the trip. I was able to fit everything I needed for the 6 day trip inside (tent, sleeping bag, food, pot and stove, books, clothes). The best feature is that the bag collapses into a smaller day pack. This was great when I was camping at the Zion campground and could dump everything I didn't need in my tent or in the rental car. I thought it would take me a while to put it back together, but it took about 3 minutes. The top cover/pocket that comes off also works great as a pillow if you store all your clothes in it. The side mesh pockets are huge and I was able to fit 3 nice big water bottles in there. Definitely recommend it. [...]

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

I bought this pack in an attempt to force myself to lighten my backpacking load. I was loosing about 1000 ci from my old pack.

This pack is pretty light for a full service pack. There is a single main pocket that in top access along with four mesh side pockets, a lid pocket and a shovel pocket.

The lid is removeable as well as the frame sheet to further lighten the load.

This pack fits me well. Loaded with about 30# it has got to be the most comfortable pack I have tried. The hipbelt and shoulder straps feel great when properly adjusted.

My only complaint is that the hip belt pocket is too small and the bottom half is mesh. Would have liked a larger pocket that from full material. Otherwise this is a great pack.

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

I have a basement full of packs. I love my Gregorys but they are pretty heavy. The light packs I have are minimalist.... just big bags with little padding or straps. I bought the Flash 65 because it looked like it would give me the best of both worlds.

I have not used this bag long-term, so can't comment on how well it will hold up, but so far I love it. I generally prefer front-loaders but the top-load here works fine, especially since there is a large pocket on the front. There are all kinds of nooks and crannys inside secured by velcro for keys, maps, or whatever. It really helps with organization. Some packs have been making it hard to jam water bottles into the side pockets -- some don't even have water bottle pockets -- but the two on here are huge, and there is another large side mesh pocket good for a rain jacket or similar. Behind the zippered pocket on the front is another slot that will hold a jacket or tent poles, it's nice to have.

Padding is good here, not great -- but great would increase the weight, and what is here is a nice compromise. Adjustibility of straps is fine.

This seems like a very nice pack, so far I am very impressed, and I look forward to running it through its paces. The price is also excellent.

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

Well, I bought this pack after wearing it for quite some time in the store, and after trying on many other packs. For the price, I thought it would be perfect for me, especially since I'm trying to cut keep my weight down.

On it's first trip it did well, but there was one thing I noticed that I just couldn't get over. When you put a water bladder in the pack when it is full, the framesheet deforms, and bulges out.
When this happens, it changes the whole way the pack wears, and loses a lot of comfort. However, it was still quite usable, and comfortable considering, and of course this can be avoided by placing you water bladder somewhere else in the pack, but being the heaviest object, I want it in the middle of the pack and close to my back.

If you are a light packer, and/or you don't use water bladders, I still hold this pack in high regard, but it just isn't for me. I'm trading it in for the Deuter 65+10 pack. A few more ounces, but is really comfortable, and has a sturdier frame.

3 stars only because of the framesheet problem, otherwise it would be a solid 4 stars if not better. I really wanted to love this pack, it worked very well in every other aspect.

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

I getting into my 50's and to keep up with the kids, I needed to shave some weight from my basic pack weight, and the Flash 65 saved me 2.5 pounds from my old pack right out of the chute. I just got back from 8 days and 7 nights in the Sawtooth Wilderness and started with a base pack weight of 21 lbs. and 43 lbs. with food and water (yes we ate well). I was surprised how comfortable this pack could be, but I could tell we were pushing the limits, and I wouldn't go past its rating of 45 lbs.

There are many cleaver details. The top easily unstraps and each night I brought it into my tent with all of my toiletry items. With a little modification, it could easily be used as a day-pack. There are horizontal, elastic straps on the shoulder pads that will hold a GPS, iPod, or your hiking poles to free your hands. The chest clip has a built-in whistle (with a distinctive sound) that can be used without unbuckling the strap – very handy when hiking with a group. The hip belt has a mesh pocket on one side and a series of horizontal straps on the side for clipping other gear. There are two hidden compartments: one underneath the top pocket with a clip for holding a key or other items and another on the strap that goes to the stuff pocket – this one is convenient for storing a key, credit card, and some cash. The hydration pocket has two clips to hold most water bags, and both left and right sides of the pack have a neoprene outlet for the drinking tube. There are two mesh pockets on the outside that were very handy for holding drinking bottles, a fishing pole, drying socks, etc.

I bought an original Kelty pack from Dick Kelty himself in 1971. Since then, I've owned many packs. This is the most comfortable and most light-weight pack of them all and that fact that it easily handled gear, food, and water for an 8-day trip proves that it's not just for day hikes long weekends. Highly recommended

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

I used this pack on the 35.8 mile stretch of A.T. from Davenport Gap at the edge of the Smokies to Hot Springs, NC in early October 2009. It rained approximately 80% of the time and I hiked in clouds about 75% of the time. The temperatures were lows around 40 and highs in the upper 50's.

I am section hiking the A.T. and this was the first trip for this pack. I warmed it up on a 10 mile loop on a trail in Indiana. It's capacity is perhaps more than the 3,966 or so cu. in. that it rates, so there is definitely room. The top compartment is just enormous. It's so big! The main compartment is pretty wide and spacious. The pocket on the outside of the pack is nice, but it is difficult to use if you have anything strapped on the outside of your pack. I had a sleeping bag pad strapped on vertically, so I had to deal with that any time I wanted to get in the pocket. But, it held a Katadyn Pro water filter and my first aid kit very nicely and there was still more room.

The water bottle pockets on each side are a little shallow and difficult to use on a 32 oz Gatorade bottle if you have the pack stuffed at the bottom. I had my tent on one side and my sleeping bag on the other, which made the sides stick out and hindered my use of the water bottle pockets to a degree. Tip: stick the bottles in before you load the bottom. This will help a little. Lastly, the side water bottle pockets are a smidge too far to reach, so if you're not at least of average flexibility, you might have trouble reaching the bottles.

The side mesh pockets (not the water bottle pockets) aren't really pockets. It is an outer compartment on the pack where you can stow things, but it's an odd design. Basically, you're just stuffing stuff down in this gap between the main pack compartment and this outer layer. There are no zippers to keep your stuff in. All you can do is cinch down the pack straps. Although, it was nice to quickly stuff my rain pants there without having to get my other things soaked in the pack. It's kind of like having a mesh stuff sack on the outside.

Regarding the rain and water resistance: bottomline is that it kept the rain out with the use of a rainfly. Technically, nothing in my pack got wet from leakage. However, the bottom seemed to have a bit too much moisture in it. Granted, I did stop a lot to do this or that and I sat the pack down on its bottom. I suspect this is where the moisture came from. It might help to spray it with some CampDry. I had my rain fly on the entire time (I used a Gregory brand with approximately 4,200 cu. in. of space in order to cover the sleeping bag pad, too). It rained more than most trips I've been on, so I'm being a little tough on the pack.

The hip-belt pocket is mesh and not very big, but large enough for chapstick, snacks, etc. Too small for a camera, sadly. It only has one on the right side, not the left. The left side of the belt has some loops you can use to tie off stuff. I tried lashing on a knife there, but it was just a little awkward. One point to note here, the hip belt buckles in the opposite manner. It still clips together in the middle. But you tighten it by pulling the straps in towards the middle. I have 7 backpacks and this is the only one that doesn't have you pull the straps outwards. I actually like it a lot! You have more strength to adjust it this way. Good job REI. Oh, the belt is comfortable even though the padding looks skimpy. You really won't notice.

The straps on the pack have their quirks. The top lid is so big it is tough to keep centered if the pack isn't full, so you have to finesse it to keep it centered when you're closing up shop. It is possible, though. The main straps on the outside of the pack that you use to close down the top compartment are secured inside the outer cover of the pack inside the mesh area, so they tend to fall back down in there and you have to dig them out to buckle them to the top. Take note REI: THIS IS ANNOYING. There are straps on the bottom of the pack that I thought would work for a sleeping bag pad, but they're a bit too short and if you use them for a pad or sleeping bag your pack won't sit up on its own when you set it down. If this doesn't matter to you, then you won't care. There are those gear loops adjacent to the bottom you could use, but I didn't like this because there was too much room for the pack to flop over on its side. Plus, the pad just flopped around when I would walk. That was annoying, too.

The hydration sleeve is fine. It was big enough for my CamelBak 100 oz bladder and foam sheath. The internal frame is a thin plastic and doesn't hold its form very well, so you will notice that you can feel your water bladder in your pack. Frankly, it didn't bother me and I was able to tell I was low on water when I couldn't feel it on my back anymore. The port for the drink tube was easy to use and the elastic straps through which you slide your drink tube were easy to use.

The water proof zippers worked fine and didn't snag at all.

The top compartment has a hidden pouch on the bottom where you can store keys with its built in key hook. I put my id and key there, along with a few things like paper and pen. Keep in mind that this pocket is not water proof or resistant. It's just a thin layer of nylon, so if you're in a downpour and you get into this section, make sure you have things in plastic bags. On a side note, you can remove the top compartment for an even more ultra light pack. There is an extra strap that allows you to still cinch down the top and hit the trail. It also has a small pocket that has a key loop and is large enough for your i.d. But, the pocket closes with velcro and actually sits upside down. This made me worry that my key or i.d. would fall out. I don't want to lose my key or i.d.

Overall, the pack was realy comfortable. I carried about 35 pounds total (including food and water). I did all 35.8 miles in two days (12 miles on day 1 and 23.8 on day 2) and the pack was comfortable even after a really long day. It never seemed to wear out before I did. I think it's feasible to assume you could carry upwards of 50 pounds without difficulty. The pack is light-weight, so use good judgment if you're really loading it. Better safe than sorry. You could easily use this pack on the entire A.T. and carry enough for a week between re-supply stops. I first considered the pack because of its rating by Backpacker Magazine. I bought it because of its price.

My final word: you'll definitely like the pack, but find that there may be several things about you don't like and have to deal with or work around. But, with a small price tag, it's worth a shot since you can always return it!

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

Have had this out for two long day hikes and a weekend overnight. This pack is well thought out. I stuff my tent in the zipper pocket, my poles, stakes and footprint in the inside mesh side area, with my Big Agnes Clearview in the other inside mesh area. My bag is lashed to the bottom with the rainfly strapped under the lid. My tent and sleep system ready to go and I haven't put anything IN the pack yet. Depending on the type of equipment you're carrying, this pack could easily do weeklongs. Comfort for me maxed out around 35 lbs. I loaded it with 42lbs in the store and it became pretty uncomfortable quickly. I own a couple Osprey packs and like this one just as much, if not better.

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

Let me say this, if you're in need you'd be foolish not to consider this pack. Like a Granite Gear pack for those of us that need a few pockets. The large mesh pouches are SWEET, they hold lots of stuff for quick grabbing without sorting through your pack. Light and comfy. I'm 6'4 and the torso length works for me! My wish list for improvements- More color options, bigger waist belt pocket, built in rain fly. Also it is highly adjustable to fit you. Do not skip this one just to get TNF or another name brand. You can stuff the kitchen sink in this [...] if you needed to!

Comments about REI Flash 65 Pack:

This Flash 65 pack surprised me for the comfort it gave. I have kicked rocks at wanting to have a good pack and finally did so. I couldn't be happier with the choice I made. The "65" Is very light weight and very managable. Plus lets not forget about the huge pockets for water bottles on the sides of the pack. Most packs I had run into had minimal pockets for such things.
I have taken it into the Carrizo Plains, Death Valley, and the Mojave Preserve and outlying areas and it has held up great thus far.
So very comfortable and breathable as well. Lots of straps to help add ons as well as comfort to maintain one's pack load.