{"id":5287,"date":"2015-08-25T08:00:12","date_gmt":"2015-08-25T15:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/?p=5287"},"modified":"2018-11-11T21:42:24","modified_gmt":"2018-11-12T05:42:24","slug":"gear-review-yeti-hopper-30-cooler","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/camp\/gear-review-yeti-hopper-30-cooler","title":{"rendered":"Gear Review: YETI Hopper 30 Cooler"},"content":{"rendered":"

As part of a video project I was working on recently, I got the chance to get my hands on a couple of the new coolers in the YETI line. Specifically, the Hopper 30 and the Tundra 65<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When I first opened the box holding the Hopper 30<\/a>, I was pleasantly surprised. The construction on this shoulder-tote-style cooler was burly! Really burly! YETI\u00a0uses a \u201cDryhide shell\u201d for the exterior of the cooler. It\u2019s something similar in feel to the plastic that whitewater rafts are made from. (I\u2019m relatively certain that if I ever got tired of carrying the Hopper, I could just drag it behind me across the ground without ever wearing a hole in it.) On top of that, it features an industrial-sized waterproof zipper to allow access into the main compartment. Once inside the Hopper, you find a very <\/em>well-insulated, waterproof area for storing food or drink. The YETI website boasts that the Hopper 30 will hold 18 cans of beer with enough ice to keep it cold. (or 25.5 liters if you prefer more scientific benchmarks).<\/p>\n

\"YETI<\/p>\n

OK, so enough about materials, tech specs, etc. How did it perform? On several outings over the course of a week I found that the Hopper performed exceptionally well. Especially when it came to durability and keeping things cold. On each outing I used the Hopper, I placed only one standard-sized bag of ice (the type you get at any grocery store or gas station) inside. This bag of ice kept things cold for an entire day. And just to see how it lasted, I left everything in it overnight to see how it would fair. Even in the hot summer weather, where nighttime temperatures were holding in the 70s, I still woke to find ice in the Hopper. Granted, much of it had melted, but over one pint of ice still remained. Much better than any of the cheap coolers that adorn my garage.<\/p>\n

\"YETI<\/p>\n

Aside from the ability to keep ice in its solid state, the Hopper is insanely durable. Even when I tried to abuse it, it didn\u2019t break or show signs of distress. You could say that it\u2019s over-engineered, but I personally prefer my gear to be bulletproof if I have the choice.<\/p>\n

\"YETI<\/p>\n

I only came across two flaws with the Hopper. One is the waterproof zipper. While the zipper is totally waterproof and never leaked on my outings, it is a little stubborn and requires some serious yanking to open. Additionally, once open, the bag likes to close itself, making it a little difficult to get items in and out of the Hopper. Finally, the size. Given the volume that it boasts, there isn\u2019t a ton of room inside. I found that a six-pack of beer, lunch and ice was about all it could comfortably hold. I guess that in order to offer such insulation, you have to sacrifice a decent amount of space. Not a big deal, but something to be aware of.<\/p>\n

People still stop me when I carry the Hopper and ask about it. Never ever thought I\u2019d ever be getting compliments for the cooler I carry with me.<\/p>\n

Shop YETI<\/a>\u00a0at REI.com.<\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As part of a video project I was working on recently, I got the chance to get my hands on a couple of the new coolers in the YETI line. Specifically, the Hopper 30 and the Tundra 65. When I first opened the box holding the Hopper 30, I was pleasantly surprised. The construction on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":5353,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[430,277,333,413],"internal-tag":[1672],"class_list":["post-5287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-camp","tag-camp-coolers","tag-gear-review","tag-ian-coble","tag-yeti","internal-tag-pre-redirect-camp"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/rei.com\/blog\/camp\/gear-review-yeti-hopper-30-cooler","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Gear Review: YETI Hopper 30 Cooler","url":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/camp\/gear-review-yeti-hopper-30-cooler","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/camp\/gear-review-yeti-hopper-30-cooler"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/08\/070615-REI-Yeti-Seattle-0173-web.jpg?resize=150%2C150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2015\/08\/070615-REI-Yeti-Seattle-0173-web.jpg?fit=1500%2C998"},"articleSection":"Camp","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Angela Crampton"}],"creator":["Angela Crampton"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Uncommon Path \u2013 An REI Co-op Publication","logo":""},"keywords":["camp coolers","gear reviews","ian coble","yeti"],"dateCreated":"2015-08-25T15:00:12Z","datePublished":"2015-08-25T15:00:12Z","dateModified":"2018-11-12T05:42:24Z"},"rendered":"