REI Co-op  Flash 18 Pack

The flash 18 is a classic packable day pack. It's light and compact enough to stuff in your backpacking pack and use for day hikes. It carries wieght well enough for a pack of this size. After cutting off any unesscary parts, it weighs around 8 oz. There are lighter day packs out there, but the flash is made from a durable fabric and carries comfortably. It can also be used as stuff sack for organizing your gear. If you are just going heading out for a day hike, there are more comfortable packs with better features. But if you need something light and compact for hiking from your base camp on a backpacking trip, the flash 18 is a great choice.

I was concerned on what I was going to use to carry water, snacks, rain and cold weather gear from base camp to the summit of MT Whitney. My 3 liter bladder fit fine in the inside pouch. I placed the Flash Pack with hydration bladder inside my back pack and use it to pack up to base camp as a hydration bladder holder. From there I removed it and used it as my summit pack. It held my water, snacks, rain and cold weather gear. It is light weight and a perfect size to carry what was needed to make a summit without carrying my large pack. I did have to purchase 6 feet of shock cord and webbed it through the eyelets on the front to carry my water proof rain jacket. A word of caution would be if your waste is larger than 38-40" the waste belt may not fit. There is also no shoulder pads so this would not be good for heavy gear on long treks. I was completely happy with this pack for the use I needed it for.

I was happy with my purchase when I bought the flashpack. Now, three months later, I still couldn't stop thinking about how I had to write a review on this because I love it so much. The lightweight part is critical - why should you add weight to weight? I am currently hopping around europe for a year and find this bag to be absolutely perfect. I stick my iPad in the 'water' sleeve and throw in my camera and other stuff in the main compartment. It has held up like new. It never strains my back like other hiking backpacks. I was worried about safety with a drawstring back but it truly feels safe with the designed drawstring and, lest we forget, the whistle. LOVE this bag.

I own a few of these and have given them as gifts as well. Where they really shine is where other packs just won't fit; a lot of products these days offer are so specialized, they end up offering too much or too little. I keep one in my SUV with the 10 Essentials. I throw one in with my other luggage in regular business travels for the miscellaneous things I need to carry that come up: large amounts of printed documents, groceries, ethernet cables, etc. Lastly, I have a Flash 18 that I've gonverted into an inexpensive, lightweight kayak deck-bag that carries a dry-bag for my phone, gloves, hat, water, sunscreen, etc.

This pack has quickly become my go to bag. I originally bought it for use as a boat bag while kayaking for a few weeks in Patagonia Chile, but I now use it practically everday for the gym and weekend trips and as a great little carryon. While in Patagonia, this bag lived on my kayak for 20 straight days and took a severe beating day in and day out. I was able to organize my belongings by using in dry bags inside, and it held a day worth of snacks, a full extra layer including a hat and gloves, my bowl and spoon, and a 70 oz bladder. The daisy chain on the outside made it very easy to strap the pack to my kayak and quickly access its belongings. I also used it to attached things I needed to get my hands on quickly, like my camera and CPR/First Aid supplies. Because of the lightweight and treated nylon material it was able to dry out everynight and kept mild amounts of water out on its own. I would highly recommend this bag looking for a great alternative to duffles or satchels for everyday life.

I have the older version and just bought the new version. I love this pack but I'm stumped as to why REI changed the closure set up on it. The old pack has the cord lock attached to the pack with some light webbing. I just modded my new pack by sewing a piece of gutted paracord between the cord lock and the top of the bag. I also added a paracord pull string to the cord lock. Now it works like the old pack. Was this a manufacturing error that REI has not caught onto yet??

This is a excellent, no frills daypack. It's a perfect capacity for any day hikes, and the hydration sleeve works well with my Camelback bladder. The waist strap is entirely unpadded; it's not a problem with light loads, and I usually tuck a fleece or other extra clothing under the strap if I need extra padding. The stitching has held up well, and most seams are covered with a grosgrain ribbon. On longer hikes, I bring this pack along as a day bag so I can leave my main pack at camp. It's also useful to bring on frontcountry vacations as an extra bag because it collapses to take up very little space when empty.

Alright, this pack rocks! I have never bought REI products, thinking they were inferior, but my mind is changing. I am a lightweight hiker and bought this for day hikes. I cut off the waist belt, the sternum strap, and took out the padding. Now weighing 8 oz, I plan on using this pack as a stuff sack for essentials for my longer hikes and then pull it out once in camp so my essentials are always with me when I explore. I've also begun using this for times at the beach-perfect for holding magazines, glasses, snacks. I am pleased that REI didn't over-engineer the shoulder straps. Perfect ultralight, smallish pack that will find everyday use.

Good comments already; trying to add a few new ones. Small cylinder diameter + excellent strap system make your back function as the "frame", and keep small loads from being unbalanced and annoying. The bag can hold a surprising amount of volume and weight when packed well too. This is a great accessory bag for travel, or primary bag when going light & fast. USER TIP: Clip a few mini carabiners to the daisy chains. Use them to pull the daisy chains closer together to reduce the bag volume when there is not much in it. REI TIP: Make the bottom panel, which is now grey, out of reflective fabric. This would be a great safety benefit for cyclists, because the panel is large and visible to cars when riding on drop bars. It would also be good to make this panel stiffer than the rest of the bag.

Great for a day hike! Even better to take when backpacking, because it folds so small and you can take it out for a day hike while the bigger pack is at your camp. At one point, it fit a fleece pullover, DSLR camera, granola bars, a 16oz water bottle, and some trinkets!