Osprey  Poco Premium Child Carrier

I have been really delighted with this pack. We have used it with my son since he was six months old until now that he is one year old. He has grown to now fit the stirrups. We have hiked 150 miles or so with this pack through New Mexico and Arkansas. My son never complains, seems comfortable in the pack, and seems to have no problem leaning his head over to the side for a nap. My wife often uses the small pack to help carry water and take some load off of me (30+ lbs with the kid). The sun shade is very nice and easy to deploy. The hip belt and should straps have been very comfortable for me. A few things to consider: The diaper changing pad is well hidden in a zippered compartment. I thought we didn't get a changing pad with our pack. It took me six months before I stumbled across it. Osprey does't tell you where it is. Shhhh... it's a secret! The pocket for the water bladder encroaches on the space for the kid. I don't like it, my kid really does not like it. I've tried using an Osprey 2L water bladder, but it puts too much of a squeeze on a 23 lb baby... So my wife packs the water. I think Osprey could have come up with a better design and it's a pain to try to get the water bladder in and out of the pocket. Think about weight and how much you reasonably can carry. I'm limited due to a bad lower back. I justified buying a premium pack because I could use it for several years to pack the kid around. At 1 yr old though he's 23 lbs. With the pack, diapers, wipes, snacks, etc. we are pushing over 30 lbs. That's fine for me for day hikes, but I am really dreading what it's going to be like in another year as the kid grows. Hopefully Dad's back will strengthen as Junior gets bigger. I've tried to convince the wife to stop feeding him so much! :-D It's just something to consider. Yes, you could potentially use this pack until your kid is 45 lbs or so, but that wouldn't be a whole lot of fun on day hikes carrying 50+ lbs! Overall though a great pack! I really like Osprey products. This pack has given us the freedom to not let a little one slow us down. We are getting out a lot for day hikes and my son really seems to love the outdoors. Nature seems to calm him. He's too young to remember, but someday I hope to share with him pictures showing the fantastic sights he saw from the back of this pack. Mom is also putting together a collection of photos of him sleeping in this pack. We may be able to make a whole album out of his sweet dreaming on Dad's back.

I've been using this carrier for 2.5 months now. My child is currently 7 months old. He's in the 95% of height and 75% of weight and fits in it great. I still have him in the smallest setting so I expect we'll get much more out of this before he out-grows it. Many of our hikes last 3-4 hours and he never complains. I will take him out at least twice so he can stretch. He usually falls asleep in it for a little while. The pack has very good ventilation which is great for those hot days. The padding against his skin is soft and has never left any chaffing. The stand is stable. The pack has many adjustments which help to form fit it to your body. Once you've got it dialed in it is a very comfortable carrier. One of the issues I have is that my wife and I have very different body shapes. There are so many different straps to adjust when switching between the two of us so she won't use it. The version I purchased came with the sun shade. I only used this once when my little guy lost his hat. The shade worked well though it seemed fairly big and was catching on random branches. With the detachable backpack. lower cargo area and side pockets, there is plenty of room for any day hike. I have yet to use the water bladder function and/or rain visor so I'm not sure how they work.

We have used this carrier on several outings and love it! The adjustable straps for me and my child were a requirement when I researched packs as well as the overall safety factor. Osprey has met my expectations with this product! As an active-duty Marine, we rely on packs that are ergomonic, especially in the aspect of where the pack contacts the body and the wear it may produce. Numerous packs offer the padding against the back and around the waist, which is comfortable in some conditions, but it does not allow for air flow in order to cool contact points. The webbing design of the Osprey is sturdy and allows an open-air condition to reduce sweat. This feature was one of the "selling factors." Yes, there are numerous child carriers on the market, but if you want what is best for your child, I highly recommend the Osprey Poco Plus or Premium. Even though she is only six months, my daughter squeals with excitement when I grab the pack.

I have two children, 2.5 yr old and 17 month old. We planned a vacation to Italy where I knew that strollers weren't going to be too user friendly so I bought the Poco Premium and the Poco Plus. They were both equally great for everyday use and for day hikes. The children loved the carriers too and easily fell asleep while out and about and hiking. My son would wake up every day and grab his shoes and and go sit by the carrier until it was time to go, telling me he wanted to be in the carrier. The umbrellas on both packs were great for shade from the sun and cover from the rain. I am 5'6 and my wife is 5'3, the packs fit both of us very good. My 2.5 yr old weighs about 25 lbs and she fit very good into the pack as well. The Poco Premium was nice in having the backpack that can also be easily unzipped from the pack and used the backpack. Overall, these packs made our trip to Italy very pleasant, as we didn't have to mess with strollers. They were alot better in the aiport and even boarding the plane with the packs on. Another important note I think is that my wife is not the most athletic woman either and she even liked the packs better than the strollers. I definately recommend these packs to everyone with kids. I wish we would have gotten them alot earlier, I wouldn't even of ever bought a stroller if I had these earlier.

We purchased this carrier for our two year old son. We knew we would be doing a lot of walking and with five other children we needed a way to carry our child safely when he was done walking. We put this product through its paces and it has earned every star! In the two months we have had it we have used it at over six National Parks and 4 Museums/Zoos. This product is so well designed that I was able to climb around Pueblo Bonito and Choco Canyon Indian ruins. It went with us on the buses at Grand Canyon National Park as well as on the hikes. One of my many favorite features is the mini day pack that unzips from the main carrier for minor excursions. This made a convenient diaper bag. Plenty of room for all my children's water bottles and snacks. I only wish we had this with our first child!

I have taken the carrier out for a couple of walks of varying distances. Its super comfortable and keeps my daughter at a good height where she can see things, but isn't so much taller than me that I worry about walking her into low branches, etc. I added the optional hydration pack from the start and is perfect for both my daughter and I to drink from, she doesn't want her own bottle, she wants the hydration tube..... There are times when the sunshade comes in the way, and can hit you on the back of the head, but minor adjustments quickly resolve this. An all-round great product with plenty of space for foul weather gear for my wife and me, the rain cover for the pack and food, clothes, etc you need when taking your toddler for a hike.

This is a very high quality product. I was impressed right out of the box. Setup and sizing was a breeze, and it's easily adjustable for both me and my little girl as she grows. I've done a lot of backpacking, and this child carrier fits as well, if not better, than any pack I've ever owned. There is great separation between my little girl and my back, which keeps both of us from overheating. I live in a hot area, and have already used the pack on a 93 degree day with little to no shade. My little girl stayed cooler than I did. The sun shade is a breeze to use and does an effective job. She even fell asleep around mile 5 in the sun. The location of the hydration pack (sold separately) is great. I fill it with lots of ice, and it sits between my girl and I, running the length of her torso, which helps keep her cool- yet there is enough padding between that she doesn't get cold. Great ventilation where she sits. I have no trouble putting this pack on and off with her in it (strapped in of course), and the metal frame at the bottom is very sturdy to set her down anywhere semi-level. There is ample storage for an all-day adventure. My wife worries that my baby's head bobs around too much when I'm trudging up or down a hill and not walking gracefully, but my wife tends to worry about such things. I figure if the baby can fall asleep, she's not getting injured or uncomfortable. My girl was 9 months when we started using this pack, and her neck is strong enough that the bobbing doesn't cause any damage (time will tell ;-) I would not use this pack with a child under 6 months under any circumstances. I've tried doing a little light jogging, but it really did bounce her around too much and she cried a little. No more of that. My baby loves the pack. The sings in my ear while we hike, pulls my hair, and gives scalp massages. She lights up when I pull the pack out, and the only time she's every cried in it was about 10 minutes of uncomfortable jogging- which this is not intended for. She loves it. It's not cheap, but worth every penny. I would definitely recommend.

Great pack. It's a little heavy, however, I think for its size, if it were lighter, then quality would be sacrificed. Only issue I had with it was at first when I would carry my gun on hip (on my pants belt) the hipbelt of the backpack was a little uncomfortable in that location (my other carrier a Kelty never was uncomfortable when carrying a gun), well come to find out, the hipbelt on the osprey has internal extenders that I hadn't pulled out. As soon as I did that, it had great comfort. There is an enormous amount of gear space in this pack. It's easy to use. It's comfortable for both the child and the adult. Definitely recommend. Great for older children(toddlers). Especially since they usually walk part of the time too!

Love this pack - after the kid was born, its been hard to get out. Now I have no excuse! I've done more hiking since I've gotten in than I've done in the last 14 months, easy. I'm putting our 20 week year old in it and we have no issues. She's got a pretty strong neck, but she loves it. If she's not giggling and bouncing she's passed out. I'm so exciting this goes up to 50lbs - I have lots of hiking in the future!

I bought the Poco Premium last year with my refund and my daughter just turned 1. She was able to fit in it last summer, but it was to hot out to really use it. Since the fall I have taken her to the zoo and walked all over town with her in it (even around the house some). The built in sun shade is great. Her feet are right at the stirrups as of today. It is very adjustable and comfortable for me and my kiddo. She falls asleep in it all the time, and today kept crawling over to it and playing with it. I will be taking her on her first camping trip this weekend and I can't wait to get her out in it. If my wife can carry the extra gear, we should be able to go backpacking with her soon. Osprey got it right with this pack.