Gregory  Deva 70 Pack - Women's

I bought this pack 6 months ago and have used it on several backpacking trips. This is the first backpack I've ever purchased, but not the first I've ever used. I absolutely love this pack, it is everything that I could ever ask for. Every time I use it I find something new about it that I've not used yet. There are so many compartments to store different gear, loops for ice axes, the brain can be removed and used as a large fanny pack which is great for a summit hike. I think my favorite feature of this pack is the little daypack that comes with it, called the "sidekick". It's an excellent pack for numerous different things. It's not the traditional daypack that has several compartments and a hipbelt, but it does the job and it does it quite well. I've taken this pack on small day hikes in East Texas, used it for school for some small books, and I've even taken it to Brazil (as pictured below) for some small day hikes that I did. It can fit a rainjacket, one or maybe two nalgenes, and some other small pieces of gear. The daypack also has a pocket that you can put your money, identification, and phone in. The straps are also adjustable on the daypack as well. The pack itself is great in some many ways, I tried on a couple other packs when going to purchase this one and they didn't feel right on my hips. I am 5'5 and 180 pounds, so I am a little heavy for my size. This pack feel perfect on my hips, no rubbing or extra movement if you know how to adjust it properly -- ask your REI specialist for help on this, like how to tighten straps, adjust chest and waist straps, etc. I love that this pack is adjustable in so many ways -- I can remove the daypack out of the backpack or keep it in as an additional water bladder holder. I personally took out the separator between the bottom and middle of the pack because I felt it gave me more space, but it's excellent in order to keep your sleeping back separate from your other gear. The rain cover is excellent as well, mine is pink which is really cute and it kind of sets you apart from other backpackers -- I sometimes enjoy when it rains just so I can sport the pink cover (but then again, I love cute gear whenever possible because that's not always a possibility). There's a great pocket on the waist belt that you can put your camera, phone or anything you don't want to get wet into, it is completely waterproof. There are many clips and loops to put things onto like your water shoes, bandanna, or a lantern. The only reservation I have about this pack is that the water bottle compartment that is not part of the pack -- the one that is more shaped for a water bottle, is difficult to reach unlike what it is supposed to be. Most packs that I've used, I have to ask a peer to get my bottle for me so the idea of not having to do that was pretty appealing, but alas I still cannot reach it. Other than that small detail, I love this pack! I definitely recommend it! It will be a pack for life honestly, until I notice a change in pack technology, I won't buy a new one!

I was fitted for this pack at REI and thought it was amazing at first. I still think that the look, capacity, storage options, and compartments are great. However, as a person without much natural padding on my hip bones, sacrum, and clavicle, it turned out to be horrible. It chafed so badly that it wore through my skin in those places on a recent trek. I highly discourage thin women from purchasing this pack (the hip belt also doesn’t cinch enough for women with narrow waists). Now I only use the bonus pack, which is nice, but not worth $300.