Yosemite Valley & My Deuter Gravity Big Haul
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My first thoughts on this pack were about the overall structure. Would it hold up on a Yosemite Big Wall? So naturally I took the pack down to the Yosemite Valley, where rock climbing dreams are made. I took the pack out for a couple test runs and I loved the cragging functionality of it. The straps were so incredibly comfortable; the zipper on the back allowing access to the entire pack was nice when wanting to spread out. The durability of the entire pack was already obvious after a few times tossing it against the sharp rocks.
The ultimate test was going to be taking it up leaning tower on my very first big wall adventure. My partner Sam and I loaded up our haul bags with all the necessary items for our two to three day ascent of the leaning tower. Being our first time ever Aid climbing we had a few problems and ended up bailing and descending back down the same day. What I gained in knowledge from the experience as far as aid climbing are skills all aspiring big wall free climbers should know.
Back to the haul bag though after our short stint on a Yosemite big wall, I realized that for the purpose of this pack just being a haul bag I would say it was a 5/10 yet it is a 10/10 for just a cragging pack. When it comes to hauling the straps don’t allow you to open the bag when it is sitting at the belay. If the straps were sewn on either side instead of crossed and one was slightly longer it would allow a climber to unclip one strap, opening the bag for easy access to snacks and drinks. Another point to add is that although the harness system is comfortable for carrying the pack, it does take away space when you want to put items inside making the pack really a 40L in my opinion. The flap that zips the harness into the pack and hides them for hauling pushes the straps into the pack; this is where I found packing for a big wall to be a problem.
