The Osprey brand of backpacks has been a brand I have relied on for over a decade. My first Osprey pack was a large pack with a frame. It was large enough that I could carry nearly everything but the kitchen sink on my outings. As I have aged and my outings are shorter and less frequent, I thought it was time to downsize my pack. I purchased the Osprey Daylite Plus Pack and I couldn't be more pleased.
Why I Chose the Daylite Plus Day Pack
I have recently begun to make time to resume day hikes and quickly discovered that my original Osprey pack was far too large for my current needs. Osprey has a huge selection of packs but I eventually narrowed it down to two: the Daylite and the Daylite Plus. Both bags are perfect for daily use (school, college, work, carry-on size for travel) as well as camping and hiking. I chose the Daylite Plus for the slightly larger pack.
The Daylite Plus has two compartment in the main portion of the bag. I prefer having a divider in the bag as it can keep things separated. For example, if I choose to carry a water resevoir it will stay put in it's own section. If I choose to carry a laptop, it will stay in place in that pocket and away from the items in the other section of the bag.
The Daylite Plus bag also has two side pockets that are the pefect size for carrying water bottles. And two zippered front pockets that can keep smaller items separate in addition to the "pocket" that I use for stuffing my jacket or small beach towel into.
This bag can cinch up with the straps to make it streamlined when I'm not carrying much. Those same straps loosen to allow much roomier space. Not only do I think this bag will be great for my hikes but will also be great to wear to festivals and farmer's markets.
The material is different than my original bag so I will have to update this later to report whether or not this new material holds up as well to the abuse I doled out as the material on my first bag did.
The Osprey Brand
I've never been a hardcore hiker. But I used my orginal pack in a variety of circumstances. I carried it for miles, one way, to reach a favorite fishing hole. I carried it on trails through marshes to get to a sandy beach. My original backpack was on my back while bushwhacking through thorny greenbriar patches in forests. That original pack is sunbleached, pocked with campfire ember holes. And still smells a bit of fishing bait. But it is still very usable. It has held up while I've become semi-retired from those longer adventures. When I thought about purchasing a new pack, I knew I'd look at the Osprey brand first.
I have discovered that they offer "remnant" bags. Those are bags that are made from some of their remnants that result from the manufacturing of their bags. I have also discovered that they are now using recycled materials but are still able to produce bags that are "durable and can take years of everyday wear and tear."
Osprey currently offers a line of Daylite packs:
- Daylite Cinch
- Daylite Kids
- Daylite
- Daylite Plus
- Daylite Tote
- Daylite Waist
- Daylite Duffel
- Daylite Sling
On their website, you can find the entire Daylite line in the Lifestyle Day Packs category.
Finally, I do want to mention that if you like to save a few dollars it is helpful to comparison shop on both Amazon and the Osprey website. If you click each color offered, as I did, you may find a pack at a substantial savings. Personally, there's no way I'm paying full price for a backpack so I was pleased to find different colors of the same bag on deep discount.
Related Links:
The official Osprey Website Osprey.com
The Osprey Store on Amazon
