Kathmandu Eos SL

New daypack with flexibility

Product

Kathmandu Eos SL

Promise

A flexible lightweight daypack with options for most outdoor needs.   

Performance

Perhaps not enough of us give proper thought to a daypack. While cheaper than their big brothers – the packs that can take you away for weeks at a time – they’re actually used a hell of a lot more, and need to fulfil multiple roles. Pick wisely and you’ve got a friend, pick in haste and you’ll be sore, tired and cursing the fact you didn’t have room/pockets/straps where you needed them.

The Kathmandu Eos SL is unassuming enough to look at. Mostly graphite cordura with a splash of colour, it’s a top-loading daypack with 26l capacity, weighing in at about 570g. What we loved about its design was the flexibility: the extra-wide shoulder straps hug your body closely, with tensioning straps above as well as below to arrange the weight sensibly. There’s a sternum strap as well as a waist belt, and these detach in seconds if you want to shed weight, use the straps for something camp-related or even just want to de-tangle the whole package.

Inside, there’s a flat plastic frame sheet that can be removed too, a large flat pocket and a smaller, zipped net pocket too. Outside, you’ve got pole straps, a mesh water-bottle pocket and a smaller zipped pocket to one side which we thought was perfect for gloves or specs. A single clip and strap gives you access to the main bag, plus two drawstrings.

Wearing the pack was a great experience: we carried around 12 kilos in there for five hours, moving constantly, and didn’t feel any negative effects: no rubbing, no weird shifting inside, and the frame sheet performed really well at protecting your back and helping the pack retain shape.

Verdict

It’s an unfussy little pack that could serve well for an overnight lightweight trip as much as a day out with plenty of food and clobber inside. Keeping it simple and smart makes it a bargain in our books.