Michael Wheiler
2010-01-21 04:36:35 UTC
Larry:
The following is the text version of my Field Report on the Cerro Torre. Sorry I'm a bit late. I was traveling out of the country for the past 10 days and came back Sunday with some kind of bug which has knocked me on my butt! Anyway, the html version can be found at http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews/test/TESTS/FR%20Lowe%20Alpine%20Cerro%20Torre%20Pack--Wheiler/#Top_Of_Page . Thank you for your help with any edits.
Mike
FIELD REPORT
During the last 2 1/2 months, I was able to use the Cerro Torre on two separate trips. The first trip was Thanksgiving weekend near Palisades, Idaho. For this trip I took a four season tent, a sleeping bag rated to 20 F/-7 C, one closed cell foam pad, one self inflating pad, a ground cloth, food for two meals, snacks, a head lamp, a back-up flash light, a windproof lighter, a screw on propane stove, one canister of fuel, two liters of water, a water filter, a titanium pot, a spork, a spice container, extra socks, a map, bear spray, a GPS, extra batteries, small first aid kit, hand warmers, fleece pants, a down parka, a wool hat, and rain pants. All of this equipment fit into the Cerro Torre with room to spare. My total pack weight was 40.5 lbs/18 kg. I carried hiking sticks the entire trip.
There is a natural hot spring which flows into Bear Creek through Warm Springs Creek. The trial head starts at 5,800 ft/1,768 m. The main trail goes up Bear Creek. There are trails that fork up Muddy Creek and Currant Creek which eventually lead to Warm Springs Creek. The hot spring is located near the top of Warm Springs Creek and can be accessed by a trail up Warm Springs Creek but I wanted to put in some miles with the Cerro Torre so I chose to go up Muddy Creek trail which would result in approximately an 8 mile/13 km round trip hike with some significant elevation gain. To access Muddy Creek, I had to cross Bear Creek and it took some doing to find a spot shallow enough to cross without getting water in my boots. Even though I undid the hip belt and loosened the shoulder straps, the Cerro Torre did not cause any balance problems while crossing the creek.
There was very little snow at the trail head but it got deeper as I gained elevation. Although there was never enough snow to need snowshoes, the snow was deep enough in places that it became difficult to find the trail and I had to wander around looking for any signs of the trail. As such, I spent a good amount of time off trail where I tripped on snow covered rocks and stumbled over snow covered branches. Even while I was on the trail, I found myself slipping and sliding on the steeper portions. At those times, I was very grateful for the ability to tighten and adjust the Cerro Torre to fit snuggly with my back and shoulders. When I tightened it up, there was no sway in the pack. The Cerro Torre conformed nicely to my body and helped me retain a good sense of balance during the entire trek. The only difficulty I had with the Cerro Torre was getting the water bottle out of the exterior pocket to get a drink. I had to take the pack off to remove and replace the bottle. My other Lowe Alpine pack has a water bottle carrier that makes it easy to access the bottle while hiking so I guess I am a bit spoiled.
(photo)
On the ridge during a snack break.
Despite the arduous climb, the Cerro Torre was as comfortable as any pack I have used carrying that amount of weight. I eventually reached an elevation of 7,910 ft/2,411 m but could not find the hot spring where I had planned to camp. So I backtracked to a level spot on the ridge and set up camp. The temperature was around 36 F/2 C. The temperature the next morning was 29 F/-2 C. The hike out the next day on the Currant Creek Trail was uneventful except for stepping into a hole while recrossing Bear Creek which was deep enough that water ran into my boots. Thankfully, I was only 2.5 miles/4 km from my vehicle at that time. The Cerro Torre handled this trip marvelously.
In December, I attempted to do a snowshoe hike near Kelley Canyon Ski Resort near Ririe, Idaho (elevation at the trail head was 5,150 ft/1,570 m). Unfortunately, there was not enough snow to make using the snowshoes worthwhile. The temperature was around 31 F/-0.5 C. I hiked up one of my favorite snowshoe trails carrying the Cerro Torre packed identically to the Bear Creek trip. According to my GPS, I ultimately reached an elevation of 6,574 ft/2,004 m before turning around. Although I carried enough gear to stay over night, I had commitments the next morning which prevented me from doing so. This hike covered approximately 4 miles/6 km. While climbing or descending steeper portions of the trail, it was easy to adjust the Cerro Torre's hip belt and should straps to create a more snug fit with my body and maximize my balance while carrying over 40 lbs/18 kg. Again, the Cerro Torre was comfortable even under a significant load. I had no difficulty operating zippers or buckles in the cold temperatures.
Likes:
a.. The Cerro Torre has massive load carrying capacity both on the interior and exterior.
b.. Adjusting the pack on the go is easy.
c.. The pack can conform to my body when necessary to assist with balance.
d.. It is comfortable even when loaded with a large amount of gear.
Dislikes:
a.. This is just a small gripe but I have been spoiled by an easy access water bottle holder on my other Lowe Alpine pack and it would be nice if this one had that same feature.
I would like to thank Lowe Alpine and BackpackGearTest.org for giving me the opportunity to test the TFX Cerro Torre 65:85 backpack. Check back in two months to read about my continued experiences in the field with the Cerro Torre. My Long Term Report will be appended to this report at that time.
ยน The Complete Walker IV, Colin Fletcher and Chip Rawlins, page 125 (2003).
(Click here to return to the beginning.)
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------------------
The following is the text version of my Field Report on the Cerro Torre. Sorry I'm a bit late. I was traveling out of the country for the past 10 days and came back Sunday with some kind of bug which has knocked me on my butt! Anyway, the html version can be found at http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews/test/TESTS/FR%20Lowe%20Alpine%20Cerro%20Torre%20Pack--Wheiler/#Top_Of_Page . Thank you for your help with any edits.
Mike
FIELD REPORT
During the last 2 1/2 months, I was able to use the Cerro Torre on two separate trips. The first trip was Thanksgiving weekend near Palisades, Idaho. For this trip I took a four season tent, a sleeping bag rated to 20 F/-7 C, one closed cell foam pad, one self inflating pad, a ground cloth, food for two meals, snacks, a head lamp, a back-up flash light, a windproof lighter, a screw on propane stove, one canister of fuel, two liters of water, a water filter, a titanium pot, a spork, a spice container, extra socks, a map, bear spray, a GPS, extra batteries, small first aid kit, hand warmers, fleece pants, a down parka, a wool hat, and rain pants. All of this equipment fit into the Cerro Torre with room to spare. My total pack weight was 40.5 lbs/18 kg. I carried hiking sticks the entire trip.
There is a natural hot spring which flows into Bear Creek through Warm Springs Creek. The trial head starts at 5,800 ft/1,768 m. The main trail goes up Bear Creek. There are trails that fork up Muddy Creek and Currant Creek which eventually lead to Warm Springs Creek. The hot spring is located near the top of Warm Springs Creek and can be accessed by a trail up Warm Springs Creek but I wanted to put in some miles with the Cerro Torre so I chose to go up Muddy Creek trail which would result in approximately an 8 mile/13 km round trip hike with some significant elevation gain. To access Muddy Creek, I had to cross Bear Creek and it took some doing to find a spot shallow enough to cross without getting water in my boots. Even though I undid the hip belt and loosened the shoulder straps, the Cerro Torre did not cause any balance problems while crossing the creek.
There was very little snow at the trail head but it got deeper as I gained elevation. Although there was never enough snow to need snowshoes, the snow was deep enough in places that it became difficult to find the trail and I had to wander around looking for any signs of the trail. As such, I spent a good amount of time off trail where I tripped on snow covered rocks and stumbled over snow covered branches. Even while I was on the trail, I found myself slipping and sliding on the steeper portions. At those times, I was very grateful for the ability to tighten and adjust the Cerro Torre to fit snuggly with my back and shoulders. When I tightened it up, there was no sway in the pack. The Cerro Torre conformed nicely to my body and helped me retain a good sense of balance during the entire trek. The only difficulty I had with the Cerro Torre was getting the water bottle out of the exterior pocket to get a drink. I had to take the pack off to remove and replace the bottle. My other Lowe Alpine pack has a water bottle carrier that makes it easy to access the bottle while hiking so I guess I am a bit spoiled.
(photo)
On the ridge during a snack break.
Despite the arduous climb, the Cerro Torre was as comfortable as any pack I have used carrying that amount of weight. I eventually reached an elevation of 7,910 ft/2,411 m but could not find the hot spring where I had planned to camp. So I backtracked to a level spot on the ridge and set up camp. The temperature was around 36 F/2 C. The temperature the next morning was 29 F/-2 C. The hike out the next day on the Currant Creek Trail was uneventful except for stepping into a hole while recrossing Bear Creek which was deep enough that water ran into my boots. Thankfully, I was only 2.5 miles/4 km from my vehicle at that time. The Cerro Torre handled this trip marvelously.
In December, I attempted to do a snowshoe hike near Kelley Canyon Ski Resort near Ririe, Idaho (elevation at the trail head was 5,150 ft/1,570 m). Unfortunately, there was not enough snow to make using the snowshoes worthwhile. The temperature was around 31 F/-0.5 C. I hiked up one of my favorite snowshoe trails carrying the Cerro Torre packed identically to the Bear Creek trip. According to my GPS, I ultimately reached an elevation of 6,574 ft/2,004 m before turning around. Although I carried enough gear to stay over night, I had commitments the next morning which prevented me from doing so. This hike covered approximately 4 miles/6 km. While climbing or descending steeper portions of the trail, it was easy to adjust the Cerro Torre's hip belt and should straps to create a more snug fit with my body and maximize my balance while carrying over 40 lbs/18 kg. Again, the Cerro Torre was comfortable even under a significant load. I had no difficulty operating zippers or buckles in the cold temperatures.
Likes:
a.. The Cerro Torre has massive load carrying capacity both on the interior and exterior.
b.. Adjusting the pack on the go is easy.
c.. The pack can conform to my body when necessary to assist with balance.
d.. It is comfortable even when loaded with a large amount of gear.
Dislikes:
a.. This is just a small gripe but I have been spoiled by an easy access water bottle holder on my other Lowe Alpine pack and it would be nice if this one had that same feature.
I would like to thank Lowe Alpine and BackpackGearTest.org for giving me the opportunity to test the TFX Cerro Torre 65:85 backpack. Check back in two months to read about my continued experiences in the field with the Cerro Torre. My Long Term Report will be appended to this report at that time.
ยน The Complete Walker IV, Colin Fletcher and Chip Rawlins, page 125 (2003).
(Click here to return to the beginning.)
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------------------