Right out of the box - adjust to fit
The pack looks good. It has a solid design and seems well constructed. The frame allows easy adjustments for torso length and waist/hips size by changing which slots the straps use. It came with the straps set for the longest torso and widest hips. The mesh back band is typical for an external-frame pack and although it was installed, it was not tied taut at all. I retied it as tight as I could without changing where it was or how it was tied. Before I put a load in the pack I found that the mesh did not keep the frame off my back and it was uncomfortable. Upon examination it became obvious that I could move the mesh up to the area where the frame hit me, so I did. That helped.
To see how it would feel with a light load I put 25 pounds in the pack. The straps felt good, but the frame could still push against my spine in some positions. I re-examined the way the mesh was installed and I retied it to maximize the effect of the mesh. That helped considerably, but it seemed I didn’t have it taut enough to keep the frame from hitting me in one position. I completely removed the pack and straps from the frame so I could get more leverage and tighten it more. That worked. The slot system for attaching everything is simple to use.I put 40 pounds in the pack and adjusted the straps. I had a good fit. I carried it a mile on level ground and it felt really good. I added ten more pounds and walked down and up the hill by my house. It still felt good. I still hadn’t removed the tags, and I wanted to be absolutely sure this was “a keeper” before I cut them off. Comfort was my first criteria, and El Sol had passed that test. At this point I closely examined the features of the pack I finally had in my hands.
Features:El Sol is a big pack. The top extends to allow over 5,000 cubic inches inside, plus there is room below the pack to strap a tent to the frame. It has two large side pockets on the pack, two more “normal” pockets, and each of these four have an outside elastic mesh pocket (the pockets have pockets.) There are two more zipper pockets on the hip belt. A pouch goes over the top. They say it is removable, but I haven’t figured out how. That pouch has a second zipper pocket with a rain cover. The empty weight of El Sol is more than my old pack, but I sure do like its features.
The main compartment can be extended upward and or divided (zipper shelf) into a large upper and smaller lower section. A zipper arc provides access to the lower section of the main compartment. A heavy-duty zipper provides access to the upper section in addition to the double drawstring top opening.
The main compartment has a sleeve designed to fit Outdoor Products’ 2 liter Cyclone® hydration bladder and a hole to feed the hose through. There is a clip for the hose on the left shoulder strap. As an early adopter, my pack came with the hydration system included, but product information now shows it “sold separately.” I have seen the hydration system at Wal-Mart, so I feel good about my prospects for replacing that if I need to someday. Another change seems to be in color choices since the blue I bought is no longer available.
The shoulder and hip straps are padded and comfortable to me. It has the usual adjustments for lifting shoulder straps off the top of the shoulder, a sternum strap for keeping them centered, and pulls to change the pack frame angle from the hip belt. I had no trouble getting a full load balanced to put the weight on my hips and use my shoulders to keep the pack upright without tipping me over.
The unique frame is 37 inches long. The Enduroflex™ material feels like molded plastic. The frame is rigid enough to provide load lift from the waist that I expect from an external-frame pack. It is also flexible and gives a little with twisting movements. Since I am used to a very rigid frame this felt different, but it feels good so I adapted quickly.
I have walked with some internal frames and enjoyed the flexibility they provided, but I never really felt the load support I was used to with an external frame. I also never found one as comfortable or that allowed my back to breathe as well as the full mesh back band installed on my old pack. El Sol did. It occurred to me that this Enduroflex™ design may be the optimal hybrid of the benefits of both internal and external frames. I got very excited about the prospects of taking El Sol on the trail. I removed all the tags and leaned the loaded pack against a wall.The next day I picked up the pack and noticed the flexible frame didn’t appreciate leaning with a 40 pound load. It had taken on a slight curve. It took a few minutes to recover its shape while I walked in it, so when I took it off I laid the still loaded pack on the pack face, leaving the frame unstressed. I didn’t have the new shape issue again as I went through my season of training hikes in the neighborhood.
One evening as I returned from a training hike, a young man who has an Osprey internal-frame pack arrived at our house. He remarked about my training regimen being the coolest thing he had ever seen, and showed interest in my new pack, so I offered for him to try it on. It had 40 pounds in it. He was astounded at how well it carried the load and how good it felt to him. When I told him it cost about $100 he was shocked. He said he understood why I had chosen El Sol.Keywords: backpack, backpacking, backpacking equipment, Backwoods, belt, camp, camping, camping gear, Campmor, El Sol, elevation, equipment, external, external frame, external-frame backpack, fit, frame, fuel, gear, hike, hiking, hiking gear, hip, hip belt, internal, internal frame, internal-frame backpack, itinerary, kitchen gear, layer, load, load-handling, mesh, Osprey, Outdoor Products, pack, pocket, Saturn, shoulder, shoulder straps, strap, trail, weight, wilderness