Posting some photos soon,
Worse rain i have ever seen but no fog, so we enjoyed our trip, nothing as bad as hiking all day in the fog and seeing nothing.
We ended leaving at Shielbridge after 6 days, we were so far behind schedule due to delay having to go to Carnach bridge instead of crossing the river, going uphill to cross stream then down etc...
we had sometime water up to our knees not in river but in the grass from day 1 and after 6 days my feet appreciated being dry again..

again in bad weather we loved having a floorless shelter, nothing as good as setting it up fast and going under asap with shoes on and all your dirt without caring of soiling your inner tent :)

my wife was worried for our summer hike in Greenland as its said to be wet but after this hike in the Higlands she doesnt anymore :)

edit we will be back anyway, probably starting from Shielbridge this time
we really love Scotland highlands, and if the climate isnt always warm the welcome always was

Edited by Fre49 on 05/11/2009 07:37:32 MDT.

Fred, we found it takes at least two poeple (three is better) to put the "O" back in place. The only reason the "O" got out of place is because of that totally incomprehensible zipper to nowhere that makes you wonder if the frame is removeable. Does ANYONE know what that zipper is there for????

Lynn, if you are referring to the zipper inside the pack, I think it's there so that you can put a water bladder behind the mesh.

As the owner of many Osprey packs, I had great hopes of the Exos. Alas, it is one of the few Osprey packs that I have tried that appeared unsuited to a small woman (5'2" & narrow-shouldered). The straps are placed too far apart to be comfortable; they dig into my arms & seem unstable. Even a unisex Atmos 35 (has anyone actually seen an Aura 35?) is more comfortable, albeit heavier. My 6'+ partner (tall, short-waisted, no hips -- hate those guys!) & I have been equally comfortable with the Kestrels, Atmos/Aura series, & other Ospreys. This is a disappointment.

"I think it's there so that you can put a water bladder behind the mesh."

Well, that would have never occured to me. That ventilated mesh back was the best feature for me. I couldn't imagine blocking it off with a water bladder, but maybe in winter it would help keep the water from freezing???

About four months ago, I posted an inquiry about the critique in Backpacker magazine, which said the shoulder straps on the Exos 58 need periodic re-tightening. Someone replied that the manufacturer claimed to have resolved this problem.

I bought a 58 a month or so ago and recently took it out for its first spin -- a weekend in Pisgah National Forest. I had no problems with any of the straps slipping.

I also had reservations about the weight transfer because the waist belt does not wrap fully around the rear, relying instead on tension against the trampoline-like back panel. With a load just under 30 pounds, that did not pose a problem. It carried much like the conventional, super-padded waist belt design.

So far I'm extremely pleased with this pack. The features seem thoughtful, and the thin strap material worked fine. I'm an organization nut, so things like the front side pouches and the stuff front pouch are very useful.

I'm still a little leery of the mesh water bottle pockets, because they have top and side openings. I use a hydration bladder instead of a water bottle and therefore don't need the easy access that the front openings afford. I also nearly lost a book from one of them. I have since closed off the side opening of one of the two with a cable tie.

I'm curious how people are packing their gear in the Exos. I'm thinking about giving the Exos another try, this time with the larger 58, but when I tried the 46 I was never quite satisfied with how I packed things. The biggest question is the tent and bear canister. I'm used to storing my tarptent in a side mesh pocket, where it is freely accesible and doen't get the main pack dirty/wet. I tried putting the tent in the vertical zipper pouch, but it pushed into the main compartment so much that I'm not sure I could fit a bear canister in the upper part of the main pouch.

So right now I'm thinking main pouch gets slepping bag first, then insulating clothing, followed by tent and then food. But this leaves my jacket pretty buried and puts a potentially wet shelter right on top of my down gear. Any ideas?

ps I normally use a SMD Essence with no bear canister or a SMD Starlite with a bear canister. I am switching to a bulkier tent (Shangri-La 1 tarp AND inner mesh), which, combined with a bear caniseter is why I'm reconsidering a larger pack.

Edited by jcarter1 on 07/16/2009 08:34:04 MDT.

How about the big stretchy outer pouch for a wet shelter? I'll be using my Exos 58 on my JMT hike in 4 weeks. I'll be renting a Bearikade Expedition for this trip. I hope it fits well. 8-P

"How about the big stretchy outer pouch for a wet shelter? "

Yup, absolutely. Can't comment on bear canisters...

Got the Exos 58, and I didn't realize how much bigger the size zip pouches are; my tent fits in there just fine, with my rain gear in the other pouch. Also, I've got a Bearvault 500 that fits horizontally at the top; the pack is large enough that I can completely enclose the canister horizontally in the main bag.

disclaimer: I am new to backpacking and this is my first pack. (I have the exos 46)

I love this pack! I've used every feature except the sleeping pad straps, which are easy to wrap up and stow under the pack. Haven't had any issues with them catching on anything, as mentioned in the review... even while bushwhacking.

I have no issues with the sternum strap height settings and the shoulder strap width seems to fit me well. No issues with the load lifter straps loosening; that seems to be fixed.

This pack has a lot of compartments, which allows a lot of flexibility when packing. The side mesh pockets seemed tight at first, but after some breaking in time seem to be just about perfect. I can comfortably fit a full 1 Liter platypus water bottle in a mesh pocket.

I was concerned about durability at first, but the pack seems to be holding up well. The high stress / high wear areas appear to be appropriately reinforced.

I love this pack!

Edit: I just had the same malfunction mentioned earlier in the thread about the O support popping out of place. I can't get it back in there for the life of me. I was getting ready to call Osprey customer service... anyone have any suggestions for me? Anyone have issues with repeat failures? That would be really annoying.

Edited by kencharpie on 05/16/2011 05:14:00 MDT.

I bought this backpack and also the bigger version, Exos 58 to compare. They are both good although I feel the bigger load possible in the 58 puts too much strain on the thin harness and hipbelt, also pulls it more back (more pressure on your shoulders).
My only complaint with both - and a big one: the frame squeaks! The stretch material attached to the frame squeaks when it moves - which it does with every step, at least for me. Is it really just me? Some specific posture and way of walking? I am quite surprised that after searching the web I haven't found any single reference to this. And it's really annoying after a while, I can tell you (unles you hike constantly past rushing waters and waterfalls, that is:-))
Anybody having this problem? Possible remedy (waxing the frame, etc.)? I don't want to have to return those otherwise great packs. Jiri, male 6'3'', 34'', both L size packs.

Got my 46 today, already love it. I noticed the squeaking is generated by the white elastic paint on the stretch material rubbing against the oval shaped reinforcement (with the writing "airspeed" in the centre). Osprey should invert the colours, "airspeed" should be written in white leaving the stretch material black. It's so simple I can't understand why they didn't do it yet. Anyhow putting something soft between the stretch and the oval shaped reinforcement should solve the "problem": I just don't want to hear my backpack making unnecessary noises will I walk in nature...

Last summer I was hiking with my daughter when a guy with an old frame pack came charging past us. The squeaks and rattles were amazing! I told my daughter, "That's how we all used to sound in the old days!" I'd forgotten how loud the old frame packs could be!

You could also try just a bit of silicon between the two offending surfaces.

I had the same problem a few years ago with a Stratos 24. When I got in touch with Osprey, they said to use some silicon lubricant to solve the problem.

I can't report how it worked because the suspension failed soon after, and I ended up returning the pack.

Putting something between the stretch material and the oval shaped reinforcement didn't solve the squeaking problem. I've been squeaking around the Ligurian Alps for 4 days. I don't have time now but if I don't find a solution I have to get rid of this otherwise great pack.

Still have to try it in the field but the squeaking seems gone now. It took me 2 hours to get rid of the annoying sounds making use of silicone based lubricant, Vaseline and 4 pieces of drinking tube. Hope Osprey will do something about it in the next version...

Edited by Mike777 on 07/21/2012 02:26:43 MDT.