Sierra Designs: Backpack Testing in Yosemite

by: Justin Gural

As everyone in the adventure game knows, gear can either make or break your experiences in the outdoors --whether you're holding onto that clutch tent that made it through college and into your 'professional' stage, or your gear room is racked with the newest pinnacle piece from the latest gear issue. 

 

 

 

For me, that clutch tent was Sierra Designs' Meteor Light CD, circa 96 or 97, which is still in functional order because I'm an advocate of gear maintenance (re-proofing, -cleaning, -taping, etc.).  I've since moved on to other, newer tents for specific shelters, but the CD will always have a top-shelf spot in my Gearage. [After all, it made it through Coventry - and that says a lot.] 

 

 

 

As far as new, pinnacle pieces goes, that's where Sierra Designs' new line of backpacks might come into play. A first for the brand, Sierra Designs first unveiled the men's Revival and women's Jubilee at the Summer Outdoor Retailer show. Available in Spring 2011, and coming in either 50 or 65 liters, if they're designed and constructed anything like my old Meteor Light then you'll still be using this pack in 2025. 

 

 

 

The Sierra Design team recently hosted a misty testing session in Yosemite's Twenty Lakes Region, check out these photos from the trip courtesy of Pale Morning Media’s Scott Kaier. Stay tuned to SierraDesigns.com for release dates on the pack. 

 

 

 

"Some local knowledge if you're planning a trip to Yosemite through Tioga Pass," explains Kaier, "Definitely stop into the Tioga Gas Mart for a bite to eat at the Whoa Nellie Deli. Trust me on this one... it's probably the best food ever served in a gas station." 

 

 

 

"And if you need a guide, I can't say enough about SP Parker and the Sierra Mountain Center. SP was instrumental in getting us where we needed to go and serving up the backcountry goods."