Black Diamond Covert with Avalung Winter Pack - 1343-1953 cu in - 2007 BCS

This is a tough daypack with useful ski-specific features (I think it carries long skis better than a long snowboard, but the quick straps and buckles are very handy in general). While I'd rather not carry a pack on chairlifts, I do like it for hiking Highlands Bowl, and I've taken it on a few backcountry day hikes (skin up, ski down, lap or two) in Colorado. I also used the pack for an avalanche safety course, and all the items the instructors told us to carry (including shovel, probe, down puffy, "extra clothes," lunch, 2L water, rope, first aid kit, etc.) fit inside easily enough. Most of my classmates, even the shorter guys and the women, had bigger packs (and a number had Avalung's, including the instructor). I really wouldn't need more room unless I was also going to camp or cook or whatever. I'm 6'4", 170 lbs., and the pack (the M/L) is at least a little short for me, strictly speaking (the belt rides high unless I wear the whole thing a bit low). I just don't find that the pack, even when it's loaded, is heavy enough for this to be a real issue. If I wore a longer/taller pack, I do suppose I'd get a snugger, more supportive fit, which would be important on a multi-day tour, with more gear (or just more food and water). I don't like the way the Avalung hose passes on top of my shoulder because it's kind of hard, and pokes me, and it makes the strap on that side inflexible so it doesn't fit as comfortably as the other strap. It's not a major issue, but I think it would be with a heavier load, or on a longer hike.

Integrating the Avalung into packs makes things so much easier and safer. Although the Avalung can't save you from being caught in an avalanche it increases chances of survival once buried, why not have one? I no longer have to take off everything just to shed a layer. Aside form the Avalung, the covert pack is awesome, the outer compartment holds my shovel and probe and keeps them separate from my lunch and other stuff. It holds skis really well for booting and fits snug to my back for shredding and jumping off stuff.

The perfect size. This pack rips for day trips. It can be super small for side country. I was able to use it for overnights in Huts in the Alps too.

I am 6'4" and I got the 22L (because that was the only one on Steep and Cheap). Even with the L/XL, the hip belt does ride up above my naval, but that's really not a big deal. Hip belts really only need to rest on your hips if you're carrying heavy loads on long hiking trips -- not likely with a 22L skiing pack. The Avalung is cool, but I hope I never need to use it. I did lay on my living room floor and breathed through it for a while with my eyes closed, all the while pretending to be buried under a meter of hoar. Taking slow, deep, deliberate breaths through the Avalung is almost like meditating and would hopefully calm one down in what must surely be a horrifying situation.

I love the simplicity. One pocket for stuff, one for avy equipment. Easy pulling zipper to access either. No fastex buckles to battle with when the thick gloves are on. The insulated shoulder strap works (OK, I did the blow-air-back-into-the tube trick too - but I still didn't have a freeze up during a 5 degree day). Surprisingly comfortable given the minimal waist and. I'd recommend the 32L - 22L proved a bit small for more than water, gloves, lunch (no extra layer room).

Nice pack! Fits snugly and has enough space for my daily junk (left over breakfast posing as lunch, fleece, beer tokens etc) even after my probe and shovel are stowed away. I love the housing in the right hand shoulder strap for the hydration tube.. some great forward thinking form BD! Just need a thermal pocket for ya MP3 player in the belt strap and BINGO!

My only gripe, as a snowboarder, is that there are way too many dangling bits! Being as this pack will be used (by me) on the lifts a fair amount, I am always conscious that one of the loose straps may get caught up in the chair and leave me hanging! I note that the 2 bottom loops can be partially pulled into the avalanche equipment section.. but they are not completely flush with the packs exterior. You are however, able to remove the 2 bungee things from either side, which is nice. Now I just need some kind of loose-end tidy to keep the lengths from the side fasteners blowing around in the wind!

Other than the above niggling problems I think this is a great pack and I can't wait to put it to some good use (avalung excluded!).

I got the 32L version (size S/M for 5'10, 170 lbs) and so far it's perfect in almost all respects. Low profile enough to ride comfortably on chairlifts while doing slackcountry laps, yet big enough for an all-day assault on the Skillet on Mt. Moran with all gear, extra down jacket, etc. The diagonal ski system works even with big skis (BD Zealots) and the pack fully stuffed. Haven't had to use the Avalung yet in a burial but it's well placed in practice runs. The inner pocket for snacks, keys, condoms etc. is a little inconvenient and the shoulder straps need re-cinching occasionally, but those are my only minor bitches. Anyone spending serious time in the backcounrty should consider an Avalung pack.

Quality pack with the avalung that gives you some added comfort while in the backcountry

Love the pack! I'm 5'10" 180lbs and got the S/M 32L. Fits perfect since I like a secure fit. I use it on a daily basis when riding and it works great. The diagonal ski carry works great for all my skis from Volkl Goats to my BD Megawatts. Although the Megawatts are about as large as you'll be able to go I think. Where it straps across and buckles in front of the binding the megawatts are about 125-130mm. Might be something to keep in mind if you plan on hiking with a ski that’s 130mm plus at the waist. The inside of pack is great. I really like the internal pocket for all your avalanche gear! It holds all your gear in there very well. Also if you're torn between the 22L and 32L, I'd go with the 32L. It may sound too large but actually it’s great to have the ability to add more gear and what not for longer day tours or whatever you need. I hardly ever use all the space but the pack collapses really well and doesn't feel loose at all. I usually only have my avalanche gear, water, and a few snacks packed away for normal resort riding as well as some resort accessed backcountry stuff. Another nice thing is that you can integrate your Camel Bak bladder into it on the other shoulder strap. Great pack all around and you can't beat the fact that it comes with and integrated avalung! I don't ever want to have to be required to use it but it sure is nice to have as an extra safety measure. GET IT!

I like to use this pack for the out of bounds areas off of the resort in Jackson. It works great as a day pack. I have taken this pack on trips into the Tetons and Yellowstone and wished there was more to it. The back pack is very simple. There are not a lot of pockets to help you organize your gear. I also wish the ski carry loops were bigger or adjustable. My solution has been to use a standard avalung and a separate back pack.

Without consideration for the Avalung, this is a great pack. It carries skis well (across the back is my preference, not A-frame style). The insulated shoulder strap works, though the end of it could be a bit larger to fit a 90 degree CamelBak bite valve better. The should straps seem flat when you get them, but curve nicely with use. The waist-belt also seems slight at first use, but works well. I use it inbounds as a water bladder holder and out of bounds for a day pack. The 32L is big enough for a poofy coat and lunch and avy gear. The 22L is too small for all of that in my opinion. The 32L adds length to the pack to get the extra volume. At first fit the 32L seems too tall (I'm 5'7" and use the 18in pack) but once it's loaded and the shoulder straps break in it's fine. The avalung is an obvious perk - it's a reminder to me that if I think about getting the mouth piece out, maybe I shouldn't be on the slope where I am. I hope to never use it. But even when I'm on "safe" backcountry slopes, I have the mouthpiece out because I can. I'd feel extra stupid if I was caught in an avalanche, with this pack, and didn't have the mouth piece out. You won't be able to get it out of the shoulder strap while you're sliding the slope in an avalanche. If you're going backcountry, there's no reason not to get it. You don't go without a beacon right?

So, first off, the backpack is SICK, super quality, functional, and avalung is definitely key. But I am 6'2 and 210 lbs (not fat either) and this thing is TIIIIIIINY! I just picked up a 32L, size L/XL and it fits perfectly! So for all you tall and big dudes out there, dont get the S/M 22L unless you wanna feel like there is a tiny midget strangling you on your back.

Got the 32L and its got buckets of room, almost to much, but at least i know i got space for my coffee press and lots of emergency gear. Light and airy with room to spare, straps are just fine. Im 5'11" 188 and have no issues with it other than praise. Simple, sweet and to the point. Oh and with the skis carried diagonly i look like a SKI NINJA!!

The Black Diamond Covert Avalung pack is terrific. It is great for big hikes up bowls or backcountry skiing. There is plenty of room for extra provisions and supplies. There are also designated pockets for backcountry tools such as shovels and probes. The Avalung adds additional support for the threat of an avalanche. Another thing that is really useful, is that one of the straps is built for a hydration system which can be stored in one of the pockets and brought through the strap so you have easy access to it like the Avalung. This is a great back for venturing into the backcountry or skiing adventurous terrain inbounds. The ski carry is good too.

I bought the black 32l version, large. I'm 1m 87cm tall and the backpack fits great. I put a 2,5l kamelbag in it and it works fine. However, if you don't blow back some air in the hose after drinking, it will easily get frozen (midwinter Eur. Alpes).

Solid materials and plenty of space for long full day trips. Easy to fix the skis.

One major drawback: I used it together with my light blue ski jacket for a week. The vacation was great but my jacket was ruined. The backside of the jacket turned into a mess with large dark grey spots.

Compliments to the gear experts and help desk on the chat. Excellent.

WARNING:
BE CAREFUL not to combine this backpack with ski jackets in very light colors.

I've been very happy with this pack, but wish I'd gone for the 32L size. 22L gives me enough room for skins and an extra layer. It would be nice to have a bit more of a buffer. There's a slick rescue whistle built into the chest buckle. The avy gear storage pocket is a great idea -- depending on the shape of your shovel blade you may end up with less usable space in the main compartment.

Hey just a heads-up for all you snowboarders out there: My buddies who have this pack have all ended up with damaged straps from carrying their boards. Their board edges cut into the straps and it takes a toll fairly quickly. Other than that, they're all in love with this pack. You just might want to reinforce the contact points before heading out. A little duct tape will go a long way. You know as they say, 'If you can't duck it...'

The Black Diamond Covert pack 32 w/ Avalung carries well. The organization within the pack is reasonable. I was a more than a little disappointed that my Life Link snow saw did not fit inside and that there is also no practical method to carry it externally. With shovel, and probe in the smaller pocket there is room to shove a few more small items such as a head lamp in. The main compartment requires some thought to get the basics included for a long day trip; extra clothing, food, first aid kit, bivy sack and skins fit barely with a 3 liter bladder in the included pocket. I would also have liked a more substantial waist belt, but the minimalist approach works well with a harness and does not restrict movement. Overall this is a fine pack for single day BC trips. The idea of always having the Avalung along is nice, but hopefully terrain and route selection will defer its use.

In the tool compartment you can fit a shovel, probe and 50cm ice axe/tool. The main compartment will hold water and a puffy + camera and other goodies. There's room for glacier gear and a rope as well. About the best ski pack available, not counting the avalung ace in the whole

This pack makes me feel safe on the mountain in case of an avalanche. The pockets all have organization and having the hydration option is also a plus. It also is very nice for hauling skis and fits very snug on your back. Very good backcountry pack!

At 5'10" 175lb I found the 32L L/XL works well. The avalung in the shoulder strap does feel a little off, but carrying skis with boots, crampons, ice axe, and a days worth of other gear got this pack well over 30lbs, and it still carried very well (at that weight no day pack is perfectly comfortable.)

It is loaded with great features, and ski carry options (I prefer A frame). The only down side was the loading design makes it hard to get to items deep in the pack, especially when carrying skis.

It cinches down for lift use, and I have been happy to have the avalung feature on big pow days in bounds. I even used it once at the resort when I fell and ended upside down in deep powder. It is a real handy feature for skiing near tree wells.

If you are getting an avalung, there is no reason not to get it integrated into a backpack. I never used the external avalang, but I can't imagine it would be easy to organize (too many straps for a backpack, avalung and beacon). The integration is brilliant.

The pack is also well designed and perfect for long day trips (32L) with a compartment for your saftegy gear (shovel, beacon, etc) and another compartment with enough room for an extra layer, food and other stuff. The only minor enhancements I can love to see.... 1. An integrated crampon carrier (optional) to secure the outside of the pack and 2. something to better prevent the Camelbak hose from freezing (although that is probably a Camelbak issue.

I'm 6' 4" and have the largest version they make of this pack. It still seems pretty small to me. Alas, the integrated Avalung is key..I put it in my mouth when skiing very deep powder in the BC. It will help out in a tree well situation as well as in an avalanche. My mouthpiece came in upside down with the pack, but none of my buddies did...so just an anomaly there. It still works. The shoulder straps could offer more resistance since they tend to loosen up on me. They are infinitely better than the BCA straps, however. I like the shovel pocket for sure....and for me it seems compartmentalized enough. The ski loops are plenty big for whatever ski you have (I've use a 154/139/150 on it)...but keep in mind they aren't adjustable. If you are carrying teles (or anything w/o brakes), carry a red strap with you just so you're skis stay put while carrying them with this pack.

Obviously, the major benefit of this pack is having the Avalung. This system works really well, and is so easy that there is really no reason not to use it. It is also fairly well designed. The separate gear-specific compartment works well for most shovels, probes, etc. The 32L is large enough to carry everything that I need for a day long tour. I am 5'7", 140 and the S/M fits fairly well. I have two complaints. First, there are no outside pockets that are quickly accessible. This is not that big of a deal, except that there are no pockets on the hip belt either. So in order to access anything, you have to unstrap, depack, open the main compartment, and then potentially unzip the smaller inner pocket as well. Second, the padding, shoulder straps, and aforementioned hipbelt, while all adequate, are not particularly comfortable. However, this is still a solid pack and a great choice if you want the Avalung.

The pack was great when I used it but it did end up killing my new Burton AK goretex jacket as the straps left dye stains down the back of my jacket and shoulders. Goodby beatifull electric blue jacket. Its a great pack but why does everything have to cheep out and be made in China? Dont wear your favorite jacket!

I got this pack last season and have toured with it in pretty much most CO touring seasons and conditions. It's awesome, I have no real complaints with it other than sometimes I wish it was slightly larger (but that keeps me from carrying a lot of useless crap). It's carried skis and boots perfectly for me in spring and summer descents and is super comfortable for me the rest of the time. Admittedly I only generally carry skis A frame so I have no idea how the sideways thing goes. Having an Avalung built into the pack is great, it gives you no excuse to not bring it along and it eliminates an extra thing to take off while ditching layers. I'm about 5' 10" and pretty skinny so the hip thing doesn't really bother me. All in all I give it a rave review.

I like this pack, and find the avalung integration well designed. The 22L pack rides well on my 5'10" frame. I agree the 22L version is a bit tight. To remedy that I found an Osprey external crampon bag that had the same buckles as the Covert compression straps and viola! I now have a external compartment for crampons (and/or skins when the main compartment is very full). I attached it vertically on the back which works well as a "beaver tail" like area where I can dump my shell quickly and pull the straps tight to hold it there. Makes for quicker changeovers when doing laps.

Took me a while to buy into the avalung idea but I finally did. Hopefully won't have to find out first-hand if it actually works! I like this pack in terms of configuration and ski-mounting. The only thing I don't like about it is that it flops around a big on my back when fully loaded. I have other packs that hug my back a lot better and feel more stable when I'm moving. Overall, I would recommend this for a safe, user friendly day pack. Peace.

The Covert pack is a super pack for day tours. Hopefully, I will never have to find out how well the Avalung works but the concept and design behind it is genius.

What a great idea Black Diamond has here. New this year so only used it a little bit, and never used it buried underneath an avalanche (I will take BD's word that it works under snow). But is very functional, attaches skis very easily and you can access your avy gear in an instant. A great backpack but a bit pricey.

I'm 5'9" and thin. I too had to return my pack for the L/XL as the S/M's 'waist belt' wrapped around my kidneys. While the larger size fits, I would imagine people 6' or taller would not find this park to fit them.

The secondary compartment is nice to keep your shovel and probe and such away from your clothes and lunch, but the internal divider sleeves do not run full-length. As such, your probe and saw rattle off your shovel. VERY annoying. Seems like a massive oversight.

The cinch straps on the outside of the pack are nice, but the RH side buckles are reversed than that of the left - and for absolutely no reason that I can see. In fact, this makes them very difficult to do up. I intend to hit up the sewing machine to correct this.

The hip straps are essentially that - basic straps which seem to only keep the pack from swinging back and forth. I would have preferred they were like that of the Outlaw.

Overall this pack seems to have a bunch of little features, most of which I don't think I'll ever use - including the ski-carry loops (I have touring bindings). Read a few reviews for sizing as well to save yourself the time of returning it.

Loved the pack, it fit well, got the L/XL in the 32L but my complaints were with the avalung:

Lost 1 star because the Avalung was LOUD!!! I sounded like a dying duck when breathing through it. Sales said it is normal for it to sound like that but I just wouldn't feel comfortable in the backcountry with that horrible sound.

Lost 1 star because of the integration into the shoulder strap. The right strap was very comfortable but the left strap where the Avalung came through was uncomfortable.

I ended up returning it and going with the same pack without the Avalung and love it.

I used the larger size Covert in AK last year and found it was too big. This is a better size for heli skiing. Maybe the bigger one is good for guiding or longer back country day trips.

This pack replaces a seven year old DAKINE Heli Pro. I spend most of my time backcountry and the Heli Pro is a bit small for fitting everything in, but I've made it work and like it a lot.
Picked up the Covert 32 (L) (I'm 5'10) it fits great. Has way more room than the Heli Pro, but packs down nice. I give it two thumps up. Only wish it had a small external pocket for carrying a couple of Clif bars or whatnot, but no biggy there.

Feel like your tangled up with that old style avalung sling and your old backcountry bag. Black Diamond has combined the two effectively. On your left side you have your avalung and on the right you have your camelback. Both zip away nicely. The avalung exhales farther behind you and away from your body. I found that the 32l is great for a day tour with room for first aid food and extra layers. Carries skis diagonally and a frame style.

It has an easily accessed pocket for your shovel probe and saw, I suggest putting longer brighter zipper pulls on that pouch to help opening with gloves and help others locate the pocket

Very impressed with this pack. It fits all my gear perfectly and is comfortable while loaded.

get it - there's no reason not to... there's plenty of room for extended days tours and its simplicity is wonderful. It fit me well and stayed snug on back for both touring and heli skiing. You beat the added safety...

Hope I never have to use it, but definitely happy to have the extra lifesaver with the avalung. Having it integrated into the pack is really awesome and doesn't impact use of the pack in any way. Love the separate pockets for probe/shovel and gear. Would love to have aa pocket or two on the waist belt for easy food access, but jacket works as well. I have the 32L and big enough for food, water bladder, and extra layers, without being too bulky.

This pack is a really good size for a day out in the BC. Fits everything you need, has a-frame or diagonal carry for skis, and the safer than sorry Avalung which is actually better to have on the pack than solo. All in all a really good pack in design and quality.

My son researched avalungs and decided on this one. It will be under the tree for him. Sounds like all of the features are just what he needs for all the backcountry skiing he does in Utah.

Fortunately not had to use the Avalung itself but the rucksac is extremely well designed for carrying stuff internally and externally. But best of all is it the first rucksacd I've had that has created rucksac envy - when your at the top of an off piste run you can say to your mates "not got one of these then"