I live in Wisconsin where the winters are cold and summers are hot. We use this carrier both in summer and winter. Its not too warm in summer for our son and in the winter - their is enough room for him to still wear his winter gear.

Its a little too big for me as I less than 5-5 but for my husband who is 6-3 this is great.
We find this very sturdy, the straps work, we feel its safe. Our son will try and stand up in which is not safe but you can lower the straps below to fix that. I like this. And recommend it for anyone who likes to take long walks or hikes. This is not for every day walking use in my opinion.

This is, without a doubt, the prettiest backpack I've ever seen. The green fabric is lightly patterned and most of the structure and trim is in brown. Along with the colors, the Sherpani logo- the little white flower- makes this backpack MUCH cooler than all the rest.

This is the only backpack I found that can support a baby that is only capable of supporting her own head (read: cannot sit up, yet). My little girl (in this back pack for one month now and just barely 4 months old) is happiest in this backpack. (She is a somewhat contented baby by-and-large, but get her in this backpack and she's SUPERHAPPY BABY.)

The chest plate supports her completely and I can cinch her up so she's quite close to my body and she's tight within the opening.

The backpack itself is generally comfortable for me. My torso is exactly the longest maximum and it still fits fine. If I wanted the hip belt to be more firmly on my hips, I wouldn't be able to do it but for short duration outings, it works.

Now, for the negatives.

Like the "better than the Kelty" people, I find the sunshade useless. My baby hits it no matter what and after a 1 hour walk, during which she fell asleep, she had marks all over her face from the hood. Also, this cover only provides shade when the sun is directly overhead. Otherwise, the baby is completely exposed. The cover needed to be made to extend beyond the "cockpit" to actually be an effective shade.

After using this backpack for only a few outings over one week, the strap stitching came undone. Yes, I could fix this with a strong needle and some upholstery thread but, having a baby and no extra time for such enterprises, I used a diaper pin. Thus, I cannot adjust the strap and it doesn't make sense to me that so much energy could be put into designing and manufacturing something that comes apart and has important parts that don't work.

Without a doubt, the coup de grace for the Rumba, is the support stand. In plain English, it sucks. I nearly took out the eyes of 2 little girls on 2 separate occasions, I have dented and taken the paint off of all of my doors and door trim and I bruised my 7-year-old's cheek all because the back leg does not fold in. It sticks out. WAY out.

After three weeks of futzing with straps and trying to be aware of my new size with pack, I still hit everything I came anywhere near. I contacted the company about it and the response was that I just needed to get used to it.

All I have to say is, if you intend to only use this pack on wide, lonely trails or open spaces with only other adults as company, and you don't need to protect your child from sun, rain or wind with anything other than coats and hats- then this is the pack for you.

On the other hand, if you want the flexibility of using this pack in crowds or around children or going in and out of the house, then this is most definitely NOT the pack for you.

Unfortunately for me, I am having a war with my own vanity. While there probably is another pack out there that would do the job, I don't see any that are anywhere near as attractive as the Sherpani. I've been playing with the idea of tracking down hinges that would fit the tubing of the pack. I would then, conceivably, be able to re-engineer it to have a retractable stand.

Even as I dream of it, I realize that it is ridiculous. I just need to get over the pretty-factor and go with something that actually works.

I absolutely love this pack! Its very easy to get the baby in, and to get on myself. I'm 5'4" and Dad is 6'0" and its comfortable on both of us. There is plenty of storage underneath for all baby's essentials as well. I couldn't have designed a better pack myself.

I've been using this pack for about a year now. Took the kid out this past Sunday for a hike up 1,000 railroad tracks up the side of a mountain. When I last used the pack, three months ago, my son was happy and slept the hike. Yesterday he was just upset and cried most of the time. Figured out that there's a rough spot where multiple pieces of nylon come together on the lower part of the frame and it rubbed his legs raw. It seems to be a quality issue/design flaw. For that reason, I'm going to look into another pack. I like the light weight, but have decided that it's too minimalist for me. I jury rigged a Camelback to the back so I could drink water on the go (instead of having someone behind me get it out or flip the pack out). When it's loaded, it is heavy and somewhat difficult to get on my back. The fact that it doesn't compress very much while on my back hasn't been an issue for me, but I tend to hike in fairly open areas and I don't wear it in crowds of people. My son is 18 months old, probably 22 pounds and maybe 25 inches tall? He's not real big.

My husband and I bought both the Kelty and this Sherpani. We have twins so we decided to try both and see which one we like better. The Sherpani was definately the winner for both us and the kids. They don't show it in the picture, but the blue color is actually for a girl. Its really bright and has some little white daiseys on it. Love it. The only thing I liked better about the Kelty was that sun shade was much bigger and didn't get in the kids way. The Sherpani's hood straps come strait down and go right in front of the kids face. So if they lean forward a little there face rubs against the strap. Even with this minor defect we decided to buy another one and just make sure our kids where there sun hats.

As you have probably read, yes this is a very light carrier. But that doesn't necessarily make it a good carrier. You have to have 2 people load the kid in because it won't stay open by itself, and keeps falling over if you try loading it by yourself. Second, the kids legs get so spread apart because of the bag in the middle, that they are not comfortable and lastly, they may be tight in the pack... but they are able to rock forward and back because there is no frame above the kids feet. Its hard to explain but it is a factor. The Kelty, for example, has a frame around the child that keeps them from being able to fall against your back or go the opposite way and it keeps it open for easy loading and allows them to sit in it more comforable and their feet hang straight down and I have found that makes them more comfortable as well. This pack is built very well, just not well thought out. I took it back after one use.

I've been using a low-end Evenflo framed carrier, but my granddaughter was complaining about her legs last hike, so I started looking for a better pack. I ordered this pack with a 50% off coupon so the price was right! Once I figured out the straps, this pack was VERY comfortable for me as compared to the Evenflo. The weight of the pack (or lack thereof) is also significant for me. I'm 5'2" 125 lbs and Nadia is over 3' and 30+ lbs at 2 1/2 yrs. There's a couple little pockets on the waist belt for small items such as a cell phone, keys, etc. that's convenient. The storage area under the pack is quite large compared to the Evenflo. Plenty of room for a clothing change, diapers, snacks, and more. Nadia never complained about her legs hurting or being uncomfortable.....and I kept asking. : )

The cons of the pack:

Nadia is so tall the sunshade would not go over her head even with the seat in the lowest position possible and there is no good place to store it on the pack. That's not significant for me as we're not used to that anyway.

There was no good position for a large child to sleep in. This is likely not an issue with smaller children.

The support stand was always out, yet wasn't securely locked in place. Pretty unstable and a definite flaw.

I just got the pack last week and I've only used it on one hike so far, so there may be some things I'm doing 'wrong'. A more detailed instruction sheet would be helpful.

The real test came at the end of the hike. I sat the Evenflo and the 'new' backpack side by side and asked Nadia which one she liked better. Evenflo won out. Could be any number of reasons with a 2 yr old, though. The Evenflo is her favorite color. : ) I'll use the Sherpani for longer hikes, but continue to use the Evenflo for hikes less than 3 miles.

I have owned this pack for 2 months and transported my 8mo daughter over 8 miles per week. THe pack is lightweight and comfortable for me. My daughter sleeps comfortably on every hike and so far the only problem is the lack of a hydration bladder. Storage is minimal but the purpose of the Superlight is exactly as it sounds carrying as little weight as possible. So far this pack has been a great investment and it will get years of yes and many more miles.

just getting used to it, have not had it out for a full test yet.

PROS: good storage capacity, constructed well (so it seems)... did not skimp on pads etc.
- pretty comfortable... lots of space for dayhike storage, there is a pocket for a bladder (some have said they wished it had one), hip belt is great, as light as promised. folds for airplanes and backseats... pretty flat.
- clever design... a few more years and they'll design it just right... but it ain't there yet.
- price is about 100$ less than the other high end competition we considered.

CONS:
- stand does stick way out... i work in tropical rainforests... can't imagine it can work down there.
- sun shade is great at noon on the equator, elsewhere, other times... gradations of useless.
- sun shade has two straps right in front of baby's face... while they are elastic, they do mark up the child's face.
- no way the kid can sleep in this... not without extra pillows.
- the seat is actually like a climbing harness... while that is great... it gives her mobility... also great... but if she decides that she wants to tack left for two hours... I really feel it... as all her weight is off center.... the choice is her's not mine.
- shoulder straps are short (My frame is average) such that the sternum strap is up above my sternum at its lowest setting (the pack was made for women and therefore this might be strategic... above the breasts).
- no real place to fully store the sunshade; it has two 9" pegs that stick up above (and behind) the baby's head. no big deal... and you can hike with your gamey socks airing out... but for a rainforest... that's going to be problemmatic.
- feet of young baby can squeeze in below her seat and her legs are protected from most elements. however, as the baby grows, the legs must come out... and there are two bars that will unquestionably rub the childs legs.

light weight- comfortable to wear- but the fact that the stand does not fold in when in use is problematic- if your hiking alone no problem, but if you are with friends every time you turn around your going to wipe your friends out with the frame - and let me tell you, I've pissed more than a few people off at flee markets and farmer markets- It is a good looking backpack, cool colors-