Let me preface it by this - it is no dana designs terraplane, similarly, it will not withstand nuclear war like the terraplane. that being said, i love the pack. zero problems thru-hiking the John Muir Trail in 20 days. 2 of us chose this pack, another had an aether 60, another had a go-lite.

Carrying 10 days of food + gear (starting weight was 43.5lbs), i felt a bottoming out during the first few days and thought this was the worst pack i've ever hiked with. only to find in the sub-40 range it was incredible (dare i say better than my dana?). i wouldn't say its unbearable, but it certainly reminded me of my torturous boyscout days with a funky peak1 external frame and coleman sleeping bag.

-shoulder straps were fine
-no problem with gear falling out of the vertical zipper.
-was in a 2 day downpour. found the fabric to "breathe" and stuff would get damp, but all stuff that needed to stay dry was wrapped carefully (down bag in a trash compactor bag etc). however, not waterproof. but does a good job of not "holding" water in the fabric
-durability - fabric is light but strong. that being said, don't let boyscouts use it. don't toss the bag down a slope while traversing. don't use it as a step-ladder etc. i view this as a "few thousand mile" bag, vs the dana will last me and my sons many more years,
-no internal straps. one huge compartment
-i have no such creaks, but i met ppl on the JMT that did experience such.

-for lightweight backpacking, this is great. I might have gone with the vapor trail, as I had no need for the lid, to shave a few pounds. I couldn't reach the sub 20 pound mark including a large bear canister, but did reach 22 pounds. The ability to wear lighter footwear with lighter weight backpacking was well worth the investment in a few pieces of better gear. after this endeavor, most weeklong or less trips should put your weight under 40lbs.