North Face Patrol More/Less

By Will Bowersox Ranked #147 - Winter Packs March 30, 2009

After a LOT of research I bought the Patrol. I wanted a multi-use pack for: Travel, long day trips, ski hauling. That's a tall order.
The Patrol was, as are all packs, a compromise.
The good: Well built, well thought out, top quality.
Very easy to customize the fit, will take a lot of tough wear, a lot of options on how to carry and stow gear.
It rides nice and tight with NO movement. Doesn't throw off your center of gravity.
The so/so: It's not really the best travel pack from a loading and unloading standpoint. Regardless of the side zipper it is a top loader. That's great if you cram a lot of stuff into the bag, not easy to access it without unloading the whole bag.
The bad: Those straps that make it easy to carry skis and boards are annoying when you're not using them for that purpose. They're long and flopping. I solved the problem with some velcro cable ties from the electronics dept.
The plus on the "fly-trap" system is that I was able to lash a day pack to the back pretty easily when using it as a travel pack.
Summary: Designed as a ski pack, and it excels at that, but versatile enough to use for lots of things. Just takes a little figuring on how to make it work.
I'd buy it again. No question.

View Details: The North Face Patrol 35 Winter Backpack - 2150cu in

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