As you could read in first part of my MR ASAP review I really liked the design, construction and features of the pack. However, I didn’t have a chance to test it in really demanding conditions… but that changed last week. I'm just back from the mountains. And now I'd like to share with you some random thoughts about the ASAP, which came to my mind during my lone trip to the heart of snowy Tatra Mountains in Southern Poland. One day - just me, my backpack and my camera.
BTW, you can find the first part of my review here: http://motusworld.com/2014/01/review-mystery-ranch-asap-pack
I started in the very morning with a clear plan… well, not so safe plan as you can see below. As you can see it was quite easy to attach the ice-axe to the ASAP with just a piece of paracord. Also I stored my crampons under the Stick-it flap, but also put additional compression strap on the pack as a secondary fixing point.
Time to decide where to go and to put the crampons on! Also you can see some details of the setup.
First checkpoint and of course time mark.
And here is my Mystery Ranch on a frozen rock in a fog. You can easily attach some extra gear to the PALS via straps, paracord, carabiners etc. Customization of ASAP is really impressive thanks to the webbing panels.
And here me resting in the white…
And close-up of my ‘snow chair’ – with the crampons on my boots I had an empty Stick-it, so with a bit of imagination (and with ice-axe) I converted my pack into quite comfortable snow chair! Another reason to get the Stick-it
On my way I also spotted the climbers. It looked like a climbing training camp to me.
And finally my stuff. So what I had inside? Full frame Nikon camera with f/2.8 tele-zoom (which means big & heavy setup), spare warm cap, Klean Kanteen thermal bottle (with hot tea), small silicone cup, medical kit (ITS Tactical), emergency foil blanket, camera accessories in small pouches, 5 L waterproof bag (just in case I need to carry some cloths in the Stick-it pocket), some energy bars, etc. Plus crampons & ice-axe. Quite a lot of stuff for such a small pack. BTW, I used the heavy Nikon only twice. Not worth taking at all, my Fuji X100 did the job done.
Hardly visible but still... mountain goat's fresh tracks. Path starts to verticalize more and more - time to draw the ice-axe from my pack...
The red sign says ‘Very dangerous trial, beware of falling rocks’… nice, very nice!
And that was the place, where the REAL adventure started. Yeah, down there!!! I decided to go off-trial and try almost vertical climb-down on ice and snow. This is the beginning. Sorry, I was not able to take any pictures half-way, it'd be way too dangerous! I just tightened the straps even more and started the climb down. Notice a group of people (pixels) down there...
That was my way down. I'm not sure if I'd do that again... I learned a lot about adrenaline that day! Oh, can you see the grey pixel on top? Yeah, another guy looking down and wondering if he (or she?) should follow the snowy path.
Time for a short rest. Well, the pack was very secure on my back during the climb. It was really close to my back, without any movement. So I was able to keep perfect balance on the slope. For me the score was 10/10 easily! And it was a bit more challenging than the average Sunday walk in the forest…
And finally the shelter:
Inside. And some more people... with climbing rope. Must be smarter than me And again my stuff out of the pack. I really like how the pack compresses when I zip it closed. It’s much more effective way to put a lot of stuff into the pack vs. classic toploader. Especially with irregular-shaped objects like camera with lens.
OK, that’s it… time to go back to the base, to my wife and kids. Evening fog starts to rise up the hills...
Clear statement: I’m really extremely happy with the pack! It has been probably the most comfortable small backpack I’ve ever tried. And for sure THE MOST comfortable of all military-styled tactical packs I’ve ever tried. I like tactical stuff  Well, optional padded waist-belt could make it even better, but for 18 L pack it was not really necessary. Neither my shoulders nor my back were really tired. My legs were! I need more training during the year What else shall I say? Oh, one more remark – the mesh on the back is very comfortable but it also attracts the snow – so in snowy conditions, when you need to find something in the pack, I recommend to put it vertically, lean it on your leg, and unzip like that. Don’t put the mesh directly on the fresh snow. You can clean it easily, but some snow will surely melt and the mesh can get a bit wet. Some small hypalon panels would probably help, but… hypalon panel on the back is not my preference for hot Summer days. So since my hardshell wais *really hard* I didn’t have ANY problem with that. Well, with just the fleece jacket that could be more problematic, but if you wear a hardshell – again - no problem.
It was an awesome day! And one of the most awesome 'good bye' views I was ever rewarded with!
And a small bonus to close the review – I used it also for skiing (a lot!). And with ASAP I was able to carry my full equipment on my back! Just two pics of the configuration below, so you can consider Mystery Ranch ASAP really extremely versatile pack! Great as a city pack, but also for biking, skiing, hiking, mountaineering (serious!), weekend walking, and for many many more application.
Don’t be afraid, push it REALLY to the limits and it should still serve you for a lifetime.
Thanks for looking. Hope you enjoyed.
BTW, you can find the first part of my review here: http://motusworld.com/2014/01/review-mystery-ranch-asap-pack
I started in the very morning with a clear plan… well, not so safe plan as you can see below. As you can see it was quite easy to attach the ice-axe to the ASAP with just a piece of paracord. Also I stored my crampons under the Stick-it flap, but also put additional compression strap on the pack as a secondary fixing point.
Time to decide where to go and to put the crampons on! Also you can see some details of the setup.
First checkpoint and of course time mark.
And here is my Mystery Ranch on a frozen rock in a fog. You can easily attach some extra gear to the PALS via straps, paracord, carabiners etc. Customization of ASAP is really impressive thanks to the webbing panels.
And here me resting in the white…
And close-up of my ‘snow chair’ – with the crampons on my boots I had an empty Stick-it, so with a bit of imagination (and with ice-axe) I converted my pack into quite comfortable snow chair! Another reason to get the Stick-it
On my way I also spotted the climbers. It looked like a climbing training camp to me.
And finally my stuff. So what I had inside? Full frame Nikon camera with f/2.8 tele-zoom (which means big & heavy setup), spare warm cap, Klean Kanteen thermal bottle (with hot tea), small silicone cup, medical kit (ITS Tactical), emergency foil blanket, camera accessories in small pouches, 5 L waterproof bag (just in case I need to carry some cloths in the Stick-it pocket), some energy bars, etc. Plus crampons & ice-axe. Quite a lot of stuff for such a small pack. BTW, I used the heavy Nikon only twice. Not worth taking at all, my Fuji X100 did the job done.
Hardly visible but still... mountain goat's fresh tracks. Path starts to verticalize more and more - time to draw the ice-axe from my pack...
The red sign says ‘Very dangerous trial, beware of falling rocks’… nice, very nice!
And that was the place, where the REAL adventure started. Yeah, down there!!! I decided to go off-trial and try almost vertical climb-down on ice and snow. This is the beginning. Sorry, I was not able to take any pictures half-way, it'd be way too dangerous! I just tightened the straps even more and started the climb down. Notice a group of people (pixels) down there...
That was my way down. I'm not sure if I'd do that again... I learned a lot about adrenaline that day! Oh, can you see the grey pixel on top? Yeah, another guy looking down and wondering if he (or she?) should follow the snowy path.
Time for a short rest. Well, the pack was very secure on my back during the climb. It was really close to my back, without any movement. So I was able to keep perfect balance on the slope. For me the score was 10/10 easily! And it was a bit more challenging than the average Sunday walk in the forest…
And finally the shelter:
Inside. And some more people... with climbing rope. Must be smarter than me
And again my stuff out of the pack. I really like how the pack compresses when I zip it closed. It’s much more effective way to put a lot of stuff into the pack vs. classic toploader. Especially with irregular-shaped objects like camera with lens.
OK, that’s it… time to go back to the base, to my wife and kids. Evening fog starts to rise up the hills...
Clear statement: I’m really extremely happy with the pack! It has been probably the most comfortable small backpack I’ve ever tried. And for sure THE MOST comfortable of all military-styled tactical packs I’ve ever tried. I like tactical stuff  Well, optional padded waist-belt could make it even better, but for 18 L pack it was not really necessary. Neither my shoulders nor my back were really tired. My legs were! I need more training during the year
What else shall I say? Oh, one more remark – the mesh on the back is very comfortable but it also attracts the snow – so in snowy conditions, when you need to find something in the pack, I recommend to put it vertically, lean it on your leg, and unzip like that. Don’t put the mesh directly on the fresh snow. You can clean it easily, but some snow will surely melt and the mesh can get a bit wet. Some small hypalon panels would probably help, but… hypalon panel on the back is not my preference for hot Summer days. So since my hardshell wais *really hard* I didn’t have ANY problem with that. Well, with just the fleece jacket that could be more problematic, but if you wear a hardshell – again - no problem. It was an awesome day! And one of the most awesome 'good bye' views I was ever rewarded with!
And a small bonus to close the review – I used it also for skiing (a lot!). And with ASAP I was able to carry my full equipment on my back! Just two pics of the configuration below, so you can consider Mystery Ranch ASAP really extremely versatile pack! Great as a city pack, but also for biking, skiing, hiking, mountaineering (serious!), weekend walking, and for many many more application.
Don’t be afraid, push it REALLY to the limits and it should still serve you for a lifetime.
Thanks for looking. Hope you enjoyed.
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