Took the new pack for a walk last weekend and came home impressed (One Planet 45L Vertex). It's early days yet, but so far the minor irritations are just that - minor and in no way negate all the positives I can see so far. Being a hot day, I loaded up with a bit extra water and was halfway through before I remembered I had a bottle pouch on the hip belt which makes access much more easy on the move

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When I stopped for arvo tea, I tried strapping the rifle to the outside of the pack using the included side pouch which worked well, especially as it already has a 'gadget' buckle for trekking poles, snow shovel handles, skis etc. It was a little top heavy, but certainly doable except for the gnarliest of scrambling. I will take my Moroka Zero QR sling pouch next time and I should be able to lower the weight by dropping it ~300mm below the pack which will also make above pack/head clearance less. The gadget buckles were really handy for the trekking pole and shooting sticks I took with me, I'm loving them already!
I was also pleased with the fit of the pack, I was able to get round a ~5km walk up/down steep hills and back to the car without feeling the weight on my hips and/or shoulders like I usually do, and having the gap up the back gives some air movement - though not really sure it helps all that much on a 30+ day
A few snacks were had along the way, and I did pass some fresh goat sign but failed to come across them in the flesh. When I was almost back to the car, I did hear rustling in the leaves and hoped to pick up a goat/s but instead found a mid sized Lace Monitor which was part Bells form (the wide stripes rather than the usual marbling). I've seen a couple of the full Bells form, but never a hybrid between the two.

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I'm sure I'm not the only one that's been tricked by 'bleeding' gums!

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All in all a good day out with no animals spotted. The only downsides to the pack I've found so far are the thick/strong fabric is somewhat noisy when rubbing against brush like Coprosma and other scratchy vegetation, the metal zips on the top lid do bang unless put on the corner, and the hip belt bottle pocket is slightly awkward to get to while wearing the pack (and I have incredibly flexible shoulders). More wearing and (ab)use to come before a final say can be passed down, but what I've seen so far I'm liking
