Note: I was given this pack with instructions to attempt to destroy the EPL200 Ultra. There were no expectations for a review.
Note: Since I’ve been using this pack they’ve made two huge updates. This pack (and every SWD pack) is now made with a contoured shape for a glove-like fit. This will improve the comfort and load-carrying ability even more. Second, they offer it with either a sewn-in hipbelt or a hanging hipbelt like the one on the Big Wild.
Category Overview / My Pack Journey
The Superior Wilderness Designs Ultralight Long Haul 50 is in the ~2lb framed pack category. Packs in this category should be able to carry up to 40lbs comfortable and 50lbs occasionally while still being pretty comfortable. Other packs in this category include the Hyperlite Mountain Gear Southwest 3400, the Hanchor Marl, the Seek Outside Flight, the Elemental Horizons Kalais, the ULA Catalyst, and the Waymark Gear Lite 50L. I have tried many of these and have been utterly disappointed with the HMG while my reviews of the SO and the Hanchor are more nuanced. All HMG packs begin to get uncomfortable around 25lbs because of their stiff, thin shoulder straps which are sewn too close together to allow room for one’s neck, and because they don’t have loadlifters. I would not recommend their packs for anything other than trips topping out at 30lbs. Therefore their insertion of themselves in this category is misleading, but I have to mention them because they’re popular. Packs like the Flight and the Marl are excellent in theory because they have 24” frames with the shoulder straps sewn on 4” below load lifters. They both suffer from a fatal flaw however: removable hip belts. I have experienced hip belt collapse with both of these packs.
All of this overview is just to point us towards the Long Haul, how it sets itself apart from these other packs, and how it is succeeding where others have failed.
My Use
I have been using the Long Haul 50 most of the summer and fall. It has been used a total of about 30 days (24 by me and 6 by a friend).
Specs (From the SWD Site)
50L Specs
Max capacity: 50L internal/60L when utilizing outer storage pockets
Minimum Capcity: 35L internal/45L when utilizing outer storage
Bottom Circumference: 34"
Top Circumference: 40"
Unrolled Height: 36"
Weight breakdown:
Base weight of the pack: 28.15oz
Pack body - 22.5oz
One pair of side compression straps - .75oz per pair
Top strap - .85oz
Aluminum stays - 4oz (med short)
Foam back pad - .8oz
Sternum strap - .5oz
Roll top Stiffener - .3oz
Total weight of all removable items - 7.2oz
Average weight with all optional items attached: 29.7oz
Features (From the SWD Site)
-Large front pocket made out of lycra mesh
-Two Side water bottle pockets each.
-Very supportive hip belt with great load transfer. Connected directly to the frame.
-V style hip belt tensioner.
-Ultra comfy, thickly padded S shaped shoulder straps.
-Load lifters.
-Internal frame featuring two removable aluminum stays.
-Removable foam back pad/sit pad.
-Removable sternum strap.
-Two side compression straps - Fully removable
-4 attachment points on each side panel for adding additional compression straps.
-Bottom strap attachment points. (straps sold separately)
-Roll-Top/Dry-bag style top closure with stiffener for easy rolling.
-Single top strap - fully removable.
-3 Top strap attachment points for customized top strap placement.
-Attachment points for roll top side compression. (Straps sold separately)
-Haul loop.
-Bear canister compatible.
-Waterproof material.
Fit
The Long Haul comes in three torso sizes: small, medium, and large. If I understand correctly, the small is a 22” frame, the medium is a 24” frame and the large is a 26” frame. With each of these, the shoulder straps are sewn on 4” below the loadlifters. I have a 19.5” torso and have been testing the medium. I could also use the large because I’m kind of between sizes, but I’m glad I tried the medium because it compares more closely to the other packs I’ve used in this category. Anyway, fit is excellent for me.
Comfort
Due to the excellent fit, comfort is also great. The shoulder straps wrap around my shoulders and the loadlifters keep the weight off of them. The sewn-in hipbelt transfers most weight to the hips. But comfort is great also because the shoulder straps are wide, thick, and spaced far enough apart that they do not put pressure on my neck. The hipbelt is not super thick, but it is not thin, and I’ve found it to be very comfortable on an eight day trip. All padding is Evazote, which feels comfortable to me but I know little about the different types of foam.
Load Hauling
I just used the Long Haul on an eight-day, mostly off-trail 80-100 mile (it’s hard to say) trip through the Grand Canyon. My baseweight was 12lbs, I had 20lbs of food, and I started the trip with about five liters of water for a grand total of 44lbs. And the pack was comfortable. Literally zero problems. Over the course of the trip my food weight diminished but we had several other five liter water hauls so weights remained in the high 30s often and the pack continued to be comfortable.
Strap System
To explain the straps system, I’m going to quote myself here from an article I wrote for the SWD blog about packrafting with the Long Haul: “While the main compartment may not be large enough to accommodate a full three-season kit, packrafting gear, as well as a week of food, the external attachment points make most loads possible. So many strap combinations are possible that it would be difficult to explain them all here. The main thing to know is that there are a total of 24 external attachment points, allowing at least 12 strap options, 9 of which can be used simultaneously for securing gear on the outside of the pack: Three straps can secure items on top. Four straps can potentially be used on each side. Two straps can secure items on the bottom. Three straps can secure items on the front of the pack, or four if using the pass-through strap. Few people will want to utilize all of these attachment points at one time, but it is totally possible. These external straps would make packrafting trips longer than five days doable.”
Weight
Compared to the other packs in this category, the Long Haul 50 is very light at around 2lbs. It’s a good 8oz lighter than the Marl or the Catalyst or the Kalais, and about the same weight as the HMG SW 3400 though much more capable. Think about it this way: the Long Haul 50 is a 2lb pack that can carry 45lbs very comfortably.
Durability
I’ve been using the Ultralight version of this pack which is made from EPL200 Ultra and EPL400 Ultra. So far these materials seem plenty durable for most uses. I did shred the EPL200 Ultra extension collar pretty well hauling the pack up the Redwall Limestone, but that’s a circumstance most won’t encounter. Most other materials would have shredded too. But materials aren’t the only way to think about durability. Construction is arguably more important. From the SWD site: “All of the main body seams on our packs are quadruple stitched and flat felled. All stress points are reinforced and bar tacked. The flat felled seams make for easy seam sealing on the inside of the pack.” In addition, the top of the stay area is reinforced because it’s such a high stress area. In short, they’re doing everything they can think of to make sure these packs last a long time, and it shows.
Best Uses
Virtually everything. And I think that’s the purpose of this pack. Again from their website: “The Long Haul is a medium to large capacity ultralight internal frame backpack that is a great do-all pack. If you have to pick one backpack to handle all of your backpacking needs this pack will get the job done no matter what the adventure calls for. It is a great choice for any thru-hike!” In my opinion, this is an accurate characterization of this pack. The ascetic in me wants to sell every other pack I have, or better yet give them away, and jus use this one pack. It’s totally possible. Of course, I have much praise for the SWD Big Wild 70 which is for a different use, and the MLD Exodus which is for yet a different use. I’ll talk about those more soon in separate posts.