2009 Hydrapak Laguna Hydration Pack

The Details

The good people over at Hydrapak hooked us up with this bad bear, yup, it's a Hydration Pack.   For the sake not wasting time - here is what they have to say about it over on their website:

• Fluid capacity:  100 fl.oz.
• Gear volume:  500-800 cu. in.
• Empty pack weight: 2 lb. 4 oz.
• New Hypalon reinforced section on shoulder strap and new wrap-around sternum strap.
• New suspension padded back with airflow channel.
• 360° zipper expands capacity to 800 in3 / 13.1 l.
• Built-in mesh net for helmet storage.
• One-finger-opening utility pocket for quick access.

It retails for $89.99 and comes only in a nuetral "charcoal" color scheme.

They describe it as "A fully loaded hydration pack that expands into a full-sized day-pack."    Which seems about right.  In my opinion it looks like they tried to toe the line between your typical "essentials" pack and your larger sized "I am gonna need to carry me some stuff today" sized pack.    Compressed down, it is a medium sized pack - allowing you to easily fit a couple tools, snacks, tubes, some TP and pumps in any of its billion compartments - while "expanded" out, it gives you enough room to pack in (or out) some of your more bulkier attire - lets say maybe a jacket, lots of snacks, some armor... whatever floats your boat.  

It also boasts a pretty clever, what I will now deem "Helmet Hammock".

God willing, we will prevail, in peace and freedom from fear, and in true health, through the purity and essence of our natural... fluids.

Let me jump right to the star of the show - which, strangely enough, they really don't make nearly enough of a big deal of.  Hell, it is possibly the best thing about this hydration pack:  their Reversible Reservoir II Hydration System.    This is such a wonderful thing.  Especially for someone like me.   Point being I have reached the point that I only will put water in my bladders - otherwise, inevitability will strike and all sorts of neat stuff tends to grow in there.  

Ok, I know many of you are thinking "What is so hard about emptying your pack post ride?"   Well, post ride I am usually pretty tired, hungry and, yeah, smelly.    So after I get home, I will shower, then maybe eat a little something, maybe take a nap, take in Point Break or The Hunt for Red October again if either is on the tube...

Basically I will do anything that is not emptying my bladder.

So it sits.  Therefore it grows.

Now what Hydrapak did is f-in brilliant.  They made this f-er reversible.  You simply slide a f-in plastic sheath off the top of it, unfold a flap, and, huzzah, you have complete access to the innerds of the bladder.    It is f-in magical.  You can liken it a lot to "dry bags" that water people might use to keep their gear dry.  Except this is used to keep the water in.

Honestly, the design is brilliant and a dozen or so rides in, I have had no leaking issues and felt nothing but warm fuzzies.  

Furthermore, if you have any concerns about these bladders overall toughness, just watch this shakey-ass torture test video.  

The Pack:  Initial Impressions

"Out of the box" the pack seems nice.  It is "tight", everything seems well tied down.  It has a "plasticy" compression strap around the meat of the pack that is thought out well enough so you don't have straps dangling everywhere.

The fake words "tidy-ish" and "streamline-ish" come to mind. 

Straps

The shoulder straps also employ this same plasticy material attached in a "diamond punched" pattern that runs down them.  I am going to guess these are for attaching things to apart from the sternum strap.  Camera cases, glow sticks, bowie knives, bear repellent,  whatever.   The shoulder straps also feature a velcro receptor that hooks up with a velcro sheath wrapped around the drinking tube to help comfortably route it.   (More on this later)

Storage

Storagewise the Laguna is well played.   Not terribly excessive, nor lacking by any stretch of the imagination.   It has 5 storage compartments:

1) The main storage:  It unzips along the top and runs the depth of the pack.  It is adorned with a bunch of sheath like pockets along with a shallow mesh pocket.  

2 ) The lower compartment:  A standalone pocket that sits along the bottom of the pack.  A good sized for the smaller common things you tend to need readily, like snacks or a mini-tool.  On the outside of this pocket is a narrow sheath like storage spot - you can probably get a snack or two in there, or maybe even a map.  It is held closed by a small strip of velcro and does not seem like a the securest place to hold things of value.

3) The media pocket:  This is a small velvet lined pocket along the top front of the pack.   It has a little schfinctery portal that allots you the ability to have your headphones exit the pack gracefully straight into your earholes.

4) The Helmet Hammock:  To be honest, I didn't even know this existed until it was pointed out to me!  There is a tiny little zippered compartment on the bottom of the Laguna that produces a nice mesh helmet holder that wraps up around the outside of the pack and hooks at the top.   A pretty sneaky nice feature.

Holy crap, MORE storage?

Yup.  There is a zipper that "circumnavigates" the entire pack that lets the pack expand an additional 300 cubic inches.  Nice and clean and simple and smart.

The part that touches you

The back of the pack they appear to try to make it as "cooling" as possible - it is composed of a breathable looking mesh with a series of raised "lumps" that I imagine are to create channels for air to flow along your back.   Yup.  Sure.  Well, I am what you would call a "heavy sweater" and of all the packs I have used, not a single one made my back feel any cooler than any other.   Maybe this works for you lighter sweaters, or for ladies who I am told "don't sweat", rather they "perspire".   For me, this is kind of a futile feature, though I suppose it could be worse.

Your Fluids

I already covered the reversible bladder above,  and yeah, it is pretty badass - but where you put the bladder is a minor point of contention with me.   The Laguna has what I like to call a "partially open model for bladder storage" - there is a compartment along the rear of the pack that it slides right into and hooks onto a little holder to keep the bladder upright so you can get to every last drop of liquid.   This compartment is secured only by a little velcro swatch.   So far it has stayed closed for me, but the little swath of velcro is small, and in time I am pretty sure it just is not going to hold.  

Then you will be one of those "messy" people on the trail with their hydration pack all f-ed up and sloppy.

You gotta look good out there people.

It might be ok though, time will tell.   I would prefer a zipper here.

The Tube

It does what it is supposed to while being easily detached from the bladder and maintained - but I have two gripes with it.

1) It is quite stiff.   It does not necessarily "hang" that well - instead it tends to protrude from your chest and bounce around.  I imagine the velcro tube router mentioned above was the solution to this problem, but I tend to wear my packs "a little slack" - that is to say I let out the shoulder straps a little so it isn't riding high on my shoulders.  I just find it more comfy like this.  Unfortunately this puts the "velcro router" right on my shoulder. 

2) The bite valve.  To be fair, this is 100% personal preference.  This valve works just fine:  you bite and drink.   I simply prefer the Camelback style, probably because it is what I originally suckled on hydration pack-wise.   This one is very sensitive though - while it does have a lock down mode,  when it is unlocked the slightest pressure on the bite valve will cause leakage.

Lucky for us everyone seems to use the same diameter tubing, so swap it out if you to.

And to be completely unfair...

There is no storage mesh on the outside.   Nice deep mesh is where I have stored my GPS units while riding for, like, ever now.  There is no good place to store a GPS so it has a view of the sky for reception purposes.  

I can't fault Hydrapak for this one, but I can shoot them some disapproving looks.

Conclusion

I really like this pack.  It is as comfortable as any hydration pack I have ever ridden with.  It has plenty of storage and nicely organized storage pockets.  It even looks nice.  Plus the reversible bladder is the cats pajamas.

Pros

1. Reversible Bladder is Number 1!
2. Well thought out storage wise.  Expandability is nice.
3. Helmet Hammock is cool.
4. Comfortable and streamlined.
5. The people at Hydrapak are good people.
6. The price/value ratio is excellent. 

Cons

1. Stiff hose.
2. Bladder storage area could use some extra fastening.
3. Not a fan of the bite valve. 

In a nutshell though, this is easily one of the best packs I have used.   Compare its size and features to some of the "other" brands out there....  now throw in price.  Chances are you will be heading home with a Laguna.

I highly recommend it.