I was intrigued the first time I laid my eyes on Mountainsmith’s new travel pack, the Cavern. Its clean lines slightly confused me; there were no mesh pockets, zippered compartments, or any of the other accouterments seen on so many other packs. It reminded me of the classic rucksacks worn by the legendary heroes of my youth: Jeff Lowe, Layton Kor, Fred Beckey, and a host of others. How would such a sleek, classic design function in today’s modern world?
As the world gets faster and more complicated, it’s nice to slow down sometimes, to unclutter our lives and simplify everyday tasks. That is the driving aesthetic behind the design of this pack, and its uncomplicated layout. To test the functionality of the bag I replaced my trusty messenger bag with the Cavern and embarked on several cross-country trips. The pack went with me as I visited six different airports, took an Amtrak ride, went subterranean on subways, and spent time in Yosemite.
I have to tell you I am a fan. It actually brought a bit of fun back into air travel, if that’s possible.
The twenty-four liter main compartment easily stored all of my books, files, and research items along with a change of clothes, with room to spare; hell, it even fit my climbing harness and La Sportivas coming back to Denver. It’s drawstring top allowed me to expand and compress the pack as needed. The bright yellow interior lining made spotting items easy in darkened airplanes, tents, and hotels. Accessing my computer in security lines and cramped seats was simple due to the large side panel laptop storage compartment.
The pack’s two storage pockets are well hidden from sight but equally useful. The smaller one is located at the top of the pack in the cover flap and was perfect for phone, headphones and snacks. The second, larger pocket is on the front of the pack concealed under the flap, with several sleeves inside so you can organize items for easy availability.
The pack also can double as a daypack, which, due to poor packing on my behalf, it did at Yosemite. The waist belt, sternum strap, and rugged Poly Melange body held up well after a day hiking and climbing.
Flight after flight, hotel after hotel, I kept waiting for my new travel partner to let me down, to disappoint the way modern travel can, it never did. I actually retired my trusty Patagonia bike bag that accompanied me for several years.
If I were to change one thing on the pack, it would be to add a small mesh pocket to each side of the pack for easy access to a water bottle, but then again, maybe that would just over-complicate a good thing. It retails for ($89.95).
