Hi everyone!

I'm a novice mountaineer looking for pack advice for my next trip with IMG to attempt Orizaba/Ixta in Mexico. Based on my research, I've come down to between the Gregory Denali 75 vs the Black Diamond Mission 75.

Price & weight wise - the Mission is the winner.

• Denali 75: $419 CDN - approx 6 lbs
• Mission 75: $259 CDN - approx 3 lbs

I would attempt to compare the "features" of the backpack but my experience is minimal and I don't know what works/doesn't work for expedition trips like Mexico. Ixta/Orizaba don't come across as "technical" climb so a simple pack may be a better choice (Again, I'm not sure).

I also have a Mission 55 that I've used for Rainier and it was a fairly good pack. It carried fine with loads up to 40-ish lbs. Even though I am leaning towards the BD Mission 75, I am tempted to try other brands (ie Gregory) to see what my they are like.

Any advice would be appreciated, especially if you've done Orizaba/Ixta. Thanks for your time

I have done this trip with IMG. You are going to have an awesome time.

There is no need to buy a new pack, your Mission 55 is plenty of pack for this trip. With the exception of high camp on Ixta you will be staying in hotels or huts which you will drive up to. The move to Ixta high camp was done over two days (cache gear and descend to hut on the first day) so I don't think my pack ever weighed more than 25-30 lbs.