Yury wrote:I am not sure I understand why so many people are pissed-off by the idea of a 100 liters pack for Pacific North-West mountaineering school.
For me, it comes down to an ethos thing. Only carry what you absolutely need. 100 liters is unnecessarily large and heavy for any route in the PNW, and gear is like gold fish - they grow to fit the size of their containers. I recall climbing with Colin Haley years ago. We were sitting down, having a break, drinking water. He looks at me and says "EB, your water bottle has a sticker." "So", says I. "But EB, stickers weigh", Colin replied emphatically. I recognize that not everyone climbs technical routes where too much weight means failure, but certainly carrying less weight on the trade routes means more enjoyment.
Yury wrote:What about the following scenario?
You hike to a base camp in light hikers and want to put into your pack (in addition to your personal gear):
- a rope
- a helmet
- a pair of plastic boots
- a bear canister
I suspect that you would need 100+ litrers pack for such hike-in.
Rope, helmet, plastic boots can all go on the outside of the pack. Bear canisters are generally not carried in the PNW, although some heavily used areas (e.g. Boston Basin) they have recently become required due to rodent problems. In the Bugaboos we carried very large packs into base camp, then carried summit packs for the actual climbing. That is the only trip where I felt a giant pack was useful.