Gear Review: Daypack
Company: Mammut
Product: Lithium 20
It seems like there are special bags for every type of outing these day, and it’s hard to find a bag that works well for a breadth of activities. You get away with certain multipurpose bags, but you won’t thrive with them. This is where the Mammut Lithium 20 comes in. Whatever your expectations are, the Lithium is about to exceed them.
Mammut’s Lithium 20 is a 20L daypack that works in nearly all day activities. Here are my favorite features:
- Firm Back: A lot of daypacks have either no back support, or a back support that is too heavy and rigid. The Lithium strikes the perfect balance where no matter what you fill your bag with, the back will still flat and supportive, yet it can also be squished if you need to fit it in a small space.
- Removable Hips: For a heavier or longer day, I really appreciate having a supportive hip belt to distribute the weight better. Just like the back, the hips are perfect balance between firm and light. Additionally, there is a little phone pocket, so when you need to constantly keep checking Mountain Project to find the crag, you can easily access your phone. When you just need the bag for a trip to the gym, the store, the beach, or any other low-key destination, you can remove the hip belt and wear it like a normal backpack without having have the hips in the way.
- Weight: I have no clue how this bag manages, but it is somehow a pretty lightweight bag. With some bags, it feels like half the weight you’re carrying is the bag itself, but that is not the case with the Lithium 20. It’s not going to blow away in the wind, but it’s not going to slow you down, either.
- Material: I run extremely warm just at rest, so when I’m being active, you can only imagine how warm I am. Bags that are more meshy or with no support at all are somehow always drenched with sweat when I’m using them. Aside from being kind of gross, it is also rather uncomfortable and it gets annoying very quickly. The Lithium 20 designed the shoulder straps (just as the back and hips…wonderfully comfortable and light), hips, and back with an airy, sweat wicking material. The days of sweaty backpacks are over at Mammut!
- Durability: Even really expensive bags wear and have issues. Maybe its a zipper, or some padding gets remolded somehow, or the outside gets a little fuzzy, or maybe the mesh pockets get some holes. So far, this pack has had no such issue, and it’s been through a lot. Other than the chalk marks everywhere (oops), it looks brand new. And you can feel it, too. The handle isn’t going anywhere. Nor are the zippers, or the mesh, or any other features. The Lithium is built to last. And it does.
- Pockets: As a woman, pockets have a very special place in my heart, as they are rather hard to come by in women’s clothing. This bag, however, has exactly what you need. At first, I’ll admit, I was a bit weary that it didn’t have enough, but it actually is the perfect set up. You have the main compartment for all your gear, a small pocket on the outside for smaller stuff (e.g., tape, hair ties), and a thin spot at the top for the trinity: phone, wallet, keys. The smaller compartments lets you separate your smaller items so you don’t have to dig through everything to find something small. Even more, the side mesh pockets fit all sizes of water bottles, including Nalgenes and Hydroflasks. For those rainy days, there’s even a hidden pocket at the bottom with a rain cover. Amazing, right?
Needless to say, there is hardly a time when the Lithium 20 isn’t the right bag for the job. Once you try it on for the first time, there’s no going back. Give it a go.
Recommendation: All skill levels
Specs: 20L, 740g, 100% polyamide, 89% recycled materials
MSRP: $109.95
Website:
thedihedral.com 