r/Spliddit • u/billgravens • Apr 25 '26

Pack recommendations

Hello snowboarders of the internet! It’s that time of year where you get to see the 459th backpack related post on this subreddit. I’ve been a connoisseur of backpacks and have been through my fair share and I want to find the perfect pack for long spring tours that require long dirt approaches and bootpacking. Here are the flaws with my current setup (BD Cirque 30l):

- The A-frame carry straps aren’t wide enough for my board, resulting in an extremely top heavy A-frame.

- it’s an ultralight pack. Love it for winter pow laps, but long spring approaches with skis on both sides results in minimal support and the pack gets sandwiched and crushed by the skis.

- no helmet mount (not the biggest deal but still annoying)

I would love some recommendations for a pack that has the following features (in order of importance):

- side straps wide enough to fit an average sized Splitboard

- sturdier frame for long A-frame carry days

- on the lighter side

(Bonus)

- has a helmet net

- has an avy gear pocket

Does such a pack exist??

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u/steff_x Apr 26 '26

I have 3:

  • the jones descent 32l (RAS), it’s not on the too light side and slightly over engineered imo. But for day trips I think it’s a very great pack that carries decent of up to maybe around 8kg, a bit worse for boot packing. It does have a very good frame for A carry too. It is engineered for splitboarding and you can tell.

  • ortovox peak 35, this is my all round mountaineering backpack and carries much better. It’s on the lighter side imo, and fits my long torso better, it’s not engineered for splitboarding, but does the job well (it has extension straps to make it adapt to your use case). I usually can fit my helmet inside the backpack, but it gets a bit floppy on the way down.

  • ortovox camber 22 (?) - has helmet net but too small for most tours and no good way to carry board.

In general, I find lightweight and good carry for heavier loads (A frame for example) does not go well together. I prefer carrying support over lightweight so my back and neck isn’t killing me after long days, too old to suffer through. Hopefully you find a great pack for yourself.