The Tupilak Pack, 1 year on
- News
We have our idea of the perfect alpine pack. We want it to be simple. We want it to be lightweight. We want it to be durable.
We know it should climb well yet be big enough to carry all that you need with nothing that you don’t.
Read on to find out if the critics agree.
Alpinist: Mountain Equipment Tupilak 30+. Simple, light and ‘hardcore’
I’m a sucker for things that are simple, efficient and durable. The Mountain Equipment Tupilak 30+ alpine climbing pack certainly fits that description. This is the most hardcore rucksack I’ve ever used. No frills. All utilitarian grit. The Mountain Equipment website describes the largest of the Tupilak series as a “durable, highly weather-resistant yet lightweight climbing pack [that] is optimized for alpine and winter climbing on the steepest lines and biggest faces.” I have to agree that the Tupilak 30—the smallest of the series—lives up to the claim and thus deserves five stars.
UKC: Mountain Equipment Tupilak 37+ Pack Review
This is one of the best-fitting climbing packs I’ve used, period. Features have clearly been thought about, tested and tweaked to the n-th degree….. you’re getting a seriously functional pack that feels streamlined without sacrificing too much in pursuit of absolute minimalism. The quality of the materials and build are second to none too, and seem up to years of hard use….. for committed winter and alpine climbers the Tupilak has to be among the best technical mountain packs money can buy.
Rock and Ice: The Tulipak caters to the wants and needs of alpinists
The Tulipak caters to the wants and needs of alpinists, offering impressive carrying capability, durability and comfort, while being outstandingly minimal and weighing only 20 to 27 ounces depending on which accoutrements you strip off. Several innovative design ideas make this specialist pack stand out, including the robust one-handed Grapple buckle fastening system, the over-the-top leash for securing ropes or cinching the bag neatly when carrying less, the internal roll-top dry bag, and the floating EVA foam “hip fins” on the waist belt. The pack sits out of the way when you are climbing, and the tapered shape distributes weight well when fully loaded, equally, it packs down neatly when carrying minimal loads, making it extremely versatile and as appropriate for multi-day winter alpinism as single-day fast-and-light outings.
Trek and Mountain: Mountain Equipment Tupilak 37+ review
ME claim that their packs are both lightweight and functional, built to serve climbers looking for an uncluttered, minimalist design, and while testing out the mid-sized model during the Scottish winter season on both walk-ins and on steep ice and mixed routes, we have been impressed by how well the 37+ pack lived up to these claims. It has some neat and original features, which, combined with its tough but lightweight design, puts it at the top of the list of packs for climbers to try out.
Climbing: Review. Mountain Equipment Tupilak 37+ Backpack
For alpine aficionados or those who simply like lightweight, low-profile packs for cragging/scrambling/alpine-rock objectives, the Tupilak 37+ is a creative, versatile, hard-wearing, genre-defining offering. “If you like this family of packs, you’ll love the Tupilak,” he concluded. “Its lid-buckling system is ingenious, it’s lighter than similar options, and the cut of the pack allows for easy packing.”
