Hey Joey, thanks for that detailed report and I’m glad you’re pleased with your Mariposa 60. I remember having the same thought about the tiny box it arrived at my house in. Wow. But it does have excellent capacity and carries 30 pounds comfortably. It also functions as a daypack reasonably well, considering how much can fit inside that thing. Good luck with your future adventures with it! I hope we bump into each other on the trail sometime; be sure to say hello. Happy trails.

Over the years, the kids have grown up (no longer slugging their gear) and I’ve been able to transition to an ultralight tent, lighter stove etc, and have been able to get under 30lbs for most of my trips over the past few years. So I started thinking about moving away from my 5lb Osprey Xenith to something ultralight. I wanted a pack with good pockets, a brain, good structure and support and decent volume.

Based on your review I took a flyer on the Mariposa. When it arrived I was shocked at the ~2″ by 14″ by 30″ box that it came in… what the heck…never seen a backpack in a box like that. I got it out of the box and rolled my eyes as I thought I’d been duped, the thing was so lightweight, there was no way it was going to provide any support, and I was sure that I’d snap, rip or puncture something the first time I used it… but what the heck I got it, might as well see what it does.
We planned a trip based on our regular MO. 9 miles each way up past Sawtooth lake, 3 nights so in-out and 2 days of day hiking (around 6 miles each) one to a false peak and another to … well different destination.

My first epiphany to the power of the Mariposa came when I put in the very first item. I backpack with my wife and we carry a pretty heavy King Solomon double sleeping bag. Since I got the light pack, I got the heavy sleeping bag. I put it in the pack by itself, thought this isn’t too bad, then with the sleeping bag in the pack I picked up my wife’s empty Osprey and the Mariposa still weighed less. ….oooh, i’m going to like this.

Pack weight ended up just under 30 lbs. Tons of room in the main bag, hip pockets provided easy storage of an oversized Note 10 plus my glasses case on one side, gorp in the other. Huge back pocket where I put my camp shoes and rain jacket, dog leash, water bottle, etc etc etc. Overall impressive capacity and functionality.

On the trail the thing carried great at that weight, plenty of adjustability, plenty wide hip belt better than expected structure.

The pack weighs less than most fanny packs, so for day hiking it was a no brainer to carry the entire thing. The removable sit pad was awesome for day hiking and of course it carrys great with just day hike gear in there.

I can’t gauge the durability after only one trip, but I can say that it held up for this one trip just fine.

My only negative on the pack would be the sweaty back syndrome that seems pretty common for ultralight packs that don’t have a mesh transom. I’m definitely considering the upgrade but even as is, I will pick this pack every time over anything else I’ve ever owned.

Thanks so much for being a trusty reviewer and see you on the trail.