My thoughts on OSPREY Atmos 50 Rucksack - Review

Are you ready for the best rucksack modeling your eyes have ever seen?

As you might have noticed, I LOVE being outdoors.

The more I travel around, the longer I realize how important being out breathing fresh air is for my wellbeing.

I have said it in the past and I’ll say it again: the whole point of traveling in a van is to spend as much time as possible out of it!

I am  quickly becoming a hiking fanatic and are have been dreaming about completing long EU trails for a while now.

A capacious, comfortable but light backpack is probably your outdoor friend n. 1. Until now, I only had a 20l backpack. I had used it for overnight hiking trips and, although I loved the minimalism of it, It just wasn’t practical.

I had been drooling over Osprey rucksacks for the past few years, trying one on every time I’d go into an outdoor shop (yes I am that kind of annoying client), wondering when I would finally be able to get my hands on one.

Osprey’s name sounds sweet to the ears of any hiker and rightly so. They’ve been making backpacks for nearly 50 years and are well known for their excellent choice of materials and designs.

You can only imagine how OVER THE MOON I was when Simply Hike asked if I wanted to try any of their Osprey’s site available on their site.

Like YEEEEEEEAHHH?

I decided to go for the ATMOS AG 50 Rucksack as I had seen incredible reviews and read that it often classified on the top 10 Backpacks for long distance hiking.

As  I mentioned, I am planning a few thru-hikes and I was looking for something that wouldn’t cut my shoulders but that wouldn’t be too heavy neither.  This backpack features 100D x 630D Nylon Dobby and weighs 2.02kg.  Not as light as ultralight models, but lighter than traditional backpacks and OH MY so comfortable.

Most of their backpack feature their ”AntiGravity™ ”Technology which does not magically dissolve weight but does distribute it in an optimal manner.

A few years ago I had hiked a 6 day path from Bologna to Florence called ”La Via degli Dei”  with my 20lt backpack. It was summer. It was hot. I remember the most uncomfortable thing were not the blisters or the burnt shoulders but the feeling of the backpack on a sweaty back.  Just thinking about that makes me tense up.  This is why I was very curious to try the Atmos 50 AG Rucksack as it seemed to have a pretty epic mesh insert on the back.

The first thing that I thought when I tried it was: It feels like somebody is hugging you.

Compared to my previous backpack, this one felt much stiffer particularly around the belt. I guess that this allows weight to be unloaded to your hip crease releasing some from your back. The firmness of it it’s actually quite nice as it makes the backpack feel super sturdy and you know that It won’t move all over the place when you’re walking.  A second buckle fastener on the chest re-balances the weight in the upper part of the torso.

The second thing that I thought was ”what are all of those straps for?”.

It took me quite a while to understand which buckle fastened where and which strap tightened what, but that’s maybe just me not having had enough coffee.

The backpack has a main sleeping bag compartment with divider, internal pocket and compression strap. This compartment is very spacious and can fit my humongous sleeping bag.

The lower compartment is accessible through external zipper (that’s where I put my food and/or shoes) and outside it has two buckle fasteners that can be used to store your sleeping pad.

This design has two lid pockets accessible from the outside. In one is stored a  VERY BRIGHT rain cover to protect your backpack. The cool thing about the lid is that if you are trying to minimize weight or just don’t need that extra storage you can simply remove it and save a few hundred grams.

The backpack also includes a front outside pocket which is super useful to put maps or a book, two very spacious belt pockets ideal for snacks and two sides mesh pockets.

The backpack comes in different colors and sizes to adjust perfectly to your torso length (I personally went for a medium fit).

My final thoughts on it?

I have used the backpack a fair bit now (both for 2 day hikes and for day long hikes) to be able to draw my conclusions.

The good bits:

• Even when loaded to full capacity (up to 30kg) it still feels comfortable to wear. Sure you feel your 5 cans of chickpeas you packed in, but the weight is so skilfully distributed that you don’t feel the need to curse every 5 steps. The AntiGravity™ Technology really does work so thank you Osprey.
• The mesh paneling. On my last hike in the beautiful North Harris I did get some heat going on. My sweaty back was left to breathe and I was incredibly grateful for it.
• The materials: every single bit of this rucksack is feels like it’s made with top quality materials. The zippers, the nylon, the fasteners all seem to be made to stand up the test of time. The only part I feel could get damaged is the mesh paneling. I guess that as it’s on the inside part of the backpack it’s in a way protected from tear.
• The service: all Osprey’s backpacks are covered by their ”All Mighty Guarantee” where they cover you for production faults.
• And finally, if you haven’t had a hug for a while, this backpack can be used provisionally until you get one.

The not so good bits:

• There are no internal zippered pockets. I understand that extra pockets and compartments add weight but to me is a bit of a concern as I am VERY prone to losing things. There is a little spring clap  inside the main compartment, but I would feel more at ease if there was a secured zip pocket.
• Colors: the Atmos AG 50 is available in three colors: Abyss Grey Unity blue and Rigby Red. They look OK but I would have loved if they an option of a brighter colour such as teal or light blue (yes I am a girl and like pretty things).
• Bulky to store. This is true for any backpack with frames i guess, but It’s something to consider if you are traveling in a van. I had to move all of my under bed things to new homes to make space for it.

So that’s it, those are my thoughts on the Atmos AG 50 backpack and I cannot wait to share many more trips and adventures with it.  Let me know if you found this review useful, you can find the full range on the Simply Hike site.

Ok, ok, here is the LAST rucksack modeling pose for you, as I can hear you asking for it.

****I am not receiving a compensation for writing this review, I did however receive the backpack from  Simply Hike in exchange of my opinion on it. All pictures and views are my own.****

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