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Klättermusen produce a wide range of packs covering everything from multi-day treks and ski tours to casual days out in the hills. The Klättermusen Ull 30L is billed as an Alpine Lightweight Backpack and it certainly hits that target weighing in at a feathery 796g. With ski touring cited as one of its main uses it’s very much in the lightweight category with most 30l ski touring packs coming in somewhat north of 1000g. However the Ull is far more of an all-rounder and makes for a great single day alpine pack.
| Pros | Cons |
| Very comfortable Tough Lightweight Zip access Unbreakable buckles | Internal pocket a bit small Only one (dedicated) ice axe holder |
The basic design of the Ull is a classic roll top single compartment pack with two internal pockets and auxiliary side zip entry. The main body of the pack is uses Retina® a 70 denier 50% post consumer recycled polyamide that is PFC free. So far this is holding up extremely well despite its relatively lightweight nature and has also proved to be admirably weatherproof. The base of the pack is reinforced with Hardur® a polyamide/Kevlar blend for increased abrasion resistance. Externally there are four side compression straps that fasten with unbreakable aluminium ‘G’ hooks, Klättermusen’s signature Cord Loop Webbing (more on this later) and a novel minimalist axe loop/pole retainer. The side starts allow for an ‘A’ frame ski carry but there are no dedicated ski slots. Alongside the roll-top entry is a full length side zip that enables you to access the depths of the pack without removing the overlying contents or to arrange for lunch/flask etc to be rapidly available. Internally there is a slip pocket to separate out your shovel and probe or it can be used to separate other equipment. It intrudes minimally on the normal use of the pack and fastens with a simple toggle and loop. As with all of Klättermusen’s products sustainability is at the forefront of their designs and they had a fully PFC free range of products in 2017. In line with many Scandanavian brands there is perhaps a slightly stronger preference toward durability rather than lightweight, though recently they appear to be reconciling these frequently disparate objectives and the Ull 30L is good example of this.
Over the last six months I’ve used the Ull for general multi pitch cragging in the UK and French Alps, Scottish winter climbing (that turned out to be more soggy scrambling as everything was warm wet and slushy) and Nordic ski touring in Norway. It is a fabulously versatile pack and the simple streamlined design allows it to excel in many roles. The pack carries incredibly well and although the bungee hook sternum strap took a little adjusting to I actually came to prefer it the the conventional Fastex buckle set up especially with gloves on. The elastic nature of this set up also meant that I felt I could crank it down a bit more for stability without restricting my breathing, handy for an aerobically fir Nordic tourer lacking in technique! The side zip entry to the main pack body proved very useful as well. I’ve not used a pack with this feature since my old purple Karrimor Alpinist (I wish i’d never got rid of that pack!) and strangely I liked it more now than I did back then. Quick zip access to food, drink an extra layer etc. is certainly a time and faff saver.
The pack also sports Klättermusen’s distinctive ‘accessory loop’ system that allows you to fasten pouches and pockets very securely to the outside of the pack using the toggle and loop system. You may or may not like the idea of accessory pockets but one area they work very well for is when walking/skiing into a hut for an overnight and wanting to take a little bit of extra food ‘luxury’. With the this system you can effectively overload a smaller pack for a non technical approach and then in the morning have it stripped back for the days climbing. Elsewhere on the pack there is a neat ice axe/pole carrier which worked fine for a single axe but struggled to cope with two – I stashed double axes using the side compression straps. The ice axe holder also relied on a ‘tuck it under’ upper retention system that I’m not a massive fan of (and can be problematic with technical tools) preferring to have a bungee loop or similar as this gives you belt and braces axe retention incase a single point fails. However along with an overly small internal pocket these are the only nitpick faults I could find in a generally excellent package. The Ull carried comfortably and securely whether climbing or skiing. Besides being eco friendly the fabrics used have proven to be both very weatherproof and impressively wear resistant. The use of metal buckles through including the hip belt means that broken buckles from a clumsy foot on the belay stance are a thing of the past. It does mean that they can get shockingly cold in sub zero conditions but then you’ll normally have your gloves on and they are all easy enough to operate even with mitts.
In conclusion the Ull 30 litre is a thoroughly recommended pack. It is ideally suited to single axe alpine ventures and lightweight ski touring. Although it has the capacity for technical single day alpine or Scottish winter routes the lack of a double tool carry will mean that you have to improvise you technical tool carry – both down the side compression straps works well but some people will not be comfortable with this. In terms of improvements I’d like to see a slightly bigger internal zip pocket and perhaps dedicated ice axe top bungee – though to be honest this is ridiculously easy to rig.
SRP £249
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