Gossamer Gear
Gossamer Gear Mariposa 60
The Mariposa 60 is Gossamer Gear's signature pack, famous for its asymmetric pocket layout — one giant over-the-shoulder pocket that holds a tent, plus six more — and a removable back pad that doubles as a camp sit pad. It's the organized person's ultralight.
Specifications
Features
Pros
- ✓The seven-pocket layout is the best organization in ultralight — fans say they touch the main compartment twice a day, morning and night.
- ✓The tall side pocket holds a full tent separately from dry gear, the single most-praised design choice.
- ✓The removable back pad doubles as a sit pad, saving carrying a separate one.
- ✓Robic nylon at 100/200 denier hits a durability sweet spot documented across thousands-of-miles reports.
- ✓Hipbelt sizing is independent of torso sizing, giving semi-custom fit from stock parts.
- ✓Carries 30-35 lbs comfortably with the stay in — honest rating per long-term reviews.
- ✓The Austin-based company's customer service and repair culture draw consistent praise.
- ✓Fits a BV500 horizontally at the top of the bag, which many 60L UL packs can't.
Cons
- ✗The asymmetric layout is polarizing — packing balanced weight takes practice and annoys symmetry-lovers.
- ✗The foam back pad ventilates poorly and soaks sweat on climbs.
- ✗The single aluminum stay twists under 35+ lb loads; it's not a heavy hauler.
- ✗Mesh pockets abrade in brush faster than solid-face rivals.
- ✗No top lid and a floppy over-the-top strap system that takes fiddling to compress well.
- ✗Fixed torso sizes with online-only sizing risk.
- ✗At $315 it's priced above the Circuit while carrying slightly worse at max load.
- ✗The hipbelt foam softens noticeably after a full thru-hike, per multiple finishers.
Compare the Gossamer Gear Mariposa 60
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