What’s my pack: The Geigerrig Rig 1210

A good daypack is like a friend on the trail. The right one will care for and nurture you. The wrong one is a burden. Geez, sounds a little like a relationship. Anyhow, I’ve hiked with many different models, even from the same manufacturers, and no two are the same. In fact, I’ve determined you can’t have just one. This may be why I need so much room for gear n’ stuff…. I may not have a stylish wardrobe, but I could outfit a small Boy Scout troop.

Too cool looking for me… the Geigerrig Rig 1210

Geigerrig gave me one of their new daypacks, The Rig 1210, to test in January, and I been putting it to work since. As is typical for me, I’ve used it outside its planned uses a few times, but between you and me, I think they plan for that.

When they first handed me the pack the first thing I noticed was the trendy green trim. “This could ruin my nerd rep,” I thought. It has pulled together so many of my outfits I’m somewhat embarrassed. It looks like I’m one of those hiker/skiers who went out and bought coordinating gear. The truth is I buy gear based on specs and price. Looks don’t enter the equation, unless all the other bases are covered first.

The next thing I noticed on the pack were the zippers and pulls. Both were high quality, and the pulls had rubberized rings, easy to grab with gloved hands.

Geigerrig Zipper Pulls

The size is just right for day hikes, but as always the real benefit of any Geigerrig pack is the hydration system which pressurizes using a small bulb just below the shoulder. Not only is it nice not to have to suck the water from my pack, but it was perfect for sharing with my K9 hiking buddy, Indy. I had forgotten to bring a bowl, but it wasn’t a problem. I just squirted the water straight into my hand and before long he just drank from the stream. The pressurized stream of water is also useful for washing hands or even wounds.

Another benefit of the pressurized hydration system is the ability add an in-line water filter so that the bladder can be filled directly from a stream and the contents filtered on the way to your mouth, skipping the tedious process of separate filtering.

The hydration bladder itself is designed with a full-width opening making it easy to clean. It’s even dishwasher safe. All of the hoses detach a drain quickly so no more funky first-sip. Quite simply, I stay better hydrated with this system because I never have to give it a thought – it just works.  This model included some small improvements since early versions, fixing a couple of small annoyances.

I’ve had this pack out on multiple spring hikes and a day of backcountry skiing. The hip belt fit well and kept the weight off my shoulders, even with a moderately heavy load. The ventilation along the straps and back kept sweat build-up to a minimum but didn’t eliminate it completely. On the ski day, I never felt like I have to de-glove to fetch anything. I didn’t have any zipper failures or other malfunctions. The fabric is tough ballistic Nylon, so tree grabs weren’t an issue.

Ventilated Back and Straps

In summary, this is a tough and annoyingly good-looking pack, powered by the Geigerrig Hydration System, which I feel is the best on the market (my personal opinion after trying many different options). In fact, I move the hydration component from pack to pack because it will fit in just about anything, not just their packs.

The Rig 1210 with the Pressurized Hydration System retails for $195.00 USD

I was provided the pack free of charge for the purpose of review. As always my opinions are my own and I was under no obligation to say nice things about this pack. I receive no other compensation for reviewing or writing about the pack.