Armed Lifestyle - Issue 2 - June 2022

46
DULUTH PACK: WANDERER
DULUTH PACK:
WANDERER
BY JARED PELTZ AND TRAMPAS SWANSON
As the editor of the Armed Lifestyle Magazine, part of my
duties involves placing quality products in the hands of our writers
to test, evaluate and in turn, report to our readers for educational
purposes. In these times when budgets are tighter than ever, our
goal is to help those who are serious about investing in quality
gear make the best investment possible. The goal here is to find
items that will not only do their intended job and continue to
do so for years to come. These articles are so well written and
packed full of useful information, that I fully admit to occasionally
being a bit envious of the writers who get to work with that
“one” product that stands alone with a style and presence that
is all its own.
The Wanderer by Duluth Pack is one such item in which I had
sent to fellow Swanson Media Group writer, Jared Peltz to review
a couple of years ago for a former client publication, The Gear
Locker. After reading the review and learning more about the
history and quality that went into the construction of the pack, I
knew I had to check this one out for myself. This issue, I’ll share
Jared’s original thoughts as well as what I personally discovered
as well.
FAIR WARNING
As Jared originally mentioned, the Wanderer is manufactured
by Duluth Pack in the great state of Minnesota. This is a historic
company that has been in business since the end of the Civil War
Reconstruction Era of US History when the west was still being
settled and covered wagons were the SUV’s of society. Officially
manufacturing canvas backpacks and products in Minnesota
since 1882, Duluth Pack prides itself in never evolving over the
years away from the attention to detail and quality in which they
were founded on. Know any other companies that use to repair
covered wagons? No? Me neither.
So, why the warning? Well, for starters, this backpack isn’t
made from 500 Denier lightweight Condura nylon fabric, nor
does it come with an iPhone holder, slots for earbud wires, bottle
openers, Molle attachments, or other “tacti-cool” features some
may consider “necessary” for their Starbucks spoiled lifestyle. If
you can get past that, the Wanderer is the pack for you from a
company about as “old school” as it gets. This pack, like all Duluth
Pack products is built to be extremely rugged while offering a
since of style and class often lost in modern society.
WANDERER SPECS
The Wanderer pack is essentially a scaled down version of Duluth
Pack’s very popular Rambler model designed for Bushcrafting,
hiking, camping, and other rigorous outdoor activities. The
Wanderer is constructed from 15 oz. canvas with a simple box
style design. The top flap straps are copper riveted with premium
leather and roller buckles. (Think: leather belt thickness.) These
straps were surprisingly thicker in comparison to those that
secured the side and front pockets.
In addition to the thick straps, Duluth Pack includes leather
reinforcement for all riveted and high stress seams. The pack’s
main compartment measured 16” high, 15” wide, and 6” deep for
the primary storage area. The side pockets were approximately
9” high, 4.5” wide and about 2” deep. The front pocket measured
about 9” high, 8” wide, and 1.5” deep. It definitely had enough
room to serve as a quick day+ pack. For multiple day treks, I
believe the original Rambler may be a better option.
Jared’s original test sample came in Olive Drab, but Duluth
Pack offers eleven other canvas options to choose from including
three waxed options such as the Khaki colored waxed pack that I
ultimately decided to go with. If you are going to consistently be
in wet or damp environments, I would recommend the waxed
option. A second option Duluth Pack offers is a canvas wax kit for
those who wish to wax their packs later after purchasing one of
the other packs.
The roomy, unconstructed main compartment cinched closed
via a leather draw cord with an easy-to-use cord lock. The long
leather straps attached to the top flap offer 7 grommeted holes
for adjustment to allow for a bed roll to be placed on the inside of
a fully loaded main compartment. Even while at full capacity, the
pack could still be cinched down to give the bed roll protection
from the elements as well as the rest of the inside contents.
Along the top was a well-supported “grab and go” handle for
hanging the pack on a hook or tree branch when camping as well
as to simply load / unload into a vehicle every day.
The wide shoulder straps were designed from cotton webbing
to reduce fatigue or feeling as if the straps are cutting into your
skin during a long hike with a full load out. Four leather reenforced
attachment points for lashing any additional gear was