Hydration backpacks are much the same, right" A zippered bag with a couple of pockets that hold a water bladder, lunch and whatever else you drop in, like tools or a first aid kit. They hang on your shoulders with a set of padded straps; chest and waist straps are common as well. As an owner of multiple packs, that was my experience before Kriega introduced the Trail18 Adventure Backpack.

Created for dual-sport and adventure riders, but suitable for anyone needing a waterproof backpack, the Trail18 has 12 liters of waterproof storage divided between two roll-top compartments. One of those holds 11 liters and the other 1 liter. With this pack, bad weather is not an issue. Neither is water capacity, since it holds an optional 2- or 3.75-liter bladder in a 7-liter non-waterproof zippered section. The 1-liter waterproof pocket and a zippered catchall for keys and small items share that space. On the back is an expandable Hypalon web that?s perfect for clipping in my Spot device and stashing an extra layer.
Key to the Trail18?s comfort is Kriega?s patented Quadloc-Lite harness. Instead of typical backpack and chest straps, the harness is contoured to the body with the straps meeting at the mid-chest Quadloc button. For extreme riding there?s also a removable waist strap. Adjusting the harness straps the first time took some effort since the pack didn?t come with sufficient instructions for its disappearing strap system, best described here: https://vimeo.com/78951...