The Uncharted Supply Co. Hip Pack is Made for Prepared MTBers [Review]

Uncharted Supply Co. Hip Pack

Price: $119
Buy from Backcountry and Amazon.

When an Uncharted Supply Co representative asked me if I wanted to check out one of their hip packs, I took a good look at the product page before agreeing. There are a lot of hip packs on the market, for mountain bikers, for fishermen and women, for hikers, and so on. Not all of them make great hip packs for mountain bikers, though they can all usually be used for riding.

The Uncharted Park Pack is also different in numerous ways compared to some mountain bike brand hip packs. Of course in many ways, it’s very similar.

The Park Pack is made from a tough 600D tarpaulin shell and has water-resistant zippers. It has one main pouch with an envelope style pocket on the inside and an accessory pouch on the top flap.

There are wide hip straps with MOLLE straps and water bottle holsters are positioned on both sides of the pack. The holsters can be removed and the user can add bear spray or other accessories on the hip straps. The pack can also be purchased with a triage pack, which includes matches, bandages, zip ties, safety pins, aspirin, wound closure strips and more, for an extra $30.

Survival and preparedness is really what Uncharted is all about, with most of their product centered around the the potential for something unfortunate.

Photo: Hannah Morvay

On the trail

The Uncharted Park Pack has a very heavy-duty feel without the weight. It’s light but noticeably durable feeling and I’m not sure what it would take for a material like this to rip. There’s plenty of space inside the pack to fit all the essentials for a big day ride. I easily fit a pump, tube, tools, and food with room for a light rain jacket and more, especially when utilizing the exterior straps. Because the material and zipper are tougher and more rigid, it can make opening or closing the pack tougher than softer packs.

The hip straps fit comfortably snug and secure and the pack sits and rides with stability–perhaps more than many mountain bike brands’ hip packs out there because of the large hip straps. One area that could be improved though is the direction in which the straps tighten. On a lot of other hip packs, the straps can be easily tightened while strapped around you by pulling the straps inward toward your belly button, whereas the Uncharted straps pull away. It’s not a huge deal, but one that a lot of other pack makers have incorporated and makes it easier for the user to adjust.

Because the pack is pretty big compared to some other hip packs too, the bottles can feel a little intrusive at times knocking into your elbows. I do like that the pack comes with two new water bottles. This and the size of the Park Pack make it an easy choice for longer rides when I don’t feel like wearing a hydration pack.

It’s also nice that Uncharted offers a triage kit with the pack at a lower price than if you were buying one by itself. Bad things do occasionally happen on rides, and while most of us are fine most of the time, it never hurts to have something extra on you.

Overall, the Park Pack is a thoroughly constructed bag that looks like it will last a very long time.