The remedy 7 solution pack has quickly become one of my favorite pieces of equipment. Over the course of my last hunting season I have become intimately familiar with this pack and truly believe it is one piece of gear that will outlast me in rough unforgiving country. This year I was fortunate enough to pack out 4 bears, 2 elk, and 3 mule deer. I train all year to be able to hunt hard and carry heavy loads and in the past have been left frustrated when my limiting factor is gear. This year I have been able to say that I am using a pack that can truly outperform me in rough country.

The grip frame on the solution pack is by far my favorite feature because it allows me so much versatility. We all aim to be successful in harvesting the game we pursue and carrying a pack that isn’t up to the task when we are met with our goal makes no sense to me. When I set out to pack in my camp, my solution is up to the task. When I leave my tent in the morning for a long day of hunting, the solution is up to the task. When I am met with success and have an animal to pack out, I have the pack for the job. I find great comfort and security in having so much confidence in my gear.  While packing out my deer on the grip frame with all of the boned out meat, my solution bag attached, with all my gear in it and the rack and cape attached to that I realized that all frames aren’t created equal. I have packed with both internal and rigid aluminum/steel frames and this frame is like nothing before it. It has every bit of the strength of a rigid metal exterior frame but moves with you like an internal frame pack. This allowed me to comfortably carry more weight than ever before. More impressive to me after hours of packing it was still comfortable to carry. The shoulder straps didn’t feel like they were cutting through me and the weight still felt like it was distributed comfortably across my back and torso. There are many more features to this pack but these are what makes this pack one of my most trusted favorite pieces of gear.

Dioni Amuchastegui

Wow!  What an awesome year of Archery hunting for this Oregon boy.  I have been truly blessed having the opportunity to harvest a great mule deer buck with my kids by my side, an Antelope that grossed B&C and two nice bull elk.
When we all prepare for our hunting seasons which in some ways is year around, we have to depend on our equipment and put those items through rough and rigger tests to make sure that they preform to our expectations.  Early this spring, I had the chance to test out the new R7 suspension system that was being designed by the folks at Blacks Creek.  It was exciting to be a part of the design phase of the suspension system and put in my two cents on likes and dislikes.

Marcus Flesher wrote a good blog on the website awhile back.  He made a comment that hit home and really puts things into perspective for me.  He had said in his blog post that he didn’t think there would ever be a pack that he would consider the perfect pack.  I have to agree with his statement.  Is there a perfect pack?  That is going to depend on who you ask.  Everyone will have their own thoughts and opinions on what they want.  Usually that has to do with the frame work of the person that is going to be using it.  I was able to put the new R7 “Solution” with the “Grip” frame to use this year and I would like to share with you my overall thoughts.

The Solution is 4800 cubic inches and has one main cell compartment with a top access and also a center access through the front.  It has side pockets for a spotting scope and tripod.  The Solution also offers a lid with storage and another cell that can be detached or attached to the outside of the pack.  The Solution has many options for organizing your equipment and is a day pack or a back country pack in one.  All the buckles on this pack are military grade buckles.  This allows you to compress the pack to secure your load without fear of breaking them.
Did I get to pack large loads of meat this year with it?  No!  I was fortunate enough to harvest my animal near an easy access point and was able to load the animal into a pickup which is usually not my luck.  Although I am confident that it would have exceeded my expectations if I had needed it to haul my critters off the mountain.  I put 85 pounds on the suspension while testing this product this spring and I know that it would have done just fine.

I work for an outfitter in the state of Oregon and I spend about forty of my hunting season days working for him.  I used the Solution while guiding hunters this year.  As a guide, you have to make sure you take extra food and fluids for your hunters.  The Solution offers a pocket for a water bladder (on the inside of the main cell). I have a 100 ounce bladder that I use but I also pack about 2 gallons of water and other liquids for my hunter and food for a day of hard hunting.  You may not think that’s much weight, but it will surprise you if you add that up. I weighed my pack one morning and with all of the items that I needed for a day of hunting it weighed in at 49 pounds.  It fit my body so well that I never would have guessed that I was packing that amount of weight.  It makes you think about how packs should fit your style of hunting and even more, your body.
The suspension on the Grip Frame adjusts to your body as easy as pie.  If you are using the pack with a minimal amount of weight, then you adjust it to ride on your waist line by moving the lumbar support in the center of the pack.  If you add more weight to your pack, I have found that you can adjust your lumbar support to a smaller setting which will allow you to keep the weight off of your hips and prevent hip fatigue.

I still sit back and think about what Marcus put on his blog about R7 packs.  As I said above, I do agree with his comment.  For now, I would have to really look hard to find a pack that tops my R7 Solution.

Dusty Bourasa

As the first day of fall rapidly approaches, our efforts to complete our new USA made pack line is still in full swing. Pro-Staffer Tyler Crockett recently had a chance to take the latest Prototype pack out for a four day spin on the mountain. We will leave the details of his findings up to him to describe in a later blog, however we thought you might appreciate a sneak peak at our latest creation.

Over the last few years, the demand for lighter weight packs has become much more prevalent. We have done our best to provide a very light weight option with our latest design. We are calling this pack the “Antidote”. The Prototype weighs in at a mere 4 lbs 12 oz and has a 3000 total cubic inch storage capacity. Unlike some other pack manufacturers we did not cut corners on quality or space to lighten the “Antidote”. Its 1,000 Denier Cordura construction is standard among the R7 line of packs that we offer. We use it because it’s just DANG TOUGH and there just isn’t any other fabric that compares. While the “Antidote” may not be rated to carry as much weight as the “Grip” frame, it can still carry a sufficient payload comfortably. Its been designed to stay LEAN and MEAN for comfortable day hunts or multiple day adventures on the mountain were the average hunter will be hauling anywhere from 25 to 50 lbs of gear.

Just like all the R7 packs in the Blacks Creek line, the “Antidote” features the Butterfly adjustable harness so it will fit a large variety of body types. It has 11 total pockets, one of which is an optics pocket located on the back of the pack. This pocket is large enough to carry most of the larger spotters available today. The main body of the pack is roughly 2,000 cubic inches and we obtain 3,000 by adding the space within the optics pocket, lid and upward expansion of the top of the pack. The “Antidote” hunts like a 2,500 cubic inch pack and is easy to compress when the total storage space is not in use. There are 3 entry points to the main compartment, one from the top under the lid and one on either side of the pack. It features plenty of compression straps for stabilization and can haul a bow or a gun.

This was just a sneak peak at the up and coming light weight “Antidote”. Release of this new pack is slated for late winter 2012. Stay tuned for Tyler Crockett’s performance review.

Written by
Marcus Flesher

I’m a critic of several things and packs are on the top of that list. I’ve hunted the west my entire life and have never been perfectly satisfied with just one design. I think it’s the old issue of wanting my cake and eating it too that ruins it for me. To be fair, I’m not positive that I will ever be completely satisfied with any one design and I believe that’s the exact trait that we all share here at Blacks Creek. This trait keeps us moving forward and doing our best to make our products perform better than the competition.

This year we took a step in the right direction and chose to go back to our roots. These roots are firmly griped into the Idaho soil where the word backcountry is used quit frequently. It’s a word not used lightly and worn like a badge of honor for serious outdoorsmen and hunters. They understand how serious this country can be and how rugged their gear must be to endure the elements that the backcountry provides. It’s these very roots that make us aware of the importance of durability and functionality in our product designs. The “Solution“ backpack was designed specifically with the word backcountry in mind.

I would like to take a moment to describe to you in detail the features and functionality of the “Solution“ backpack.

The “Solution“ is what most backcountry style hunters are looking for in a pack. It’s large enough to haul several days of gear and tough enough to handle to harsh elements.

The first feature I will cover is the main compartment. It measures in at roughly 2,000 ci and includes and additional 500 ci when the top drawstring collar is expanded upwards. This is plenty of storage space for several days of gear such as clothing or even food. You can gain access to this compartment from two points. The first is a zipper that runs vertically on the face and the other is through the top. On the face of this compartment you will see two flat pockets. These pockets are great for storing items you may need to access quickly such as knives, saws, shooting sticks, maps or your GPS. Overall the compartment is easy to access from either point and large enough to haul the bulky items you will have on your trip.

The second feature is the sleeping bag compartment. It’s large enough to carry most of the backpacking style mummy bags on the market today at around 400 ci. I use the Montbell U.L. Super Spiral Down Hugger zero degree bag and it fits nicely with room to spare. The compartment has an interior stuff sack that has been sewn into place. It’s there for a few reasons. First to protected your sleeping bag from any zipper snagging and to add a second moisture barrier. The second reason is for smaller loose gear. By compressing the sack, the gear will ride better and have less tendency to rattle or shift if the compartment is not completely full. On the outside bottom of the compartment you will find two compression straps. These are perfect for synching down extra gear that you don’t mind riding on the outside of the pack. This is where I synch down my Thermarest accordion pad. We may call it a sleeping bag compartment, but that not all it will carry.

The third feature to cover is the optics pockets. There are two and they are located on either side of the pack. Each one is approximately 500 ci in size when expanded. These are very important now that every backcountry hunter including myself is packing a spotting scope on the mountain. We spent countless hours debating on how to design these little gems. Finally we agreed on the design you see on the pack today. They were designed this way for several reasons, they must be easy to access, large enough to carry the larger 85mm spotters, long enough to pack tripods, and tuck away neatly when not in use. These are my favorite feature on the pack. I love the way they’re hard to even notice when they’re not in use, thus keeping the pack trim and sleek. They are very easy to expand with one vertical zipper. Once the pocket is expanded it reveals a second vertical zipper that gains access to the compartment. This is fantastic for quickly accessing your spotter. The top of the pocket includes a drawstring collar. This allows you to insert longer items such as walking sticks or tripods and let them stick out the top of the pocket. Once again this compartment may have a specific name such as the optics pocket but it will carry anything you wish.

The forth feature is the detachable outside bag. This bag is very easy to remove from the pack by unclipping the two bottom and two top buckles. Its approximately 600 ci and includes one main compartment and two flat pockets on the back.  Once it’s detached, the straps can be buckled to themselves to create shoulder straps. This way it can be used as a small backpack. It allows you to leave the main pack behind at your spike camp and hunt with the detachable bag.

The fifth feature is the lid. It will adjust up and down to accommodate various load configurations and has two compartments, one main on top and one flat pocket underneath. The total storage space is roughly 400 ci. Large enough to store items such as headlamps, knives, gloves, GPS, radios, or food.

The last feature is the gun and bow boot. It can be detached from the pack when not in use and store away in one of the pockets. Most stocks and most parallel limb bow designs fit inside the boot. Its fully adjustable to accommodate different lengths of guns or bows.

Overall the “Solution” weighs in at 8.5 lbs and has a total storage space of over 4,800 cubic inches. It attaches to the “Grip” frame that adds to its total storage capacity and allows it to haul massive amounts of meat. It’s constructed of 1000 Denier Cordura that is arguably the toughest fabric on the market and very weatherproof. All the heavy stress areas are reinforced with extra stitching to insure added strength and durability. I strongly recommend you look into the Remedy 7  “Solution” if your looking for a backcountry style backpack that can do it all and then some.

Written by Marcus Flesher