Well, I finally found a good hunting pack - or rather it found me. I stopped in at the local Dick's and was looking through their packs to see what options they had and I ran across the Field & Stream brand gear. They had lumbar packs with suspension and I noticed they had one left of what appeared to be last year's model, and it was marked down. The new ones were $59, but they had this one marked down to $39. It looked like a nice pack, so I figured I'd take it, but when the cashier rings it up, it rings up like 50 cents higher than it was marked. I start to protest, but I think to myself 50 cents is no big deal. The cashier asks me if there was a problem, so I tell her, and she proceeds to manually change the price to $25.99. Apparently, the store has had some issues with price tags being incorrect or misleading, so the sales associates were told to just give a discount if the customer says anything. Anyway, walking out of there with what used to be a $60 pack for less than $30 felt pretty good. The model of the pack is the "Trail Guide." I think the new model is called the "Sawtooth."









Anyway, I think I got a pretty sweet deal. The stuff in it isn't what I'll be carrying to the field, but it gives you an idea of relative size. If you haven't taken a look at Field and Stream brand gear, you should check it out. It seems to be pretty good quality and the fit & finish is pretty nice. I've never been too fond of Dick's, but I still seem to find a good deal there every now and then...Which is, sadly, more than I can say for the Gander Mountain that opened across the road.