Gossamer Gear Gorilla 40 Pack
This review of one of my favorite pack of all-time has been a long time coming. And I hope this review shows you why! I’ve put over 700 miles on my Gorilla pack, and anticipate putting many more on. Gossamer Gear recently updated the Gorilla pack to become the Gorilla 50 Ultralight Backpack. It now has 10L more total overall storage space, which will make those longer food carries a little more bearable. If you already have a small kit though, you might want to consider the G4-20 or Kumo in Gossamer Gear’s line-up.
Gossamer Gear Gorilla 50 Ultralight Backpack Specs
While I own the Gorilla 40, it is unfortunately no longer in production, and the Gorilla 50 has taken over. This version of the pack has 10L more capacity, and according to the listed specs, weighs the same as my Gorilla 40. Having seen both versions of the pack in person, they look nearly identical, but the 50 does look slightly larger, and the stock sit pad back panel is a new construction. Below I will list the specs of the Gorilla 50 since that is the pack that can currently be purchased.
| Capacity | Main Body: 32 L Mesh & Side Pockets: 18 L Total: 50 L |
| Weight (size medium) | 29.8 oz |
| Carry Capacity | Comfort: 25 lbs Maximum: 30 lbs |
| Materials | 70D Robic ripstop nylon, with 100D Robic riptop Nylon for reinforcement in certain areas. |
| Frame | Superlight 3.0 oz aluminum contoured framestay. The frame is removable. |
| Hipbelt | Air mesh material is soft and cushy. 2 large, solid material pockets with non-waterproof zippers. Hipbelt is fully removable when frame is also removed. Pack comes with a medium hipbelt no matter the frame size, but other sizes can be purchased separately. |
| Pack Access | Top Load with a Flap Lid |
| Number of Exterior Pockets | 4 |
| Hydration Bladder Compatible? | Yes |
| Waterproof? | No |
| Fits a Bear Canister | Yes, a BV 450 (horizontally) and 500 (vertically) |
| Price | $240 |
What I Like
The first thing I have to note with any pack is if it is comfortable. Which the Gorilla is definitely for me! At first I was worried that the shoulder straps might be too close to my neck, but this has never been a problem for myself. I love how flexible the hip belt is for how cushioned it is. It contours around my hips and waist perfectly.
Accessibility is also a huge deal for me. When I am thru-hiking, things must be easy to reach, so I don’t have to stop and dig through my pack for something. The Gorilla makes this so easy. The 2 hi-belt pockets are huge. I can easily fit 3 large bars plus a couple of fruit snacks or Gu gels or energy chews into one pocket. In my other pocket I store my daily toiletries: sunscreen stick, lip balm, bug spray, headnet, and anti-chafe stick. If I’m using a paper map, I’ll fold it up and can fit it in there too. A large smartphone could easily fit in one of the pockets, too. The side pockets are also very easy to reach. They’re close to the back of the hi-belt pockets, and slightly slanted, so reaching for a bottle of water is a breeze. They are also very large and have elastic on the top, so you can fit lots of things in there. Each pocket has the potential to hold a 1.5L Smartwater bottle plus another 1L. That’s a lot of potential water capacity that is literally at your fingertips.
In addition to the smaller pockets, the large mesh storage pocket on the back of the pack is amazing. I have used it countless times to put my sopping-wet tent fly or full tent into so that the wet stuff doesn’t have to go inside my pack. This helps the tent dry a bit, but mainly just makes it so much easier to quickly pull the tent out and dry it when I get to a nice sunny rest spot. And when I don’t have a wet tent to deal with, it’s a great spot for my rain jacket, wind pants, camp shoes, first aid/ toiletry bag, extra food for the day, and cook kit.
The capacity is perfect for me. My current thru-hiking base weight is around 10-13 lbs, including my “consumable” toiletries, depending on the type of trip. My main gear that goes inside of my pack takes up about half of the interior capacity, and a little less if I really smush it down. This leaves plenty of room for my food or bear canister. Being able to fit a BV500 into this pack was a game changer, since I frequent the Sierra so much. The BV500 fits perfectly vertically, and even rests right against the frame stays, so I can barely even feel it in my pack, unlike when I had to carry a canister in my zpacks arc haul.
The extra little details can make a difference, too. I like how the side compression straps have a little buckle. This makes them was easier to quickly undo to make a little more room before actually adjusting them, especially when adding an odd item to the side of your pack like an umbrella or trekking poles. The pack does come with trekking pole holders as well, but I generally like to have them a little bit more secured by the side pocket & compression strap when I throw my pack into a truck when hitch-hiking. So being able to just unbuckle, throw the poles there, then re-buckle is so much faster than treading the poles through the top strap, loosening them, then re-tightening. The sit pad as back cushioning is always ingenious too. And if you’re a super UL queen or king, you can fold up your 1/8th inch pad and shove that in there instead of bringing a separate sit pad. I also appreciate the small D-rings and shoulder strap straps. These make it really easy to attach accessories like Gossamer Gear’s shoulder strap pockets or my inReach mini.
What I don’t like
Honestly, there isn’t much that I don’t like about this pack!
In general, this is mostly personal preference stuff. Like how I prefer to have a roll-top pack versus one with a fold-down top lid, or how I wish the hipbelt adjuster straps tightened by pulling in, toward the midline, instead of by having to pull out.
If I have one legitimate complaint is that the stitching looks a little frayed at some pressure points, and I’ve managed to put some tiny holes in the bottom of the pack and the mesh. Neither of these have grown in size though, and tenacious tape has been great on my hole. In general, I usually expect to see wear like this on UL packs when you’re thru-hiking with them. If you expect any pack to look brand new and not have some wear and tear after living out of it for months, you’re probably a little delusional.
Summary
Overall, the Gossamer Gear Gorilla has be my pack of choice over the last two years of thru-hiking and backpacking, and I love it so much. So much, that I even swapped the G4-20 out for this on my most recent Colorado Trail thru-hike. I think if you are moving towards an ultralight kit, but are hesitant to go frameless, The Gorilla should be on your consideration list. It truly is the do-it-all of ultralight packs.
Comments or questions? Leave them down below!
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. While I am an ambassador for Gossamer Gear and received this product as a gift, all thoughts and opinions are my own.