We all enjoy the great outdoors. It doesn’t matter whether it is running, biking, skiing or hiking, there is something exhilarating about getting away from the busy-ness of day to day life. When enjoying the outdoors however it is important to make the most of the opportunity.
It is important to do so while also looking after our health and well-being. This is where a good hydration pack will be important to you.
When we consider that approximately 75% of the human body is made up of water, it will be no surprise to know that one of the key things to remaining healthy and well, is the importance of remaining properly hydrated. Even the slightest dehydration can start to impair our brain and body’s function. At the extreme, dehydration can cause death.
While some people will choose to carry a water bottle with them, this is not always an overly convenient option, especially if you have to stop the activity that you are doing in order to have a drink. Ultimately if effort is required to get a drink of water there is a risk that you may not adequately remain hydrated.
A good hydration pack will allow you to easily hydrate whenever you want, quickly and conveniently.
A typical hydration pack will have a soft flexible plastic bladder for containing the water, inside a specialized backpack, along with a tube for easy access to the water.
Given the importance of having a good hydration pack, this article will give you our opinion of the hydration packs that we consider to be the best available in the market at the moment.
|
Product Name |
Our Rating |
|---|---|
| Best Hydration Packs For Running | |
| CamelBak 2016 Rogue Hydration Pack | |
| Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack | |
| Best Hydration Pack For Hiking | |
| Teton Sports Oasis 1100 Hydration Pack | |
| Best Hydration Pack For Mountain Biking | |
| CamelBak MULE Hydration Pack | |
| Best Hydration Pack For Skiing | |
| Miracol Hydration Pack | |
Best Hydration Packs For Running
We have arrived at our list based on researching the features available and also taking into consideration the reviews and opinions of people who have actually bought and used them.
Winner – CamelBak 2016 Rogue Hydration Pack
When it comes to choosing the best hydration pack for runners, the CamelBak Rogue was our winner for the best hydration pack.
CamelBak is a California company that was founded in 1988 and specializes in outdoor equipment. When a founder is inspired by their personal desire for the very products that their company produces, you know that the products will be better than just good.
CamelBak founder, Michael Eidson was inspired to create CamelBak products, after using a home-made hydration pack in the infamous Hotter’N Hell Hundred cycling event in 1989.
This hydration pack has a two-liter capacity water bladder in a light-weight backpack. The empty pack weighs in at a paltry fifteen ounces.
The CamelBak Rogue Hydration Pack has an interior slip pocket, for containing the water container, and two external pockets to hold the additional small items, such as energy bars, keys and cellphone, that you will want to carry with you.
Made from 100% Nylon the CamelBak Rogue Hydration Pack is a very comfortable fit, with adjustable straps making it easy to wear snuggly without bouncing around when running. The hydration pack has breathable nylon web meshing to ensure that sweat build up is minimized.
The CamelBak Rogue Hydration Pack has an easily accessible drinking tube allowing for easy and convenient access to water whenever it is needed.
source: camelbak.com
The CamelBak Rogue Hydration Pack has reflective tape on the back for safety purposes and a tab that allows for a blinking light to be attached if desired.
We have chosen the 2016 version of the pack over its slightly newer 2017 version due to being better rated by its users and also being slightly cheaper.
The CamelBak Rogue Hydration Pack will delight you with its elegant solution to your hydration needs.
It is no wonder that CamelBak is trusted by the United States military, and law enforcement agencies, to supply hydration and water purification products. In 2012, 40% of CamelBak’s business was with United States and foreign government contracts, truly testifying to the value and trust that these organizations have placed in the company.
When it comes to the best hydration pack for runners, you can’t beat the CamelBak Rogue Hydration Pack.
Runner Up – Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack
Our runner up for the best hydration pack for running category was easily the Tactical Hydration Pack from Unigear.
Unigear may be a young brand but they are quickly becoming recognized for their professional outdoor gear. No doubt this is one of the reasons that their products can be found amongst some of the top sellers in these areas. Indeed, the Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack is Amazon’s Choice in the Tactical Hydration Backpack category.
The Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack has a 2.5-liter water bladder (BPA free), providing serious hydration when you need it. The hydration bladder has a wide screw cap lid making it possible to add ice cubes to your water, to provide an even more refreshing, cooler hydration refreshment.
The Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack weighs in at a lightweight twenty-two ounces (empty) and contains two front pockets for the storage of energy bars, keys, cellphone and other essentials. The small size of this pack makes it an ideal hydration pack for runners, where you will want to reduce unnecessary bulk as much as possible.
The Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack is made from heavy duty polyester. Its rugged construction makes it resistant to wear and tear.
source: unigearshop.com
We like the fact that the Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack has a hands-free hydration hose that can be easily accessed by gently biting on the valve to open the flow of water. No fiddling around with valves or taps, simply bite and drink.
The adjustable shoulder and chest straps allows the Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack to be easily adjusted for comfortable wearing by people with a diverse range of sizes.
This allows it to be securely fitted ensuring that it does not bounce when running. Clearly being bounce free is important when being worn while running.
The Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack has an air meshing on the back and shoulder pads allowing for improved airflow around these areas. This will make the backpack more comfortable to wear for longer periods of time.
The Unigear Tactical Hydration Pack has many features to recommend it to runners looking for a hydration pack. It is easy to see why this pack was runner-up in our Best Hydration Pack for Runners category.
Best Hydration Pack For Hiking
Winner – Teton Sports Oasis 1100 Hydration Pack
When hiking you will want to have a pack capable of carrying adequate gear and equipment, while also having the capacity to carry a hydration bladder for refreshment while walking. When it came to hiking hydration packs the Teton Sports Oasis Hydration Pack was our easy winner.
The Teton Sports Oasis Hydration Pack is an eighteen-liter backpack with capacity to carry two liters of water. This pack has an unfilled weight of just two pounds, making it ideal for day hikes.
The hydration bladder is lightweight and durable, being made from BPA free food grade plastic. The hydration bladder has a two-inch opening in order to allow for it to be easily filled. Attached to the hydration bladder is a sip tube that has been reinforced to ensure that it will be kink free. This is especially important in all good quality hydration packs.
A bungee system on the shoulder strap allows for the sipper tube to be held conveniently in place for easy access, when hydration calls.
The sipper tube has a cushioned bite valve and a bite lock that has been designed to prevent leaking.
When it comes to a hiking backpack, comfortable straps and fitting are a must.
The Teton Sports Oasis Hydration Pack has fully adjustable straps allowing it to easily fit a wide range of people with differing sizes.
The straps have been carefully designed with high density notched foam and meshing means that this pack can be comfortably worn for hours on end.
source: tetonsports.com
We like the fact that the Teton Sports Oasis Hydration Pack has a large pocket with hidden zipper teeth and a weather guard. This helps to protect the contents from the elements, ensuring that you and your gear gets where it needs to.
The backpack also has a bungee cord system allowing for a bike helmet to be attached and a butterfly opening for items such as jackets.
One nice feature of the Teton Sports Oasis Hydration Pack is that the chest strap has an integrated ITW whistle buckle. That’s right. There is a whistle built into the chest strap buckle for emergencies. Hopefully you will never need it but it’s reassuring to know that it is there.
The Teton Sports Oasis Hydration Pack was our easy winner for the Best Hydration Backpack in the Hiking category. We are sure you can see why.
Best Hydration Pack For Mountain Biking
Winner – CamelBak MULE Hydration Pack
When it comes to a suitable hydration backpack for mountain biking, our clear winner was the CamelBak MULE Hydration Backpack. CamelBak has already been mentioned in our running category, and for very good reason. CamelBak is one of the best there, is in the hydration backpack industry.
source: camelbak.com
The CamelBak MULE Hydration Pack comes with CamelBak’s CRUX three-liter hydration bladder. The CRUX Reservoir has a quick link connection system allowing for it to be easily connected within the pack and to the sipper tube.
This quick link connection system will allow you to more easily refill the hydration bladder. The three-liter CRUX hydration bladder has been designed to allow up to 20% more water per sip.
There is a Magnetic Tube TrapTM that helps to keep the sipper tube secure and easily accessible when you are on your bike. When mountain biking, a hands-free hydration solution is going to need to be better than just good enough. The CamelBak MULE Hydration Pack has been cleverly designed for this.
The pack itself has a nine-liter capacity making it ideal for mountain biking when you can carry more than a runner but will not want the weight or bulk of a hiking pack. This size capacity is what makes it possible to carry the all-important three liters of water.
The adjustable straps make the CamelBak MULE Hydration Pack able to be comfortably fitted to a range of different sized people and the carefully designed air channels of the back panel provide for comfort and cooling when being worn.
The main compartment has a clever overflow storage capacity that is stretchable, allowing for the addition of extra layers within the pack for added waterproofing.
The outside of the CamelBak MULE Hydration Pack comes with reflective tape, to provide for improved visibility in poor light conditions.
When it comes to a hydration pack that has been designed for mountain bikers and is made by one of the best hydration pack specialists in the world, you cannot beat the CamelBak MULE Hydration Pack.
Best Hydration Pack For Skiing
Winner – Miracol Hydration Pack
When it comes to a hydration pack for skiers, the standard hydration pack will not suffice. When choosing a hydration pack that is capable of still working at colder temperatures, it is important to choose a hydration pack that has been thermally insulated.
Failure to do so could see the water freezing in the sipper tube, rendering the hydration pack into a frustrating block of useless ice.
When it comes to choosing a winner in the Best Hydration Pack for Skiing category, we felt that the Miracol Hydration Pack was a deserving winner.
The Miracol Hydration Pack uses thermal insulation for both the pack and the sipper tube. This means that the contents will change temperature slower making it ideal for extreme hot or cold climates.
The Miracol Hydration Pack is made to be lightweight, weighing in at a mere one pound when empty. When having a hydration pack that is easily useable while skiing, it is important to keep the weight to a minimum. Since excess weight will affect your center of gravity a lightweight hydration pack is important, the Miracol Hydration Pack does not disappoint.
source: imiracol.com
Like all good hydration packs the Miracol Hydration Pack has several storage pockets and compartments allowing for easy and safe storage of life’s necessities.
The built-in two-liter water bladder is made from high quality EVA material and comes with a wide screw cap lid that is 3.1 inches in diameter. This wide lid makes it easy to top your water bladder up. Like all good hydration packs, the Miracol Hydration Pack has a hydration bladder that is easily replaceable if so desired, and is BPA free and FDA approved.
The Miracol Hydration Pack has adjustable shoulder and chest straps making it able to be fitted comfortably to people with a wide range of builds.
The fact that the straps are breathable and easily adjustable will help to ensure that the Miracol Hydration Pack will be comfortable, will fit snuggly and will not bounce around when being worn. This is especially important when you consider the effect that a bouncing weight would have on a skier’s center of gravity.
The Miracol Hydration Pack is ridiculously well priced, and is of very good quality, that it is no wonder that it has been given Amazon’s Choice in the insulated hydration pack category.
The Miracol Hydration Pack is so ideal for skiers, that you will wonder how you did without it, it really is that good.
What Features To Look Out For
When it comes to choosing a hydration pack there are several things that you are going to want to consider. Some of the basic things that you need to know are.
What activity are you planning on using it mainly for? If you are planning on using it for a variety of different types of activities, you may want a lightweight hydration pack capable of carrying adequate water.
If on the other hand you are consider a hydration pack for a specific activity then make sure to choose one appropriate for that activity. Different activities have different needs. Make sure to have considered these before buying.
How much water will you need? Everyone has different hydration needs depending on their body size, the ambient temperature and the level of activity they are engaging in. Make sure to choose a hydration pack that can carry adequate water, as too much is deadweight and too little is risky.
You need to know what the weather and climate are typically going to be like? If the hydration pack is intended for extremely hot and sunny conditions then you probably want an insulated pack that has the water bladder hidden from direct sunlight and its damaging ultraviolet radiation.
Design
The design of a hydration pack is important to consider when choosing a pack. You are going to want to choose a pack that will comfortably fit, while also having sufficient pockets and is suited for your chosen activity.
Some activities will require more lightweight options, while others can afford to carry more. If you are going to be riding in low light conditions for instance you will probably want a pack with built in reflective strips for your safety.
Ultimately the best design of pack is one that has been designed for the specific activity that you have in mind. If you are unsure about what features you may need, then choosing one of the hydration packs listed above will be a safe option.
Water Capacity
The single purpose for a hydration pack is its ability to carry water. When it comes to choosing a hydration pack then you will want to consider the water capacity very carefully. Your choice of water capacity will be largely dependent upon what your chosen activity is, and what your water needs are likely to be.
Some activities do not support carrying large quantities of additional weight in a pack. This is especially true for activities like skiing, biking and running, where you will not want any unnecessary weight that could throw you off balance.
While some people might support the philosophy that bigger is best, when it comes to water capacity this is not actually true. After all, every pound of unused water is actually just a pound of dead weight that you need to carry.
Type Of Activity
Make sure to choose a hydration pack appropriate to your intended activity. Different hydration packs are better suited to different activities. Close enough is not always good enough. Different activities will have specific requirements.
Activities such as running, mountain biking and skiing are going to need to have hydration packs that sit comfortably near the middle of the back, in order to minimize the impact upon your center of gravity.
Activities that take place in extreme heat or cold will almost certainly require an insulated hydration pack to keep the contents drinkable.
Some activities, such as mountain biking, are more likely to require a sipper tube that can be easily accessed hands free. For these types of activities, a sipper tube attached close to the mouth with a bite release valve may be what you require.
Ultimately choose your hydration pack having carefully considered the activity that you intend to use it for.
Insulation
Some hydration packs are insulated, some are not. You do not need to automatically choose an insulated pack, as many of the hydration packs have water bladders that have large enough openings to be able to fit ice cubes into should you want a cool drink.
If you are going to be doing an activity in an environment that is extremely hot or cold, then you will almost certainly require an insulated pack, however if you are not, then insulation should not be considered as important as other features. It is important to consider all the features that are going to be important for its intended use.
Weight And Size
When choosing a hydration pack make sure to choose a pack that is going to be comfortable for you to wear. Many packs have adjustable straps that allow them to be used by people with a wide range of different builds.
If your body is significantly different from the average sizes you will need to check the product description carefully to ensure that the hydration pack will be suitable.
Generally, when choosing a hydration pack, you are not going to want to carry unnecessary weight around nor are you going to want to have a bulky pack that could throw your center of gravity significantly off.
Ease To Clean
All hydration packs will need to have their water bladder cleaned after use, in order to restrict the buildup of harmful microbes. When it comes to cleaning a hydration bladder, features such as how wide the neck opening is and whether the hydration bladder can be removed from the pack, can decide how easy or difficult it will be to clean.
Conclusion
Hydration is literally a matter of life and death. In order to ensure that you are able to be hydrated fully when you need it, you will struggle to find a solution that is as convenient and as flexible as the hydration pack.
When choosing a hydration pack, it is important to choose one that is appropriate to your intended activity.
We think that the hydration packs above are the best that there is. Why not buy one today and find out why.
Resources:WikipediaWikiHoweMedicineHealth
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