Re: Hunting for a summer pack for my wife

The Ospreys are good packs. Barb (my spouse) has the women's version of the Aether (the Ariel) and finds it very good. Be sure you have a trained and experienced pack fitter work with your wife to get the right pack and to fit it properly. No pack is perfect for everyone. I find certain brands fit me well, some models of other brands fit me well, while others of their models don't fit no matter how much fiddling I do, and still other top-quality brands do not fit me at all for any of their models, brands which fit some of my friends extremely well. So do not be too tied to the idea of "staying in the family". The Ospreys might fit your wife very well, or she might find another brand and model that works better for her. Also, some women find that the "men's" version actually fits them better than the "women's" version. Everyone is different in their physique.