CamelBak Hellion

Has lasted me 14 years, (and I got it used!). A shame its been discontinued.

I found this backpack abandoned on a beach, amidst a bunch of beer cans and other rubbish, so after cleaning up after the people trashing the environment, I didn't feel any remorse about keeping the ruck.
It's now 2024, fourteen years later, and the material on either side of the zipper is blown out and the smaller zipper pocket lost its ability to close about 4 years ago, but this ruck has gone the distance. They must have discontinued it because they want people to have to buy a new ruck every couple of years, and the longevity of the Hellion was hurting sales.

Background

Former wildland firefighter, world traveler (> 6 years spent abroad), wilderness enthusiast, and daily ruck wearer. Owned this ruck for 14 years, the only thing I've had longer is my Northface Rogue (which I've repaired extensively over the last 20 years).

I've had this pack for about 4 months now. I bought it at an estate sale for $15 brand new with tags! When I bought it I didn't know what it was worth but I knew the CamelBak name and figured it was worth more than that. I was right! I have been using this pack for the last 4 months, and last month I went on a two week prepper's excursion and we tested our gear thoroughly. I accidentally dropped this thing out of a tree almost 20 feet fully loaded and it's still just fine. This is a great pack!

Like I said. A great pack.

Excellant pack. I searched for several months for the perfect pack and finally came across the Hellion. Used it the first day I bought it on Rabbit Ears Pass (CO). It has been snowed on, rained on, and 'bagged' four 14ers this year (2006). The water capacity is sufficient for a full day of hiking and a very useful design with numerous pockets.