[pct-l] ULA Ohm

[John Abela]

Hello,

What is your base weight, because at the end of that day that is all that
really matters? (ok, some folks *really* care about plush comfort, I will
give them that - grin - and the ULA packs can do that)

9-pounds... so here are my thoughts.

I have owned both. Depending on my base weight is which one I used. They
both rock. Though I will be honest and say I do not like the 2011 changes
for the Circuit, especially the change in material for the side pouches. ULA
has (for me) always been the easiest packs out there to be able to pull
stuff out of side pockets without taking your pack off. Not sure how this
new material is going to effect that. Hopefully it does not.

But anyway, feature for feature, they are for all intents and purposes
identical.

One just holds more.

Do you have a baseweight of 15+ pounds? If so, go with the Circuit - I used
my Circuit for a long time. Loved it.

Do you have a baseweight of 10-15 pounds? If so, go with the OHM.

If you have a baseweight of under 10 pounds (which you say you do) there are
other options than ULA that you could consider to reduce your baseweight
just by switching packs. At this point you already understand what a little
bit of sacrifce is about, so give up that ultra-comfy-ultra-plush ULA and
make the switch to a lighter backpack. The ZPacks Blast 26 (just one
example) is going to save you 14-ounces over the ULA OHM and 28-ounces off
the ULA Circuit. (if my numbers in my head are still right) So, just by
giving up just a bit more comfort you have taken your 9-pound baseweight
down another pound. Yeah, it would not have the plush hipbelts and the fancy
cordwork, but the Circuit is just serious overkill (IMHO) for 7 pounds of
gear.

That said, the BV500 will fit on both of them. ULA keeps telling people the
BV500 does not, and I am not sure why. I think I even read of one guy (at
hammockforums.net) who (with the right gear) was able to get the BV into his
OHM vertically. I would not keep my food in it and have it secured to the
top of the OHM while I was hiking though. That said, others on this list
have experience with the OHM so maybe they could confirm this.

Anyway, yeah, both packs rock. Have a lot of miles on them (I have not done
the PCT yet) and not once did they fail me nor cause me discomfort. Only
reason I sold my ULA bags was because I had gotten sub-10 pounds in gear and
could not justify them (for me) anymore. That said, if I was buying a
backpack for somebody, the ULA Circuit is exactly what I would buy them.

John