Access This Backpack on the Move, No Removal Required

The all-new Mammut Spindrift is one seriously clever backpack line.

Designed for fast and light backcountry ski missions, the Spindrift facilitates easy and fast handling on the move. Basically, you don’t need to take it off to access most of the gear inside.

It comes in 14-, 26-, and 32-liter sizes. We love the look of the ISPO award-winning 14 for fast and light trips into the backcountry. Weighing in at a feathery 760 grams, the Spindrift 14 (about $250) is minimalist. But it’s anything but basic.

The pack functions with two large hip pockets that hold the majority of your gear. A rear zip pocket holds your shovel and probe.

Mammut Spindrift: Built-In Windbreaker

The stand-out feature of the pack is the integrated, stowable windbreaker. Attached and stored in a side pocket, you can easily access a windbreaker that covers your core without having to stop and take off the pack first.

The windbreaker goes on that simply and quickly. Simply grab it out of the large hip pocket in transition or when you’re feeling chilly. Place it over your head and keep going.

When heart rates and temps rise on the ascent, just reverse the process. Clever, huh? Watch the video below to see the step-by-step process.

By eliminating the frustration that comes from continuously having to stop to take off and add layers on the go, Mammut created a revolutionary lightweight ski touring pack.

And while that’s sweet on its own, it does a lot more to help fast and light athletes access the tools they need. It also holds an external water bottle for easy hydration and lets users secure skis and poles to the pack on the go with cross-pack attachment points. With its large hip pockets, you have easy access to skins, hats, gloves, and snacks, all without taking off the pack.

A helmet holder and ice ax attachment points ride on the back of the pack.

Avalanche safety gear and crampons ride in the main body of the 14-liter pack. You’ll have to remove the pack to get to these, but this part of the kit is needed much less frequently. There’s also space for a hydration bladder inside.

The larger sizes have more room for layers, food, and equipment.

We haven’t put this one to the test yet. But the design – which wowed the judges enough for an ISPO award at the German trade show – looks slick. Mammut innovated the pack for light and fast mountain athletes, and we hope to carry one high into the mountains soon.