Sarah Flint reviews the Lowe Alpine Airzone Centro 35 + 10 Technical Day Pack. The 'versatile 4 season rucksack' is designed for longer day walks where you'd carry a bit more kit, eg. Munro bagging in the winter, or for lightweight overnight trips. Sarah thought the Airzone Centro 35:10 was also a useful size for sharing one bag with your walking partner on a day walk, and tested out its versatility by trying it as a cragging pack.

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The AirZone Centro is a top-loading style rucksack made from tough polyester and tougher honeycomb Ripstop. It weighs in at 1700g, which is on the heavy side – probably because of its wealth of features. Hmm... a feature-studded rucksack of middling size, described as 'a versatile 4 season pack'. Can it deliver? We all know it's not possible to be everything to everyone.

First things first - it's all about the fit. It could have integral WiFi and sauna but it's no use if it's uncomfortable to wear. Unusually for a bag this size it has an adjustable back that I managed to master quickly, and this, along with the adjustable hip and sternum straps, produced a monkey-hugging fit.

Well, almost - it has a mesh panel to create a space between the bag and body to avoid the sweaty back experience by allowing air to circulate. It works: no embarrassing stains. If a monkey hug is needed it can be tightened up against the body, but not tight enough to make me feel happily stable with a heavy load in a strong wind.

So, a good fit. What else can it do? There's no lack of pockets: two ample draw-string mesh pockets on each side (with bungy hooks to hang things from), as well as a side entry front pocket large enough for a map, hat, gloves and emergency chocolate rations. A zip side-entry into the bag avoids the need to open up the top to find something buried. Through this side entry and within the bag is another zippered pocket. If the bag is packed solid, and bags are like garages – you can never have enough room – it's difficult to delve into. A more useful internal pocket is accessed from the top – a nice big one which is easy to slip a map into.

"...Unusually for a bag this size it has an adjustable back that I managed to master quickly, and this, along with the adjustable hip and sternum straps, produced a monkey-hugging fit..."

Fiddly bits include compression straps, a hole to run a sucky-water tube through, and a pole attachment system, which will also take a walking axe. There's also a criss-cross of elasticised cord on the front, which holds my small helmet: useful for carrying that little bit extra which won't fit inside. It took a while but I eventually discovered a handy orange rain-cover that pulls out from the bottom.

What can I get in this 'versatile' bag? Plenty of hiking kit - more than you'd need for an average day walk. It's ideal for longer walks where you'd carry a bit more, eg. Munro bagging in the winter, or for lightweight overnight trips. Alternatively I found it a useful size for sharing one bag with your walking partner on a day walk.

The side pockets are useful for smaller stuff that you need to be accessible, like a camera and snacks. If I liked walking around looking like a Christmas tree then I'd be thrilled with all the hooks and loops. I don't, but I'm sure they're someone's idea of heaven.

Not bad for a 35 litre bag, and the extendable 'hood' adds another 10 litres to the size. It manages to squeeze in another two pockets: one on top and one underneath, hiding a key clip. The lining has emergency distress signals and phone numbers printed on it for those with bad memories in times of crisis. The hood is connected by a cord that's adjusted in length by a widget at the back, which acts like a drawstring. I found the cord inclined to wrap itself around the widget which made quick adjustment difficult.

I thought I'd try out its 'versatility' as a 'cragging' bag (a day trip to Baggy Point in Devon) and made the extra 10 litres work for a second half rope. Inside went quickdraws, shoes, helmet, harness, a squidgy water bottle. A half rope went under the hood. The bag isn't designed to carry a rope like this and it worked, but not very well: the rope fell sideways making me feel lopsided. Still, all in all a pretty versatile pack.

Pros:

An easily adjustable, comfortable fit. Lots of pockets, hooks and loops to put things in/on.

Cons:

Has a lot of features, pockets and so on, which adds to weight.

More info on the Lowe Alpine Website.

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About Sarah Flint (aka fishinwater)

Sarah writes a bit, climbs a lot and prefers to be outside rather than in some office staring at a computer. She got bored with her previous obsession, gardening, a few years ago, and found the strength and fitness developed in the 13 years she had been head gardener, suited climbing perfectly. Since then she's been greedy to cram as much climbing experience into her life as possible.

Where before she wrote about vegetables, she now likes to write about all things climbing and is keen to share the learning curve of her new addiction. She's based in the south west which is ideal for popping out to a crag before lunch and whenever the addiction calls.

She has a blog on climber.co.uk called 'Off the Wall', which is mostly about how not to climb.