ProView – Gregory Women’s Maven 48

As an outdoor educator in Northwest Montana, I need a backpack that is going to have a high level of comfort, space, and organizational capacity for all of my education materials. The women’s specific Gregory Maven 48L is the perfect blend of all day comfort for long days teaching outdoors without being too heavy or overly spacious.

As an avid hiker, climber, backpacker, and backcountry skier,  I value having packs of different sizes and with varying capabilities. I own a variety of packs from different brands including Osprey, Deuter, and Nathan, all of which serve different purposes for my outdoor pursuits.

The reason I was excited about the Gregory Maven 48L is because it is the ideal size and type of pack for a short backpacking trip or, in the case of this test, just needing to carry a lot of things comfortably on trail for a single day. Although it’s probably overkill for your usual day-hiking needs, I was excited to test out this pack for my job doing outdoor education on our local trail system in Whitefish, Montana.

As an outdoor educator who strives to make the lessons engaging for the students, I tend to bring a lot of teaching materials including silicone tracks/scat, animal skulls, paper and pencils, laminated photos, clipboards, and more! I used the Maven on multiple outdoor field trips and found that it is an ideal size for holding all of these resources comfortably. Despite this pack not coming with a rain cover, the exterior of the Maven kept the contents of the pack dry when I encountered a spontaneous spring hail spurt. Even though the pack itself seems water resistant, I would imagine it would soak through in the case of sustained rainfall.

In general, I found standing and walking for several hours with this pack to be comfortable, and I was able to access my teaching materials relatively easily, although some more pockets would have been useful for a higher level of organization.

Fit/Comfort

The Maven 48L is an incredibly comfortable pack and is very adjustable, from the back panel to the hip belt. The high level of comfort causes it to  sacrifice some points on weight, but I think it is negligible considering the comfort gained from a few extra ounces.

Look/Style

I chose the color “Warm Bronze” and am absolutely obsessed with the look of the pack. When I first opened the package, I let out an audible “ooooo” as I beheld how the light bronze contrasted with the deeper purple. The AirCushion mesh back panel is my favorite design element as it has a very pleasing “fade” effect from bronze to purple.

Features

By far my favorite feature is the wide hip belt pockets which fit my phone and snacks with ease. Additionally, I appreciate having access to the inside of the pack via the side and bottom zippers which are crucial convenience pieces that I would not want to go without, especially on a multi-day trip.

Weight/Packability

This pack sacrifices some weight for accessibility, fit, and comfort, but is still relatively lightweight, landing at 3.19lbs. 

Function/Performance

The Gregory Maven falls right in line with other Gregory products as a high performing backpacking pack that holds up to its competitors. 

Durability/Construction

The Maven is a sturdy, structured, high durability backpacking pack.

What sets the product apart?

Something that stands out to me about this pack is that its carry weight is relatively high for the size (at 50lbs), especially considering the pack is lighter than similar multi-day backpacking packs from its competitors. I compared this to a women’s 50L osprey pack which sets the load range at 25-30lbs! The Maven is lighter than similar packs on the market while also stronger.

Who is the product for?

The Gregory Maven 48L is a classic backpacking backpack that I would recommend to anyone who wants to travel a bit lighter on a multi-day trip without sacrificing comfort and convenience. Or, if you’re like me and need to carry a lot of unique items out with you on a day trip, it fits the bill!

Friendliness to the Earth

Gregory has a VERY thorough sustainability page on their website that is incredibly transparent about their carbon footprint, their plans to reduce this footprint, and the hard data to back it up. Some of their initiatives include successfully moving away from PFAS, working towards reducing use of virgin nylon, and continuing to make products that will last a lifetime.

The Final Word

The Gregory Maven 48L offers all-day comfort and a high organizational capacity without being too heavy. Although it could use an additional smaller pocket or two for an even higher level of organization, it does possess many convenient features that make using this pack easy and stress-free. The Maven falls somewhere in the middle on weight, thus providing a lighter backpacking experience while not compromising on comfort and convenience. 

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