Gourdon Reviews

The Gourdon 20 bag is a great choice for multi day or ultramarathon races and despite conventional wisdom, that little bit more is worth it. At first glance it doesn’t seem to add up as an ideal candidate for the lightweight standards of a typical mountain marathon, it’s heavy, it doesn’t have waist pockets, you can’t really reach the side panels and the padding is awful, but when you use it, it soon becomes clear that these features are simply luxuries that we have all become accustomed to. The truth is that we can compete with less and still survive.

The first thing I noticed was the weight. This is a much heavier bag than an OMM, Raidlight, Inov8 or even an Osprey equivalent, but I knew that it was waterproof, so during training sessions I had to decide if it was worth it. Late September rain was no match for this bag, even the tissue paper placed carefully on top of a packed lunch survived completely intact on a bike ride to work. The only problem was the back panel which caused some amazing rubbing and magnificent sets of grazes every time I used it. A simple solution was to tape a piece of sleeping mat to the bottom half of the bag which not only made life much more comfortable but also came to prove the point that this was indeed a piece of gear fit for long distance events.

I took this modified bag on the A class course in the 2009 OMM. It stayed dry, it didn’t move about, it didn’t cause any grazes on my shoulders or back, I managed to fit my water bladder in there and I stuffed some sweets and flapjacks in the side pockets. To compensate for not having waist pouches I carried food in my hands which combined with a thumb compass wasn’t a problem at all. Additional extras over the weekend were a couple of Airlock stuffsacks and the hood from my Filo jacket which gave some much needed comfort during the night in a hoodless, top only sleeping bag.

I’ll be using my Gourdon again and again on races like these, it’s amazing. Accept the small limitations, adapt your strategy for the weekend and enjoy a dry sleeping bag.

Great! Just got one of these. A few initial thoughts: First impression is that the shoulder straps are a bit close at the top, but they seem to get more confortable with a wee bit of wearing and weight.

2nd thought, my previous ‘standard’ style rucksack wore thin at the bottom after a few repeated scambing around the abrassive cuillins - it will be interesting to see how this holds out.

But along with other poeples comments, it might be nice to a see the ‘Rugged Gourdon’ with a bit of mesh, a side pocked, and a ‘tough bottom’! It would still weight far less than other options

Another backpack I have has wee whistle on the breast strap, which add zero grams extra weight, and might be useful someday!

Another fantastic Alpkit product, highly recommended. Although I agree the larger bags would benefit from bungee etc like the small bag.

I have had my Gourdon for over three months now and it has been through the mill. It has been used for the daily commute, gym trips and out on my bike. It still looks great. Love it to bits and for £22.50 I can have one in every colour.
Good work Alpkit another brilliant product.

Simple, light, no-nonsense bag. Just throw it in and roll it up! Mostly used for commuting, it excels in weekend MTB-adventures. kept my gear dry many times.

I would love the bungees and pockets on the 25 and 30 L versions.

Me again! I just got back form a couple of days walking with a bit of surfboard paddling! the bag performed very well again and i tried out the hydration pocket!

I must admit i though this was a bit of a gimmick until today! having a camel back stuffed in the pocket is not uncomfortable it also adds a bit of padding or give to the gab. I could do with buying a clip to hold the tube or secure it to one of the straps!

Brilliant bag!! i have not used this bag as a back pack yet but as a dry bag on a 5 day canoe expedition!! it sotred 6 days werth or dry food which to the delite of my tum it stayed bone dry! sadley we didnt! the fact mine has minimal straps and no webbing didnt bother me as stuff just gets caught on these when it a boat top product just like the Airlok XT which kept sleeping bags and mats dry!
thanks Alp kit

ps the window is a realy good idea except when you can see all the food in the bag yum yum!!

Fantastic piece of kit! I’ve used every day since I bought it. It’s taken a pounding out on the hills and hasn’t let me down. I’ve walked in torrential rain and thunderstorms and it hasn’t leaked at all. Also the speed of delivery was excetional. I ordered it at 12pm and it arrived the following morning before 9am!

I’ve had a Gourdon 20 for about 6 months now, bought it originally as an easy to pack daysack that would fit in a larger rucksack.  I’ve used it for a week at Oktoberfest and many times since and love it!  I chose the 20 litre version as I thought that the side drinks pockets and shock cord was a better bet than simply a bigger main pocket - maybe all sizes with drinks pockets and shock cord?

Gourdon was perfect in the sunshine-showers-heavy rain in the inner Hebrides this week. The drybag design gives confidence the gear (photo kit, Filet down jacket) won’t get wet from rain or seaspray and won’t be damaged during an inadvertant dunk during boat-to-land tranfers…
The only problem - deciding each day whether to compromise between the smaller 20l Gourdon with water bottle pockets and the 30l Gourdon that will hold and protect a tripod.
30l Gourdon with side pockets please!!!
Rob