Beta Light 30 Backpack

Good for backpacking-style travel

"Very satisfied! This pack is good not just for UL hiking, but also for backpacking-style travel. I used it throughout a journey across Nepal, Tibet, and China, where keeping my gear lightweight was essential for carefree mobility. The highlight is definitely the comfortable back and shoulder system. Thanks, BD, great work!"

— Marian (5/5)

"Got to my door in 4 days. amazing shipping time"

— Jackson (5/5)

Lightest backpack

"I love my Beta Light 30 backpack!! The top opens up nice and wide so I can see what I’ve packed readily. The XS size fits me like a glove and it is so roomy yet very light weight. I have t yet tested the waterproof quality, but I have little doubt that it will hold up to the elements as proclaimed by other happy customers. I absolutely love Black Diamond products! High quality and dependable."

— Linda H. (5/5)

BD Doesn't Backpack

"As an avid ultralight backpacker and ex-guide with thousands of miles of experience, I was looking forward to BD's first venture into UL backpacking but was left disappointed. With a team of designers and the backing of a huge international company, you'd think BD could design a pack better than a Canadian dirtbag alone in his cabin. It kinda feels like the BD doesn't backpack, hence this pack is a misstep. Note: I tested this pack for 30 days on a 500 mile international trail Pros: - Functionally waterproof pack body (seam sealed). This is unique for UL packs and one of the primary points of appeal for my purchase - Large stretchy and durable stuff pocket - Running vest style shoulder straps and pockets (generally good) - Mirrored side pockets make water bottles and most gear easy to access - Good durability, love the Ultra 200 fabric - Looks damn good for an UL pack Cons: -- No load lifters I get that they are trying to cut weight, but this was a mistake. With the boxy shape, trying to balance this pack on your back in a comfortable way is impossible. -- Hipbelt pockets are hard to open, and oddly shaped Requires two hands to open and close (annoying) and is not waterproof/weather resistant (ironic). They are oddly shaped to the point where items would easily fall out. -- Pockets on shoulder straps are small and difficult to use, not versatile for a variety of items They seemed to want you to use a soft flask or water bottle in the left shoulder pocket. Not good for any other item. And the left shoulder pocket is so small that barely a phone/sunglasses could fit in it. Best fitted for snacks, and snacks only. -- Main pocket is boxy/square, pushing the load farther from your spine. Nice for a carry-on for travel, bad for comfort and balance with backpacking No matter how well you pack it, there will always be some drag because this bag is more square than rectangular, and thus most of the weight will be further from your spine, severely affecting balance and comfort. Look to the Durston Kakwa for a good rectangular design that "hugs" your spine -- No easy way to store your trekking poles, let alone BD Z poles (consider that almost every other day/running pack has an easy storage for Z Poles) Really BD? The only place to store poles would be one of the side pockets, but if it's filled even with just one water bottle, this is impossible. Even when it's empty, it's hard to store poles (even Z poles!) in the side pocket. -- Heavy relative to its competition/class 25 oz/700g for a frameless 30L pack is relatively poor. Sure, you could strip the hipbelt for less weight, but there are packs out there that are similar in function and weigh far less. -- Excessively long and unnecessary top strap Clearly added to allow for bear canister compatibility, but who tf will carry a bear canister on a small and frameless pack? We're talking about a small niche of the population. Make this strap modular, or just shrink it -- Simply, it's not comfortable to wear (!!) Arguably, the most important part of a pack. I understand you sacrifice a bit of this for weight savings, but again, there are packs similar in class that are far more comfortable (and affordable)! To conclude, I think there are only two decent use cases for this pack. 1) For the wealthy, yet minimalist backpacker with a sub 9 lb baseweight who will strip the hipbelt and hike in very wet conditions. 2) For the adventure traveler who wants a boxy carry-on for international flights."

— Jay (2/5)

Almost a perfect UL backpack.

"As an ultralight Backpacker, I leave my honest review here. First, I have to say that I was excited when I got this backpack; the fabrics and the implementation are outstanding excellent job Black Diamond. The fast backpack idea with those extra shoulder straps makes this backpack ideal. Not only is this one waterproof or almost, but it is merely one of the best backpacks I ever owned. Believe it or not, I have tried several UL backpacks in my career. The only downside I see is that the shoulder pocket with the zipper is too tiny to hold a standard-sized cell phone comfortably. If I had a bigger one, I could guarantee it would never fit inside."

— Jean B. (4/5)

Running vest construction

"I haven't used this pack but it looks great , with excellent materials, pockets and overall construction. It also seems to tick most boxes for ultra runners who may be doing multi-day events requiring a lot of mandatory gear. Some runners may question the design choice of having only one side of the vest strap capable of carrying a 500ml soft flask. Perhaps this is the preferred option for fastpacking but having capacity for two soft flasks in addition to two zippered pockets on either side like the BD Distance 15 pack would be ideal, at least for ultra runners."

— Gr (4/5)