Man isn’t meant to stay indoors — our weekly “Trekking” column can attest to that. It’s a column dedicated to the adventurer inside of all of us, the one pining to ditch the office humdrum for a quick surf session or seven-week jaunt in the Grand Tetons. One day we may highlight an ultra-light stove and the next a set of handmade canoe paddles. Life doesn’t just happen inside the workplace, so get outside and live it.
There was a time, in the olden days of outdoor apparel and gear, when function and style were rarely mentioned in the same breadth. Times have changed, though, and modern manufacturers often now care just as much as about the appearance of their wares as their capabilities in the field. Woolrich — one of the oldest outdoor retailers in the United States — is a prime example, as is the Colorado-based Topo Designs. That said, meet the Topo x Woolrich Rover Pack ($190).
The collaboration represents a simple twist on Topo’s classic Rover rucksack, one that utilizes Woolrich’s high-quality and American-made approach to woolen fabrics. Each of the three rugged packs revolves around an age-old silhouette and relies on a 1000d Cordura base for durability, with a basic wool upper and a cinch-top closure, not to mention an inner laptop sleeve for housing your computer and two side pockets designed for stowing water bottles or any gear you’d like cinched together with compression straps. Best of all, the aforementioned hallmarks come within a low-profile design lined with padded mesh and heavy-duty accessory d-rings, rendering the pack as streamlined as it is tough. The packs may not shine when it comes to multi-day ventures and your next cross-country endeavor, but you can bet they’ll be some of the most attractive on the trail — which is rarely a bad thing.
Check out Woolrich and Topo Designs online for more information, to place an order, or to browse either company’s phenomenal selection outdoor gear and apparel.
