Amanda’s review
Here we go. My husband may say I’m too nice, but to me I know what I like and I know what I want and I really wanted this Cotopaxi day hiking bag. My husband got it for me when I started thinking about doing a hiking challenge to hike AT LEAST once a week.
Pros- My favorite part of this pack is how lightweight it is. For me, hiking is hard. Even though it may be just a day hiking pack, or even a day hiking bag, I need it to be light to help me not get off balance with my cerebral palsy. I love the bright colors and how bold it is. Another reason why I love the bright colors is because it’s a bag that sticks out and while others don’t. I like the attention it brings. I don’t mind it because people have stared at me all my life anyways so why not just give them another reason to stare haha.
Cons- My only issue with this bag are the mesh side pockets. I have a lightweight Hydroflask water bottle that I love and it fits in the side pocket nicely for me to grab easily on hikes. However, if I start to bend down at all it falls out. It’s kind of a pain but it’s something I’ve gotten used to.
So there is my first gear review. Comment below to let me know what more you want to hear in future reviews to help you with your adventures.
TAYLOR’S BRUTALLY HONEST REVIEW
Pros – Unique colorways, helping the environment and society (Afghan kids), lightweight, stowable, zippers are very smooth, flexible enough to dig for things
Cons – Color isn’t for everyone, not very rigid for hiking, no hip belt, water bottles fall out of the side pockets
Hi everyone! My name is Taylor and I am Amanda’s photographer/husband/editor/driver/honest reviewer. Even though I do those things, this adventure that is National Park Capable was all Amanda’s idea. She’s the creative one and I’m just there to support. One thing that we wanted to do with National Park Capable is to give reviews of the gear that we actually use. We want to give you our honest opinions so that you can go and make the decision for yourself whether you’d like to use the same things we do. I love doing research on things so I hope that this review helps you in one way or another.
The first piece of gear that we’re going to go over is Amanda’s Cotopaxi backpack. She decided early on that she wanted to have a pack for herself to carry on her hikes to carry water, band aids, snacks for a growing toddler, etc. The one she ended up going with is the Cotopaxi Batac 16. She chose it for the unique color, the large surface area to put patches on, and the fact that it is lightweight since anything heavy tends to put her more off balance than she already is.
According to the Cotopaxi website, the Batac Del Día is for “Fast-and-light day trips, hikes, and other spontaneous excursions. This stowable daypack is unstructured for added versatility.” After using this bag almost every week for the last six months, we’ve found this statement to be mostly true.
One of the main selling points for Cotopaxi is their variety of colors on their bags. The people who actually put the bags together have the last say in what the bag will look like color-wise so each one is unique. This bag will definitely stand out whether you’re out hiking on a trail, flying to your favorite vacation destination, or just walking around Disneyland.
This bag is certainly lightweight (it barely weighs anything empty), but that can be a pro or con depending on your personal preference. For me, I prefer to have a sturdy bag with an internal frame that doesn’t move much while hiking. This bag definitely bounces around a bit, even with just moderate hiking. Its lightweight feature means that it has no frame to support it. It also doesn’t come with a hip belt, but you probably won’t be putting much in this pack to warrant one. As long as you don’t overstuff the bag it’s relatively easy to open the main pocket all the way and dig for things at the bottom so that’s a plus.
Another thing that Cotopaxi has going for them is that they strive to make a difference in the world through multiple charitable movements and foundations. When we opened the box for Amanda’s bag there was a note from an Afghan child, written in their language, and an accompanying note saying how the bag purchase had helped them, which I thought was pretty cool. Cotopaxi is also part of the 1% pledge, meaning that they have pledged to donate at least 1% of their revenue towards ending poverty worldwide.
Now onto the more critical part of the review. I personally find these parts the most valuable because some people only want to post the most glowing, positive reviews. I like to give a more honest review, hence my section title.
As I mentioned above, this bag definitely isn’t for me. Some people may prefer the unique colorways, but I personally prefer a more neutral color such as black or grey. Cotopaxi is known for having very colorful bags so this definitely is my own subjective opinion.
Also, there’s zero rigidity to the bag which isn’t great when you’re hiking. There is a small water bladder/laptop sleeve, but there is nowhere for a hydration tube to go except out the main zipper. This necessitates carrying water bottles, but the mesh side pockets aren’t great for that either. We’ve noticed that if you have to bend over at all, water bottles just slide right out. Then you have to carry a water bottle inside the pack itself which is just one more thing to bounce around.
People may ask, “Is this a good pack?” I think the ultimate short answer would be, “it depends.” I personally am not a fan of it but Amanda has liked it and it has seemed pretty durable so far. To follow up the statement from earlier, I would say that the flexibility can be a pro or a con, but I definitely wouldn’t choose this bag first for a hike. I would have liked to see at least something to feed a hydration tube through and attach to the shoulder straps since the bladder would have added a little more structure to the back. Cotopaxi does have other packs, but I haven’t tried them out yet. If you love the unique colors, Cotopaxi’s charitable efforts, and want a durable day pack that’s easy to stow, then this might be the bag for you. If you want a more traditional hiking pack, I’d consider something else. Overall I’d give it about a 5/10.
Full disclaimer: Neither Amanda nor I were paid or sponsored for this review. We purchased the pack with our own money and just wanted to share our thoughts and opinions on it with you.