30L Futura from Deuter: The Ultimate Day Pack – Gear Review
Clark Rasmussen
Key Review Points
Quick Features:
- Perfect Overall Size (30L)
- Large Side Loops
- Factory Weight: 3.2 lbs.
- Bucket Style with Mid-Zip
- Elastic Side and Front Pockets
- Padding, Off The Back, Hip Pockets
So Nice I Bought It Twice.. The 30L Futura from Deuter
In a review of another favorite pack of mine, the 32L Groden, I described it as being a nearly exceptional pack with a few significant flaws that stop it from being perfect. I have a complicated relationship with that bag, it was one of my first and I’ve taken it up dozens of High Peaks. I love it, but it does commit the unforgivable sin of not having load lifters, which made its eventual replacement all but inevitable.
Enter screen right the 30L Futura from Deuter, a now defunct and incredibly difficult to find mid-sized day pack that ceased production some time in or around 2018(?) when Deuter rolled out their new Futura Pro line. Thankfully I was able to purchase this pack twice before it became nearly impossible to find online.
I bought this pack for myself and as a Birthday Gift for my buddy Tim, who was lugging around a gigantic Gregory pack on even the more mild day climbs. He loves this thing, and takes it everywhere, as do I.
Let’s break down the PROS and CONS of this pack and get too the meat of what makes it a perfect day pack, why I recommend it wholeheartedly, and why it’s nearly impossible to find.
THE PROS:
As I’ve mentioned in previous conversations about day packs, the sweet spot is between 26L to 32L, a check in this packs favor. I realize that’s a bit of a large window but I like to leave some wiggle room for preference. I know people who like to keep it as light and small as possible (for good reason) but I tend to always want a little bit more space, so I air on the higher end here. I’m generally the one that brings extra snacks, first aid kits and other things, so the flexibility of 30L Futura from Deuter is perfect for me on anything with in the space of a single 24 hour span.
Let’s start on the pack itself with the exterior, home to 3 elastic style outer pockets and one zipper pocket on the top. Pretty standard fair in that regard, and this pack also has the coveted hip-belt pockets and robust padding, a feature so immensely convenient that its absence is often baffling on other packs. Then, on the bottom there is also a lower zipper that opens directly into the main compartment. Load lifters are standard here as well as plenty of other little bonuses like a hose hole and a little loop for sunglasses on the shoulder strap.
Like many other Deuter packs, the top flap has an inner and an outer zipper pocket, with the interior pocket showing some printed emergency information. This is pretty standard fair for Deuter packs and I’ve become quite accustomed to it. That outer pocket is perfect for the quick accessibility items and the inner pocket is good for the smaller things you want to keep separated from the main compartments.
A staple that is common with the Deuter Futura, and even larger packs, is the lower pocket and inner membrane separating the bottom and top of the main compartment area. This essentially turns the main compartment into a duffle that can be accessed either from the top or the bottom, with an inner membrane zipper that can be used to divide the compartment into two smaller compartments.
Bucket style main pocket
without any additional
obstruction or flaps
has a removable zipper membrane
Essential load lifters for long treks
Off-the-back Frame
and Hip Belt
Hip belt pockets, a huge plus
THE CONS:
For me personally, the 30L is nearly perfect pack, and there are virtually no complaints I have with it, after several days and arduous conditions, this 30L remains as the best day pack I’ve ever had. That being said, and for the sake of having a cons section for this review, lets go over a few things that I would maybe choose to make different and perhaps so other notable issues.
On the notable side, this pack is old enough to have been completely replaced by a new line of “Futura Pro” packs, essentially the same with minor differences. I absolutely love this pack and if I couldn’t get one today I would probably get the Futura Pro 32L, a smilier and slightly larger design with a lot of the same fundamentals. Unfortunately, in the new line up, the only 30L is an EL version designed for women. For whatever reason the sizes on the normal and EL version tend not to overlap.
Although these are not real complaints, there are some things I wish were different, things that would make it perfect in my book. I personally prefer real pockets over the elastic style outer pockets. That elastic style is obviously better stylized and has a lower profile, but I’m sucker for the security of a real pocket. Also, the zipper membrane that separates the main compartment is a bit unnecessary on a pack of this size. I have a 65L with the same feature which is very helpful there, but less so here.