It is a pleasure to carry. It carries more like a fanny pack. I’m usually hiking in a few miles and out from sunrise to sundown and I choose to carry rain gear, lunch, snacks, h2o, game bags, and a down jacket. I chose the 18 over the 28 so I could dip under branches without getting hung up and/or branch scraping on pack. Which it does very well. I find I can be silent if I walk straight forward, if I turn sideways then sometimes yes if it makes contact with branches it will make noise, it’s cordura.
It is the best pack available without customization in my opinion.
Here’s a few picks of last years packout