The Gossamer Gear Fast Kumo is a 36-liter ultralight backpack with vest-style shoulder straps and an optional removable hip belt. While it’s designed for fastpacking (running and backpacking), it also makes an excellent daypack for extended hikes as well as a great carry-on bag for travel with its numerous pockets and compressibility. Gossamer Gear still makes the original version of the Kumo 36 with regular backpacking shoulder straps, although the fit is slightly different. I used the original Kumo 36 for many years and loved it, but the addition of the vest straps and their highly functional pockets are a huge upgrade on the original that’s worth considering if you have a Kumo in your sights.
- Weight: 21.5 oz (removable hip belt is 3.2 oz)
- Volume: 36L (28L of closed storage, does not include vest pockets)
- Gender: Unisex
- Pockets: 10 (that’s not a mistake)
- Hydration Ready: Yes (no internal hydration pocket – hand loop only)
- Load Lifters: No
- Hipbelt pockets: Yes
- Trekking pole holders: Yes
- Access: Top
- Materials: 70D and 100D Robic Nylon
- Max recommended weight: 20-25 lbs
The Fast Kumo 36 is a frameless backpack made with Robic nylon. It has an external sit pad pocket that holds a soft foam pad, gives the pack a little structure, adds comfort, and is handy when you want to sit down for a while. The shoulder straps are extra-wide vest-style straps with dual sternum straps loaded with pockets capable of holding soft bottles, a smartphone, or snacks. A removable hip belt with two mesh pockets is also included and is designed to keep the pack close to your torso when running.
The Fast Kumo has Gossamer Gear’s signature fold-over top, which is a cross between a top lid, a roll top, and an extension collar. It has a wide map pocket on the outside that’s also good for holding personal items. However, it does not have a key fob. The fold-over top is not convenient to use often, so you’re better off storing less frequently used items in the pack’s main compartment and everything else in its open external pockets in the pack’s shoulder straps, front stretch mesh pocket, side pockets, and hip belt pockets.
The inside of the main compartment does not have a hydration pocket, but it does have a loop from which you can hang a reservoir, central hose ports between the shoulder straps, and hose keeper loops. There are side stretch water bottle pockets on the sides of the pack that have compression cords above them if you want to secure tall bottles or ones with a water filter screwed on top. The side pockets have front cut outs so you can reach back and pull a bottle out the front of the pocket if you can’t pull it out from the top.
The front of the pack has a large stretch mesh pocket that is good for storing layers or damp items. There are trekking pole loops at the base of the pocket that can accept pole tips, but there aren’t any elastic shaft holders to secure the top of the poles to the pack. It’s the same story with the ice axe loop on the other side, which does not have a shaft holder. In both cases, you can create one by looping an elastic cord around one of the cord lops distributed in the seams or the pack or by tucking the top of your poles or axe under the side compression straps.
But the star of the Fast Kumo “show” is the pack’s vest-style shoulder straps. They’re the pack’s office. They’re well-padded with spacer mesh and have dual sternum straps to keep the pack close to your chest and prevent bouncing. You’ll find that the Fast Kumo sits a bit higher on your torso than on the regular Kumo 36 and helps maintain your forward momentum better, even if you’re hiking and not running.
The hip belt also rides higher up on the torso, below the ribs. It’s removable but has two mesh pockets large enough to store two or three bars. I prefer to hike without it because the contents of my pack and the vest straps keep the pack close to my torso without it. Being frameless, the hipbelt also doesn’t play a supporting role on the Kumo (or on any other frameless backpack) other than a place to put pockets.
The shoulder straps have two deep pockets for holding water bottles – 500ml soft bottles work well, but so do hard-sized 23.7 oz bottles. The right strap has a shorter pocket later over the bottle pocket that’s good for snacks and a small half pocket (sewn closed on top) with an open corner to stuff trash inside. However, I must say that the trash pockets you find on fastpacks and some backpacks don’t make much sense to me if you want to minimize overnight food smells in bear country (Just saying). The left vest strap has a second zippered pocket layered over the bottle pocket that is large enough to store a Smartphone, and it can be used even if you have a water bottle inside the inner pocket.
Frameless backpack comparison
Recommendation
The Gossamer Gear Kumo 36 is a frameless ultralight fastpack that can be used for trail running, backpacking, or day hiking. It has vest-style shoulder straps, dual sternum straps, and a removable hipbelt that give it a different feel from a more conventional backpack, one that rides higher and closer on the torso than one with a frame and a load-bearing hipbelt. With 36 liters of capacity (28 liters internal) the Kumo is appropriate for fastpacks and backpacking with minimal gear or extended day hikes that require more clothing or food. If you like the looks of the Kumo but want a smaller capacity version, I recommend checking out the Gossamer Gear Loris 25, which provides zipper access to the main compartment and is more attuned to the more frequent storage access that day hikers prefer.
Disclosure: Gossamer Gear donated a Fast Kumo for review.
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