Six Moon Designs Wy’east Daypack Evaluate

The Six Moon Designs Wy’East Daypack is a 30-liter daypack that’s good for all-day hikes, commuting, and travel. While it’s made by a company that specializes in ultralight rolltop backpacks for thru-hiking, it has a top-lid pocket and internal security pocket that make it much more functional for shorter hikes and everyday use. But the Wy’east still comes with plenty of technical features that make it appropriate for more demanding journeys including stretch shoulder strap pockets, daisy chains, and a removable sit pad.

Specs at a Glance

• Weight: 1 lbs 9 oz (710 g)
• Volume: 30 liters
• Gender: Unisex
• Sizing: 16-22 inch | 38 – 56 cm torso length
• Pockets: 7 + main compartment
• Top closure: Draw-string
• Hip belt: Yes (removable webbing strap)
• Adjustable Torso Length: No
• Suspended Mesh Backpanel: No
• Rain cover included: No
• Hydration compatible: Yes
• Max recommended load: 25 lbs
• Material: 210D Robic nylon, Ultramesh pockets
• Dimensions: 14″ x 7″ x 18″ (WDT) | 36 cm x 18 cm x 46 cm
• For complete specs, visit Six Moon Designs

The Six Moon Designs Wy’east backpack is a 30 L fixed-length backpack with a sewn-on top lid pocket and draw-string closure instead of the dry bag closure found on the company’s other backpacks. The pack comes with a removable clip-on webbing strap for a hip belt that is not load-bearing but is designed to keep the pack close to your torso and prevent it from bouncing around when scrambling.

While technically frameless, the Wy’east has a sit-pad pocket inside the main compartment that helps cushion your back from the contents and provides a little structure. The location of the sit-pad inside the main compartment instead of being externalized behind the shoulder straps makes it a lot harder to use on a casual basis though and you probably just want to keep it inside permanently instead of removing it.

The place where the Wy’east really shines is in its external and internal pockets.

Externally, there are:

• Two durable mesh pockets on the shoulder straps can be used to carry small water bottles or a Smartphone
• Two side bottle pockets sized for 1L bottles that are easy to reach while wearing the backpack
• A gusseted front mesh pocket that’s ideal for holding rain gear or bulkier items

Internally, there is:

• An external zippered pocket in the top lid with a key fob inside
• A hidden zippered pocket inside the main compartment is sized for a passport and ideal for travel. It also has a key fob inside.
• A removable hydration pocket that clips to webbing loops inside the pack, with holes for your hose located in the pack’s extension collar.

Daisy chains run alongside the long front pocket and can be used to clip microspikes or other traction aids to the pack in cold weather and the pack comes with a single elastic keeper cord to secure an ice axe shaft (even though it has two ice axe loops).

Performance

When worn, the Wy’east is happiest when the main compartment is pretty full as the sit pad tends to buckle if it doesn’t have enough contents to support it inside: this can be an issue on summer day hikes when you don’t have to carry a larger load. This is particularly noticeable if you carry two x 1L water bottles in the side pockets but becomes much less pronounced if you move one of the bottles inside the main compartment until it’s needed. The shoulder straps can also be used to hold small 500 ml water bottles, although the side water bottle pockets are easy to reach while wearing the backpack. For more urban use, the pack carries well when used to carry a laptop, since its flat surface helps to reinforce the internal sit pad and make the pack carry more stiffly.

Sizing

While the pack is unisex, it has S-shaped shoulder straps that also make it more comfortable for women (with breasts) and men with more developed muscular chests. The shoulder pads are cut wide which helps distribute the load over the chest and makes the Wy’east comfortable to wear, while the mesh shoulder strap pockets are easy to use and secure, with an elastic cord to tighten the top and prevent the contents from popping out. Finally, the sternum strap is anchored to a raised fabric rail making it easy to adjust and slide up and down. The Wy’east is a fixed-length backpack size for people with torsos ranging from 16-22″. Exact torso fit is generally less important for day packs like the Wy’east that do not have a load-bearing hipbelt because they can’t carry heavy loads exceeding 20-25 lbs.

Durability

The Wy’east is made with 210D Robic nylon which is quite durable but not waterproof, so you should consider lining the pack with a plastic bag and/or using waterproof stuff sacks in wet climates. The external mesh pockets on the Wy’east are made with Ultra mesh, which is a highly abrasion and tear-resistant stretch mesh that should provide many years of hard use. In fact, I have used the Wy’east for bushwhacking and it’s well built for that level of more extreme use if you’re so inclined.

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Recommendation

The Six Moon Designs Wy’east Daypack is a 30-liter backpack that’s good for day hiking, peak bagging, travel, and urban use. It’s a fully-featured and durably-made hiking pack that’s loaded with pockets and attachment points for more technical hikes, but equally functional at work or play. It carries better when packed full vs mostly empty, which is the case with most backpacks in this volume range. It is missing an easy way to strap trekking poles to the pack or secure tall and skinny items in the side pockets but is a good pick if you require a smaller volume backpack for extended day hikes, peakbagging, or travel.

Disclosure: The author owns this product.

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