Kodiak Island, Alaska – On the first day's hunt, I always carry too much stuff. Wiser on the second day, I pare down to the bare essentials: rain gear, lunch, field-dressing gear and so on. What I don't want to carry is a pack that weighs a bunch on its own. Cabela's Ultralight Hunter Rucksack is made of SC210 Extreme fabric, a lightweight, tough, silicone-coated fabric that stood up to day after day of tough use as I climbed, crawled and fought through alder tangles and all sorts of thorny brush. In the rain. And snow. None of my gear inside ever got wet. It has a functional design, with a large main compartment with a couple of mesh pockets to organize gear; plenty of padding in the shoulder straps and back panel; two drawcord top closures to keep out the weather; and three exterior pockets to keep essentials close to hand. There's also a sleeve for carrying a water bladder, with tube ports and clips so you can hydrate easily. It also served as a backrest during mountainside lunch breaks and as a rifle rest on a 183-yard shot on a Sitka blacktail. The pack performed flawlessly and never let me down.

Cabela's Outfitter Journal magazine, published six times a year, educates and entertains hunters, anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts with interesting destination and how-to features, informative regional reports, eye-catching photography and more. A complete package of outdoor information, Cabela's Outfitter Journal will get you ready for – and excited about – future outdoor adventures.

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