---
title: "Review: Granite Gear Crown2 60 mini-max backpack for long treks into the unknown"
description: "The ultralight Granite Gear Crown2 60 backpack is an ideal choice for medium-length treks. What does Tomáš, who tested it in inhospitable Nordic conditions, have to say about it?"
canonical_url: "https://gramino.com/blog/review-granite-gear-crown2-60"
last_updated: "2021-12-01"
---

# Review: Granite Gear Crown2 60 mini-max backpack for long treks into the unknown

Authors: Tomáš Roztočil

Date: 2021-12-01

The ultralight Granite Gear Crown2 60 backpack is an ideal choice for medium-length treks. What does Tomáš, who tested it in inhospitable Nordic conditions, have to say about it?

It's been a few years now since I fell in love with Scandinavia – whenever I manage to carve out a few weeks off, I pack my bag and head north to get away from overcrowded, well-marked trails, to places where instead of park rangers, it's only foxes and reindeer that wish you goodnight. But freedom and remoteness come hand in hand with a fair amount of [responsibility](/blog/leave-no-trace). In places where you simply can't call for help because there's no signal, you need gear you can rely on. That's probably why the few people you do meet in the national parks of Norway and other Nordic countries often carry backpacks that look more like wardrobes, out of which the locals pull things like camping stools, cast-iron pans, spare tents, or even axes. For adventurers who prefer to travel light in the mountains, it's simply a nightmare.

I've personally been trying for a while now to [cut my own backpack's volume and weight down to a minimum](/blog/how-to-lighten-your-backpack-7-tips), but over the past few years of trips up north I've learned firsthand that minimalism has its limits in the Norwegian mountains. Even just getting to the trailhead is often a long haul, and the local mountains can throw enough weather at you in a single summer week to cover several seasons back home – heat, rain, fog, wind, frost, snow, storms… And when you add to that the lack of signal, unmarked trails through waterlogged terrain, and no shops for miles, you end up with a backpack whose weight and volume no self-respecting minimalist would ever frame and hang on the wall.

So this summer, while hastily packing my bag two days before departure, I discovered a hole the size of a coin in the bottom of it, and I wasn't exactly singing with joy. The thought of losing the whole bottom while hopping from rock to rock, and having to fashion a Viking-style pack frame out of sticks and bark like some hero from an American action movie, didn't appeal to me one bit. At the same time, in the spirit of my minimalist fever this year, I had to admit that a classic heavy pack with a rigid frame weighing several kilograms just wasn't going to happen if I wanted to enjoy the trek. After a bit of digging through the depths of the internet for something light yet roomy enough to hold up in Nordic conditions, I picked up the phone and called the team at Gramino – luckily, they had the last one in stock at the time, and I was able to pick it up the very next day.

Two days later I'm boarding a plane with the [Granite Gear Crown2 60](/p/granite-gear-crown3-60) packed with everything you need for two weeks in the Norwegian mountains. I'm obviously thrilled with the new pack, but also a little nervous – I don't love heading out on bigger trips with gear I haven't tested beforehand. So let's take a look at how the GG Crown held up in the north – you might just find it's the right pack for you too!

## **Iron rations**

The plan was a trek through two national parks for about two weeks, with some room for improvisation. While gathering supplies, I eyed the pack's construction with a bit of suspicion – it looked well thought-out at first glance, but suspiciously light. Next to my old, holey, traditionally-cut 60-liter pack, it honestly looked a bit undernourished.

But it only took loading in the basic gear for me to realize I was dealing with a bottomless companion for the mountains. The Granite Gear Crown2 60 gradually swallowed up a tarp, my three-season sleeping bag [Cumulus Panyam 450](/p/cumulus-panyam-450), my trusty [Sea to Summit inflatable sleeping pad](/p/sea-to-summit-ultralight-insulated), a stack of merino layers, and plenty of other gear I simply couldn't do the trip without. When it came time to pack food, it still had room for a generous stash of treats, including a few indispensable [Adventure Menu](/b/adventure-menu) meals, which we treat ourselves to especially in the darkest moments. Thanks to the pack's roll-top closure, I kept getting the feeling it would never run out of room – I quickly realized there was so much space that I'd have to be careful not to bring unnecessary stuff on the trek.

- [Cumulus Panyam 450](/p/cumulus-panyam-450.md)
- [Adventure Menu Penne Bolognese with Parmesan](/p/adventure-menu-penne-bolognese.md)
- [Sea To Summit Ether Light XR Insulated](/p/sea-to-summit-ether-light-xr-insulated.md)
- [Moonvalley Chocolate Dipped Protein Bar](/p/moonvalley-protein-bar-chocolate-dipped.md)
- [NEMO Tensor Trail](/p/nemo-tensor-trail.md)
- [Sea To Summit Ultralight Aeros Pillow](/p/sea-to-summit-ultralight-aeros-pillow.md)
- [Drip It Tasting Pack 5× 10 g](/p/drip-it-tasting-pack-5x-10-g.md)
- [REAL Turmat Kebab Stew](/p/real-turmat-kebab-stew.md)
- [Summit To Eat Chicken Fajita with Rice](/p/summit-to-eat-chicken-fajita-with-rice.md)
- [Sea To Summit Women's Ether Light XT™ Insulated](/p/sea-to-summit-womens-ether-light-xt-insulated.md)
- [Sea To Summit Ultralight Air Mat](/p/sea-to-summit-ultralight-air-mat.md)

With the pack honestly loaded, all that was left was to swing it onto my back. To my surprise, the reviews praising how comfortable the GG Crown2 stays even under a serious load turned out to be completely true. Despite the seemingly minimalist, lightweight padding and relatively narrow straps, it fit perfectly, and on top of that it was easy to readjust and reposition right on my back, which for me is absolutely essential on long treks. It stayed just as comfortable for the whole trip, even under a fairly heavy load that hovered mostly between 12–15 kg.

## **A minimax with soul**

A few days later, after long waits at airports, train stations, and by the roadside hitchhiking, we finally stood at the trailhead. Norwegian summer arrived in full glory, and spells of **heat alternated with the classic icy wind.** Conditions like that are gorgeous to look at, but constantly changing layers and repacking your bag isn't nearly as fun. And that's exactly when the Granite Gear pack surprised me for the second time. I suddenly understood what that **giant mesh pocket** on the front was actually for – it easily fits a **membrane jacket and an extra insulating layer**, so you don't have to dig into the main compartment every time you change layers. And if that pocket isn't enough, plenty of smaller items fit into the **well-made side pockets.** They're sewn from the same material as the rest of the pack, so they easily handle **larger water bottles** and won't tear the first time you push through some brush.

If, like me, you're not a perfectionist when it comes to packing, or if you want to dry out wet clothes while walking, you'll also find plenty of slim but **sturdy straps** that let you hang gear off the pack like a Christmas tree – including, say, your favorite and fairly bulky [Therm-a-Rest Z Lite sleeping pad](/p/therm-a-rest-z-lite).

**Compression straps** are there mainly to keep the pack nice and compact, whether you're hauling 15 kilograms or heading back from the mountains completely cleaned out of food. It's really the **versatility and adaptability** that won me over most with the Crown2 60. Thanks to how volume-“inflatable” it is, it didn't let me down in the early days of the trek, when I was hiking in just shorts and felt like I was carrying way more food than I needed, nor a week later when I was coming down into the valley in every layer I owned with my last cracker in the lid pocket. Every morning it was enough to loosen all the straps, fill the pack, and cinch them back down, and everything fell right into place – once I'd eaten through most of my supplies and put on the warmer layers, I really appreciated the **detachable lid and roll-top closure,** which instantly turns a bulky pack into a **compact, agile pack for more technical terrain too.** I have to tip my hat to the designers, especially for how **quick** and **intuitive** all the adjustments are and how effortlessly the pack sits on your back. You can really tell the folks at Granite Gear put real work into testing and development here.

[Therm-a-Rest Z Lite Sol](/p/therm-a-rest-z-lite-sol.md)

## **Between two worlds**

You might be wondering by now whether I've oversold the Granite Gear Crown2 a little – after all, every piece of gear has to have some downside. The GG Crown is, of course, no exception here.

Personally, I see the dark side of this pack in its main strength – **its versatility.** Because it's **robust** and **forgiving in shape,** it's easy to get the impression you can load it up like your old trusty rucksack and quickly end up overloading it. The manufacturer recommends a maximum load of **around 15 kg**, and I carried it loaded roughly that much without issue in the first days of our trek. Personally, though, I felt it was happiest with loads of 12 kg or under.

The honestly-stitched **robust 100 and 210 denier nylon** would easily survive a few kilos over the maximum without a problem, but carrying comfort would suffer noticeably. The same goes for packing things into the bag. Because it has only one **large main compartment,** packing takes a bit of ingenuity and experience to **distribute the load by shape and weight** so it carries comfortably. Another trap with such a voluminous pack is, of course, that it tempts you to carry unnecessary things – so when preparing for your trip you need to be a bit stricter with yourself and deny yourself some of the clothing and gear you'd never dream of stuffing into a smaller ultralight pack.

Any die-hard minimalist could also point out that the Granite Gear Crown2 still sits **above the magic one-kilogram mark.** Personally, though, I think you also have to factor in its **robust construction and remarkable versatility** – I'd trade those extra grams for all this functionality, comfort, and reliability without a second thought.

And how about you?

## **Step by step toward a lighter pack**

After two weeks with the GG Crown on my back, I can confidently say I won't be giving it up anytime soon. What won me over most was its versatility – it's simply a chameleon that can look like an old-school pack for unsupported ultra-long treks one day, and turn into a minimalist backpack the next. That makes it a great fit for anyone just getting into the ultralight world who wants to build up their gear gradually, but also for those heading into more remote or colder regions where you occasionally need to carry more supplies and clothing. [Granite Gear Crown2 60](/p/granite-gear-crown3-60) is simply a companion for whatever the weather throws at you.

- [Granite Gear Crown3 60](/p/granite-gear-crown3-60.md)
- [Granite Gear Crown3 60 Women's](/p/granite-gear-crown3-60-womens.md)
- [Granite Gear Virga3 55](/p/granite-gear-virga3-55.md)
- [Granite Gear Crown3 40 ECO](/p/granite-gear-crown3-40-eco.md)
- [Granite Gear Perimeter 50](/p/granite-gear-perimeter-50.md)
- [Granite Gear Sawbill 20](/p/granite-gear-sawbill-20.md)
- [Granite Gear Dagger 22](/p/granite-gear-dagger-22.md)
- [Granite Gear Perimeter 50 Women's Fit](/p/granite-gear-perimeter-50-womens.md)
- [Granite Gear Virga3 55 Women's](/p/granite-gear-virga3-55-womens.md)
- [Granite Gear Virga3 26](/p/granite-gear-virga3-26.md)

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