Osprey Packs

Talon 33L Backpack

I recently renewed my Osprey

I recently renewed my Osprey pack with a new Talon 33 model. It is a very comfortable lightweight pack with several improved features, including the side pockets and improved waist strap pockets. The attachment points for poles and ice axes etc have been improved. Overall the pack is great for single or multi day hikes. One small feature has been discontinued, - the small extra pocket with a velcrose fastening that was in the top external zipped pocket. This I found useful for storing a passport or document for easy access when travelling. I would have preferred this to be retained on the new model. Overall a great well designed pack for summer and winter use

Backpack

This is my second pack from Osprey, the other being a 48. They are great rucksacks with every convenience covered and great for either single or multi day hikes

Talon 33l

Great bag very light, been up winter hike with it fits all essential kit, ice axe and walkingbpoles fitted well. Really pleased.

My new pack is perfect!

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] My new pack is perfect! Osprey is awesome! It fits great, is super comfortable and is well designed. I would bever buy a pack from anyone else.

Super annoying that they've stitched

Super annoying that they've stitched the lid to the main body in the newer iteration. Now when it's full the lid tips forward in to your head. Stupid! Otherwise a very nice bag

Good basic pack for day/weekend hikes

My second Talon 33, replacing the first when repairs to the webbing pockets proved impractical. The current version is similar - the main difference noticed so far is that the lid is fixed rather than floating, and I prefer this change. The pack feels light, comfortable and fits well - I'm 187cm and have the L/XL size, which feels right. Easy to adjust the size and all the usual straps make it easy to tighten or slacken off according to load, temperature etc. There doesn't seem to be a point on the front for hanging a visibility lamp/light and there are no reflective markings. Hip belt pockets see a bit more robust and roomy than the last version. There's a small webbing pocket on the left shoulder strap, too small for a phone or wallet and not weatherproof so I'm not sure what use it serves. Some 'daisy-chain' loops on the shoulder straps or front of the pack would have been useful. No integrated cover (as per previous version) but not a problem as I still have my old cover. Still, feels like an odd omission for any pack. All considered, a nice pack for long day hikes, maybe a weekend trip.

Perfect Size and fit

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

Size Bought:

M/L

Have used this backpack for about 10 hikes now and am very impressed. Great size for a lot of gear, adjustable/customizable fit, and lots of places to store (hip belt, top, two side water holders, back pocket, etc.). Also bought the Osprey 3L water bladder, and it fits well (and is a great optional feature). The hiking pole holders make good, accesible storage, but easy to extract while on the trail. I would recomend buying the raincover as accessory. First hike with rain, we got soaked and while it is water resistent, the pack itself is not waterproof, so everything was wet. Bought the rainproof cover, and it has worked very well in rainy conditions. Well worth the price

Superb. More than large enough

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] Superb. More than large enough for day hikes, and just big enough for ultralight overnighters, looking forward to using this pack more but the comfort and quality is typical for Osprey: excellent. Love the new tan color

I finally got to do

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I finally got to do a real test with the Talon 33 rather than a few hours hike here and there. I recently (June 2024) did a 40'ish mile 4-day hike up and down the hills of Vermont. The weather was unusually hot and humid for VT and on two days of the hike the heat index was 105 and 106. The AirScape system worked great in the heat and humidity keeping my back mostly dry (with a dri-fit type shirt on). The many adjustments of the pack kept me as comfortable as possible in the conditions with about a 30-pound load. I initially didn't think the T-33 had enough compartments, but once I started to fill it out with gear it did indeed have enough. The biggest complaint I had was the location of the pockets in the back. I wished that they were located a little higher. I used them for water bottles since the well documented internal hydration pack really doesn't work that well/is a hassle. I couldn't reach the bottles without having to take the pack off and I really just wanted to drink on the go. I wish the pockets started higher. I eventually just made sure I had a tall water bottle and I put a false base in the pocket so the water bottle sat higher. I thought that the 33 might be a little light on actually being able to hold 33l, but that was just my observation.

Good update, but with one flaw...

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

Size Bought:

M/L

Height:

6' 1"

Weight:

200

I've had the original Talon 33 for 10 years, hiked with it a lot. The pack felt designed to be light above all else. Carry was adequate if I didn't push the load, lots of useful features, but I really disliked that the pack only had one pair of compression straps low on the pack body. This hindered the carry. When I saw that Osprey had dropped a new version with 2 sets of compression straps I decided up upgrade. After a few months with the new pack, here's what I've learned. The new suspension is more substantial. Same thin foam padding but more of it in back panel, hipbelt, and shoulder harness, plus a sculpted back panel, and a continuous-wrap back pad and hipbelt mean this pack will carry some weight. OK, I've carried to 22 lb, and the pack is not bothered. The hipbelt pockets are larger, but somehow harder to open and close.. Could just be me. Anyway, a definite improvement. Osprey made this less of an improvement by a design change: the ends of the lower compression straps are sewn to the ends of the hipbelt pocket on each side. When you tighten the compression strap it distorts the hipbelt. It's not like you can put on the pack, tighten the hipbelt, then reach back to tighten the lower straps - at least I can't. I would have returned the pack over this, but my wife modded the straps by sewing the ends to a spot on the pack body. Check this feature carefully; it may annoy you as much as it does me. The new 33 is heavier than the original, but not much. Osprey shaved weight by speccing narrower webbing and smaller buckles throughout. Mostly this works, though in cold weather the small buckles are a nuisance. The new top lid is similar to the old, though with improved pockets. On the old pack I didn't care that the top lid was fixed; the pack could deal with overloading. The new suspension can (IMO), and a floating top lid would be nice. The old pack had a great hydration sleeve - easy to load and unload, carried a bladder well. The new pack has a much tighter sleeve, and it's really hard to get a bladder past the new back panel. Once the bladder is in it still carries well. Better hose routing would be nice. The elastic bands are already a bit stretched out. How about a velcro hose tether like my wife's Deuter pack has? Features are pretty much like the original. back and side stretch pockets, tool loops and tethers, a stretch cord for retaining hiking poles (I"ve never used it), etc. Lots of places to stick stuff on the outside of the pack to keep them handy. Except for a place to clip a camera bag for my camera. No place on the shoulder straps to hang that. Sigh. Sizing remains a fiction. I have a 19" back, should be between S/M and M/L according to Osprey. In fact the pack hangs below my shoulders so much that the load lifter straps can't do any lifting because they're already below my shoulders. With the new suspension this pack can actually carry 20+ lb, and that's when I notice the weight on my shoulders. The back panel can handle it, but the pack is too short. Honestly, there needs to be a third size, a L/XL. 19" is not that big. I know people whose backs measure 20" and more.... So, all in all a worthy improvement. They kept the weight close to the original while making the pack more capable. A couple issues - the compression straps, the back length - to check out, but worth a look.