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Finally graduated from make-shift cave packs to that sleek, black, torpedo made by SWAYGO. I bought the Pit version (medium sized) and took delivery a week and a half ago. Within 4 hours of picking it up from my front doorstep I had it underground for an evening excursion into a local cave that features some snakey fluted passages and a nearly submerged belly crawl / swim to exit. Took it through the same cave and one other the next day and thoroughly impressed the folks I was with.

I took it off maybe once, other than when I wanted water or a granola bar. At the exit, I clipped it to my chicken loop and off I went down the wet passage, floating pack full of dry gear in tow.


I loved it so much I bought a used Push pack (thanks for the Michigan mud, Mark! )off the board here for a backup or to outfit a guest.

I don't normally go out of my way to give a public thumbs-up, but I really like how this piece of gear performs.

Cool. Wow, Scott M should be smiling ear to ear on that glowing endorsement!

Welcome to the Swaygo Fan Club!

Thanks Jason!

Could we add your review the testimonials on our website?

Scott,

Give me a few days to find some time and I'll write up a better, more coherent version with comments from others about the pack. Thanks for a great product.

Not to be a downer, but I too had my first experience with a Swaygo pack in-cave Saturday morning. The top mini-biner was lost in a rubble pile within 15 minutes.

Adam Byrd wrote:Not to be a downer, but I too had my first experience with a Swaygo pack in-cave Saturday morning. The top mini-biner was lost in a rubble pile within 15 minutes.

PM sent.

Sorry to hear about that, Adam. I always replace the top biners on my packs with a real biner. I actually replace the side ones too. Then I always have three real biners with me. We don't include real biners on the packs because of the additional cost and it allows you to use the brand/style of biner you like. We would like to, but it's just not practical.

If you're coming to SERA this weekend, I'd be happy to replace your lost biner.

Scott McCrea wrote:I always replace the top biners on my packs with a real biner. I actually replace the side ones too. Then I always have three real biners with me.

Good point. FYI I've also found something else that works well on the sides of this kind of pack - a pair of small 5mm stainless delta (triangle) maillon rapides. Much smaller than a (rated) carabiner, and with about a 16kN MBS they can still be used for "other things" in a pinch. They cost about $5 each.

Yeah, I've been a fan ever since I got one to write a review for the NSS News. I had seen the website and it listed the pack as "waterproof *" with the asterisk implying that nothing is truly 100% waterproof. But the word waterproof is something that I generally take as a personal challenge when testing gear.

I tried for two days to get water in the thing, including filling it full of bricks and sinking the pack. In the end I had to declare defeat. I'm pretty well convinced that there isn't any reasonable thing that a caver can do to get their stuff wet in this thing. I'm going to be packing all of my medical and survival gear in my SWAYGO next week on a canoe trip. The pack will also be my pillow on the trip. :)

Another thumbs up for SWAYGO!! I took mine canoing today and it performed brilliantly even when I did not!!

cheshire wrote:I'm pretty well convinced that there isn't any reasonable thing that a caver can do to get their stuff wet in this thing. I'm going to be packing all of my medical and survival gear in my SWAYGO next week on a canoe trip. The pack will also be my pillow on the trip. :)

Simple - forget to tighten the top of your platypus all the way. It doesn't need to be "loose" just less than really tight. Use the pack as a pillow to keep your body out of the slime while you survey. Slowly your body weight will force the water out of the bottle, into your pack where it can't escape! It's waterproof after all.

John DeLong wrote:

cheshire wrote:I'm pretty well convinced that there isn't any reasonable thing that a caver can do to get their stuff wet in this thing. I'm going to be packing all of my medical and survival gear in my SWAYGO next week on a canoe trip. The pack will also be my pillow on the trip. :)

Simple - forget to tighten the top of your platypus all the way. It doesn't need to be "loose" just less than really tight. Use the pack as a pillow to keep your body out of the slime while you survey. Slowly your body weight will force the water out of the bottle, into your pack where it can't escape! It's waterproof after all.

Ahh, the Trojan Platypus Theory...

Better your platypus leaking in the pack than your pee bottle.

Very Short caving video I shot showing, not one, but two Swaygos.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbIqaEu9iuM

CaverScott wrote:Very Short caving video I shot showing, not one, but two Swaygos.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbIqaEu9iuM

Wow! See that? The packs never got in the way, rode comfortably on the cavers' backs.......
....and the cavers were able to make it through that passage without ever having to take off their Swaygos! Way to go Swaygo!