Returned Lowepro AW Mini Trekker

I just sent back a Mini Trekker because it is to small for me.I am thinking that the Nature Trekker will hold my gear plus the 300 2.8L when I get it.

Does anyone use the Nature Trekker to carry eguipment similar to my sig? Is there another bag around that size I should consider?

Thanks,
Tapeman

No, But look at the depth of it. The 1d series body IMO only fits in the super trekker well. The othe rbags are just to shallow and push on the body to much.

That was one of the reasons I sent it back, too shallow. I think the nature trekker is about 1 inch deeper and 2 inches taller, which I hope will be enough. The nature trekker is about as big of a backpack as I' want to carry.

I don't know the size of the 300 2.8 so can't tell if it fits in the Nature Trekker.

But I can tell you I had the Nature Trekker and sold it. The waist belt is too big in my opinion and can't be removed.

Instead I bought the Computrekker Plus where the waist belt can be removed which I like much better.

Too small? Maybe you haven't seen this...

http://www.photography​-on-the.net …48&highlight=mi​ni+trekker

Wow! I don't baby my gear, but that is NOT the way I plan to fill my backpack.

I ordered the Nature Trekker. If I take a page from that guy's book, I need to buy a lot more gear to fill it.

Lord_Malone wrote in post #2587267
Too small? Maybe you haven't seen this...

http://www.photography​-on-the.net …48&highlight=mi​ni+trekker

Only you could find something like that.

I have the Nature Trekker AWII. When loaded, there's absolutely no reason you'd ever want to remove the belt. The belt is what makes carrying it bearable.

I can fit my 1DsMKII with 300 f2.8 attached, hood reversed, and a few lenses along each side, but they are very tight and make zipping it up very difficult.

If I had to do it over again, I'd go bigger. Preferrably with wheels.

mark

I'm thinking of using this bag more for hiking so I don't want to carry wheels. I might try to find wheels for it when traveling, or I may have to buy another bag. (I promise to stop when I have a different bag for every day of the week.)

I want to know who this guy in the video was so i never buy anything from him! The way he was plopping stuff down ont he table and banging it around.

MDJAK wrote in post #2589508
I have the Nature Trekker AWII. When loaded, there's absolutely no reason you'd ever want to remove the belt. The belt is what makes carrying it bearable.

I agree completely. The Nature Trekker AWII is designed to support the weight associated with packing the gear associated with nature photography (heavy). The belt is integral towards that goal. It is meant to take the weight from the shoulders and transfer it to your hips, which have better load carrying capabilities. The concept is taken directly from hiking backpacks. Anyone who would want the belt removed probably doesn't hike very much with a loaded pack, nor understand how important the entire harness system is to long term comfort. The thoughtfulness and adjustability of the harness system design in the Nature Trekker AWII is what made me purchase it in the first place. It does one no good to hike into a location and spend an hour groaning from back pain due to a poorly designed harness.

MDJAK wrote in post #2589508
If I had to do it over again, I'd go bigger. Preferrably with wheels.

The Nature Trekker AWII can accomodate a wheel rack, but I'm sure you are familiar with that. I would also like bigger, but the Nature Trekker AWII comes close to pushing the limit for airline carry-on baggage. When I have mine fully loaded for travel, it barely squeaks into the overhead compartment of most average sized commercial liners.

JKSeidel wrote in post #2594374
I agree completely. The Nature Trekker AWII is designed to support the weight associated with packing the gear associated with nature photography (heavy). The belt is integral towards that goal. It is meant to take the weight from the shoulders and transfer it to your hips, which have better load carrying capabilities. The concept is taken directly from hiking backpacks. Anyone who would want the belt removed probably doesn't hike very much with a loaded pack, nor understand how important the entire harness system is to long term comfort. The thoughtfulness and adjustability of the harness system design in the Nature Trekker AWII is what made me purchase it in the first place. It does one no good to hike into a location and spend an hour groaning from back pain due to a poorly designed harness.

I understand the purpose of the belt. However I think it is too big and clumsy when the bag is NOT on the back. The bag rest uneven on the ground/table because of the belt. And I can just imagine the mess storing the bag in the overhead bin on a plane. That is why I would like the belt to be removable.

tommykjensen wrote in post #2596147
The bag rest uneven on the ground/table because of the belt.

I actually use the waist straps to stabilize the bag when setting it down upright. Usually I load the bag a bit top heavy and they help keep the bag from rolling on its back.

tommykjensen wrote in post #2596147
And I can just imagine the mess storing the bag in the overhead bin on a plane. That is why I would like the belt to be removable.

No mess at all. I fold them in along the back of the bag and slide it into the overhead.

If the straps are really an issue for you, you can contact Lowepro's customer support. The rep who usually handles design issues and change requests is Maury Cohen. They seem very interested in hearing not only the positives but also the negatives about their products. Many items in their line up have been modified or introduced based on customer input. Personally, I like the harness system on the Nature Trekker (one on my main reasons for purchasing it) and think it might be compromised or weakened with a removable waist strap. However, I'm sure they'd love any and all input ... so perhaps they'll develop something more suitable to your needs in the future.

JKSeidel wrote in post #2596335
If the straps are really an issue for you, you can contact Lowepro's customer support. The rep who usually handles design issues and change requests is Maury Cohen. They seem very interested in hearing not only the positives but also the negatives about their products. Many items in their line up have been modified or introduced based on customer input. Personally, I like the harness system on the Nature Trekker (one on my main reasons for purchasing it) and think it might be compromised or weakened with a removable waist strap. However, I'm sure they'd love any and all input ... so perhaps they'll develop something more suitable to your needs in the future.

I sold it and got the CompuTrekker Plus instead which actually suit me better because it also has the pocket for a small laptop which will be usefull in august/september when I goto Namibia. On the CompuTrekker Plus the waistbelt can be removed and put back on when required. I prefer it that way.

Can the nature trekker hold some stuff that isn't photography related? I like the looks of it online, but I only have 1 body and 2 lenses and maybe a flash at times in it (primary use is hiking) and I would like to have a system that will hold some other stuff like a light coat and a few emergency supplies like first aid kit, extra food, knife, etc. Can I take out the inserts and put something in there? Is there another pocket? Has anyone done this?

I went to b and h and I didn't see the nature trekker there but I asked a salesperson. He pointed me to the rover II AW which I wasn't even looking at but it is pretty cool. I don't like the design of it however - can anyone comment on it? It seems perfect for what I want to do but it looks really weird because the top section (at least when not loaded with other stuff) is substantially smaller than the bottom (which is pretty much hard cased).

The Nature Trekker comes with a daypack that can be strapped on the front of the backpack. You can have clothe and other stuff in that. The backpack itself also have a small pocket on the front where you can have some small items.