Showers Pass Ranger Waterproof Hip Pack Review
Reviewed by Jerod Foster
Images by Justin Rex
I’m comfortable making my way around a hip pack. I’ve been using some form of hip pack for the past 15 years, mostly as a photographer. My all-time favorite pack is the Think Tank Photo Wired Up 20, a now discontinued, ultra-tough, super functional camera bag with a huge, comfortable belt, two liter-sized external pockets on each side, and enough room to store a gripped DSLR camera and additional lens. It’s been all over the world with me, and as my work ventured into the cycling world, on several bikepacking and gravel tours.
Yet, it is a camera bag, making it relatively heavy and large. Two hundred miles in on a gravel tour, and you start to feel the heft, not only from the bag, but also from the number of things you can carry in it. Hence, why I’m always on the lookout for a hip pack that occasionally serves as a camera bag on the bike. The Showers Pass Ranger Waterproof Hip Pack certainly looks and feels the part. And, although I come at hip packs from a photographer’s perspective, where I inevitably will customize the interior of the bag with padded inserts and the occasional bits of foam for support, the Ranger as a non-photography bag (the way God and the company probably intended it) is positively everything you’d expect Showers Pass to offer up. In a concept: well-built and practical.
Like most Showers Pass equipment, the positive features outweigh the negative, so let’s start there. Bear in mind that I’m susceptible to practical worth over flashy widgets when it comes to gear. They are tools in my mind, as opposed to status symbols. This is where Showers Pass and I see eye to eye:
1. Ranger is waterproof. It says so in the name. And, it is. What else would you expect from a company based in Portland, Oregon, and named Showers Pass? Seriously, though, it’s very well constructed around this feature. This doesn’t mean too terribly much to those of us in the U.S. Southwest, but it’s not a reason to pass over the bag. Waterproof also translates relatively well to being dust/sand proof, too. And, like rain/water, as long as you keep the bag closed while in the elements, you shouldn’t have much to worry about.
2. Despite being waterproof and constructed out of durable PU-coated nylon, it’s pretty lightweight. When worn around the waist, it certainly sits well enough that you don’t notice the weight compared to any other alternatives. Which leads me to my next point…
3. The bag is extremely comfortable to wear thanks to the thoughtful placement of lightweight padding on the hips and back, and it features more (but surprisingly unintrusive) adjustment points than competing bags. I was a bit worried at first about the main belt buckle being positioned on the right-side hip belt (not centered like a normal buckle), but once I put it on and mounted my bike, all worries were gone. This is genius, cuts down on the number of adjustable straps you encounter for this feature by half, and since it is tucked on the hip belt, you don’t notice it against your hips. Beyond that (which is well worth the consideration alone), the hip belt is adjustable in four different positions, two on each side, which compresses the bag against or loosens it away from the hips depending on the load you are carrying inside or whether or not you have water bottles stashed in the external pockets on the belt itself (another nice feature). I actually used these adjustment points more than I thought I would, and they allowed me to dial in what feels like a more personalized way of carrying the bag against my body than other available hip packs.
4. Speaking of the external belt pockets, they are mesh and are sized perfectly for your typical water bottle. I thought I’d be pining for liter-sized pockets, but with carrying capacity on most gravel bikes these days including a water bottle cage under the down tube, being able to carry five water bottles on your ride (two on the bag) is more than plenty on most occasions. Plus, I’ve spent plenty of time riding with two liters on my hips (plus more in a frame bag), and if I don’t need the capacity, it’s nice avoiding a bag that will inevitably sag under the weight after some miles.
5. The bag is simple on the inside, featuring a moderately cavernous seven liters worth of space, and three internal pockets, two mesh against one full-width pocket that sits on your back. The waterproof construction makes the walls structurally rigid, which means you won’t go swimming for that one small item that gets buried in the bottom of the bag. Simplicity is key here, and, as a tinkering photographer, this rigid paneling makes for some easy camera bag metamorphosis.
6. One of the more useful features of the bag is the external tool roll. Behind a secure clasp and external waterproof pocket is a great place to house necessary tools for your long days in the saddle. Personally, if I’m wearing a hip pack, I don’t feel compelled to carry a tool roll on my bike’s saddle. And, if you’re like me and are either too cheap to purchase a tool roll for every bike you own or just don’t want to fuss with moving tools around, a hip pack where they constantly exist makes great sense.
7. Last, but not least, it’s not a backpack. Need I say more?
So, what’s not to like about the Ranger? Truthfully, it checks off quite a bit for my practical take on a hip pack. Yet, there are a few things to take into consideration, especially if you are new to considering whether a hip pack is for you:
1. Being waterproof, the zippers are not what I’d call on-the-fly accessible. Don’t get me wrong, there is absolutely nothing out of place or functionally inadequate about the zippers. I appreciate a good zipper, and these are great. The pull-tabs are strong and articulate well, and the zipper is not going to falter anytime soon. However, waterproof zippers are not easy to open because they do their job really well. So, don’t expect to be reaching around and unzipping the bag to stow your phone while riding lest you want to jerk yourself off the bike. Likewise, although I haven’t experienced it with the Ranger, waterproof zippers also tend to get tougher to open the drier and sandier the conditions become. Applying a bit of lip balm to the zipper can mitigate this effect, but I’m sure it’s not a manufacturer recommended fix.
2. The Ranger is a bit boxy. The rigid nature of the bag’s structure is nice in many ways, but it does still stick out from the body quite a bit when loaded up, making it moderately easy (or difficult for that matter) moving it around the hips. I don’t necessarily see this as a deal breaker, but those of you who consider the visual of the bag along these lines might pause here.
3. As with any bag, the simple, open interior cavern begs to be filled with clothing, gear, and, in my case, some camera gear. It’s not terribly large, but it is large enough to pack a lot of weight on your backside. And, the rigid structure makes it even more welcoming to filling it to capacity. Be warned: you can put more than you think in this bag, and it can become a burden. It’ll consume quite a bit of gear if you stuff it to where it looks like the marketing images. Choose wisely what goes in it.
Who’s the Ranger for? Cyclists that have a need for capacity and extra clothing or gear on their training or exploratory rides, bikepackers and gravel tourers who want to ditch the backpack but need some space their bike or bike bags won’t afford, mountain bikers without bike capacity for tools, and even the around-town commuter (I’ve carried some socially-distanced beers in mine on occasion; bottle sweat will also not permeate this bag from the inside). Who is it not for? Racer Randy. OK, you can race with anything, but it’s not going to be common on the start line. Likewise, riders that are aggressively positioned on their bikes will not enjoy this bag since its rigid structure builds away from the rider’s back (but then again, aggressive riders are probably not looking at wearing this large of a hip pack in the first place). A quick glance at the Ranger’s product page, and you won’t be wrong in assuming it doesn’t look like they’re marketing it toward dropbar cyclists, anyways, but for the less aggressive riders among us, it will work just fine as a great add on.
I should note that the Ranger even comes with a collapsible (more like crushable) Ranger Hip Flask, a HydraPak, leak-proof, 16-ounce water bottle. I’m not the biggest fan of these types of bottles, so I didn’t use it any, but I see and theory behind them. To each their own.
The Showers Pass Ranger Waterproof Hip Pack checks a lot of my practical boxes when it comes to durable design, adaptive functionality and comfort. It’s very well thought out and manufactured, and I have no doubt any user will be able to personalize their use of it and it not be simply stashed away in a corner of the closet after a few rides. It may not come out for every ride, but it will at the very least come in clutch on occasion. And, really, isn’t that what we’re asking of a hip pack? The Ranger just happens to do it better than most!
The Ranger Waterproof Hip Pack costs $130 and is available at showerspass.com