It was only a few years ago when I even heard the word “Dyneema.”  A buddy of mine and I were visiting while at work and he was telling about how everyone was going to this material with different pieces of gear because it was so durable and stupid light.  I immediately looked it up.  My immediate thought was, “I never knew backpackers were so rich!” as the price difference between ounces and pounds is as incredible as the weight difference.

Little did I know that I, too, would be making the switch as I had never known the weight savings that would come with working a little extra, saving a little extra and then not having to tote a little extra on the trails.  I worked the extra, saved the extra and hit the purchase button on Zpacks website for the Duplex tent.  After that, I began researching other things I had in my pack that I could “upgrade” in order to lighten my load.

One of the main things I always try and do is to keep an organized pack.  I cannot hardly stand to look at YouTube videos of backpackers when they are stopped on the trail, or sitting around their campsites and their areas look like they are having a yard sale.  It does not do my OCD heart very good and causes me high blood pressure.  I try to keep everything organized and neat.  It keeps all of my gear clean, organized, helps it last longer and makes me happy when I can find everything I am looking for in a timely manner.

After watching one of my favorite videos on YouTube from none of other than Darwin (on the Trail), I discovered a new and better way to pack my pack.  He keeps his sleeping bag or quilt in the bottom in the Dyneema Stuff Sack and the puts everything on top of that.  It made a ton of sense, but even making better sense than that would be to be able to compress that quilt into a much smaller size.

Hence, the roll top compression sack.  Here was the problem.  The only roll top compression sacks I could find were pretty heavy.  They have added straps on them so I’m guessing they may not be very popular among the ultralight crowd and if it is made from Dyneema then the regular people don’t want to pay the money for the top-of-the-line gear.  Something such as this was hard to find, but I was able to locate it…on Etsy.

LINK – Dyneema Compression Sack

I was cruising Etsy one day and found exactly what I was looking for.  UltraliteSacks (out of my home state of Arkansas) offered three different sizes in the roll top compression sack made out of Dyneema Composite Fabric (DCF).  That was it!  I ordered 2 right off the bat.

A few weeks later I held in my hand a compression sack that was several ounces lighter than my other compression sacks (grams lead to ounces and ounces lead to pounds – don’t forget), yet function was exactly the same.  On top of that, it was able to compress my quilt into a much smaller package than the regular Dyneema roll top bag I had and was so much easier than the bag it came with.  I was in heaven and now able to create a lighter, more efficient pack which, in turn, made me into a much happier hiker.

Maybe, this Dyneema Compression Sack was exactly what Van Halen sang about when they penned the song, “Best of Both Worlds.”  I doubt it, but hey, it is exactly that for me.  This checked off all the boxes for me.  Superior quality from a small reputable business that will last longer than I will be alive.  I can live and be happy with that!  On top of that the price points are almost exactly what you will pay for similar heavier products from big businesses that don’t like to talk to their actual customers.  You will love these compression sacks and you will love being a customer with UltraliteSacks.

Details on sizes/weight/dimensions from their website (www.ultralitesacks.com)

 

Small– 16×8.5 40 grams approximately 5.5 liters

Warm down quilts, Puffer Jackets, Sleeping Clothes, etc.

Medium – 22X8.5  45 grams approximately 6.8 liters

Tents, 3 season down quilts, warm weather synthetic quilts

Large – 22X11.5 50 grams approximately 9.5 liters

Don’t carry around unwanted and unneeded weight.  An Ultralite hiker is a much happier hiker!