Osprey Tempest 20 Review

The Osprey Tempest 20 is a reasonably lightweight daypack with some great features for light day hikes and commuting. It's made of both 70-Denier and 100-Denier Mini Shadow Brick nylon, with a 420HD nylon packcloth bottom, and weighs 31 ounces. It comes in two sizes: XS/S (13 to 17-inch torso length) and S/M (16 to 20-inch torso length), both of which have adjustable torso lengths.

Performance Comparison

The newest model of the Tempest has an updated back panel system. It still threads the needle of light support, moderate breathability, and limited structure, though is a modest improvement to previous iterations.

Photo: Maggie Brandenburg

Comfort

This frameless pack has a pliable shape that conforms pretty well to the individual wearer. The BioStretch harness is thin but padded and full of breathable holes that keep it pretty comfortable in the heat. The AirScape back panel rides the line between comfort, support, and minimalism. It's reasonably breathable as well, which we appreciate on a summer bike commute. The updated version of this back panel features horizontal padding bars running underneath the back mesh. This offers more support than previous versions but doesn't completely prevent you from feeling a bulge from the overstuffed pack. Its external hydration reservoir sleeve is also on the small side, making it difficult to put more than a liter of water inside — which is pretty easily felt against your back.

The hip belt also toes the line of being minimally designed while retaining a fair amount of comfort. It's integrated into the back panel to provide a continuous wrap around your waist (no seams between the belt and the bag touching you). We also love how soft the whole harness and back panel of this bag are. They're quite pleasant to wear against your skin on a warm day and do a solid job of flexing with you as you move.

The Tempest hip belt pockets are another great feature on a comfortable, versatile bag.

Photo: Maggie Brandenburg

Versatility

There are a lot of great features on the Tempest that make this a super versatile bag for commuting or day hiking. It felt like every time we used it we noticed something new! The main compartment has one small internal mesh pocket with a key clip for stowing your essentials, and there's a separate top pouch that's rather large for things that you'll want quick access to, like snacks or a light layer. Then there's an external mesh pouch for a rain or wind jacket.

This pack has two water bottle pockets and an internal slot for a hydration bladder (with a hook to hang it). There's a small vertical pocket on the left shoulder strap that can hold your GPS unit and an elastic Stow-on-the-Go loop that easily holds sunglasses. It also features two hip belt pockets and our favorite commuter feature: the helmet LidLock. This is our favorite feature on this pack, as it's a quick and easy way to secure a bike helmet without having it bang all over the place. You pull the plastic piece vertically through the slots in your helmet and then rotate it so that it lays flat on top. The bungee cord creates enough tension to hold it in place, with no flopping around. Genius!

For bicycle commuters and mountain bikers, the LidLock on the Tempest is a dream come true.

Photo: Maggie Brandenburg

There's also Osprey's "Stow on the Go" attachment for trekking poles, which carries them between your shoulder strap and hip belt (not the most comfortable carrying method for long distances, but convenient if you need to navigate a boulder field or steep section of the trail). Finally, there's an ice axe loop with a bungee strap holder for the shaft, a bike light loop, and a whistle on the sternum strap clip. There's no rain cover, though, so if that's a priority for you, pick one up separately.

Osprey's Stow on the Go system is a quick fix for getting your poles out of your hands during a temporary scramble on the trail, but not really comfortable as a long term storage solution (there are separate straps for that).

Photo: Maggie Brandenburg

Weight

At 31 ounces, this is about average weight among fully-featured packs that we tested.

We tested the M/L size, which Osprey lists as being a full two liters larger than the XS/S size. In addition to the extra capacity, it's also likely a bit heavier. However, we only ordered one of these bags to test, so we didn't actually weigh the other size. This weight also doesn't include any extras like a rain cover or hydration bladder. Or, obviously, the things that you'll carry around with you on your adventures.

The Tempest feels lighter than it is and has a ton of handy features like a sternum clip whistle and sunglasses stow pouch.

Photo: Maggie Brandenburg

Ease of Use

Though in the past, we've had a hard time finding a good fit in this bag, the ability of the torso to adjust with a simple velcro attachment makes a world of difference. On its smallest setting, the Tempest 20 seems to run a bit small, but our testers were all able to find a fit that was comfortable for them. Our main tester has a 17-inch torso (at the far high end for the XS/S size of 13 to 17 inches) and was very comfortable wearing the M/L. It has all the adjustments we've come to expect from a more technical daypack and does a great job evenly distributing weight for a comfortable and balanced carry, no matter what you've brought.

The main compartment zipper has the ability to zip quite far down the sides, making it easy to pack full and find what you need without pulling everything out. We do think it's a tad small for our preferences — we're much happier with a couple of extra liters - but it's still very usable. The exterior hydration pocket is simple to use and compatible with pretty much any hanging hydration bladder, not just Osprey's, though allows the bladder to be felt through the thin back padding. One feature we wish was better is the front expandable pocket. It's very narrow compared to most other daypacks, and we prefer a little extra room to jam a whole puffy and snacks in there if we want. However, jamming a pocket in that location so full would probably make it difficult to use the LidLock clip, so perhaps keeping it small is best for this bag.

A versatile clip can hold most hydration reservoirs - though this pack can only take smaller bladders, all of which will bulge into your back and minimize ventilation.

Photo: Maggie Brandenburg

Durability

This pack earned a great score for durability. We didn't experience any issues with this pack during our field testing and couldn't find any durability complaints in online user reviews. It's made of a 70-Denier x 100-Denier Mini Shadow Brick nylon body and a 420HD nylon packcloth bottom.

We like that this pack has beefier, 420-Denier nylon on the bottom, but compared to many others we tested, its main body is on the thin and light side. If you live in an area with lots of pokey plants and sharp rocks, like the desert southwest, you might need to be careful what you scrape against. But if your intended usage is more on the "average" side of activities, this pack is a pretty solid choice.

Both side pockets can accommodate a standard 1-liter Nalgene of water.

Photo: Maggie Brandenburg

Value

This bag is on the low end of average regarding the prices of packs we tested. It's far from the cheapest, but also nowhere near the most expensive. We think that it offers an exceptional level of versatility and usability and a good level of durability that makes it very worth what you'll pay.

Conclusion

There's a lot to like about our Best Buy award winner. The Osprey Tempest 20 is reasonably low weight, comfortable to wear, and has some great, easy-to-use features. We love this pack for commuting in the city, thanks to the bike helmet attachment point and low-profile design. And it works great on day hikes as well!

We love the relatively lightweight, feature-filled versatility of the Tempest.

Photo: Maggie Brandenburg