Montem is an outdoor gear company with a focus on products around hiking. The folks at Montem sent us two products to review recently, a backpack and a blankets. We took the backpack to Florida last month, and both the backpack and blanket to Joshua Tree National Park in California with us in February. The Joshua Tree trip was the more outdoor focused of the two trips involving hiking, camping, and climbing.
Montem Diadem 18L Hiking Daypack
What It Is:
This is a very light backpack with a capacity of 18 liters. It is meant for hiking so it has adjustable shoulder straps with both chest and waist clips. One of the really nice things about this pack is that inside it has a pocket to hold a hydration pack. It has mesh shoulder straps to provide comfort and breathability. There is one main pocket that closes with a drawstring, where all your gear goes, a sleeve inside that pocket can hold a hydration pouch. There is a small zipper pocket on the outside of the bag where you can put little things like your cell phone or keys. The list price on this pack is $69.99, but they appear to be selling it for $39.97.
What We Did With It:
We used the Montem Diadem Daypack on two different trips for two different purposes. First, I took it to Florida as my personal item on the flight from Salt Lake to Orlando. In this instance it was primarily being used for its capacity.
We were going with only carryon luggage, so having a personal item that could hold a significant amount of stuff was very important to us. The Montem Diadem was certainly a good choice for this. We were able to pack it full of items that we needed and it still fit under the seat in front of me. On this trip I of course did not use the hydration pack sleeve because I was going through the airport. I found the pocket on the front of the bag to be very useful to put my phone and other items in while we were going through security. This bag was comfortable going through the airport, so I can recommend using it as a personal item.
The second trip we used the Montem Diadem on was to Joshua Tree National Park. This time I was using it as my daypack while we were rock climbing and bouldering in the park. This is more closely related to the purpose that the bag was designed for. We used all the features of the Diadem on this trip.
While we were out in the National Park I used my hydration pouch inside the bag’s sleeve as my primary water supply. The bag does not come with a hydration pouch, but I had one already that I used. This bag made the water easy to carry. One thing I wish it had though was a way for the tube to come out of the bag and down the shoulder strap. The way it is the tube just has to run out of the drawstring opening in the top.
One feature you may not think about is the handle that is on the top of the bag. This is important for rock climbers because you need access to your gear like shoes and chalk bag easily, so you hang them on carabiners from this handle. This worked out great. The pocket on the outside was also very useful so that we could easily put our phones, keys, etc in there when we couldn’t have them in our pockets.
Montem Sneaky Snuggler Puffy Camping Blanket
What It Is:
The Montem Sneaky Snuggler Puffy Camping Blanket is exactly what its name implies. It is sneaky because it compresses down into a small bag, but when pulled out it puffs up. It is snuggly because it is warm. It is rated to go down to 40 degrees F. At 54″ by 80″ it is about the size of full sized bed, which means it can fit one or two people. It’s list price is $149.99 but they are selling it for $119.99.
What We Did With It:
Originally I planned to use this blanket in place of a sleeping bag since it would take up a lot less room. But the temperature at Joshua Tree National Park when we went was not warm enough for that. It actually ended up getting quite cold, so we used this blanket over the top of both of our sleeping bags during the night, and Meagan used it for extra warmth around camp, especially in the mornings.
Sum Up:
Montem products are a bit outside of the price point where we normally buy gear. I will say, however, that investing in good gear can be a great option if you can afford it.
I found the Montem Diadem daypack to be an excellent backpack, for camping, hiking, climbing, and also air travel. At its current price around $40 I think it is a good deal, at $70 it would be a little expensive. Having the option to carry a hydration pouch is a big bonus.
The Montem Sneaky Snuggle Puffy Camping blanket on the other hand, while nice, seems pretty expensive at $120. We didn’t have anything to complain about it, it does what it is advertised to do and seems like a good quality product, but there are other options to keep yourself warm while camping.
