The Watershed Big Creek may look like your run-of-the-mill dry sack, but its simplicity belies its accomplished design and construction. What's The Best's William Lobley takes a closer look.
The Review
The main sack of the Big Creek is an 840 denier Cordura ripstop nylon, coated with a robust-yet-flexible layered polyurethane. This material means that the bag can handle some rough and ready treatment. When you compare this to something like the Exped Cloudburst 25, which has only 70-denier nylon, you can quickly see how shingles, stones, and sharp-grit no longer need to be treated as a threat to your bag’s waterproofing.
The sack is principally one continuous piece of material, with welded connections to linking materials, straps, buckles and the top ZipDry closure. The ZipDry closure is a remarkable feature that creates a waterproof and airtight seal, guaranteeing zero-water moisture ingress (the closure is a bit fiddly at first, but you soon get used to it). The material, closure and stitchless design help the Big Creek attain its impressive IP68 rating, which in reality translates to complete waterproofing during submersion for up to one hour up to six-metres depth.
It should be no surprise that the Big Creek aims at the watersport and river-excursion markets. However, the robust waterproofing design should make it a consideration for anyone who likes to defy the rain, whether for pleasure or the commute.
The 20-litre capacity comfortably categories the Big Creek as a 12-hour pack, suitable for a wet-weather excursions to the countryside. Food, water and additional clothing all fit without issue.
As is the situation with almost all roll-top bags, the bag tapers in towards the bottom. If you discount the top closure - which is broad but gets folded down the side of the bag - the useable space measures roughly 17-inches at the top and 10-inches at the bottom. So long as you know how to pack a bag correctly, this isn't going to be a problem. In fact, the tight packing required at the bottom of the pack, which is also where I’d recommend storing heavier items, helps distribute the weight across the back, rather than relying on your shoulders.
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The Big Creek has two side straps and one over-the-top strap that allow the pack and contents to pull in tightly. The shoulder straps are lightweight and lightly padded with a mesh material, which is both breathable and comfortable. The adjustment buckles are well-placed, allowing the wearer to make fitting adjustments with haste and ease.
Away from the great outdoors and into the concrete jungle, the Big Creek makes a great commuting pack. The volume allows for a change of clothes and footwear to be stored comfortably alongside food, water and work-related tech. This latter point is especially true when using Overboard Laptop Tidy, which I was also lucky enough to test - this both organises and protects your tech, paperwork and stationary quickly and efficiently. The Big Creek’s excellent waterproofing offers complete peace-of-mind, and the bright orange I had to test made sure I could be seen by motor vehicles when cycling.
Watershed’s complete and utter dedication to airtight waterproofing has resulted in a few compromises. The over-the-top strap, side buckles and ZipDry all make opening and closing the pack a bit of a drawn-out process. There are workarounds, though. Unless you're in a situation where the pack risks submersion, you could forgo the ZipDry enclosure or over-the-top strap, relying instead on the roll and side clips to keep everything locked down.
Sadly, there are no workarounds for the lack of external pockets or bottle stuff pouches. Depending on your individual needs, this isn’t necessarily a terminal flaw for the pack, more of an inconvenience. To find out, all you need to do is ask yourself: when kayaking or hiking, or communing by pushbike, how often do you need to be getting into the bag? If you're someone who stops every twenty minutes for a sip of water or snack, this will be a problem. If you can hold off for an hour, then less so. Its a worthy trade-off for the protection it offers your stored valuable and perishables.
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The Watershed Big Creek Backpack is a thoroughly robust pack. The layered material provides unparalleled levels of waterproof protection while simultaneously fending off abrasions, nicks and tears. Though the bag is sure to delight water sports enthusiasts, its versatility and comfort also make it a compelling option for hikers and commuters who won't let the rain get them down.
www.drybags.co.uk
Pros: Excellent waterproofing and abrasion protection
Cons: Tough to access in a hurry
Available in Blue and Orange