At Gearlimits we are – of course – crazy about outdoor & action sports gear. But behind good products, there’s always a great story. Why do brands make their products the way they do, how do they work, why do they make certain choices, for materials, durability or safety. We are always interested in hearing, and preferably experiencing, that story.

“The backpack is the ultimate symbol of freedom. It represents the choice to drop everything, pack a bag, and head to the mountains. Lowe Alpine backpacks aren’t a throwaway piece of kit. Often kept for a lifetime, they become part of you. They represent every journey you’ve travelled and every adventure you’ve experienced on the way.

These memories become woven into the fabric of the pack itself. The pack becomes more than another piece of outdoor kit. It becomes a memory box, woven into your history. It holds not just your gear, but all your experiences as well, something you want to keep forever.”

This is how the American brand Lowe Alpine views the humble backpack. At first glance an innocuous object, but which hiker, hiker, climber does not recognize those words? How the backpack can stand for everything you have experienced on the road. And back home, looking at the backpack that is lying empty in the corner, waiting for you, you can see the images of the paths taken, mountains scaled, tops concurred, the views you have seen when the backpack was full. When at night you unpacked your home from it, how it fed and warmed you. And in the morning, everything you need is once again, stowed away, safely and steadily on your back. And you walk off, into a new day, a new experience with your backpack.

History

Lowe Alpine takes its name from the Lowe brothers, the founders of the brand. Greg Lowe, along with Mike and Jeff are a family of climbers and mountaineering enthusiasts from Utah, USA.

Lowe Alpine started with humble beginnings. In 1967 Greg needed a better backpack for his climbing trips. The brothers were travelling throughout the USA developing new routes. In summer on the rock, and in winter, on snow and ice. During this time they pioneered the method of climbing we now call ‘alpine style’. This fast, lightweight approach to climbing does not rely on siege tactics and large support teams. Small, self-sufficient teams with minimal equipment move quickly and carry their own equipment. This required a new type of backpack, one that moved with the body and didn’t feel cumbersome.

Greg developed the first Expedition Pack in his Colorado work shed in 1967. It revolutionised backpack technology. Many of the innovations that featured on it later became standard on all backpacks. ‘The Expedition’ was the first-ever internal framed pack. It also included the first side compression straps, load stabilizers and sternum strap, all technologies we now take for granted.

Today, over 50 years later, Lowe Alpine remains an independent backpack specialist run by outdoor enthusiasts who are at their happiest on the move. The team today are still inspired by the Lowe brother’s ethos to climbing and product design, it is this passion that drives them to keep improving their world-class carry systems – ensuring their customers experience incredible freedom of movement outdoors, whichever packs they choose and however much gear they need to put in it.

So, whether you’re hiking a trail, heading up a mountain, or travelling to the other side of the world, Lowe Alpine packs are built to help you make the most of life on the move.

The Lowe Alpine Aeon range

The Aeon is a new series of lightweight, versatile, technical daypacks. Take it hiking, mountain biking, climbing or trail running. It will even stand up to the daily commute. Pick up an Aeon and find your footing in a world filled with infinite possibilities. 

CHECK OUT THE AEON BACKPACK RANGE

Inside-Out

At Gearlimits we are – obviously – crazy about outdoor & action sports gear. We’re also curious about the story behind products. Because there always is one. Why do brands produce products in a certain way? How do they determine the choice of materials? How do they feel about durability or safety. That’s what we try to find out in our Inside-Out stories with brands. We feel that being able to tell you about a brand will help you make your choices in what gear to buy, even better. Here’s what we discovered, and experienced with Lowe Alpine, a brand founded by the Lowe Brothers in Colorado, with its headquarters now in Derbyshire. The Inside-Out projects are produced with support from the brands we visit. We still keep an open and critical view and try to find the real and authentic story behind the brand.

Inside-Out with Lowe Alpine – part 1 Headquarters

Our visit to the Lowe Alpine HQ was not only about gear, but about where the brand came from, the first backpack produced by Jeff Lowe and his brothers, and how Lowe focus all its attention on facilitating freedom of movement in any activity you are doing.

 

Inside-Out with Lowe Alpine – part 2 Hike with Andy Cave

A day later I joined Brand Ambassador and UK mountaineer Andy Cave on a hike with the Aeon backpack in the nearby Peak District (where Lowe Alpine does a lot of its product testing) and experience the carry and stability of the systems Lowe Alpine produces.

50th Anniversary
The Gear That Made Us

Lowe Alpine have been making industry defining gear for 50 years – learn about how, who and what has shaped the most iconic outdoor brand in the world over 5 decades of innovations.

Jeff Lowe Opens his Backpack after 20 years Frozen in Ice

For 20 years Jeff Lowe’s Backpack was frozen in the ice on the North Face of the Eiger in Switzerland. Lowe was forced to abandon his pack and ropes when time ran out before a 3rd storm would eclipse his safe return from the mountain after his solo first ascent of Metanoia.

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