Black Diamond Pursuit Waist Pack 6L review: surprisingly roomy

Black Diamond Pursuit Waist Pack 6L: first impressions

Combining the lightweight and durable construction of a high-performance trail running pack with the adjustable sizing and versatility of a technical hiking pouch, the Black Diamond Pursuit Waist Pack 6L is a multi-activity pack with comfort and versatility at the forefront. Situated in Black Diamond’s Pursuit product range, which includes 15L and 30L backpacks, the Pursuit Waist Pack is at home on the trail whether you’re on foot, bike, skis or even horseback.

Made from 100% recycled body fabric, the Pursuit Waist Pack is designed to be comfortable on long adventures, thanks to a highly breathable back panel with a honeycomb-like mesh. Two exterior zipped pockets easily stash everything you need, along with quick-access side water bottle pockets, and one zipped interior pocket with a key clip.

Black Diamond Pursuit Waist Pack 6L: on the trails

The first thing that struck me when I used the Black Diamond Pursuit Waist Pack 6L, heading out on a 10km trail run, was how incredibly roomy the pack was. As it’s designed as a unisex, one-size pack, I was sceptical that the fit would be right for me, as I tend to wear a small/medium and around 28-30in waist in clothing. Thanks to the continuous fit harness though, I could adjust the fit whenever I was doing more dynamic movement on bumpy trails, or have it slightly looser for adjustable comfort on the move when I was wearing it over layers.

The waist belt was ideal for sports when I wasn’t sure I wanted to carry a massive pack with me but wanted the option to put a spare layer away and have somewhere to store water and gloves.

The soft flasks are a bonus that help show the pack is aiming itself at the running/biking/multi-activity audience. Interestingly, there is some additional detailing where the pouches have a small bit of cord to loop round the ‘nip’ of the sports bottle on either pocket whilst the adjustable webbing on the side is easily cinchable to stop the bottle from jumping out when I hit a pothole. The best bit is that this is super easy to do, even with gloves on, so there’s no awkward fumbling around with freezing hands in sub-zero conditions.

I did find the excess webbing a bit annoying in strong winds though as the pack is sized for a huge variation – from a 24in to a 51in waist. Personally, I’d prefer less webbing or a built-in elasticated tie to stop it from flapping around as over long distances this was a bit irritating. I would also have suggested using a slightly bigger buckle, as this is effectively what the waist pack is weighted against, so the small buckle does press against the stomach.

Functionality wise, I really liked the key clip, which was in an accent red colour that was easy to clip the house key onto to avoid it getting lost on the trail.

The reflective detailing, from the reflective BD logo on the front, to the grey tabs on the drink pouches, to the horizontal line on the bottom of the pouch, helps a lot when you’re using the pouch in low light adventures. When I was testing this in Iceland, there were many months where we didn’t have sunlight in the evenings so having as much reflective detailing as possible was ideal to ensure visibility on the un-lit roads.

For outdoor users who want to guarantee their belongings’ safety, I’d always use a dry bag to make sure things are protected from the elements. The water-resistant zipper is great at keeping persistent rain and mud from penetrating the inner contents and is a more technical zipper than other packs I’ve tested of a similar construction and capacity.

What’s more, the pack is fully bluesign certified, being made from 100% recycled materials and using the Bluesign Approved dyeing process to reduce chemical waste. The mesh and back panel allowed for effective moisture management, thanks to the fast wicking and didn’t absorb sweat when I was testing this on warm, springtime runs.

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