Badlands 2200 Pack Review

Introduction:

The Badlands 2200 was the second Badlands pack I owned.  I would say that this pack is probably one of the most, if not the most, popular Badlands packs.  When I purchased the 2200, I had an older Superday, and I wanted a slightly larger pack that I could carry out a first load of meat with.  The 2200 did the job I wanted it for.  I had the older model than what is currently available for sale from Badlands.  There have been a few improvements to the newer model, but it is essentially the same pack. 

Pack Description:

The 2200 is a panel loading design that has 2 ‘batwings’.  The older style 2200 had two small, almost unusable pockets on the outside of the wings.  A key feature of the 2200 is a small panel opening on the back panel of the pack for access into the main compartment.  I tended to use this small access point more than the main panel zipper due to it being easier to open and get small items out of the pack.  The pack is a tall, skinny pack that extends above the shoulders.  It has two aluminum stays in the pack to give the molded back pad some support.  There is a zippered pocket on the outside of the main zippered compartment.  On the older style pack that I had it was a horizontal pocket.  On the newer style, it is a vertical pocket.  I often kept my 15’s in this pocket for easier access than having to dig in the main compartment.  The pack came standard with bedroll straps on the bottom of the pack.  A neat feature of the pack was the zipout blaze orange meat shelf that extended up and connected to the top of the pack allowing a load of meat to be carried out with the rest of your gear. (The newer model 2200 has bigger batwing pockets and also has hipbelt pockets.)

Pros:

• Load lifter straps work!
• Meat Shelf allows packing out of meat with gear
• Wing pockets allowed almost anything to be strapped to the outside of the pack
• Back panel pocket allowed access to the main pack bag even when something was strapped to the outside of the pack.
• Narrow profile
• Hydration bladder compatible

Cons:

• Small pockets on outside of ‘batwings’ were almost useless (on the older model) 
• Main zippered compartment was a pain to access and it seemed like the main compartment didn’t hold as much as it should.
• Hydration bladder compartment is the proprietary Badlands square 95 oz pocket and the tube opening was too small (I cut mine larger to make it easier to get a bladder tube in and out of the opening.)
• Pack is fairly tall and extends above the shoulders.  This allows the load lifters to work very well (pro), but also allows the pack to hang up on brush and tree branches easier
• Rifles never seemed to stay slung on my shoulder very well when wearing this pack.

Uses and experiences with pack:

I mainly used this pack as an archery hunting pack for when I’d be out all day and/or if glassing was involved.  It worked great for that style of hunting.  I used it for archery and rifle elk hunts as well.  I often had a hard time deciding when to use this pack or my Eberlestock J104 pack as they were both pretty similar.  My 2200 would often get the nod for archery or when helping out, but if I was carrying a rifle, I’d take my J104.  I also carried my 2200 quite a bit for shed hunting.  Even though the back panel isn’t vented, I liked this pack and used it quite a bit both during early season and summer scouting.  I ended up replacing it with an Eberlestock X1 just for the fact that it had quicker and easier access to my tripod.  There were many situations where the 2200 was my pack of choice however. 

Function and Activity Matrices:
(For a description of the rankings and the pack matrices, click here.)

Summary and Recommendations:

Overall, the Badlands 2200 is a great pack that is well suited to almost any task.  It is a snug, body hugging pack that moves well with you and can carry a decent load.  The meat shelf is a key feature that allows a first load of meat to be carried out with your gear after you have an animal down.  While the main compartment is somewhat of a pain to get into, this pack offers many options for strapping gear to the outside of the pack.  I’ve strapped tree stands, ground blinds, antlers, meat, and heads to this pack.  It was a favorite pig hunting pack and would allow a whole javelina to be carried out with the pack.  I would say that the load limit on this pack is around 50 lbs.  While it can handle more weight, the comfort really starts falling off around there.  I would give this pack an overall grade of an A-.

Pack Pictures: