Osprey Skarab 18 Review

The Skarab 18 is a large-capacity hydration pack with a high-quality 2.5-liter hydration system. The 18-liter pack volume is among the largest in our lineup, providing enough space for a puffy jacket, a pair of shoes, or a gourmet lunch. While not necessarily standing out in any one category, this pack is a solid performer across the board.

Performance Comparison

Ease of Drinking

The Skarab 18 is outfitted with a 2.5-liter hydration bladder made by HydraPak for Osprey. It also has a magnetic drinking hose attachment point that keeps the hose secure and easily accessible while on the move.

Like on the other Osprey packs in our lineup, the HydraPak bite valve can deliver you your water with comfort and efficiency. While we had no problems with this hydration system during our testing, we noted that it's not quite as impressive as some of our top-ranked hydration systems. And although the 2.5-liter reservoir is adequate for most day outings, we would have preferred a larger 3-liter reservoir on what is one of the largest backpacks in our lineup.

Ease of Filling

The Skarab scores towards the bottom of our lineup in the ease of filling category. While it comes with the wide-mouthed opening HydraPak 2.5-liter bladder, it lacks some convenient features like quick-release drinking tubes, and an easy-to-use hydration compartment. While the hydration compartment is in an easy-to-reach location, we found that the hanging clip is too short, making it difficult to remove and replace the bladder.

Comfort

The Skarab is a comfortable pack with its foam-padded back panel, padded shoulder straps, and balanced load-carrying ability. While not as comfortable in hotter weather as some higher-end models with better mesh back panels, the Skarab is a suitable choice in a variety of conditions, as long as temps don't rise too high.

Storage

With 18 liters of storage space, the Skarab is among the largest capacities in our lineup, with plenty of volume to serve you not only as a hiking and biking hydration pack, but as an all-around daypack, gym bag, or travel bag. While we love the huge main storage compartment with its giant U-shaped zipper, we are a little disappointed with the lack of external zippered pockets. There is one internal mesh zippered pocket for stashing valuables, but this makes it a little inconvenient to grab your phone or camera, and it would be preferable to have an external pocket that is a little more easily accessible.

While we were pleased with the overall storage volume of the Skarab 18, there are other models available with similar overall capacities that have additional pockets and options for organization that keep your necessities within reach.

Weight

At a measured 25.5 ounces (1.6 pounds), the Skarab 18 scores well as a lightweight, full-size hydration daypack. While it's not as light as some of the minimalist options that we've reviewed, it's much lighter than many other fully featured packs.

Ease of Cleaning

Similar to the ease of filling category, this pack comes away with average scores in the ease of cleaning category. While the HydraPak bladder has a nice large opening for easy cleaning, the bladder and hose system is a little tedious to remove from the pack, and the drinking hoses lack quick-release buttons. While removing the hydration system is a little more difficult than others, once the system is removed and disassembled, the bladder itself is easy to clean.

Value

The Skarab is not the lowest-priced pack in the lineup but certainly comes with a smaller price tag than a lot of the higher-end models. While there are similar designs with a few extra features that are less expensive, we think that the Skarab is a capable pack for a reasonable price.

Conclusion