If you have to grab the pack from the garage in the rain, the Scout’s integrated rain cover is one less thing to hunt for.
What it does in a bug out kit
Teton lists a 55 L capacity, a top-loading main compartment and a separate zippered sleeping-bag compartment at the bottom.
The Prepared names the Scout its pick for a tight budget in the 45 to 55 L size.
Real photos of the pack
These photos come from used listings on eBay, where the pack is sold under its older name, Scout 3400, and show an earlier version.
Fit comes before weight
Teton calls the Scout a pack for shorter torsos. It lists a torso range of 15 to 19.5 inches, an adjustable 3/4 frame and a waist belt of 26 to 60 inches. Measure your torso first. Height alone tells you very little, as anyone who has borrowed a tall cousin’s pack already knows.
Teton lists “Pack Weight” as 4.3 lb and “Item Weight” as 4.5 lb, and gives no load rating. Weigh the packed kit and keep it modest.
Pack it so it stays put
In the top-loading main compartment, keep the things you may need first near the top. Put the sleeping bag in its own bottom compartment, keep the headlamp near the lid, and walk a lap around the block before you call the bag done. An owner in a thread about the Scout 3400 warns that it can turn top-heavy and uncomfortable if packed poorly.
What owners report
An owner has used it for about five years, on 10 to 12 trips a year, and says it is still in solid condition.Owner on r/CampingGear, 2019 (sold then as the Scout 3400)Read the post ↗
Another Scout 3400 owner reports a loose fit and says "you spend a lot of energy with it swaying side to side."Owner on r/CampingGear, 2019 (Scout 3400)Read the post ↗
OutdoorGearLab described the reviewed Scout's hipbelt as "less like a hug and more like wearing an ill-fitting corset."OutdoorGearLab review, 2024Read the review ↗
The r/CampingGear owner reports quoted here concern the older Scout 3400.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Rain cover and a separate sleeping-bag compartment includedTeton ↗
- Built-in external straps low on the backThe Prepared ↗
- The Prepared's pick for a tight budget in the 45 to 55 L sizeThe Prepared ↗
- One Scout 3400 owner reports about five years of use, with 10 to 12 trips a yearowner on r/CampingGear ↗
Cons
- No load rating from TetonTeton ↗
- Hipbelt felt "less like a hug and more like wearing an ill-fitting corset"OutdoorGearLab ↗
- One Scout 3400 owner reports a loose fit and side-to-side swayowner on r/CampingGear ↗
- One Scout 3400 owner says a Nalgene bottle would not fit in the side pocketsowner on r/CampingGear ↗
Who should pick a different pack
- You want to reach gear without unpacking from the top: the Osprey Farpoint 55 opens across the whole front, and Osprey lists a load limit of about 35 lb.
- Your kit fits in 40 L: the Osprey Farpoint 40 is smaller and also opens from the front.
- Your kit is heavy: a pack whose maker lists a load range that covers it.
Compare all three packs
Torso range, load limit, capacity and access sit side by side in the bug out bag backpack comparison. Measure your torso, weigh your kit, then choose. The tall cousin can keep his pack.