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Durston Gear Kakwa 40 vs Mountain Hardwear Alakazam 45L

Weight and specs compared for 2026 — and which one to choose.

Durston Gear Kakwa 40 is the lighter option — 25 g lighter than the Mountain Hardwear Alakazam 45L (3% less weight). If grams matter to you, that is the one to beat.
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Spec Durston Gear Kakwa 40 Mountain Hardwear Alakazam 45L
Weight 795 g · 0.795 kg · 1.75 lb
size Regular (Medium), Ultra 200X, complete pack with frame and backpad
820 g · 0.820 kg · 1.81 lb
Brand Durston Gear Mountain Hardwear
Category Backpack Backpack
Durston Gear Kakwa 40
795 g

Ultralight 40L internal-frame thru-hiking pack in Ultra 200X fabric, with a hollow aluminum U-frame and 15L of external storage.

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Mountain Hardwear Alakazam 45L
820 g

Ultralight pack with Aluula Graflyte material. Swivel hipbelt for natural load distribution.

See it in your base weight → Full details →

Building a pack? Add either one to your HikeLoad list, or drop its weight into the base weight calculator, and see what it does to your total weight.

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Durston Gear Kakwa 40 vs Mountain Hardwear Alakazam 45L: which should you buy?

If saving weight is your priority, the Durston Gear Kakwa 40 wins — at 795 g it is 25 g (3%) lighter than the Mountain Hardwear Alakazam 45L (820 g). That said, the heavier option may justify the extra grams with more capacity, durability or comfort, so weigh the trade-off against how you'll use it.

See where both rank against everything else in this category on the lightest backpack page, or browse the full gear weight database.

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