A lot of folks I'm talking to seem to think external frame packs are just too old school and useless.

I currently have a pretty expensive internal frame pack, kind of a para-military style which works fine, and is built like a tank.

But, I am being wooed by the added functionality of an external frame pack. Particularly, the Alps Outdoorz Freighter Frame and bag.

While I'm not wild about a top loading bag, and this bag looks to be nowhere near as heavily built as my internal frame pack, I surely would get some use out of the frame for humping in extra water, fire wood, etc.

Are there any external frame holdouts out there who would like to share their experience?