Gregory Alpaca Gear Box Review

Car camping is big right now. It’s not your grandparents’ car camping of taking the station wagon up a dirt road with the Coleman and two bedrolls. These days, it’s big lifted rigs with bolt-on traction boards and a rooftop tent that cost as much as your mountain bike. It’s in this spirit of rugged, cool ‘car camping’ (aka overloading) that we introduce: The Gregory Alpaca Gear Box. Strong, waterproof and dustproof, this box will keep up with your adventures.

Gregory Alpaca Gear Box Features:

• Clearview Lid designed with a gasket seal for waterproof and dustproof protection
• IP 65 rated to be waterproof and dustproof by passing a water jet test when sprayed from any angle
• Removable lid with combination hinge/latch design that allows the lid to be opened from either side
• Molded bottom with side grab handle designed to take heavy hits when loaded up
• Stacking design allows for multiple boxes to stack cleanly
• Transparent Polycarbonate lid can handle high impacts to protect valuable gear
• Top lid designed to channel water and drain off lid
• Bottom built from 50% recycled material and lid and latches made from polycarbonate.
• Designed to be configured with Alpaca Gear pods for additional organization (not included)
• Designed to last, and backed by Gregory’s lifetime warranty
• MSRP: $139.95 for a 2-pack; gear pods not included and vary in price

Not your mom’s tote:

I’m being a little facetious in the intro. This box is NOT for just overlanders: it’s really for any adventurous person who needs a gear box that is going to keep the elements out. In our case, we have a camper van which does a pretty good job of protecting our gear in the first place. With that said, on long roads with summer moon dust, we do get dust coming in our back door and settling on our gear like a fine mist. The Alpaca is stellar for that. Or, maybe your gear spends a lot of its time in the garage in between trips.

Maybe you need a stash for seasonal garments. The Alpaca wants to talk to you about how you’re storing your gear. Maybe you’re like me and bought a bunch of big, cheap blue bins for your gear 10 years ago. The Alpaca Gear Box is the grown-up upgrade.

I’ll start with the feature that I love the most, the Clearview Lid which is just what it sounds like. Each Alpaca has a lightly tinted but clear lid that lets you see the contents of your box without opening them up. I used to write the contents of my gear boxes in sharpie on the side – don’t need to do that anymore. It’s made from polycarbonate, which out to give many years of clarity before UV wear takes its toll.

The lid is also attached on both sides by hinges that double as clasps.  Basically, that means you can hinge open the lid from either side to get into your gear. I think people who are stowing these in their truck beds will especially appreciate that feature.

There’s a burly rubber gasket running all the way around the lid which grants the Alpaca IP 65 waterproof/dustproof rating. The IP 65 means that it will resist water sprayed at it from any angle, but you couldn’t actually submerge this box and expect it to keep your gear dry. Again, for truck beds, this is a no-brainer boon for sensitive gear.

The box itself is well designed and made from 50% recycled plastic. I really like the shape of the box, which doesn’t taper very much internally and leaves plenty of room for your gear. The box has sturdy external handles. I also appreciate that Gregory designed the lid so that there are no places that rainwater will pool, and it’s easy to tip it over for water to run off.

The other piece of the Alpaca system are the Alpaca Gear Pods. These come in a variety of sizes and colors and are sturdy zippered organizers for your gear. I didn’t wind up using these a great deal in practice, but the premise is that they’ll keep your smaller items organized. Think things like toiletries, snacks, perhaps spices or cooking tools in a cook box, or bunches of carabiners in your climbing box. They nest into the Alpaca boxes really well and, to their credit, are well made with a heavy-gauge zipper that ought to last well.

In use, I really enjoyed the Alpaca as an upgrade from my old fashioned totes. The clear lid with flip flop hinges makes a really significant difference in how easy it is to see which box my gear is in, and then to get at it quickly. I did some silly things like leaving the box out in the sprinklers, and the gear stayed totally dry. For overlanders or car campers, or just people who need something better for their gear room, the Alpaca has a ton to offer.

Buy Now: Available at REI