I saw someone recommend a pak that had a place for a rifle in the center between your back and the pack. does anyone know what brand it might be
thanks

Eberlestock has that type of rifle carrier on their packs.

Take a look at the Kifaru Gunbearer accessory. It works better than anything I have tried and will work with any make of pack. http://kifaru.net/huntaccessories.html

I have a Timber Hawk with a webbed gun saddle on the left side. A real nice pack for sure. Why would anyone want the gun in the middle of your back where you can't reach it in a hurry? Hell, you can reach it at all without taking the pack off.

Gerry- You did not say if you wanted it for AK or not; assume you do because you are on this forum. Something to keep in mind is the need to get to your gun in a hurry if you meet up with a bear.

Over 10 years ago, on a sheep hunt in the Brooks, my guide was about 30 yds ahead of me when he raeched the crest of a saddle. We had been up there couple of days earlier & had seen rams. Just as he reached the top he saw a grizzly sow with a cub about another 30 yds to his left bedded down.

The sow took off a short distance with the cub. With the cub out of immediate danger the sow turned & charged my guide. (I was still out of sight.)

My guide had a special custom built rifle pocket on the side of his pack. Upon seeing the bear my guide reached for his gun, struggled with it & barely had enough time to get it out. By then bear was so close he had to shoot from the hip. He hit it and it ran down over the side & collapsed about 50 yds down the mountain. Needless to say, a very close call. And, though he was kind of stoic, I could tell he was shaken and he had been guiding for a very long time.

Later, the outfitter told me that was exactly why he ALWAYS carried his rifle in his hands. That was my first AK hunt; after that, I did five more AK hunts (including two for bear) & most always held on to my rifle, especially when I knew bears were around.

It was the j34 ebersole pack I was looking for.I have seen many people from alaska who like this pack for clients. thanks for your help

I bought a J34 "Just One" myself for Christmas, and I like it a lot. I bought a different, lighter Eberlestock model (the X Project) for my son who is 12. They are both nice.

I've used the Kifaru Gunbearer also. I got my first one about 6 years ago and have used it on numerous (at least 20) mountain hunts. It takes a bit to get used to it and mounting your rifle in the gunbearer takes a minute but getting it out is almost as fast as carrying it in your hands. They're not as comfortable as carrying the rifle in a middle pack gun sling becuase the weight is on only one hip, but I've never been comfortable climbing in bear country with my rifle so inaccessable. The Kifaru Gunbearer is really fast for mounting your rifle on your shoulder.

in any case: go and have a look for a Mystery Ranch BP - they are the only way to go in my mind...