Bags for Traveling Light

Prep for the Field

Jan 7

TLDR:

When traveling light or limited to Carry-on + Personal Item ONLY, my favorite bags are:
- Cotopaxi Allpa 35L (Back-Carry)
  - Small exterior compartment: Things MAYBE needed during travel/medium term
  - Large main compartment: Things NOT needed during travel/long-term
- KAVU Rope Sling Bag (Front-Carry)
  - Chargers, small entertainment, writing pad/journal, PENS/PENCILS!!!

Pack a tight-packable duffel inside your larger bag for any extra trinkets you pick up for the way back home

Read more below to see additional suggestions for accessories in addition to these primary bags, and recommended packing placement of clothes, toiletries, and extras below.

When traveling light or limited to Carry-on + Personal Item ONLY, my favorite bags are the Cotopaxi Allpa 35L and Kavu Rope Sling Bag. To help show the amount of space you can really maximize with these two bags, below is a breakdown of what special/”consider these” items I packed on my trips in each bag! I give a specific breakdown of what I packed in this blog post about my time on the E/V Nautilus.

Cotopaxi Allpa 35L (Carry on my back)

There are 3 Compartments on the Allpa

Small Exterior, Main Compartment, and Laptop Compartment!

**Inside the small exterior compartment:** Pack things you MAYBE need during travel (medium-term needs).

Medium-term items are things that you wouldn’t mind waiting to take out/put away in an airport bathroom or in between immediate transit, since this larger bag is usually stowed in overhead compartments/racks.

What would I recommend putting here?

Big snack bags
rain cover
travel-day layers/clothes
toiletries dopp kit (highly recommend a normal carabiner (or better yet, a HEROCLIP) to hold hairties to the kit AND allow for anywhere-hanging)

**Large main compartment:** Pack things NOT needed during travel/long-term/until destination is reached.

All other clothes
Friendship bracelet making kit
A tight-packable duffel for extra trinkets you pick up for the way back home
- I have the Eddie Bauer Stowaway 45L
Any basic cinch bag (contains the smells) for laundry
- I recommend these Gecko compression dry bags for laundry purposes AND for internal organization of the large main compartment (keeps things SUPER compact after pushing air out!)