To some, packing everything you own into a backpack can seem daunting. Because it is. Being flexible and mobile on my long-term journey has me constantly letting go of things inside and out, and getting my priorities together. The finite constraints of a 40 liter backpack will do that for you. Every time.
The criteria for a backpack was pretty easy.
1. Great hip straps
2. Carry-on size
3. A designated area for my laptop
4. Front loading (versus a top loading pack so that you don’t have to unpack the whole thing to get to whatever you absentmindedly placed at the very bottom).
I researched the shit out packs to hear what worked and what didn’t work from experienced travelers. I settled on the Osprey Farpoint 40 after looking at YouTube reviews and reading travel blogs.
It’s been a great purchase! Of course I don’t have anything else to compare it to (lol), but it is indeed a very sturdy pack that’s easy to pack up and easy (ish) to carry. The difficulty in carrying isn’t the bag, it’s my need to part with more things. I’ll be happier lugging it around the world once it’s a few pounds lighter. My pack is currently weighing in at 32 lbs, which I would NEVER recommend. (Sidenote: One time at an airport I regrettably put my pack on the scale out of curiosity since I’d gotten rid of some things. The agent who was checking me in saw the weight and attempted to get me to check the bag. It would have been free to check. But I don’t play that checked bag junk. I relied on her being a nonchalant employee and the growing line behind me dynamic and got away. It was an in-country flight between Malaga and Madrid, Spain, so the plane was tiny. I ended up having to take my laptop out of the front pocket in order to stuff it into the overhead bin.)
That’s the first, and hopefully the only time I’ll need to do that. It did the trick just fine. To be clear, regarding the packed weight, the cool thing is that with a backpack, I’ve NEVER been asked to weigh it by a gate agent. And I’ve flown a good amount with it. Check out my Now page to see where I’ve been. The pack itself weighs 3 lbs.
I chose the Volcanic Grey color. The other two colors were too flashy for my taste. Before I purchased it, I went into my local sporting goods store to make sure I was getting the right size, (I got small/medium), and to check out the quality of it in person. They unfortunately didn’t carry the 40L because it’s mad popular, but had another size bag so I could get an idea. I got measured at the store from my hips to shoulders to make sure the pack would fit my torso well and while there, checked out the other brands they carried. None seemed as viable as the Farpoint 40.
Do a search of your own. There are plenty of backpack reviews out there. Depending on what kind of travel you expect to do, determines the bag that’s right for you.
*Geek Check: The plane where I took my laptop out to fit my bag into the overhead bin was a CRJ Bombardier Operated by Air Nostrum.
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