rolling adventure bag with detachable pack

The D3's detailing is in the same vein the shoulder strap slider is machined from solid aircraft-grade aluminum, YKK zips are reinforced with water-resistant Uretrek. The bag is made from two layers of ultra-strong Dyneema composite fabric, allowing it to maintain a slackened look even when packed full. To the untrained eye, there's nothing special about the unbranded black carry-all, but that's the point. Why? Because when you're traveling across borders where officers are more likely to request a bribe than a visa application, discretion is as important as durability. The D3 Traveller is made to take a beating and go unnoticed.

Daisy chains and removable backpack straps count for the rest of the bag's features, but it's the durability of Patagonia's Black Hole fabric, which it makes using a water-repellant, TPU-laminated 100-percent recycled polyester ripstop, that makes this duffel great for any imaginable itinerary. To that end, there's another small essentials pocket that you can access from inside or out. The bag's D-shaped zipper opening makes it easier to see all of what's inside than end-to-end designs, and the lid includes a large mesh pocket for stashing odds and ends you don't want to dig for. That's what a duffel should be - a bottomless pit into which you can toss anything and everything you might need for a day at the crag or an entire week in the opposite hemisphere. Patagonia hit the nail on the head with the name of its line of heavy-duty carry-alls: Black Hole. These are bags capable of withstanding countless well-planned weekends to a favorite hideaway, as well as expeditions to corners of the map that still contain question marks. These duffels run the gamut of sizes and materials, but one thing is uniform in every case: resiliency is favored over contrivance. You already have enough stuff to bring with you you shouldn’t have to worry about the bag that carries it all. Oftentimes the only feature is an interior pocket. Materials technology has made duffels all but bomb-proof, which is ideal for poor-weather adventures, but canvas has not been forgotten. Improvements like weatherproof zippers and padded backpack straps are utilitarian, not gimmicky. The design hasn’t deviated too far from the canvas sacks travelers used to throw over their shoulders before heading off to lands unknown. Thankfully, the duffel has remained immune to the feature-packing epidemic. Outdoor products are among the most egregious culprits here, fooling would-be adventurers into thinking that they simply cannot embark on a trip without bringing the multifunctional-jacket-pant-parachute-vest complete with eighteen camp-stove-dongle-ready removable pocket pouches (and it packs into its own hood!). No matter what the product is - be it as simple as a knife or as complex as a camera - we’ve come to expect that it’s jammed with as many bells and whistles (sometimes literally) as possible. Hyperlite Mountain Gear Duffel Bag ($525)įeatures have gotten out of hand.Travel Motto: 'Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.' - Mark TwainĪisle, Window, or Middle Seat: 'Window, of course. Ultimate Bucket List Experience: 'Climbing (yes, climbing, it's steep!) the Great Wall of China before it's gone.' They tame my frizzy curls and come in handy in a surprising number of packing and hotel dilemmas.' The Handy Item I Always Pack: 'Plenty of extra thick hair elastics. She's been quoted as an expert travel source by CNBC,, MarketWatch, The Washington Post, USA Today, and more. Her educational background is in journalism, art history, gender studies, Spanish, and film. Her stories have also appeared online on USA Today, The Sun, Huffington Post, Business Insider,, , and more.

Travel trends, news oddities, and her visits to up-and-coming destinations are some of her favorite things to write about. A former news reporter, she's lived in the south of Spain, spotted elephants in Sri Lanka, gone spelunking in the Caribbean, hiked Jordan's Petra Basin, interviewed Sao Paulo's Michelin-Star chefs, and explored China via bullet train. Follow her on Twitter and on Instagram joined SmarterTravel in 2015. Editor Shannon McMahon is always planning her next trip and often writing in her travel journal.

Rolling adventure bag with detachable pack