Choosing which bag to buy for a one way ticket backpacking trip is incredibly intimidating. When I went to my local sports goods store, I didn't know which bag I needed, but I did know what I needed my bag to do.
“I am looking for a backpack that I can accommodate camping in Alaska, a 6 kilo bag maximum for 30 days of hiking the Camino de Santiago, and a nine month trip backpacking Europe and Asia. Oh! And it has to be a carry-on.”
*blank stare*
I ended up with a Deuter 45L + 10L extension. It was a little small for camping in Alaska, a little big for the Camino, but perfect for the most important 9 month section of my backpacking trip. In fact, I have never used the 10L extension, and the thought “I wish my bag was bigger” has not once crossed my mind. Hence, I think a 45L bag must be too big.
What you Should NOT Pack in order for 45L to be Plenty Big
The biggest mistake people make when packing their bag is trying to prepare for their entire trip, or for every situation. That's just not possible if you will be experiencing a wide range of climates and cultures. Further, if you bring nice stuff from home, then you won't want to get rid of it in the road, even when it becomes obsolete.
The contents of my bag have almost completely changed during my time traveling. I bought a $1 jean jacket at a thrift store in Romania when it was getting cold, left it in Vietnam because the weather was warm, and then bought a $20 winter coat in Hanoi because it got cold again. I bought fashionable summer clothes for Serbia and Italy, but replaced them with a large Polish scarf when my priorities changed with cold weather. I wore jeans all through Europe, left them early in Asia, and then bought a new pair (second hand, 6€) in Berlin when I returned to Europe again. Unless you are traveling somewhere really weird, there is no reason why you cannot buy (cheap!) clothes to evolve your wardrobe along the way. This is not poor planning - you have to remember thinking about backpack weight.
A Bigger Bag is More Expensive - Every Day of your Trip
Whatever size bag you buy, you will fill. No, you are not going to just half fill it, stop lying to yourself.
The bigger the bag the heavier the bag. With all that extra shit you decided to bring along “just because it fit,” your bag now causes back and knee pain when you have to carry it long distances between the bus station and hostel. If your bag is extremely heavy, you have no choice but to pay for taxis. My rule of thumb is that my bag should never be so heavy as to prevent me from walking one hour in a city - for me, that is about 12 kilos.
Finally, the bigger your bag the more likely you have to check it. Some bags are simply too large to qualify, but my bag only qualifies if the airline doesn't ask to weigh it. Luckily they never have because I am always over their 7 kilo limit, but because my bag isn’t stuffed to the max it doesn’t look like I’m sneaking by.
Due to increased costs of transportation via taxis and airplanes, the bigger the bag you get, the more expensive it will be.
What is In My Bag
Like I said, the thought that my bag is too large has never crossed my mind - only that it is too heavy. I am constantly thinking about what things I can leave behind in order to cut weight and allow me to walk further on foot.
On February 20, the day I flew from Asia to Europe, my bag was 16 kilos (uncomfortably heavy) because I was laden with souvenirs to send home. This is what was in my bag:
Clothes
1 zip off hiking pants
1 Thai flowy pants
1 athletic shorts
3 short sleeve shirts
1 long sleeve shirt
1 cocktail dress
1 fleece
1 winter coat
1 raincoat
1 swimsuit
6 pairs of socks
6 pairs of underwear
3 bras, 2 regular 1 sport
Hiking shoes
Belt
Essentials
Shampoo
Face wash
Small cosmetics kit
Glasses
Hair brush
iPad
Journal
Assortment of chargers (iPad, portable charger, phone, Fitbit)
Comically small first aid kit
Sleep sack (sleeping bag but only sheet)
Lock, contacts, backup credit cards, papers to scrapbook
International cell phone (shouldn't have brought it, can't send home bc it has a battery)
Things I Carried to Mail Home from Berlin
2 custom Vietnamese shirts
1 custom Vietnamese dress
1 athletic short
2 custom Thai suits
5 Thai Tiger Balm
2 Burmese wall art
1 Burmese fabric wrap skirt
1 Laotian journal
1 swimsuit
1 baseball cap
I make this list not because these are all reasonable things to be carrying, but to demonstrate how much can fit into 45L. Here is a photo with all of these items, before boarding the plane:
It doesn’t even look full! If I can fit this many souvenirs in my bag, I just cannot fathom why there would be any need for a bag larger than 45L. The very first thing I did upon my arrival in Berlin was mail a box home because even standing on the bus from the airport to the city center was destroying my back.
If I could do this trip again, I would choose a 40 or 45L bag without the 10L extension. I would only consider bags that could be carry ons, and bags with strong hip and chest strap support. I would be hard pressed to believe that you need anything larger than this.
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