Wow, last week I received a notification stating this blog has just turned 6! I’m completely stunned, how has time gone by this fast? I swear just yesterday I was standing in the aisles of my local REI trying to figure out which backpack would be the best for my trip to Spain. Now, 6 years, 3 jobs, and 30 countries later I still have that same exact pack accompanying me on my adventures. To honor this fun (abet scary) anniversary I have decided to talk about a few of my favorite things. My backpacking must haves.

1. My beloved backpack : Osprey Porter 46

This is honestly my absolute favorite item I own. At last count 3 of my friends/family have purchased (and loved) the Osprey poster 46. I sometimes think about buying two more of these bags just in case, god forbid, they decided to stop making the pack. I love the size. You can use the straps to turn the bag into a small enough bag to fit under an airplane sit and yet somehow also manage to fit 4 months of clothes and souvenirs. I love the convertibility; wear it as a backpack or tuck all the straps in and carry it like a duffel. It honestly is like magic. I love the front entry and the top pocket. There’s a secret pocket in the lining in the inside pocket that’s also fabulous. I bring this pack everywhere with me and its still in great condition. However, if it wasn’t and I needed to have something repaired all I would only have to contact Osprey and they would fix it for free! Gah it’s just so great.Note: I don’t care what the reviews say it’s absolutely 100% a carry on bag. I think once in the literal 100’s of flights I’ve taken have I ever had to check it.  

2. Pack it Cubes: Eagle Creek cubes

 These babies are wonderful! Whether I am taking my sweet time and nicely following/rolling my clothes, or I have 5 minutes to pack everything and run out the door, the pack-it cubes help me stay organized. These also have been with my these past 6 years. They look a little worse of the wear (thank you tweezers that cut like a knife) but they are still completely functional. I have the following sizes (2) large (1) medium and (1) small. I keep my tops in one extra large, my bottoms in the other, my under garments in the medium size and my electronics in the small. Now, side note, my 20 year old self thought it would be fun to color coordinate all the pack it cubes.While I still really like the color I wish I would have gotten different colored cubes. Different colored cubes would make it so much easier for me to quickly grab the right bag. At the moment I currently have to open each of the big ones to figure out what’s inside. Note: I would recommend getting the set of 3 and then buying one extra of the big size in a different color. Saves money and at the same time helps you organize. 

3. Stuff back pack: Sea to Summit Ultra Sli Travel Day Pack 

Whenever I travel I only ever bring carry on. Two bags, my beloved Osprey porter 46 and my camera bag. This means that whenever I want to walk about town or do some exploring and NOT bring my camera I need a bag. My solution to this problem has been a sea to summit pack able backpack. This pack is big enough to hold my 13 in Microsoft surface laptop, go pro, canon 7d, a coat, and my journal, AND packs down to just under the size of my fist. As much as I have enjoyed this pack however, I have recently had some pack envy of my mom’s stuff backpack. She got hers on a crowdfund for a company called Arkadia Supply Co. I love that while her pack fits down into the size of my fist (slightly larger than the ski to summit pack) the pack has multiple zippers, TWO water bottle slots and a detachable fanny pack. I will probably purchase this version.(Note: the Arkadia is significantly more expensive than the ski to submit – $35 vs $80- as a life long traveler I’m going to take the hit and invest in the bag, if you’re not sure how much traveling you want to do then I would probably recommend going with the cheaper version first)

4. Camera Bag: Thinktank Retrospective 7 (v.2)

 Ok yall, I’m a bit hesitant to put this on the list but seeing as I still use (and mostly love) it after 6 years together I couldn’t keep it off. I first bought this bag when I was shooting with a Canon Rebel T3i, two stock lens’s, a gopro 3, and a ipad. For all that hardware this bag was perfect. Exactly the right size to function both as a camera bag AND my personal item while on the plane. I love the tiny little side pockets which I honestly didn’t know what to do with as first and now use to story spare tissue and plastic bags (Pro tip: ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS save any extra tissue or toilet paper you may get, you never know when you’re going to need it). The front pocket was great for my journal and a book. I also loved the sling style meaning I didn’t need to wear a backpack on the front like a kangaroo. Now however I have upgraded all of my hardware and find the bag is too small for what I need. I currently travel with a Canon 7d (although I’m lowkey thinking about switching to mirrorless) 3 lens’s, a gopro 7 black, and a Microsoft surface laptop. This gear is not only substantially bigger, but also heavier making the front carry of this big a challenge. However until I decided what I’m going to do about the camera I’ll stay with this bag. Note: They now have a newer line to this bag that looks greatly improved upon. I put the link for that bag because it’s the most updated while I have the 1.0 version

This post may contain affiliate links that help contribute a very small amount to my travel fund. I will only ever link to products I have used and love.