Category Archives: Travel

Topo Designs 30L Travel Bag Review

Topo Designs 30L Travel Bag Review

Topo Travel Bag 30L

Topo Travel Bag – Daypack Mode

Video Review – Scroll down for text and photos

If you’ve followed my blog/YouTube for any length of time, you know I like Topo Designs bags and backpacks

Topo Designs lured me in with the original daypack in… 2011? I followed that up with the Duffel bag, the Mini Mountain bag, the Klettersack (which I oddly never reviewed) and then the original Travel Bag – the full size one, the discontinued Backpack Tote, the Field Bag, The Mountain Briefcase, the Cinch Tote Bag, and the Mountain Pack. In addition to that, my kid carries the Y-Pack to school every day and my wife has the Quick Pack

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

I was going to try and deny being some sort of Topo Designs nutjob… Oh well. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

If I’m a nut for Topo Designs bags and packs, it’s with good reason. The bags are sturdy, long-lasting, and functional. They come in great colors and unique designs. They’re carefully crafted and up until recently, they were made exclusively in the USA. I really, really like stuff made in the USA. While Topo has shifted some manufacturing overseas (I assume to meet with increased demand – they carry Topo Designs at REI now), several pieces are still made in the USA – not just in the USA actually, but right next door in Colorado. 

If any company could be said to have a geographic vibe, then Topo Designs does. Their designs fit perfectly in the Western US – in the Mountains, in the deserts. In the wide open spaces and in quirky (often tourist-packed) mountain towns. That’s not to say they won’t find a happy home in an urban environment or anywhere else in the world, but their mountain heritage is evident in the designs, materials and colors. In the beginning you could have called them “retro.” You can’t call them that anymore. They find inspiration in designs from the 70’s and 80’s, but at this point Topo Designs is doing their own thing – and they’re doing it very well. 

Topo Designs made a Travel Pack several years ago (I (embarrassingly) review it here) – a bag sized to fit airline carry-on restrictions. It came with an optional satellite pack (The Trip Pack) that hooked to the front and came off to serve as a smaller daypack or “personal item,” which is airline speak for the bag that goes under the seat in front of you and ruins what little comfort you may have had. I used the original travel bag for years and while it was a great bag, it had two issues I struggled with. First, it was too large for anything other than travel, and second, it didn’t lie flat when open. Topo has solved both these issues with this new bag – in fact they’ve gone a step further by offering the redesigned Travel Bag in two sizes. Both lie flat when open. Let’s check it out. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

The Review:

Topo sent me the smaller Topo Travel Bag – the 30L. By my measurements it’s roughly 13″ X 7.5″ X 20. It’s perhaps a hair larger than a what you might use for an everyday type daypack, but not terribly so. For example, I generally use the Topo Designs Mountain Pack as my go-to daypack for almost everything, and it’s about 25-26 liters vs the Travel Bag at about 30L. Unless you’re tiny or like to pack really light you could probably use the 30L Travel Bag as a daypack most of the time. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

In fact, using it as a daypack is exactly what I’ve been doing with it. For the last month or so, I packed it all over. I carried running gear, computer gear, and camera gear in it. I hiked a little with it and I slipped it into an overhead bin on an airplane and threw it in the back of my truck. in short, it’s an awesome, well-designed, tough bag that will serve any traveler or outdoor enthusiast quite well.  

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

Frequent travelers will note a few features that stand out as setting the Topo Travel Bag apart from the competition. I love that you can stow the shoulder straps. I drive all over for work and often I just need a bag, not a backpack. Stowing the shoulder straps makes the bag seem much sleeker and more manageable. With the shoulder straps stowed, the bag still has four other options for carry – five if you count the pass through that goes over a larger, roller bag handle. There are three handles sewn into the bag – one on top and one on each side. This means no matter how I put the bag in the truck, I’ve always got a handle I can grab to get the bag out. It’s also got the adjustable shoulder strap. I like that the strap swivels – it rarely gets tangled. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

The location of the pass through for the roller bag handle doubles as the back padding and adds some rigidity to the bag overall. It’s a bag that seems to really hold its shape. The padding for the the back and the pass through slot doubles as padding for the laptop compartment, which is also padded on the other side (the clothing/contents side). If you stow the backpack straps then the laptop compartment is that much more padded. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

If you count the laptop compartment then there’s technically 9 different pockets on the bag. There’s one on the front – with two zippered internal ones, there’s the front compartment with a zipper pouch and two slip pockets, and then the main compartment has two zippered mesh compartments. I’ve always praised Topo Designs for their restraint – they put enough pockets to be organized, but not so many users get confused. I had a small North Face pack once that I hated using because it had too many pockets. I couldn’t find anything in that bag. The Topo Travel Bag has, thankfully, an appropriate number of pockets. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

The laptop compartment on the 30L version of the Travel Bag easily fits my 14″ laptop. Topo claims it’ll fit most 15.6″ laptops, but I’m a little skeptical. I have an older (8+ yrs) 15.6 laptop and it definitely won’t fit. Perhaps a more modern, sleeker 15.6″ will? If you’re on the fence about the 30L version and use a 15.6 laptop, it’s worth confirming before purchasing.

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

It has clips top and bottom for attaching other Topo bags, such as the Y-Pack, or the Trip Pack, so that you’ll actually have two bags when you get where you’re going. This is a great idea. I hate having to empty out all my clothes to use the one bag I brought once I’m at a destination. The more bags I have with me, the better. 

The plastic hardware is WooJin, and while I’d never heard of it before, they feel nice and work well. It’s not cheapo plastic. It’s substantial, clean, and smooth to the touch – no rough edges that I can find. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

The clips that hold the potential separate pack and the shoulder straps and waist strap are a little difficult to unclip. They have a little wire bale that needs to be unhooked from the plastic catch, and I find myself using quite a bit of manipulation to get them undone. Clipping them back together is a cinch. I wish getting them unclipped was that easy. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

The waist strap and the sternum straps are, thankfully, removable. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

There’s a couple little webbing loops at the bottom of the zippers that allow users to tuck the zippers in for an added measure of security. Of course it’s no substitute for a lock or a vigilant eye, but it makes it a little more difficult for someone to quickly and quietly slip the bag open and help themselves. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

And finally, it lies flat. I love bags that lie flat. Once you unzip it and open it up, there’s no hidden corners or areas that users can’t see or access. 

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

lastly, there’s nothing more frustrating than reaching into and looking for something in a giant black hole of bag. I congratulate Topo Designs for keeping the bright yellow interior.  

Topo Designs 30L Travel Bag Pros:

  • Lies flat
  • Goldilocks sized – not too big not too small
  • Shoulder straps stow nicely
  • Lots of handles
  • Can attach other Topo Packs
  • Design is both bomber and fun
  • Waist strap is removable
  • Sternum strap adjustable/removable

Cons:

  • Some hardware can be tough to manipulate
  • 30L size probably won’t fit larger than 14″ laptop
  • Foreign Made (although Topo does still produce several bags in the US – one of only a handful of manufacturers to do so)
  • Premium pricing

Topo Designs 30 Liter Travel Bag Review

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spring Arches National Park Tours

Arches tours started up again… I did a fairly sunny Arches National Park sunset tour and then a cloudy (almost snowy) Arches tour a couple days later. It’s always good to get into a national park, even it’s one you live by and have visited a million times. There’s a reason folks come from all around to check out the park. The rainy day park tour started out cold and wet so it was pretty quiet. By the end it was a little warmer and the parking lot at The Windows section was pretty full as we were leaving. Enjoy the short video below. 

I’ve got a few new designs up in my Strayfoto Redbubble Store – some new Moab designs that are relatively new – check them out if you get a chance. 

Cool Moab Artwork

Moab, Utah Designs

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks! 

Cataract Canyon – September 2017

Just got off a 6 day Cataract Canyon trip in Moab, with Tour West. I love Moab rafting for the small crowds and warm water.

Great guides, great guests, great weather and a decent water level. The combined flow of the Colorado River and Green River below the confluence was 6400 CFS. That means I still can run left to right in Big Drop II, but one could also run right to left, like Joe Bennion did.

I only whacked the motor once – in Satan’s Gut (Big Drop III) which is kind of standard operating procedure at this water level. I didn’t get stuck in Waterhole, and the newest rapid below that one (have we named that one yet?) forced me to do some serious moves to avoid the rocks, but we never got hung up or hit the motor. 

We had partial clouds for the run down to Dark Canyon, and, as usual, I was reminded what a gorgeous section of canyon that stretch along the Colorado River is. I can’t help but hope Lake Powell stays low and all those rapids come back in my lifetime. One of the guests (Justin) asked if seeing Dark Canyon rapid was sort of my “White Whale.” I’d never thought about that before and it’s stuck with me. I’m a pretty conservative boater when it comes to rapids, I’m kind of in it more for the camping and general outdoors experience than I am for the adrenaline and the rapids. If I have a life-long dream for something I’ll probably never get to chase down, it’s the dream of good camps and less mud below Gypsum Canyon. More rapids is always better, but I’d trade big rapids for small ones and better camps. Perhaps more rapids could lengthen the trip and make it worth spending a few days getting to Hite instead of 8 hours of slogging across flat water. I’ve always said I understand not draining Lake Powell, but I wouldn’t lose any sleep if they did. 

All in all a pretty good trip. A private group stole our camp at Lower Red Lake, but we ended up with a great camp just below Rapid 2. Video and stills below. 

Julie in the HoleRapidsWhitewaterLow Water PonderingLooking Back at WaterholePoroverColorado River Looking EastRapid 24Oar DetailAfter the Rapids

 

Thanks for looking…

 

 

 

Ogden Made Two Bit Klettersack Review

Ogden Made Two Bit Klettersack Review and Video

Ogden Made Two Bit Klettersack Review

Ogden Made Two Bit Klettersack

Recently a buddy left his daypack at my place. Because it’s made in the USA, I couldn’t resist the temptation to review it. It’s called the Two Bit klettersack by Ogden Made. Ogden Made is a Utah-based company that has a modest range of gear from hats and t-shirts, to accessory bags and messenger bags. All the bags are made in the USA, and seem to share a simple yet functional design. ( I really want the Camo Snap-Back…)

Ogden Made Two Bit Klettersack

The Two Bit Klettersack is a top-loader design with metal closure hardware to secure the top pocket/flap. There’s two water bottle pockets (one on either side), and an access zipper that allows access to the lower half of the main compartment. The water bottle pockets are on the smallish side, and definitely eat into the interior of the pack. The access compartment, although not really large, opens easily and provides welcome access to what you want – which, in a top-loading pack, is always at the bottom. Every. Single. Time.

Ogden Made Two Bit Klettersack

The measurements on the Ogden Made website add up to make this bag measure somewhere around 33 liters. It’s not really anywhere near that big. As far as comparable daypacks go, I’d say this slots in around the same size as the Topo Designs Mountain Pack, which I reviewed here. The Two Bit Klettersack really wears more like it’s a regular sized 23-26 liter daypack.

Ogden Made Two Bit Klettersack

The computer compartment is accessible from the side zipper so users don’t have to access the top flap to get at the laptop. The back padding and straps are adequate for a pack of this size and not too padded. The straps are flat and wide, which I like.

Ogden Made Two Bit Klettersack

Ogden Made also offers a camera module called the Monte that fits in the zippered access panel at the bottom of the pack. On the website it seems to swallow a modest amount of camera gear and still allow reasonable access. It’s a feature I’d like to try out at some point. It’d be interesting to see how much I like it over several months.

The Ogden Made bag seems like a valiant early effort from a Utah-based company trying to keep manufacturing here in the US, which I admire. I don’t really love the metal hardware for the top flap, finding it finicky and not that easy to engage. It’s not awful, and I agree it’s a welcome departure from the long-standing tradition of ITW Nexus side release buckles, but I which they were easier to use. The Two Bit Klettersack is a decent pack. I wouldn’t call it on par with some other, more refined bags; it falls a little short when compared to some of Topo Designs more recent offerings, or any of the GoRuck bags, but it’s a great start. It actually reminds me a little of the first Topo Designs daypack I owned, and Topo has really matured and refined their packs over the last few years. I hope Ogden Made can experience the same level of refinement and growth. It’s always good to get my hands on some gear made in the USA.

Check out the video below for a better look at the features and check out my Strayfoto YouTube channel for more made in USA stuff and daypack / luggage reviews.

Topo Designs Field Bag Review and Video

Topo Designs Field Bag Review

A few months ago, with the intention of downsizing a bit and perhaps carrying a little less, I bought the Topo Designs Field Bag. It’s a great little bag, and I’ve essentially replaced the Topo Designs Mini Mountain Bag I was using before. I generally like the Topo Designs bags – they’re well designed and they’re made in the USA. I’ve even have the Topo Daypack, and use it often.

Here’s the video review:

As shoulder bags go, the Field Bag is on the smaller end of what I can get away with- I usually pack bags until they’re full and then stop. I wish I could take only what I’m certain I’ll need, but usually I just pack until the bag is full and I can’t fit any more gadgets in there.

Topo Designs Field Bag Review

The Topo Field Bag is about 12x7x6 and holds a DSLR on one side if you want it to – as long as your lens isn’t too large. If you had a medium length L-Series lens and a flash and some memory cards and notebook, you’d just about fill the bag to the brim. I generally carry my Ricoh GR, a Canon S100, a GoPro, a few notebooks and some pens, and my phone and tablet. It fits just about right.

With that much stuff the bag isn’t too heavy to carry around for a while and the stuff isn’t too crowded. If you’re into packing heavy, the Field Bag is probably a little too small.

The hook and loop closure on the front seems secure enough and I’ve never had a problem with it opening inadvertently. The hook and loop on the front is a little loud – so this may not be the best bag if you’ve got anything secret planned. They’ll hear you coming the minute you try to get anything out.

It has some minimal messenger bag style straps that attach to the body side of the bag and hold the bag securely to your waist. Thankfully they also come off quickly and painlessly. The shoulder strap is great. It’s got just enough padding to be comfortable and the pad slides easily on the strap, making swinging the bag around front to get into it pretty easy. The water bottle pouches on the sides are welcome after having the Mini Mountain bag with no good way to carry a water bottle.

Topo Designs Field Bag Review

You can fit a DSLR in the bag (even with a large lens provided you remove the center divider) but you may not fit much else. While Topo Designs kind of markets the bag as a potential fishing bag, I usually just use it as a half camera bag, half every day carry bag. I like that on roadtrips it sits easily on the front seat of my truck and I can get into it if I need to.

Topo Designs Field Bag Review

Topo X Howler did a version of this bag as well, offered in a slightly different colorway.

Topo Designs Field Bag Review

If, like me, you’ve got to have what amounts to a man’s purse, you could do far worse than the Topo Designs Field Bag.

Pros:

  • Small
  • Bomber
  • Padded
  • Good shoulder strap
  • Holds a water bottle

Cons:

  • Small
  • Loud to open
  • Might not hold large cameras
  • Water bottles eat up interior room

Who it’s for: Someone committed to carrying less, but not ready to ditch the cameras quite yet. Oh, and fishermen. Maybe.

If you’re interested in Topo Designs Bags, check out my reviews on the Mini Mountain Bag and the Topo Designs Daypack. I’ve also just added a review and video of the Topo Designs Mountain Briefcase as well.

Cataract Canyon 27-31 May 2014 with Tour West

Cataract Canyon 27-31 May 2014 with Tour West

Some images and a short video from my last Cataract Canyon trip… Enjoy.

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Deadbolt Plays TT Roadhouse Scottsdale Arizona October 2013

Deadbolt Plays TT Roadhouse Scottsdale Arizona October 2013

Click the image for a larger version/slideshow view.

Thanks to the TT Roadhouse, Erik, and Deadbolt. That was a great show.

 

Fall Colors, Durango Colorado, and a Diana Lens on a Digital Canon

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We drove over to Durango, Colorado a few weeks ago and took in some early fall colors. It was a great drive, and a great first snow of the fall season.

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All shots here taken with my Lomography Diana 20mm Fisheye Lens with the Canon lens adaptor and an old Canon EOS 20D. A great combination if you want to experience the wonder of Lomography without the patience required to shoot film (which I used to have – but lost somewhere along the way…)

Thanks for looking.

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