The Best-in-Class EDC Bags To Supercharge Your Collection
The most functional and well-designed carry as of summer 2024.
Breathing in, breathing out. Feelings are rather tender and spilling over today. I returned yesterday from a five-day Asian American Buddhist writing retreat in Central Mass. I accepted an incredible job last week, after a prolonged season of unemployment. My wife and I are moving to New York in eight days.
What feels soothing to share with you in this weighty transition state… is my beginner’s guide to high quality, super functional carry. Since starting this Substack, several people have come up to me to praise not my musings on spiritual care, but backpacks! And that they need more recommendations for their particular carry needs and preferences. I’m so tickled. During my writing retreat, I wrote about my increasing, unabashed love for religions, complex as they are; I also outlined this post.
Note: All these bags are under $300. Most are under $200. The smaller pieces are under $100. These prices sound and are outrageous, I know, I know. Part of this is a reflection of a critical mass of bag enthusiasts’ willingness to spend more on an increasingly specialized hobby. Part of it is also a reflection of the exponentially improved design, materials and construction of EDC (everyday) carry in the past decade. I am not out here buying $300 bags, and sparingly $200 ones. But know these makers usually have free lifetime repairs and warranties so if you can use a bag for decades, so consider it a long-term investment. That’s what I say to my wife anyway.
The writing prompt: If I lost all my beloved bags in a freak accident today, what would I replace them with? (Or, If you don’t want to do a lot of consumer research, I’d recommend these for you, my dear friends)
From smallest to largest class:
Bum Bag Class
Kel Tech Gear Customizable Fanny Pack
Price: $75
All fanny packs are pretty much the same. For carrying just the essentials around your waist or across your chest. I have a small Mystery Ranch Mini Forager in black that works just fine. But if I somehow lost that and wanted another one, I’d spring for this made-to-order fanny pack by Indigenous woman-owned company in Kahnawà:ke, Kel Tech Gear. What I most appreciate about her fanny pack design is that you can customize the colors and materials of up to three of the panels to make it to your taste. You can be as fun as you want to be! I am often wearing earth-toned clothes, and I think that a wildly tri-color fanny pack would add a playful pop.
You can choose from standard Cordura, which is fabric-like yet abrasion resistant, X-pac, which is kinda crinkly but waterproof, and my favorite, Ecopak, which is waterproof and 100% recycled. All these fabrics are extremely durable and hold their bright colors well in the outdoors. The waist straps extend to 55” length, and there are not one by two interior pockets to prevent your littler objects from swimming around. The limited run XL version of her fanny pack includes bottom lash straps for a beer or water bottle– nice. Don’t be shy in checking out her growing set of offerings, including a chunky mini backpack and rigid handlebar bag. I am excited to see how her design language continues to sharpen and to watch her business grow.
Mini Cooler Class
RTIC Everyday Cooler - 15 Can
Price: $39.99
For years, my wife and I have used a cheapo yellow striped soft cooler from one of her monthly gift box subscriptions. When we want to have a picnic at the waterfront park, it’s been great to strap on a bike rack or throw in the backseat. But it doesn’t insulate that well and the zippers get stuck sometimes. When that bag dies, I look forward to replacing it with the RTIC Everyday Cooler.
What I like about the brand RTIC is that it appears to very high quality (according to customer reviews) and is dedicated to being a fraction of the price of other cooler bag overlords, such as Yeti and Hydro Flask. And bigger is not always better! I highly approve of the option for a petite 6 can capacity for a one-person meal or snack. 15 can is ideal to carry a large Tupperware with chicken salad, a ice pack, a few cans of seltzer, cloth napkins, with a zipper outer pocket for silverware and sauce packets. Compared to other kinds of bags, coolers are not that exciting, but a good one will reduce friction for many hours of impromptu outdoor relaxation.
Tote Bag Class
Fifth Season Canvas Switchel Sack
The best tote bag of all time, and I really do mean all time, is the Tom Bihn (Monster) Truck. Why is it the best? Because the bag has a flat bottom, it stands up on its own, and it has three ingenious compartments. Unless you need a packable tote bag or like screenprinted art on your carry, the standard, flat rectangular cotton tote bags make no (functional) sense for every day use. Controversial, I know. I feel that bag makers should give up on trying to improve the tote bag design, because it will never be as good as Tom Bihn’s. (Seriously, get thee one!) The only way to make their ballistic nylon Truck better is to make it with natural fibers, and oop–they did in organic cotton.
If Tom Bihn stopped producing their versions of the Truck and my Monster version disappeared…I’m already upset thinking about it. All other tote bags from other companies are the same lesser, basic design, with slight variations. But since this post is about bags I don’t have, the second best tote bag by a long shot is the cycling-focused Switchel Sack. It is made by the one-woman bag maker Fifth Season Canvas out of Vermont. I’m super into bike bags now that I’ve been bike commuting for the last three years (and one can only justify so many backpacks, gotta put the bags on other things). This is a multi-function tote that snaps securely onto a standard Wald 137 wire bike basket, and can also be used as a regular tote bag off the bike. Fifth Season has made many seasonal variations of this design, in colorful waxed canvas and wool, so you know it’ll age beautifully, and with its plastic-free construction, won’t pollute the earth when it finally falls apart.
Small Backpack (<15 liter) Class
Trakke Arkaig - 12 liters
Price: $199-279
I have something to admit. I have a Goruck Bullet 15 that fits this class of bag. It is a terrific EDC bag in terms of functionality and construction. But I have that itch to try something else, to test the grass on other side. I told myself I was on a backpack diet since graduating in May 2024. And I was… until Scottish heritage pack brand Trakke rolled out their super-secret seconds sale. Blast it! Their limited edition bonded wool Arkaig pack was 30% off… This was supposed to be a bags-I-don’t-have post…
I love this rugged beauty! Sometimes I rub my face on it and cuddle it. It’s a bag that welcomes feelings of warmth and attachment. This version of the Trakke Arkaig has ultra premium aluminum Cobra buckles, which can bear a load of over 1100 pounds, which is completely excessive in a fun way. Waxed canvas is one of my favorite materials, and Trakke uses a dry-finish on theirs that feels smooth and great in the hand. The interior (not shown), is an unwaxed cheerful orange canvas for high visibility. There is a subtle quick access pocket hidden behind the front pleat where I put my phone, wallet and keys. Internally, there is a laptop/notebook sleeve and another top quick access pocket for pens and smaller items.
2014 was when I got myself my first nice backpack. It was a dry canvas rolltop from the now-defunct heritage backpack maker Archival Clothing out of Eugene, OR. I dragged that beloved thing everywhere. Its versatility lay in the variable volume that I could adjust using a long, bridle leather strap. The rolltop could always be cinched tightly no matter how little or much I was carrying. I would often carry a rolled king-sized Pendleton wool blanket with it.
These days, I have no desire to carry that much stuff on my body. With the Trakke Arkaig, I have returned to this top-loading design in a smaller form and really, really enjoy it. At the writing retreat, I had to bring my own twin sheets, and I was able to shove a rolled flat-sheet under the Arkaig’s lid by fully extending the straps. If you aren’t a fan of the Goruck Bullet design, the Trakke Arkaig is a winner. It is indeed expensive, so be on the lookout for outlets and secret sales on their IG stories.
Travel Backpack (>21 L) Class
Evergoods CTB20
Price: $259 (currently sold out, next batch in October 2024)
From the outset, this bag may not look like much. It only comes in all-black (for now). The design is a bit boxy, a bit trapezoidal, nothing too risky. Aesthetically, it does not stand out. I don’t have the desire to gaze at it and caress it adoringly like I do for some of the above packs. But do not underestimate the power of obsessive design and iteration. Everything from the Evergoods brand is beyond excellent to the tiniest detail. We could scrap this entire post by me saying that if you only purchased packs and accessories from Evergoods from here on out, and refused to explore elsewhere, you would be completely set for EDC, work and travel. e
The newly released Evergoods CTB20 is what many have called a “unicorn” travel pack. It has all the ‘greatest hits’ features: two external water bottle pockets that essentially vanish when not in use, a clamshell zippered opening for efficient packing, a top quick access pocket for keys/phone/cash/passport, an external laptop pocket, and a roomy front vertical pocket with independent volume (it doesn’t eat into the main cavity if stuffed full), a hefty top and side grab handle, and then some.
The CTB20 is a shrunken, more manageable version of their popular travel bag, the CTB26 (26 liters), which you may prefer if you are a taller person or want to carry more (I’m not, and I don’t). The thing that sets Evergoods packs apart is their harness (the rigid back panel and padded straps). It’s so, so comfortable! That’s one of the reasons why I love my Evergoods PLC20 so much. At the end of the day, a good EDC pack will excel in organization, usability and comfort. The CTB20, even though I haven’t handled it, hits all those marks without compromise. Honestly I probably will never own this bag because it would make all my other 20/21L packs irrelevant, and where’s the merriment in that?