The North Face  Base Camp Duffel - Medium

This is for the Large model, which meets airline baggage size restrictions. My son and I took a 2-week car-camp trip in the Northwest this summer. But we had to fly from our home in Hawaii with all our gear. We each took everything packed in a Large bag (total of 2), except for a cooler and campchairs we purchased on the mainland. I used the Pack-it Cubes for organization. Worked great. The backpack carry feature is very useful, and all straps snug up well for airline handling. These ARE bomb-proof. For the past 2 years these are our preferred method for scout camping logistics. Sturdy, waterproof, right-sized.

With most of us trying to get our gear as light and quick as possible the trade off is usually durability...and I can handle that. So when I take my gear off and it's out of my direct control it goes in this bag. I am an arborist and climb trees all day for work. Like all climbers I need my ropes and slings and such to be safe to keep me safe in the trees. Unfortunately, nobody but myself has that same awareness and concern. So I keep my gear in this. It's my black box for all of my climbing gear. And the large storage space with a small little inside pouch make this great for getting all your stuff inside. I just use some packing cubes to keep everything from swimming around inside.

I'm female and little at that, and usually guilty of overpacking no matter how short the trip is supposed to be. The back-pack style shoulder straps make it so easy to carry that no matter how much I pack I can easily carry it. The 4 compression straps on the sides also make a significant difference in the size of the bag as well. And being a North Face product, I had to test it for its water resistance--wouldn't even know that it had ever gotten wet! Awesome bag all around. The main compartment zippers also have the ability to have a lock passed through them.

Good bag for more extended trips, that is, if you can't get by with a carryon. I took this with me for a 3 weeks trip in Namibia/Livingston/Bostwana plus a smaller backpack. Using packing cubes, I packed for the trip with room to spare (June/July weather). The backpack straps are good for 5-10 min, I wouldn't count on it for long treks.

I have a medium size and a x-large bag and they both work great! The zipper on the duffels are bomb proof. I use the Extra Large bag to hold all my gear when I go on multi-week backpacking trips out west. This is one bag that the airliners cannot break or rip!

You can drag this bag through anything and it comes out the other side looking good and better yet - so does the stuff you are carrying.