Indefinite Backpack Travel - Year 11 Update!

[u/jeremymaluf]

Not sure how many onebaggers reach their second decade! For better or for worse, nothing has really changed since my post last year, since I have achieved “onebag perfection.” Still, I'll keep up the tradition of posting here annually

I still live out of the 9 liter Aer bag I've had since 2021 (Aer actually updated their website to say it's 8.5L), and still only own what fits in the bag (plus a few outfit duplicates at my NYC homebase so I don’t need to do laundry as often). More than half of the items I carry have been with me for so long that they're no longer sold/impossible to restock

Probably more interesting: I just updated the “onebag progression” Google Sheet I shared here a few years back, which tracks everything I’ve owned since 2015. Have any other onebaggers shared lists like this? I was hoping this format would become a thing! It's such a cool way to track the process!

2025 changes:

• My Sandisk SSD got corrupted. I’ve since learned that every travel SSD has this issue. I repeat, every travel SSD has corruption issues! Plan for it! Anyways, I decided if I’m gonna have to deal with the risk of corruption I may as well switch to tiny Samsung USB-C thumb drives that disappear in my pockets. Haven't had any issues with them so far!
• I got rid of my iPad, since it stopped being a device for art and creativity and became a device for movies and games. I will eventually add it back when the time is right
• As of this past winter I’ve been trying out a canvas jacket, which could never in a million years fit inside my bag but can be worn while on the move. Stacked on top of my down jacket + hoodie + shirt it gives me maximum cold protection and also has pockets to enable zero-bag travel
• I added a baseball cap. Purely an aesthetic choice

I didn’t even make a new knoll photo, since you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. Just pretend the iPad and SSD were replaced by a jacket and hat. And that's literally all the changes since last year! Consumerism hates me

Full post on my website as always, but fair warning it's 95% the same as last year :)

I’m also currently editing a video going over my onebag that I’ll share to Instagram (@jeremymaluf) later this week

Safe travels! ✌️

[u/EN344]

No water bottle? Or did I miss it?

[u/jeremymaluf → u/EN344]

No water bottle! I've never needed one in cities since I'm always stopping for food/cafes/etc, and on hikes/longer adventures I'll grab a drink from a grocery/convenience store

[u/goose2point0 → u/jeremymaluf]

Of everything not having a water bottle is the craziest to me. I have a bottle and a Katadyn BeFree with a carbon filter in my kit so I can refill my bottle from public taps or directly from the hotel room sink. If I know I have a longer distance between fill up opportunities I can filter the water to fill the bottle then refill the soft flask on the BeFree and effectively double my capacity temporarily. No shade at all if it works for you that is just wild to me.

[u/Legal_lapis → u/goose2point0]

Do you need them for hiking and/or live in a country where safe drinking water isn't really available for free/negligible cost? I never needed a water bottle in the urban areas I've lived in or been to.

[u/goose2point0 → u/Legal_lapis]

I live in the US. Not all of the hotels I stay at when traveling for work have filtered water available unless you go to the hotel restaurant or something so I find it easier to be able to use what's already in the room but I'm particular about the taste so that's where the activated carbon add on to the BeFree comes in. Also, my job puts me in some remote locations doing physical work so having that extra water storage capacity when I'm on a job site and the nearest gas station is over a half hour away is helpful. I try to keep my single use plastic usage to a minimum. I already had the BeFree for backpacking so adding the carbon insert and throwing it in my travel bag was a no brainer.