/// Jeremy Maluf

Indefinite Backpack Travel

Updated September 2024

In 2015 I got rid of everything I owned that didn’t fit in a laptop backpack, and I’ve been living at this level of minimalism since. The idea is to only own what I need, which allows me to focus more, spend less, travel spontaneously and simplify my life.

I update this post yearly with previous updates available on the Internet Archive: 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017. I also include some affiliate links, but they don’t make as much as they used to so if you enjoy these posts you can buy me a coffee on ko-fi! I’m also beginning to share more about this lifestyle on Instagram if you’re into that.

/// This update marks 10 years of living at this level! Can’t believe that this gear list has been read by millions of people. Thank you! :)

This post was never meant to be a guide, but whenever it’s shared without exposition a lot of the responses online tend to be the same dozen questions and misunderstandings. So here’s a few words to address those:

Onebag travel is unquestionably the best way to travel. Traveling without luggage removes just about every pain point associated with flying, such as checking bags, overhead compartments, bag fees, waiting in line, and needing to drop off luggage before an adventure. Just stroll into the airport an hour before your flight, and walk off your plane directly to your destination. I’m not here to sell you on this. r/onebag is a community built around this and a good place to learn more.

As to how I got here, I’ve never really owned much at any point in my life, so once I started traveling frequently this seemed like the natural evolution of my lifestyle. Because it’s so ordinary to me, it’s really not something I think about often.

Of course, I have taken the time to optimize each thing to be the best possible: I’d much rather pack a 4oz jacket over a 1lb jacket. However, it’s worth mentioning I don’t take part in the consumerist side of the travel/hiking communities, which focuses more on expensive brand names than practicality. Buy only what you need; a $100 setup is nearly as good as a $10,000 setup. Sometimes spending more will get better quality or versatility, but it’s never worth obsessing over. Remember, the perfect travel bag doesn’t exist (relevant XKCD).

In terms of the nomad lifestyle, while I prefer fast-paced travel, it’s not great for productivity, finances, and friends, so I now stay in cities for longer periods. This allows me to maintain social relationships and explore cities deeper. It also allows me to do “zero-bag” trips in which I travel with just the contents of my pockets. Long term, I will always travel at this level, but living out of a backpack will end whenever I settle down and build a homebase. Likely not soon though.

With exposition done, here’s the list of everything I own:

Packing

  • Aer Slim Pack. In 2020 I made a custom 10L bag, but it wasn’t very durable so for the moment I’m back to tech bags (MYOG bag v2 coming soon). At 9L this bag has the perfect storage capacity for all my stuff minus hiking gear, and falls well within the ‘personal item’ size requirements of even the most strict budget airline. I permanently keep an Airtag inside and attached some Nite Ize S-biners to the zipper pulls to lock the bag from casual theft.
  • Rains Pencil Case. The closest thing I have found to the perfect dopp kit. I use it primarily for toiletries, but also for storing first aid and random small things. It’s the perfect size as long as I only buy the “travel size” version of things, which I do anyways. Seems to be permanently out of stock now as Rains shifted their product lineup to lower-quality versions that more prominently display their logo.

Tech

  • Macbook Air M2 13″. My 12″ ultralight Macbook finally got slow enough that I caved and bought one of the newer Apple Silicon computers. The verdict is as expected, it’s a pretty awesome laptop with an incredibly powerful chip, but my backpack is now noticeably heavier.
  • iPad Pro 11″. Used for reading, drawing, painting, note-taking, 3D-modeling, and much more. I use it with an Apple Pencil. May upgrade to the M4 iPad with the Pencil Pro at some point.
  • iPhone 15 Pro. 256GB in black titanium. A great-looking phone with an amazing camera, but the battery life on these recent iPhones isn’t great. Kept sans case since AppleCare is cheaper. I also keep a ‘modular’ iPhone 7 in my backpack for when I need a backup phone.
  • Apple Watch S7. I use my Apple Watch very passively, relying on it for workout tracking and morning alarms but rarely looking at it or touching it. I also break and lose my watch frequently, so I rarely buy the current generation.
    • Worn with a silicon solo loop band, of which I was surprised no cheap knockoffs exist. In my opinion it’s the best watchband design physically possible.
  • Airpods Pro 2. I’m back to AirPods Pro after several years with AirPods 3. I don’t like how silicone headphones isolate me from the world, even with transparency mode, but you just can’t beat the noise cancellation for travel and crowded cafes. USB-C of course.
  • SanDisk Extreme 2TB SSD. Pocket-sized and indestructible, contains a backup of everything I store in the cloud, including video files now that I’ve started making content.

    EDIT: my drive got corrupted, so I’m looking for an alternative! In the meantime I’m using two 256GB Samsung USB-C thumb drives, which are amazing. The only alternative to The SanDisk Extreme on the market now is the Samsung T7, but friends have reported similar issues so for the moment I’ll stick with the cloud plus thumb drives.

Charging

  • Apple USB-C Cable. 1-meter, woven C-to-C cable. For charging my iPhone, Macbook, iPad and battery – everything except my watch.
  • Apple Watch Fast Charger. 1 meter. I’m back to using Apple’s chargers after years with the compact Maco Go, since only Apple has the crazy tech needed to charge at maximum speed (it’s pretty cool, they actually condensed the tech in the USB-C end of the cable to dissipate heat). Next time I have access to a 3d printer I’ll make another custom charger case.
  • Anker PowerCore Battery. Minimalist, matte black, lightweight, and small enough to fit in my pocket. At 20,000mAh it carries one full Macbook charge and can charge all my stuff at 30W, as fast as a wall outlet. No longer sold.

Clothing

  • Montbell Plasma 1000. The Japanese version, which comes with pockets. Objectively the world’s best down jacket by weight-to-warmth ratio. Literally weighs less than my phone and can fit in my pocket. It’s unreal. When layered with a hoodie I feel comfortable in any weather.
  • Amazon Essentials Hoodie. I’ve tested dozens of hoodies, including recently a custom-tailored one. But they always get destroyed on hikes so I’m now back to the cheap Amazon brands.
  • American Apparel 50/50 Shirts. Six when I’m on the move, twice that if I’m staying somewhere for a while. I prefer 50/50 cotton/poly over triblends for durability, and I’m not a fan of merino due to durability and price – frequent outdoor adventures mean I rip my shirts often.

    I pack my shirts by rolling them around my socks and underwear into compact ‘day rolls’, which prevents wrinkling, eliminates decision-making involved with getting dressed, and makes packing as simple as tossing the rolls into my bag.
  • Darn Tough Socks. Six pairs. Darn Tough merino socks are so indestructible that if they rip the manufacturer will ship you a brand new pair. I’ve literally walked over 5,000 miles with each pair I own and they still look brand new.
  • Uniqlo Airism Boxer Briefs. Six pairs. Rated as one of the best travel boxers for good reason. Get the regular ones, not low-rise or seamless. Usually only available in-store.
  • Western Rise AT Pants. Though I sometimes miss the ‘toughness’ of Levi’s jeans, after a few years of wearing WR’s travel pants I’ve fully converted. Their AT pants use a heavy material that feels comfortable yet is still super durable and holding up well after several years.

    Worn with a minimalist Grip6 gunmetal belt, which I’ve been loving more and more each year. I don’t know why this belt style isn’t more popular.
  • Western Rise Evolution Shorts. I’ve never been the type of person that wears shorts, but after realizing that my legs are ten shades lighter than my arms I’ve decided to make the lifestyle change. Mostly worn for working out, running, and while doing laundry.
  • Everlane Swim Trunks. Like shorts, I’ve never had swim trunks on this list. Previously they were a short-lived item, bought only for summer pool hangs and gone by my next flight. But lately I’ve been getting into swimming so they’re now a permanent addition.
  • Nike Pegasus Trail 5 Running Shoes. I no longer wear the Gore-Tex version of these shoes as those can get uncomfortable in hot weather. Nike makes the best and most durable running shoes out of every brand I’ve tried, but I am tired of their yearly release shtick that discontinues every design after a few months, so apologies in advance if you can’t find it. I attached some Nite Ize S-biners to the laces for latching my shoes to my bag or belt when at the beach.
  • Arc’teryx Alpha SL Gloves. I became a glove person after another cold NYC winter and now they’re a permanent part of my kit. They’re especially useful for my wilderness and mountain adventures, but also for bad habits like preventing me from putting my hands in my pockets or picking at my nails. In the city they give off a Bond villain vibe.
  • Merino Buff. Near-limitless uses while traveling. I mostly use it as a face mask for cold weather and as a sleep mask on planes and buses, but I’ve also used it as a scarf, bandana, pillowcase, and more. Definitely one of the best pieces of travel gear I own.

Miscellaneous

  • RE:FORM RE:01 Wallet. A super-thin minimalist wallet with a magnetic pouch for an Airtag and small items. Much thinner than my previous wallet, which was custom-built. The material RE:FORM uses is insanely durable, I’ve been using it for several years and it still looks brand new. Disclaimer: the founder sent me this wallet.
    • Amazon Prime credit card. A decent card that gets 5% back on some stuff and 1-2% on the rest. The fact that it’s a metal card with a minimalist design and no annual fee was a big selling point for me, and it saves me a lot at Whole Foods.
    • Revolut debit card. Free ATM withdrawals while traveling. Most other cards have pivoted to add fees for international ATMs, Revolut is the only one I’ve used that hasn’t (though I’m sure they will eventually). ATM map link since the app’s map is rarely accurate.
    • Airtag. I’ve never lost my wallet, but Airtags are great for peace of mind.
    • Plus my ID, health insurance, bank cards, library card and emergency cash.
  • Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses. Wayfarer style, stored in a small custom microfiber pouch from a defunct eyewear startup I used to run. I used camera glasses frequently from 2016-2019 and sometimes browse my ‘memories’ from then like a Black Mirror episode, so I try to stay in the loop on current products in the niche. The 2nd generation is certainly better than the first, but I would not recommend them as anything other than a toy.
  • True Utility Keytool. Probably the world’s most compact bottle opener and multitool. Bought it over a decade ago and it’s been on me every day since. Not much else to say, except that over a thousand people have bought it from this Amazon affiliate link with zero returns.
  • A.Brolly Umbrella. Weighs less than 90g and disappears in my bag. It’s a bit harder to deploy than a normal umbrella but the weight makes it worth it. It’s also obviously not the most durable umbrella, so during rainy seasons I’ll buy a slightly more durable one, often this one.
  • Matador Nanodry Shower Towel. Small enough to fit in my fist but also large enough to work as a beach towel. Dries incredibly quick and lasts years. Rarely used as I typically stay in places with towels.
  • Moleskine. Black with blank pages. Moleskine sketchbooks have been on and off my list for the past decade. It’s nice having physical paper instead of only screens sometimes.
    • Staedtler Pigment Liner. 0.05mm, black. Best pen on the planet, period. Used for drawing.
    • BIC Ballpoint Pen. Black. Second best pen on the planet. Used for writing. Also useful on planes when they hand out immigration forms
  • Dopp Kit. As minimalist as a toiletry kit gets. Most items get cycled out every month or two. All stored in the Rains pencil case, along with first aid and other small items.
    • Marvis Toothbrush. Or a regular toothbrush when inconvenient to replace.
    • Marvis Jasmine Toothpaste. Or regular toothpaste when inconvenient to replace.
    • Generic floss
    • Generic razor
    • Generic deodorant
    • Generic tweezers
  • First Aid Kit. My FAK has reduced in size over the years and now contains just the bare necessities. Everything is stuffed in a repurposed Altoids tin, which does get annoying to restock, so I sometimes resort to prepackaged Coleman kits.
  • Miscellaneous small things. Crammed in my FAK or in random pockets around my bag.
    • Tech kit. SIM card remover, iPhone teardown tools, Apple Pencil tips, Airtag batteries.
    • Also my passports and various papers

Outdoor gear

The stuff I toss in my backpack for lengthy hiking trips, like parts of the PCT or mountains around the US and Mexico. I haven’t done any trips outside of weekend hikes recently so most of this gear needs to be upgraded to be more ultralight.

The most difficult part about traveling with backpacking gear is keeping it airport-friendly. Knives, fuel, tent stakes, and tent/trekking poles aren’t allowed in carry-on, and while carbon fiber stakes and poles can usually sneak through, it’s not reliable.

This setup weighs 4.4lbs/2kg and should drop to 3.5lbs/1.5kg with the mentioned upgrades. When optimized for volume, a full UL backpacking setup can use less than 10L of bag space.

  • 3F UL Gear tent. The best affordable ultralight tent ($70 when I bought it). I eventually want to replace it, but my commitment to staying compact in addition to ultralight rules out most UL tents as they’re typically made out of bulky DCF. The Lofoten 2 is appealing but I’m hoping eventually I’ll find the time and resources to build my own.
  • Sleeping bag. Unknown brand. Technically a liner but it works well enough for me. If I ever plan a trip to somewhere really cold I’ll replace it with something better.
  • Thermarest NeoAir Uberlite. An ultralight sleeping pad that weighs less than my phone. Size small, which doesn’t cover my lower legs but is worth it for the volume and weight savings.
  • Nitecore NU25 UL. An ultralight headlamp that weighs virtually nothing, fits in my pocket and is charged via USB-C. Although it is objectively the best headlamp, it feels like cheap plastic.
  • Portable kitchen. Everything but the fuel fits within the mug, which is also the perfect size to cook a packet of ramen. May switch to an alcohol stove eventually.
  • Sawyer Mini water filter. Probably the most important thing on this list and arguably the only thing I couldn’t survive without. Useful to have on hand even when not hiking, you never know when the water will be sketchy.
  • Smartwater 1L bottle. Two, one carries sanitized water with a sports cap to backflush the water filter while the other carries raw water with the filter on top.

Stuff to buy

Because I live a very minimalist and frugal lifestyle, I don’t buy much, and one way to make sure that all my purchases are well thought out is to maintain a list and only buy items that have been on the list for some time. Rather than saving them as browser bookmarks I’ll just put them here.

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