As most of my friends will tell you, I really, really like the Osprey Farpoint 40. I swear by this bag. I have attempted to sell this bag to so many of my friends that it’s a running joke I get a commission. I bought this bag for my youngest brother as his 18th birthday present. I bought this1 bag for my partner as a birthday present in preparation for this trip. If you asked me to name the five most important objects that I own, it would be on the list.2
For me the reason is simple - my Farpoint allows me to travel the world on my own two feet (or bike). I’ve travelled carry on only with it to Thailand, Cambodia, Tasmania, Hong Kong, Japan, Germany, Czechia, Austria, Switzerland and Hungary, plus innumerable other journeys and camping trips around mainland Australia. Since I bought mine in 2018, I’ve put my Farpoint through more than I have any right to expect, including drenching it in cookies and cream ice-cream while hauling groceries.
The Farpoint is designed to excel at one thing - pushing international travel carry on limits to the edge. And it does so with grace and aplomb - within its 40 litres you can pack enough to travel virtually indefinitely, while its excellent harness allows you to carry that 40 litres easily.
Sure there are some sacrifices. You’re going to have a limited number of clothes on rotation. Winter in some parts of the world is going to be tough. But if you’re not planning on going somewhere where you could plausibly ski, it’s very doable.
My Farpoint 40 has a different layout than the 2023 version (which moves the laptop sleeves to the back, redoes the harness suspension and other changes) - if you want a run down on that backpack, here’s one decent review.
So that’s the bag - but what goes inside.
The list
We’ll be heading to Europe in autumn, which means (particularly this year) the weather is going to gamut between warm and sunny, mild and rainy, and cooler nights towards the end of the trip.
My list is by no means the perfect one - there’s any number of Farpoint 40 packing lists out there, by people with a lot more experience (and willingness to go the distance on specialised clothes), but here’s what I’m bringing:
5 pairs of underwear.
6 pairs of socks (I include some Kathmandu MerinoLink Travel Light Socks)
2 long sleeve and 1 short sleeve wool shirts - I like Kathmandu’s Merino range. Wool shirts have a lot of excellent properties for travelling, not the least the odour resistance. While the full price for the Kathmandu Merino is a bit steep, you can find these in clearance stores for $40 or $50 pretty regularly (the Braddon store is the goer if you’re from Canberra).
2 pairs of Uniqlo U AIRism Cotton Oversized Crew Neck Half Sleeve T-Shirts. Highly recommend these (I wear a size down). Spacious and comfortable T-shirts are an underrated luxury.
1 collared shirt - in this case from Gazman. You never know when a more formal event might strike, and a decent collared long sleeve shirt and nice chinos will be passable in many settings (nothing can be done for the hiking boots).
2 pairs of Uniqlo Slim fit Chinos. Are there better travel pants than this? Yes. Are there more comfortable pants than this? Also yes. More formal pants than this? Aye. But Uniqlo’s offering strikes a balance between price, comfort, versatility and style that is hard to beat. For urban environment and temperate clines, they get the job done.
2 pairs of shorts - in this case both from Uniqlo, one pair of Gym shorts and the other the Airism Cotton Easy Shorts. They’re comfy and light, which is want shorts for - if anything calls for greater formality, then wear the chinos.
1 Pair of Peter Alexander PJ shorts. I’m bougie like that.
1 Kathmandu Andulo Men’s Rain Jacket. This is not a GoreTex (or Kathmandu knock off GoreTex) rain jacket, but is comfortable, windproof, and will keep you dry in all but the most adverse conditions. Like most Kathmandu items on this list, it’s easy to find at substantially reduced prices if you try.
1 Kathmandu Heli 600 Fill Lightweight Down Jacket. The Kathmandu Helis are cheap (I’ve seen them on sale for $50 end of season), light, and extremely versatile. You can wear it by itself on an autumn night, but if conditions turn cold, layering it with the Andulo rainjacket as the outer layer and a polar fleece within gives you the warmth and wind resistance of a much more expensive jacket.
1 Macpac Tui Fleece Pullover. Polar fleeces are warm, light and quick to dry and that’s what we need - good standalone outer layer in cooler nights, or mid layer underneath the puffer or rain jacket if colder.
One Pair of Salomon X Ultra 4 Mids. When traveling with one bag you only really get one pair of shoes - people who enjoy running tend to pick trail running shoes, but I prefer boots. The Ultra 4s are hiking boots, but at the extreme sneaker end (lightweight) while still being fully waterproof.
One pair of flip flops - self explanatory.
1 Kindle - books are heavy, Kindles are not.
1 Lenevo Thinkpad Duet. This thing has exactly two things going for it - it’s light and cheap. A budget chromebook that I picked up for travel sometime back, I wouldn’t recommend if you have four figures of cash to splash rather than three - the optimum choice is probably a modern macbook.
1 pair of Tozo A1s. There are two different kind of people in this world - those that buy a pair of AirPods three years ago and never lose or damage them, and those that can’t make a pair of earbuds last more than a few seasons. I’m in the latter, and so a $30 dollar pair of earbuds that delivers good core functionality (sound) while being light and comfortable are big for me.
1 Anker Powercore III. Good quality, high capacity powerbank.
1 pair of Loop Quiet Earplugs. Silence is an incredible gift to give yourself on planes, in hostels, or just anywhere else where ambient noise is high. The Loops are effective in cutting out background noise while not making you feel deaf, while also being comfortable to wear - essential sleeping aid for this trip.
1 Mavogel Cotton Sleep Eye Mask - there are a lot of eyemasks out there, this one is both cheap, light, and effective.
1 Heymix Universal Travel Adapter - there are plenty of these kind of universal adapters on Amazon, and this one at least works as advertised. That is if I can find the blasted thing. If not, probably something less capable.
1 Osprey Ultralight Stuff Duffel. Sometimes you need an extra bag, and this 30 litre Osprey offering does that in ~200 grams that packs down to something that fits in the palm of your hand.
1 Extra Large Kathmandu Microfiber towel. This one is the most negotiable single item.
Toiletries. I’m not going to detail these.
3 Packing cubes - 1 Large, 2 medium. I got mine from Kathmandu, but there are a lot of quality packing cubes out there.
Normally, this list would commit more strongly to cooler or warmer clothes (and would pack less by weight), but Autumn in Europe this year looks tricky (It was 26C in Paris today, while mid October might promise substantially cooler temps. There’s also a few items which simply aren’t space/weight efficient to take (hat, waterbottle, etc) but are things you should definitely pick up in country.
Tomorrow promises the bus to Sydney, and the day after, the plane to Bangkok. Adventure awaits.
Well technically it was the Fairview 40, the female version of the bag, but you get the idea.
No cheating for things like government ID here.