G’day Travelers! As you would know in the last 12 months I’ve done a fair bit of travelling. Up until about 6 months ago, I was using a traditional backpacker style backpack as my checked luggage. While on my previous backpacking style trips it had been perfect. But lugging it around in addition to my camera bag on the short sharp trips I’d been doing this year had become quite tedious.
So 6 months ago I went looking for an alternative check luggage solution. Something that would be versatile, but also had wheels to make countless airport check-ins and transfers much, much easier. My search led me to pick up a High Sierra Composite Wheeled Duffle for my main luggage.
What I like about the High Sierra Composite Wheeled Duffle
The first thing I really liked about the bag was that it was relatively lightweight. Compared to the backpack I had been using previously, I’d saved myself 3kg’s in baggage allowance just simply by switching over the to the High Sierra bag. A big difference when I’ve got a hefty tripod to carry around with me.
Secondly and probably the main reason for switching was the portability. I know most luggage these days do have handles and wheels but being able to switch the bag from rolling luggage over to a backpack with just two zippers has been extremely handy. I won’t have to revert back to my old backpack if I travel somewhere that dragging a wheelie bag around just simply isn’t practical.
Thirdly the large pockets make for easy accessibility. That’s something I’d not had for a long time using a backpack. It has made living out of the bag (which I’ve done a fair bit of) very easy.
What I don’t like about the High Sierra Composite Wheeled Duffle
I can’t really fault the bag at all. It’s held up to the rigours of dozens of flights and hotel transfers without fault.
If I had to nitpick, the only real issue with the High Sierra bag is that it doesn’t have any small pockets. I’ve got a couple of little items that I keep in my bag because they are handy. In my previous bag, I had some small pockets to keep them easily accessible. But now they tend to get lost in the bottom of the big pockets. It would be nice to have a couple of small pockets to keep those items handy, but I could buy something to resolve that issue.
Alternatives
There are a million and one different luggage options, so I’m not going to go into all the different options that are available. I did have a look at a number of different options but I couldn’t find anything else with the versatility of the High Sierra Composite Wheeled Duffle.
Conclusion
For me, the High Sierra Composite Wheeled Duffle fits my needs perfectly. Its flexibility to be rolled and carried as a backpack have been really handy. I’ve used it on both short and long trips without issues and it’s held up to numerous baggage handlers and baggage carousels without fault.
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