Many clients ask me for tips about how to bring their backpack (or soft sided luggage) with them for their upcoming travels. Below are a few suggestions based on many years of client successes (failures) with backpacks, duffels, and air travel.
* Arrive at the airport with your pack “air ready”. Nothing can derail your
luggage more than if you get to the counter to check your bag and it isn’t ready to go.* Close all buckles, zippers, Velcro, etc. and then tuck in all straps to any pockets so they won’t get hung on the luggage conveyer belt. You want your backpack to look like a neatly wrapped package if possible.
*Bring a large clear heavy duty plastic bag with you. If the airline will let you put your backpack or duffel it in, do it. Some airlines don’t.
Put your name in several places on your backpack. Tags fall off, and then luggage handlers have to dig through your stuff for your name. Put it in multiple places with contact info inside your backpack.
* Travel with all your water bottles, camelbacks, etc. empty. We had a client once who was concerned about having to step of the plane and onto the trail. She filled her camelback up with water and checked her back. When she picked up her bag in San Francisco, her items were soaked. We spent the next 3 hours having a guide go to a nearby Laundromat to dry them out.
* Carry all valuables with you on the plane. Sadly, many items like carabineers, cameras, battery chargers, etc. go missing between the time you check your luggage and the time you collect it.
* Consider using a luggage delivery service. Call of the Wild has had great success with Sports Express. With new fees for checking luggage by the airlines, this expense isn’t so expensive anymore and we haven’t had a problem yet with this service.
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