Picture this: you’re traveling to the desert and need a bag that is carry-on friendly. Additionally, it’s capable of carrying all of your camera equipment. It also needs to be great for hiking and perfect for a day trip to the zoo. That was exactly the situation I found myself in on a recent trip to Southern California.
A few months ago, I was sent the Pelican Aegis Series PX25 25L Travel Backpack. I’ll be honest, I’ve had a tough time trying to find the best angle to utilize this bag. This past trip gave me the chance to put it to the test for a variety of uses. This included walking around the San Diego Zoo one day, and climbing mountains in the Mojave Desert the next. This trip has made one thing very clear. The PX25 is a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to bags for carrying your equipment around. If you’re looking for a bag to transport your gear safely from your home to on-location, this is a bag you should certainly consider. Let’s dive in and take a look at some of the best features of this backpack from Pelican.
Exterior Build
Pelican is a company that has built a reputation for building high-quality cases and bags that keep our equipment safe. This bag is no exception to that. The exterior of the bag utilizes an EVA molded front shell, which is covered in Cordura. This equates to a semi-hard surface. This surface helps to keep your equipment protected from sudden drops. Yet it still keeps the bag lightweight enough to be carried around all day. This felt like the perfect balance between weight and protection for my equipment. Whether I was throwing my bag in the overhead bin on an airplane or setting my bag down on the rocks when out on a hike.
The side of the bag is also equipped with a water bottle pocket. Surprisingly, it was deep enough to fit my massive 40L bottle. It’s also deep enough that you wouldn’t need to worry about a taller and skinnier bottle falling out while walking. The exterior of this pocket also has numerous loops. These loops can be used with compression straps to keep your load perfectly balanced and attached tightly to your bag.
Interior
The main pocket of this bag isn’t overdone like so many camera bags we see on the market today. The main zipper opens in the front and grants easy access to the entirety of the interior bag. This is the feature that makes this bag truly amazing for so many different uses. Organizing this pocket of the bag is completely customizable to your use. I loved being able to switch out what I had in the bag based on that day’s adventure.
The bag doesn’t come with any accessories, so it’s important that you have some sort of storage or organization for your gear inside of the main compartment. I was lucky enough to get my hands on a Pelican ModPak Packing Cube (perfect for clothes and snacks), a ModPack Storage Pouch (fits smaller items like a phone), and a ModPack AVP-D AV Pouch (fits my camera plus two lenses). Again, you don’t need to have these accessories, but I would recommend having a plan for how you can organize your gear inside.
Laptop Compartment
Typically, I travel with a laptop bag in addition to my camera bag. The Pelican Aegis PX25 Backpack eliminates the need for a laptop bag with an in-backpack laptop compartment. This is a separate pocket right on your back that your laptop and a few accessories can slide into. This was really convenient for traveling on the plane, and then unloading my computer at the hotel when I didn’t need to bring it into the field. I’ve got a 16” laptop that fits perfectly snug, and even with a smaller laptop, the pocket has enough padding that your laptop will be plenty protected.
Comfort
Pelican has opted to use a breathable air channel back panel, which helps to keep the bag (and your shirt) from getting sweaty in warm conditions. The shoulder straps are comfortable with just the right amount of foam to keep your shoulders padded, but also keep the bag lightweight and compact. An adjustable strap runs across your chest for those who like to strap their bag in the middle. This bag does not have a hip belt. While this didn’t bother me, I could see users carrying a heavier load yearning for a hip belt. Either way, this bag exceeded my expectations for comfort on a travel bag, and even on longer days, the bag always felt comfortable on my shoulders.
Final Thoughts
If you’re in the market for a bag that will keep your gear safe while also being easily customized for a multitude of activities, the Pelican Aegis Series PX25 25L Travel Backpack is an excellent choice. This bag replaced three bags and turned them into one for my travel trips, and I’m confident you’ll find it to be highly versatile. When you need to consider TSA-friendly bags that still maximize space and protection for your equipment, this bag will not let you down
