About a year ago, I found myself biking through the pouring rain and cracking thunder of a serious rainstorm. Several pieces of sensitive camera gear were stowed away in my waxed canvas pack. After 10 miles, I opened up the waterproof zipper to a wondrous sight: Everything inside was dry.
That was the moment I realized just how much I love my Waterfield backpack. I got it 2 years ago, and I gradually began using it for just about everything — not just trips to the coffee shop or a jaunt through a city park. This unassuming canvas backpack has survived more outdoor abuse than an abandoned lawn chair.
After shouldering it on hikes, trail runs, summer days of road cycling, wet mornings on a mountain bike, international trips, and even paddling on rivers and lakes, no single pack has ever racked up as many miles as this one.
Discontinued, Not Dismissed
This specific pack is no longer available from Waterfield, a San Francisco–based brand that makes many similar packs right here in the USA. Though I have plenty of activity-specific packs for cycling, hiking, trail running, and paddling, I usually just grab this canvas pack. With its simplistic design, I spend less time worried about preparation, which helps me get out the door when motivation is a struggle.
I think the only “perfect” piece of gear is the one that you love using above all else. As outdoor brands increasingly throw the proverbial kitchen sink at their pack designs, adding in every possible feature, the canvas bag is a reminder that less is more.
At times, it’s a bit too simple. But it’s hard to beat the durability and flexibility of waxed canvas for a host of outdoor sports, and the lack of specific features becomes an advantage for someone (like me) who prefers a single bag for most activities.
Waterfield Vitesse Backpack
Why, exactly, has this pack worked so well for me? Because it’s the exact opposite of modern pack design by opting for simplicity. Made of waxed canvas, it has just two pockets, two straps, and not much else. Its dearth of features actually makes it a Swiss Army knife, capable of being almost whatever I need it to be. After dozens, if not hundreds, of miles, all it has to show is a slight tear, and I plan to keep bringing it along on many future adventures.
But I was extremely skeptical about this pack initially. I didn’t realize that it had no side pockets, and I disliked the lack of internal zipper pockets. It was also smaller than I had expected. But gradually, as I started using it, most of these downsides became positives.
There are many reasons to opt for a more practical pack. But I eventually found that its limitations could be bonuses. Moreover, natural fibers have become more important to me, as I’ve developed a skin allergy to the dyes in synthetic fabrics. For a guy who often ends up shirtless with a pack directly on my skin, canvas bags have become not just a preference, but also a necessity.
Feature-Less
First, I learned that side pockets aren’t actually great for me a lot of time — I’m just too rough with my gear. I casually drop things off my shoulders onto the ground when I’m tired. I like to leap on river rocks, climb on boulders, and scramble off-trail. Things tend to fall out of external pockets during movements like that, and the lack of side pockets forced me to stow everything inside the pack, which turned out to be a smart idea for an energetic monkey like me.
Secondly, I’ve never actually lost anything from falling out of this pack’s front pocket, which only has a buckle, rather than a zipper, a problem I’ve dealt with often, historically. I think it’s because the thick canvas material is less flexible and maintains its shape a bit better than synthetic alternatives.
With just two compartments — the front and the main, zippered one — I just throw things in as needed. There’s a divider in the main compartment for a laptop, but it’s not padded, so I try to slip my laptop in a sleeve before stowing it in the pack.
In general, the Waterfield fits with my casual preparation and helps get me out the door. Returning to this simpler design philosophy reminded me of one of my favorite quotes. As French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry put it, “Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
Testing & Performance
If we judge a pack based purely by its experience, then this one has more than proven it can go the distance.
Though relatively small, it held everything I needed for dozens of day hikes throughout Georgia and North Carolina. Though it has only two padded straps (no chest buckles for extra tightness), it feels very comfortable as long as it’s not overly heavy.
At the same time, I have carried far more weight than I probably should (sometimes 20 pounds or more), and the pack still worked like a charm — albeit with more tug on the shoulders than is probably recommended. It helps that it has a tough, leather-wrapped handle up top.
Although I have more sport-specific packs I could use, the Waterfield gradually became my go-to choice. I like it better than my cycling pack, which has pointy corners that block my vision when looking behind me, and far more than my day-hiking packs, which have so many pockets that I lose track of where things are.
For any given outdoor activity, there are certainly more advanced packs out there. But the beauty of the Waterfield is that it works pretty well for everything, so I spend less time worrying about whether I brought the “right” pack, and more time doing what I love.
Pretty Darn Water-Resistant
I’ve tried numerous packs that are truly waterproof — and I’ve never fallen in love with them. They’re great for dedicated missions on the river, of course, or multiday hiking and backpacking trips. But outside of that, I don’t really enjoy using them. It’s practical, but not enjoyable.
It took me a while to realize that waxed canvas, while technically only “water-resistant,” works pretty great. As I said above, it somehow kept my photography gear dry while I cycled for 10 miles through a thunderstorm near Atlanta. The pack was literally dripping and seemingly soaking wet, yet the gear stayed dry. The same thing held true on a rainy trail run up a mountain near Bellingham, Wash.
Outside of intense, prolonged rain, the pack held up against the many days I suddenly found myself hiking or cycling in the afternoon showers that are so common in the Atlanta area. More recently, I’ve realized that water has been seeping through for the first time — meaning I probably need to get it rewaxed.
Caveats & Conclusions
As I’ve already admitted, there are plenty of obvious reasons for outdoorsy folks to throw shade on my preference here. In addition to the lack of side pockets, zippers, and front cinches, I also wouldn’t mind a reinforced bottom, with some extra canvas or leather.
But it looks like Waterfield has already addressed these issues. The Waterfield Vitesse Backpack, which I’ve now used for 2 years, has been discontinued in favor of newer models that have all the features addressed here. The Shinjuku Laptop Backpack ($329) and Tech Folio Backpack ($399) both come in waxed canvas, and they look like obvious upgrades from the Vitesse I’ve been hauling around for 2 years.
There will always be a place for feature-filled synthetic packs. But a bit of waxed canvas may take you much farther than you think.
