Best Dry Bag

[PG Rob]

I have yet to find a dry bag that is bomber for wet canyons. I have used several different ones looking for the right bag. I am interested in what keeps your stuff dry in wet canyons while subjecting it to regular canyon abuse including:
1- Regularly submerging it
2- Using it for personal flotation
3- Tossing it into potholes while loaded and from heights
4- Dragging and brushing it against rock (especially if it is its own backpack)

What are you using that WORKS?

Thanks for your input,

Rob

[edsbay]

This is what I use...after about 5 canyons showing wear.

Not bad but not great.

http://www.backcountry.com/sealline-boundary-dry-pack

[bioject]

Seal Line Black Canyon Dry Bags are the best:
http://www.rei.com/product/784149/se...-bag-20-liters

Everyone always buys the other ones and always complain of getting holes in them. Seal Line has a variety of drybags. Make sure to get the "Black Canyon" ones because they are made with the thickest material. I don't recommend the product edsbay recommended because it's designed to be worn like a backpack and I wouldn't take it through a canyon fully exposed. Best to get one without the straps and keep it inside your backpack.

[ratagonia]

3- Tossing it into potholes while loaded and from heights

If you stop doing this, you are much more likely to succeed. There is no reason to do this, unless you are drybag testing, TRYING to get things to fail.

Tom

[tcott]

I just started using the Sealine Kodiak bags on a regular basis and so far I'm loving them. The purge valve is very convenient and has never failed. The window is also useful for seeing what's actually in the bottom of your drybag. They are kind of a medium thickness, somewhere between the heavy duty Black Canyon bags and the ultralight Stormsacks. The bag has a rim stiffener that seems to seal better than others I've tried.

[Bootboy]

+1 for the black canyon bags.
They are urethane and are considerably tougher without the bulk of some of the vinyl bags. The urethane seals better and will outlast vinyl several times over. They can be a bit tough to open and close while still in your pack but I just pull it out anyway. Only pitfall is the price.

[Mojave Silence]

Buy the two cheapest ones you can find and double bag everything.

[Brian in SLC]

Best drybag I've found is a keg...!

[Iceaxe]

+2 on the Black Canyon drybags, I won't use anything else.

Tap'n on my Galaxy G3

[Bootboy]

Also, a note on the black canyon bags: the urethane remains softer in frigid water than vinyl.

For a lightweight bag, I use the the Sealline storm sack. It works pretty well as is, but I added a strip of neoprene across the top inside edge to help it seal, not a drop :)

[PG Rob]

If you stop doing this, you are much more likely to succeed. There is no reason to do this, unless you are drybag testing, TRYING to get things to fail.

Tom

When possible (after checking for depth and protrusions), I like to jump into pools/potholes/etc... I find it inconvenient with my backpack on, so I drop it and jump. I guess I could forgo jumping, or take the extra time to lower my bag first.

[canyoncaver]

Best drybag I've found is a keg...!

Canyon kegs or Darrin Drums or whatever you call them are the only things I've found to be 100% reliable over the long term.

[Iceaxe]

Canyon kegs or Darrin Drums or whatever you call them are the only things I've found to be 100% reliable over the long term.

100%?!?........ You are in for a big surprise one of these days, as I've seen the lids crack numerous times on kegs soaking everything inside.


Kegs also have a bad habit of ruining packs, particularly in the skinny stuff where any hard object touching the outside of the pack will cause a hole. I have seen this problem solved by lining the inside of the pack with a thin piece of foam.


For the record, I have never seen a failure with the Black Canyon dry bags that was not operator error (failure to properly fold the bag).

YMMV

[canyoncaver]

100%?!?........ You are in for a big surprise one of these days, as I've seen the lids crack numerous times on kegs soaking everything inside.

Sounds to me like UR DOIN IT WRONG!

I have been using kegs for years, no problems yet. Dry bags on the other hand....

[ratagonia]

When possible (after checking for depth and protrusions), I like to jump into pools/potholes/etc... I find it inconvenient with my backpack on, so I drop it and jump. I guess I could forgo jumping, or take the extra time to lower my bag first.

Put a short rope on your pack, and you can lower it down to the water. No dramatic plunge of the pack = much less drybag failure.

Tom

[bretmaverick999]

There is only one true drybag, everything else is a leak bag - http://www.drybags.com/. There is a reason the Navy Seals use them. I own 7 of them - 2 Colorados, 2 Yukons, 2 Chattooga, and 1 Ocoee. One can never have to many.

When I took my laptop down the Grand Canyon on a 19-day private rafting trip (so we could off load pictures periodically) guess what brand I used. When I failed to retake control of a 16-foot raft from a rookie on Gates of Lodore and the boat was pinned on a rock for two hours with my drybags under water the whole time not one drop of water got in.

Tough enough that you can fill it with air and then jump on it and it will not blow open. I wouldn't hesitate to drop it into a pool/pothole. Although pretty durable, I'm not saying it will hold up to lots and lots and lots of abrasion. However, if you were to add some protection in key areas of wear I'm sure they will do great. Yes they do come in backpacks, no I have not tried them. You will struggle to open them by pulling at the opening, but they are somewhat easily opened if you do it as shown in this 10 second video.

[Mountaineer]

The Sea to Summit eVAC Dry bag is near perfect. No purge needed as the whole bag is a purge. You simply squeeze all the air out after sealing. They are also very light. Space and weight savers.