When I first started paddle boarding I got a dry bag for my car keys and put them in a dry box. Then I started bring a speaker and my phone, and a towel, and a water bottle. The board starts getting crowded quickly! So throw it all in a bag right? Well lucky me I was gifted a cargo bag for the paddleboard. It was basically a large dry bag within a non-dry-bag that had a zipper, a single carry strap, and a plastic inside that could give some form to the bag. Worked okay for a bit but it became clear early on that this was not going to do. It was a pain to get the dry bag out of the main bag, the zipper rusted and broke and the one strap thing didn’t work.
Enter the legitimate full size waterproof backpack. I got a 40L size with double straps for around $50 bucks and highly recommend going this route if your board is starting to get crowded. Yes it is a little bulky with the double straps but the added stability is worth it. I used to hate when carrying the board and paddle and the single strap would fall off my shoulder. It has a single compartment which can be a pain to get stuff out from the bottom but this is a non-issue. It is simple, very durable durable, and just works. It has a few side cargo areas which can be helpful to store a water bottle or some flip flops. After a long day of paddling, it is so convenient to just throw that thing on my back and focus on just carrying the board and paddle. The I can’t find the one I have and use on amazon but there are plenty of options out there. I have something like this. This is a more expensive option that is similar to the one I use.
What’s typically in my Waterproof Backpack?
When I take a waterproof cooler backpack I will actually put this at the bottom of the waterproof backpack. This makes it super easy to grab a single bag and go. If the cooler’s too full or I need the space in the main backpack for other items it will just be a second bag on the board.