As I mentioned earlier with my general purpose supplies rig, I try to stay tactical. And my backpack, a relatively sturdy Swiss Army brand bag that has lasted me all of Pharmacy school, has seen better days. If you remember it from campus, it had the water bottle carabinered to it. Long story short, there ended up being a huge tear in it. It’s been a long time since I updated about my backpack. But I have spent a good deal of the summer mending it. Closing the big tear with some nylon patches, and sewing on MOLLE cross straps.
A couple of Maxpedition attachment straps later, and I can strap whatever onto my backpack. And it’s all removable (with some difficulty) and modular.
That water bottle sleeve is important because one of the major flaws of this backpack is no bottle pocket. So one neoprene bottle jacket and a couple hours of sewing later, and I have my water whenever I need it. Same for the pocket for my glasses. Now the umbrella, the umbrella’s location is vitally important. I’ve had the sleeve a while. but the placement on the side of the backpack makes it much more secure than my last attachment method. It has to be on the side because if, as I walk along, I feel the slightest sign of rain, I reach over my shoulder and draw my umbrella from its scabbard in one fluid movement like a samurai, ready to defend myself from the elements.