Atlas Packs Athlete vs Patagonia ultralite black hole sling

Important: Choose the Adventure or Athlete hip belt – otherwise you will have literally no padding on your hips. I don’t recommend using the bag without a hipbelt either. The Adventure belt is more comfortable as it provides two layers of foam padding and a wider webbing and buckle – it’s also bigger and bulkier.

First, we want to note that the Patagonia Ultralight Black Hole Sling 8L compresses into one of its pockets. So you can stash it away for later use (either inside a larger travel bag or for storage at home). When it’s all packed, you’ll see a picture of what the sling looks like as well as the Patagonia logo in white lettering on the outside. And on top of the pouch is a strap that you can hook through a loop to operate as a handle to carry with or hang it by

Since you’re not wearing the bag crossbody, you have to hook your thumb in the strap to keep it secure—like a late 90s backpack-strap-over-one-shoulder vibe. It kind of works, but we wouldn’t recommend carrying it this way for long distances.