Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 70L

Review by Kate Agathon

When sharing one duffel is your only option, choose wisely. Limited space? Two sets of gear? The adventure-ready Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 70L is your bag.

My husband and I used it for a recent mountain bike trip.

Our car was nearly overflowing with gear, our two dogs, and enough dog supplies for a week. In order to save space, we decided to share the Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 70L.

Unlike ski season and all its endless layering combinations, we could pack lighter for a weeklong excursion mountain biking trip to the desert.

The 70L duffel, we reasoned, would be able to accommodate both of our combined lightweight and extremely packable gear.

Large Capacity Duffel

While there are now more 70L duffel options available than previously, the Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 70L series reigns supreme for its durability, roomy design, and its 900-denier, TPU-covered polyester construction made entirely of recycled materials.

Features

• Weather-resistant fabric
• Removable, ergonomic shoulder straps
• Zippered side pocket accessible from outside and inside bag
• Two mesh interior lid pockets
• Padded base
• Daisy chains provide lashing options
• Machine washable
• Folds flat for storage

The two features that I liked best were the traditional reinforced haul handles (inexplicably, not all duffels this size have this extremely practical design feature) and the pair of mesh interior lid pockets that allowed us to keep our clothing items separate and visible.

I also enjoyed the easy top zipper that allowed for wide access (some duffles inexplicably have a more narrow top).

Finally, I appreciated the conveniently placed zippered side pocket that provided a quick place to stash last-minute items.

Use as a Backpack

At 5’0” with narrow shoulders, using the 70L size as a backpack was not really doable due to the challenges of torso length mismatch and physical interference. In short (no pun intended), wearing it as a backpack overwhelmed my petite frame.

However, for my 6’3” husband, using it as a backpack was not as difficult. The unstructured design of the duffel bag, however, caused some contents to shift, but it was easily remedied with the use of packing cubes.

The detachable ergonomic backpack straps were appropriately marked “L” and “R” to match the discreet “L” and “R” tags on the pack itself.

Despite the helpful markers, attaching the shoulder straps was not intuitive and it took a moment to figure out how to secure them to the D ring attachments on the top.

I eventually figured it out (you have to kind of bend the end to fit inside the D ring where it stayed secure), but it would have been much easier if the straps had a buckle on both ends instead of just the bottom.

To wear a pack that large as a backpack for long amounts of time, having a detachable waist belt or sternum strap connecting the shoulder straps would be a nice inclusion to balance the load.

However, in situations that demand being hands-free (i.e. minimizing trips to the car), the backpack feature is useful.

Responsible Construction

The most notable feature of the abrasion-resistant Patagonia Black Hole Duffle is its responsible construction.

In 2023, Patagonia did a complete overhaul of the iconic Black Hole line. The environmentally conscious company purchased TPU factory “waste” and recycled it into the Black Hole series. This bold step reduced carbon emissions by 89 percent.

While the new matte finish replaced the Black Hole collection’s trademark shine, it did not affect its legendary durability. Personally, I like the matte finish. Very understated, which I prefer.

Overall Thoughts

The rugged Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 70L can take a beating.

Featuring a padded base, it can handle being dragged, crushed, shoved, thrown, and crammed into a car with dogs and show no signs of wear. Just wipe it down (the black shows an incredible amount of dust) and it is ready for the next adventure.

Some have complained that it doesn’t have a general shoulder strap, but for a bag as large as a 70L, we would not have used it anyway.

Also, if you plan on taking the Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 70L on an airplane, be aware that might be too large to use as carry-on.

Overall, we were very pleased with the duffel’s massive capacity that could accommodate both of our gear. It is built with function in mind; something its competitors who emphasize stylish design over practicality would do well to keep in mind.

The Patagonia Black Hole Duffel 70L is available in six colors: Weathered Stone, Birch White, Noble Gray, Smolder Blue w/ Amanita Red, Black with Black, and Aqua Stone.

Kate Agathon

Dr. Of Stoke

Freelance writer, bicyclist, outdoor recreation enthusiast, and mom to her furbabies, Sansa and Benjen.

 

A Colorado native, Kate considers the outdoors her mother ship. She brings her passion for bicycling, the environment to her writing.

Her primary outdoor recreation activities are mountain biking, road biking, nordic skiing, alpine skiing, hiking, snowshoeing, and peak bagging Colorado’s 14ers. She and her husband, Paul, live in Summit County with their dogs, Benjen and Sansa.

Kate earned a BA in History from Colorado State University and later an MSEd and Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from Purdue University. In addition to her education, Kate’s background serving two terms on the Mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Committee and experience working for non-profits and bicycle sales well position her to bring depth and understanding to the complex changes currently taking place in the outdoor recreation industry.

The Dr. of Stoke has been part of the Engearment team since 2016.