The Typhoon Osea Dry Duffel 2.0 – A Dry Bag That Actually Makes Sense for Sailing

There are certain bits of sailing kit that haven't really changed much over the years.

The dry bag is one of them.

They're brilliant at keeping your stuff dry, but the traditional design has always had one fairly obvious problem: everything goes in through one end.

That's absolutely fine when you're packing it at home. It's considerably less convenient when you're sitting on a boat with cold, wet feet and the dry pair of socks you desperately want is somewhere at the very bottom.

Waterproofs out. Jumper out. Trousers out. Wash bag out.

Eventually you find the socks — by which point half your supposedly dry kit is sitting around a damp cockpit.

It's a problem that Typhoon has tackled rather cleverly with the Osea Dry Duffel 2.0.

And after having one aboard, it's probably the feature we like most about it.

They've turned the opening sideways

The Osea is a waterproof duffel rather than the usual tall, tube-shaped dry bag.

But the really clever bit is that the roll-top opening runs along the long side of the bag rather than across one narrow end.

That sounds like an incredibly simple change. And it is.

But it makes a massive difference.

Lay the Osea down, open the side and suddenly you've got access to a much larger area of the bag. Rather than reaching down a deep waterproof tube and rummaging around blindly, you can actually see and get at your kit.

Need that dry pair of socks? Much easier.

Forgot that your warm mid-layer was underneath everything else? No problem.

And on a yacht, where you don't necessarily have the space to unpack your entire bag every time you need something, it just makes sense.

It's one of those features you might skim past when reading the specifications online. Use it on a boat and you immediately understand the thinking behind it.

It's made to get wet

Obviously, easy access isn't much use if your dry clothes aren't actually dry.

The Osea has a 100% waterproof main compartment with internally welded seams, made from tough 500D material. It uses a proper roll-top buckle closure, so this isn't simply a normal duffel bag with a water-resistant zip.

That's important because sailing bags tend to have a pretty hard life.

They get dropped on wet pontoons, thrown into the bottom of tenders, shoved under cockpit seats and occasionally left somewhere you were absolutely certain wasn't going to get wet.

Then it rains.

The Osea is built for exactly that sort of environment.

The walk down the pontoon matters too

A sailing bag doesn't spend its whole life on the boat.

First you've got to get it there.

The Osea has padded backpack straps with waist and chest adjustment, so instead of carrying a big 40 or 60-litre bag in one hand, you can put it properly on your back.

That leaves both hands free for the lifejacket, waterproofs, food, sailing boots and the other seventeen things you somehow decided you needed to bring with you.

If you've got a decent walk from the car to the boat, that's a big improvement.

If you've then got to climb into a tender, it's better still.

There's a whistle hiding in the buckle

There's also a nice little feature built into the chest strap that would be very easy to miss.

The fastening buckle incorporates an emergency whistle.

Hopefully it's a feature you'll own for years and never actually need to use.

But if you're wearing the bag, the whistle is right there on your chest. There's nothing extra to remember, nothing to find in an emergency and it weighs practically nothing.

For a bag designed for sailing and watersports, we think that's a really thoughtful little addition.

A few more clever touches

The side opening is the feature that sold us on the idea, but Typhoon has added a few other useful details.

There's an external waterproof zipped pocket for smaller things you don't want to go hunting for in the main compartment, along with MOLLE loops and a bungee arrangement on the outside.

Then there's the compression valve.

Anyone who has used a roll-top dry bag will know that it's remarkably easy to trap a huge amount of air inside when you close it.

Suddenly your sailing bag resembles a weather balloon.

The Osea lets you expel that excess air after you've closed it, making the packed bag less bulky and considerably easier to stow below.

On a yacht, where nobody has ever complained about having too much storage space, that's genuinely useful.

So, 40L or 60L?

YouBoat is stocking the Osea Dry Duffel 2.0 in 40L and 60L versions.

We think the 40L is a cracking general sailing bag.

For racing, day sailing or an overnight trip, there's plenty of room for spare clothes, sailing layers, shoes, wash kit and the usual collection of things you want aboard.

The 60L comes into its own for weekends away and longer trips, or if you're the sort of person who likes to take a few more "just in case" layers. Our sales director took his ashore when cruising this summer and loaded it with the groceries for four people for three days, it really is a utilitarian monster.

 

And let's face it, when sailing in Britain, packing something just in case it gets cold and wet isn't exactly unreasonable.

What would we actually put in one?

For a typical weekend aboard, we'd probably be throwing in a couple of changes of clothes, underwear and those all-important dry socks, a fleece or mid-layer, spare sailing top, wash kit, hat, gloves and maybe a pair of shoes for going ashore.

The stuff we want to keep completely dry goes inside.

The things we want to reach quickly go in the external pocket.

Then squeeze the excess air out, roll it closed, put it on your back and head down the pontoon.

That's really the appeal of the Osea. It doesn't require much thought.

The YouBoat verdict

There are plenty of waterproof bags available, and at first glance you might wonder how different one can really be from another.

With the Typhoon Osea Dry Duffel 2.0, we think the difference becomes obvious when you actually use it.

It's not one big headline feature or unnecessary gadget. It's a collection of sensible ideas that make life aboard a little easier.

The backpack straps make getting your kit to the boat easier. The compression valve makes it easier to stow. The built-in whistle is a neat safety feature.

But for us, the side-opening roll top is the star of the show.

It's such a simple solution to one of the most irritating things about traditional dry bags.

No more emptying the entire bag to find the thing at the bottom.

And if that thing happens to be a lovely warm pair of dry socks after a wet morning on the rail, you'll probably appreciate the design even more than we do.

The Typhoon Osea Dry Duffel 2.0 is available from YouBoat in 40L and 60L sizes.