On a recent trip to southern Baja, I was reminded of the beauty of"backpacking." No, not the kind of backpacking where you pack up and head off with all the gear and food you need to be self-sufficient in the mountains for 5 days, but the kind that involves schlepping a 60-pound cargo to and from airports, bus stations, boats and beach camps. If you've bummed around Europe on a Eurrail pass, or traveled to the Third World, you'll know what kind of trip I'm talking about.

Lucky for me my luggage carrier morphed from suitcase to backpack, so instead of sore arms and bent back from lugging a suitcase many blocks, my load was stationed on sturdier platforms: hips and shoulders. My hands were free to clutch map and phrase book.

If your wayward travels go beyond sipping poolside Daiquiris or playing golf, and instead lead to exotic locales where "valet service" is not part of the lexicon, then the new generation of mobile luggage will make you think long and hard about ever again traveling with that old hard-shelled suitcase up in the attic. These active haulers have roots in backpacking, using high-tech materials and functional designs for enhanced comfort and better load hauling. They also come in a variety of styles to suit the differing demands of intrepid travelers. What follows is a tour of the main types of carry-alls along with my personal preferences.

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