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It's going to depend on a few things:
Personally I really like micro four thirds stuff for a mix of small but versatile. It's also great because if you're looking for bang for buck on a budget, older M43 cameras can be gotten used for really reasonable prices relatively.
Point and shoot? Fuji X100 series. Otherwise, I'm not qualified for this one due to carrying a 5D MkIII and several lenses 10-20km into the wilderness.
I'm very pleased with my Canon PowerShot G5 X MkII. Originally bought for concerts etc. where big / changeable lens cameras aren't allowed, but I've been using it more and more because it's good enough and is less effort to lug around than my mirrorless. The main downsides for me are (1) it doesn't cope as well with low light and (2) it can't do proper telephoto (it's 24-120mm equivalent).
OM-5 of Panasonic G100 would probably be great for what you need. Can also get used/older micro 3/4 gear for pretty cheap as the other commenter said.
I like to walk around with my GX-85 (sadly discontinued now) and a 14-150 zoom, it’s a very good combo. 12-100 is better, but more $. Even the kit 12-32 is a surprisingly good lens.
Maybe not what you are looking for, but I‘m very happy with my Minox PL The Minox 35 series also has models that are completely manual, if you want to take on this kind of (pretty rewarding) challenge.
My wife is very happy with her Olympus tough ( I forgot which model, but they all seem to be good)