What do you really need to take with you?
What you pack, depends on the sort of trip you are planning. We have a basic travelling kit, which has all the essentials. Then then have the extended travelling kit, which is needed for longer and more varied trips. And of course if you are trekking or camping or have your own car, there is another level on top of that. So, It’s important to recognise that we travel and therefore pack, differently for 4 very different types of trips.
Basic Travelling: Light (7-10 Kg each) A medium back pack each (50-70l)
Perfect for trips to one climate zone, single style, under a few months. 10 -12 kgs is all you want to carry and you shouldn’t have boots and day packs hanging off the outside as extras. If you have more than 12kg, you may need to throw some stuff out.
Extended Travelling: Medium (10-20kg each)
If we are going to multiple climates (summer and winter), multiple styles (working, cruising, trekking), long term (living out of your bags) it is VERY hard to stick to 10kg each- so we have 2 choices:
· To get an additional small (check in size) wheelie bag each. We often try and find a base to leave the bag with the “out of season” gear and we loop back to collect it later. If you can’t loop back and take it with you- its not such an effort and doesn’t even get unpacked.
· To leave the backpack and get a roller duffle bag. Roller bags are softer than a suitcase, have tough zips and are usually water proof- so we like them better than a suitcase (you do have to watch weight). Ideally your back pack fits flat on the bottom so you can pull it out if you need to do a side trip. They are It was a big adjustment for us but I am now Ok with the idea. If you are in one place for a while, have a car and don’t mind taxis, a roller duffle bag, holds more and will probably be better. But anything which involves, stairs, dirt roads or sand……..ahhh.
Travelling with a car (as much as you like)
Perfect for the long trips where you live out of your car. This is heaven. You can divide your gear into storage tubs. Look for cheap things as mostly you will give these away at the end of the trip. Look at our post “Living out of your car” for the extras that we add.
Trekking, backpacking and camping (specific gear).
This are wilderness trips where you camp out (sometimes for long periods) and walks lots!. We don’t do so much of this these days. They are not day hikes- which Gary in particular does often. When we do we try to hire or buy the gear we need there and don’t seem to have a problem doing that.
Some General Packing tips:
Don’t stress about checking your bag in: We fly lots and it is still rare to have a bag lost. Take your valuables with you and relax.
If you can’t afford to lose it- don’t take it!- Leave valuables at home. It costs more in insurance if you take them with you.
Travel Light. You will always end up with things you don’t use- so get rid of them and only travel with the stuff you love. If you buy something new- throw something out.
Use colour coded packing cells : You can buy these in lots of places and lots of sizes. We have these in a few sizes and everything goes in a stuff cell. They make packing easy and organisation even easier. We have some for clothes and some for bits.
Don’t buy too much in advance: Buy the important things at home (the jacket, bag and boots) as quality camping shops are hard to find in some parts of the world. Take the other bits from what you have at home and replace them locally as you need to. Cold weather gear is best bought in cold place. Take only enough (tissues, batteries, hand cream etc)- you can buy more along the way.
Take Multi-Purpose Gear. My sarong is the best example of multi-purpose gear. It is a shawl, head cover, scarf, towel, blanket, sheet, skirt, cover for the beach, table cloth and even a bag. We like pants that zip off into shorts, walking shoes you can wear out, and swimmers that you can wear as a pair of shorts or underwear/ to the gym. We carry a multi tool- a little gadet that is a swiss army knife and more!
Watch for sharpes: If you are taking only hand luggage so all liquids must be no more than 100ml each and need to be in a plastic zip lock bag in the top of you pack to take out at check in and customs and you can’t take scissors or a pen knife.
Choose your back pack carefully: Never ever even consider taking those massive backpacks you see in camping shops. We have had 4 back packs in 35 years. None have died, we just replaced them with a newer, more fancy and usually lighter version. Here are some of the criteria and considerations we have when choosing a backpack:
· 55L (10 kg) is great for most women and 65L (12kg) for men
· Forget about the back packs with wheels as well- the extra weight and the bad frames mean- that they don’t work well as either a back pack or a bag.
· Don’t pay a fortune- Decathalon has a great selection around $100. We have the Quechua bags (Travel 500 /50L for me and 70l for Gary). We like them but the straps are a bit thin and they are a bit heavy. The new 60l ones look better, cheaper and the same weight. The Gregory Zulu 55 is superlight- if it isn’t your main bag.
· Have a few compartments for organisation
· Rain cover
· Light- 20g per litre is REALLY nice
· Have a frame for that allows them to sit upright when you put them down loaded or unloaded. Make sure they don’t fall forward all the time.
· A side or top handle- ideally both
· Rigid and adjustable frame and straps so that the weight sits on your hips not the shoulders- this is where a women’s pack is designed differently
· Not so tall that it sticks above your head- short people need short back packs
· Wide well-padded straps
· An attachable day pack- not required but handy
· A cover- They weigh 400g- so You will have to decide if the security they offer, and how they keep your bag clean is worth it. You can use them as a storage bag and also put bits in the outside when you check them in so are a good idea.
· Take a small day pack 30l for day trips.
SOME SPECIFICS
Clothes:
· Fabric with dark colours or patterns, which dries easily and doesn’t need ironing: You will often by washing by hand so clothes have to be tough, hide the stains and inground dirt and dry quickly (or they smell).
· Zip pockets: In shorts, coats and trousers.
· Take quality hiking pants: A must. They come in great colours and look smart.
· Take quality jackets with inside pockets and zip pockets:
A quality light weight down jacket: We stuff ours into a cover the doubles as a neck rest
A softshell jacket : and a light fleece that goes under it.
A waterproof , light weight wind resistant jacket to go over the top (so baggy)
· Take one good set of clothes: It is nice to dress up!
Electronics: These will be a BIG part of your weight. Travelling with a partner means you can share some, so a trip on your own means they are a big chunk of your weight. We travel with:
· I laptop and I ipad
· 2 Iphones
· 1 international adaptor – we find the country plugs lighter and smaller, so often travel with 2 of these instead
· Power board with data slots- so we only need one power point
· A power pack
· A SSD Hard drive- with movies, music and back up
· A HDMI- we love to watch on a TV screen if we can
Have a great medical kit: Not too much but as much as you need. Look in the Resource tab for a first Aid Kit List.
Stationary: A few pens, a few bulldog clips, a highlighter and a permanent marker all come in handy. Even though my journal is now on line- we still have a small diary type note book each.
Repairs: A need and thread, some string, a shoe lace, a super glue and a piece of wire.
Food : We have always had a food bag with a few utensils and some snacks. As we often stay in places with cooking facilities and try to cook for ourselves most nights on ling trips, this is really useful. We have:
· 1 set light cutlery
· I cup, bowl, plate
· I zip bag with sachets of coffee, tea, salt, mayo, tomato sauce
· Tissues, wet ones, plastic bags
· Plastic storage containers
· Insulated water bottle, open neck bottle and sometimes a filtered water bottle
Washing We have an elastic clothes line, a scrubbing brush and a scree top bottle of washing liquid or a bar of washing soap (better).
Toiletries: Carry these in a bag with a hook to hang on the door in bathrooms. Transfer all liquids into small refillable bottles, get the ‘Compressed’ version of sprays when you can and share whatever products you can.
Sleeping bag: In a cold trip with hostels and trekking- a good sleeping bag could be worth it. We tend to only carry one to share (use as an extra blanket), if we take one at all.
Walking poles: Gary takes these (we share a set) as he treks a lot and I use them to help with my dodegy knee.
Shoes: Shoes can make up half your weight. Good light boots can replace trainers, keep your feet warm and dry in the snow and rain and protected in long walks and treks. We like Gortex trail runner boots- lighter- more like trainers. Again try Decathalon. Salomon XA PRO GTX
Have a look in the Resource tab for a detailed list of what we take.
“Take only what you can carry and let your memory be your travel bag”. Solzhenitsyn
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