One week left till the take off. My todo list just keeps growing. However, I do stuff in the order of priority (or so I hope), so if I don’t get to something, its probably gonna be ok (for example, one can get travel insurance after starting the trip).
Last weekend was the 4th of July long weekend. I had a trip planned to Portland and I decided to use it as a final test drive of my backpack for my big trip. I packed my backpack as if I’m going for the 3 month trip. Obviously it was more stuff than I needed for the long weekend, but I wanted to have the chance to feel miserable about the packs weight so that I’m forced to leave some stuff home before I head out for the big trip.
The weight of the 40L bag was 22.8lb and the total weight including the 15L day pack was 33.6lb. The weight was actually fine. Did not feel too heavy over the weekend, but of course a lighter bag would be even better. Plus, I did not go anywhere further than a 10 min walk.
Inevitably I acquired stuff over the weekend, so it was a good thing that the pack was not packed completely full.
What I’m definitely taking with me:
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A purse – its made of cloth so it can be folded and it packs small. This is mostly so that I can go to a bar and feel like a normal person 🙂
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Platypus water bottle – it’s super handy that it packs small when empty
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hiking shoes – I’m glad I got hiking shoes with good grip instead of walking shoes. In Portland we went for a hike and climbing rocks and side trails it was very useful to have a good grip.
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dry compression sack – works awesome! Can really compress already rolled clothes. The only downside is that unpacking and packing takes longer than using packing cubes.
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notebook – for moments when planes take off and land and electronics can’t be used and when batteries are dead.
What I’m leaving behind:
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Belkin travel surge protector – It was indispensable last weekend when sharing a hotel room with 3 other roommates. However when traveling I don’t think I will share hotel room with people that much as I will be staying either with friends or at hostels. Plus I won’t have that much electronics on my own with me (laptop, camera battery charger, phone, kindle) and they most likely won’t be needed to be charged at the same time.
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pairs of socks – I took 6 pairs of socks with me, but I used just one pair of socks, leaving some behind.
- some toiletries.
July 11, 2013 @ home in San Francisco
I don't see any spreadsheets yet 🙁