PACKING or WHAT TO TAKE
As soon as anyone gets serious about a long term journey one of the first questions that pops to mind is; what to take and how to carry it? Before we embarked around the world we gave these questions a lot of thought. You want to be as prepared as possible for any eventuality, but compromise is inevitable; you can’t take everything.
Our first decision was about luggage. We’re not suitcase types, so our choices quickly narrowed to backpacks or hybrid/roller-packs. We’ve watched other travelers totter around under overloaded backpacks nearly as tall as they are, and it didn’t feel like what we had in mind. So, roller-packs it was and the decision served us extremely well. Extend the roller handle and you’re ready to zip across an airport or wobble down some cobbles. Need to negotiate some stairs or toss your bag onto a bus, retract the long handle and grab one of the suitcase handles. And… if the going really gets rugged, you can always whip out the shoulder straps and lug it on your back. We did all three, but mostly we rolled.
We settled on bags with similar features from two different manufacturers. Each roller-pack has a large front opening main compartment with pockets around the edges, compression straps, and a zippered mesh compartment on the flap. On the outside there’s a detachable compartmentalised day-pack, and a couple of water-bottle-sized pouches. Both bags are small enough that, with the day-packs removed, they fit in an airplane overhead. Besides our modestly sized roller-packs, we agreed that we’d each carry small shoulder bag and that was it. We also agreed that if we couldn’t fit it into those four bags, it wasn’t coming; no steamer trunks! We decided to approach the “what to take” question from the standpoint of the old hikers’ adage; watch the ounces and the pounds will watch themselves. We planned to dress casually, layer clothing, and mostly stick to warmer climates.
The bottom line for what anyone takes on an extended journey is a personal decision that results from hundreds of choices. We’re not going to bore you with all of ours. Instead, we’d like to share with you what we actually took. The following are two annotated packing lists, one for me and the other for Denise. We offer them not as checklists of must-take items but rather as suggestions. Scouts honor, everything we carried fit into our four bags, wasn’t too heavy, and we used everything we brought.
We settled on bags with similar features from two different manufacturers. Each roller-pack has a large front opening main compartment with pockets around the edges, compression straps, and a zippered mesh compartment on the flap. On the outside there’s a detachable compartmentalised day-pack, and a couple of water-bottle-sized pouches. Both bags are small enough that, with the day-packs removed, they fit in an airplane overhead. Besides our modestly sized roller-packs, we agreed that we’d each carry small shoulder bag and that was it. We also agreed that if we couldn’t fit it into those four bags, it wasn’t coming; no steamer trunks! We decided to approach the “what to take” question from the standpoint of the old hikers’ adage; watch the ounces and the pounds will watch themselves. We planned to dress casually, layer clothing, and mostly stick to warmer climates.
The bottom line for what anyone takes on an extended journey is a personal decision that results from hundreds of choices. We’re not going to bore you with all of ours. Instead, we’d like to share with you what we actually took. The following are two annotated packing lists, one for me and the other for Denise. We offer them not as checklists of must-take items but rather as suggestions. Scouts honor, everything we carried fit into our four bags, wasn’t too heavy, and we used everything we brought.
Click the button to download a Free copy our suggested packing list for women.
Click the button to download a Free copy our suggested packing list for men.
Okay, we pledged on scouts' honor that we fit everything into our four bags. Well… that wasn’t entirely true. On the outward leg of our journey where we crossed the Atlantic on a cruise ship, we decided to bring along some fancy duds and get into the whole cruise ship elegant dining experience. Were talking; a tuxedo and a gown for formal nights, and a suit and cocktail dresses for semi-formal nights. Throw in high heels, dress shoes, dress shirts, etc. and we had a packing problem. Here’s how we solved it. First, I went to a Salvation Army store and bought all my semi-formal wear for about $10. Next, we made an airplane carry-on-sized “suitcase” out of a couple of layers of recycled cardboard box and packed it with all the fancy duds. When we reached Spain, I gave away the Salvation Army clothes, a mailing label converted the “suitcase” into a shipping crate, and the fancy keeper clothes headed home.
Here’s a final thought about packing. If you need it or if you really like having it; try to bring it from home. On a long journey, consumables get used up and clothes wear out; you’ll try to replace them along the way, but results are often mixed. Familiar products are often hard to find, prohibitively expensive, or both. Clothes marked XX Large are actually sized to fit your cat and a comfortable bra in your size; forget it! If you’ve got big feet, take new shoes that have just reached the comfortable broken in stage.
Here’s a final thought about packing. If you need it or if you really like having it; try to bring it from home. On a long journey, consumables get used up and clothes wear out; you’ll try to replace them along the way, but results are often mixed. Familiar products are often hard to find, prohibitively expensive, or both. Clothes marked XX Large are actually sized to fit your cat and a comfortable bra in your size; forget it! If you’ve got big feet, take new shoes that have just reached the comfortable broken in stage.
For more about our pre-trip planning, see the “First Steps” chapter of our book.
