As I am getting ready to go home I only thought it would be fitting to do a packing blog. My route left in August 2017 and we went to Albania, Romania, Bulgaria, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Lesotho, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Haiti, and Dominican Republic.
Let’s start with the bigger items:
Pack- I have a Gregory Deva 60. Bought it at a REI Garage Sale 50% off because there was a buckle missing. I’ve loved this pack because it’s a top, bottom, and front loader.
Sleeping pad-Therm-a-Rest ProLite Plus regular women’s. I got this pad because it was half self-inflate half foam, also it was cheaper. I also bought it at the Garage Sale because it had a leak. I could never find the leak but if I sleep on it for more than a couple of nights I usually have to air it back up again… I wish that I would have tried out more sleeping pads before I decided to buy this one. By the end of the Race I’ve slept on all of my teammates sleeping pads and there are some that I like better than others but it’s all up to personal choice. REI lets you try them out so I for sure would start there.
Tent- North Face Triarch 2 Tent with footprint. Love this tent because all of the top is mesh so it gets great airflow. The Rainfly is a little tricky but keeps things dry so that’s what matters. I only used my tent for 3 days at the Awakening in Cambodia by choice. It was set up my tent or sleep inside with no airflow and get eaten by bugs or set up my tent and have slightly better airflow and not get eaten by bugs. If I were to do the race again I would have brought a 2-person tent to TC and then only bring a 1 person tent on the Race. Not worth the extra weight.
Daypack-Osprey Comet 30 L Love this daypack but sometimes I wish I would have gone with a smaller one. It’s true what they say that if you have the space you will find things to put in it!
Now to everything that goes inside of the pack!
Airporter – Sea-to-summit pack converter. Best purchase by far! It allows my bag to be in an airporter for travel days but when I need to pick up my bag and wear it for longer distances I just have to unzip where the straps are and I can wear it while my bag is still protected. I often chose not to wear my pack but drag it instead and it has done great. Only a few holes and nothing has ever been stolen off of my pack.
Sleeping bag-REI Co-op Helio Sack 55 Mummy style. I’ve used this way more than I thought I would! My route had us in Europe during the beginning of fall and Africa during fall so it was cool enough to need a sleeping bag. My team also stayed in rooms with AC so it got kind of cold sometimes. I kind of wish I would have gotten one that was warmer but I would invest in one for sure, just make sure it can pack down small. Down material is the best way to go!
Sleeping bag liner- Sea-to-Summit CoolMax Adaptor Traveller Sleeping Bag Liner with Insect Shield. I’m glad that I had one with insect shield for all of the other months where it was really hot outside and had a lot of mosquitos and it did a pretty good job preventing me from getting bit while I slept.
Packing cubes-Eagle Creek packing cubes. I had both the regular kind and the compression kind. I loved the compression kind but I broke all three of my big sacks by month 11…so to each there own.
Headlamp-Black Diamond Storm Headlamp. Make sure it has a red light so the bugs won’t be attracted to you.Take the batteries out of the headlamp or it will accidently turn itself on randomly and you will lose all power! Also bring extra batteries to replace them when they die.
Multi-tool – Leatherman Style CS. Bring one! Doesn’t matter what kind, make sure it has scissors and a screw driver. Or just bring the scissors separately.
Mess kit/silverware – Sea-to-Summitcollapsible mug and plate. I also had one of those three-in-one silverware spoon fork knife combos. I used mine of the race some and I probably could have gotten by without one but I enjoyed it when I did have one!
Towels- Microfiber Quick Dry Travel / Camping Towel 3 Pack Bundle – Medium. Best quick dry, microfiber, towel I’ve ever found. Buy it off of amazon. I only brought the medium on the Race but a lot of my squad mates brought all of them. I also had a Sand Cloud towel donated to me and it has been one of my favorite things in my pack since it can be used as a beach blanket and a towel.
Pillow- Therm-a-Rest Compressible Pillow-medium. I would suggest bringing whatever pillow fits you. If that is your pillow from home then bring it (either in whole or cut it in half). I loved this pillow because it collapsed pretty small but then was thick enough for my liking. I brought pillowcases for my pillow but I wasn’t always great about putting it on my pillow. Looking back, I wish I would have used them more often.
Hammock– Explore Outfitters PRO Nylon Double Hammock (Large) Free Tree Straps. I’ve carried this hammock with me the entire race and I’ve never used it. Months where we could hang up hammocks I just used other people’s instead of hanging up mine. I wouldn’t bring one unless you use it a lot at home.
First-aid kit- Each team will be given one that has everything in it you should ever need, including a water filter. I chose to bring my own with a thermometer in it and I used it some on the race. I don’t regret bringing my own first aid kit.
Rain cover-REI Co-op Duck’s Back Rain Cover – 40 Liters. My big pack had a rain cover that came with it so I brought it on the race but my airporter was semi-water proof. So, I bought a 40 L one for my daypack. And I used it some but it did not do the best job of staying on my daypack to keep it dry but when it did work it was great.
Bug repellent– I bought 100% deet bug spray and didn’t use it enough to take up space in my pack. I wish I wouldn’t have. It also stripes the paint off of anything I touched so be careful about that and try to wash it off before you go to sleep. Also, team money will buy team bug spray in countries where you need it. I also invested in some Bugables and those were defiantly worth it!
Laundry soap- Sea to Summit Pocket Laundry Wash. They don’t work, don’t buy them! I would suggest buying other smaller laundry soaps or you can wait and buy it in country which is my suggestion since team can also buy team laundry soap.
Sleep mask – I brought one on the race but was also given some on a couple of plane rides. I never really used mine so I wish I wouldn’t have brought one. My suggestion if you use one at home bring it if not don’t pack it.
Hardrive – Bring one! It has been a lifesaver on the Race. Doesn’t matter which kind but I would say as many gigabytes as you can. But know that if you configure your hard drive to run on a mac it won’t work on a PC and vice versa. I have so many movies, workouts, songs, pictures, and blogs on my hardrive that make it very valuable.
Money belt- Eazymate Fashion Running Belt – This thing is a lifesaver. Sometimes on the Race it will not be safe to bring a purse but you will need your passport so it will be nice to have a safe way to carry your phone, passport, and money on you. Defiantly worth the space!
Passport holder/travel wallet – Zoppen Multi-Purpose Blocking Travel Passport Wallet (Ver.4) Tri-fold Document Organizer Holder. I enjoyed this wallet more than just a passport holder because I was a treasurer and needed to keep track of a lot of things on travel days.
Bluetooth speaker- I brought one on the Race and never really used it because I was always on a team with someone who had a better one. But I’m glad I had one in case I was on a team that didn’t have one. Also, mine is pretty small so it didn’t take up too much space.
Paint set- Royal & Langnickel Acrylic Paint Essentials Keep N’ Carry Set. I knew before going on the Race that I externally process by painting and I knew that I don’t like water colors so I wanted to bring acrylic paint on the Race and it was totally worth the space. However, I lost track of mine at Awakening in Cambodia so that sucked. This kit is super small and has everything inside of it that I needed.
Dry shampoo-or baby powder. Both work great when you can’t take a shower.
Dry sack- Sea to Summit eVent Compression Dry Sack, Large. I put my tent and sleeping bag in a dry sack and strapped it to the bottom of my pack and it stayed there most of the Race. I would suggest to use these for anything that is super bulky and you want to compress down. Also on the plus side they are water proof which protects down sleeping bags.
Travel tooth brush- This is great for long travel days but I’ve found that most of my long international flights provide a toothbrush and toothpaste for you so not a necessity. I also got a new toothbrush every time I got sick so I didn’t have any left after we left Asia.
Luggage weight- Travel Inspira Digital Hanging Postal Luggage Scale. I’m glad I brought one on the Race it came in handy when we took flights and our bags needed to be under a certain weight! Also, very few people had them on my squad so it got used a lot.
Duct tape- I tapped all of my electronic devices and cords with pink duct tape so that way my stuff wouldn’t get confused with others. I wish that I would have put some around my water bottle like I did at TC for when we needed it on the Race which was often but enough so that I ended up buying some on the Race.
Clothes:
What I started the Race with-
Shoes- Chacos, dress sandal, shower flip flops, tennis shoes
One pair of jeans
Skirts- 3 maxi skirts, one knee length
Shorts- 3 athletic including my Nike shorts, one denim pair
Shirts- 3 tanks, 4 t-shirts, one dress shirt
Dresses- 3 dresses one that covered my shoulders and ankles, one that covered my shoulders and one that was a tank top dress
Flannel
Chambray
Underwear- bring your favorite and bring an unopen package for hallway through!
I ended up dropping my tank dress because it didn’t match dress code, too short. I also only have 2 of my same t-shirts I’ve picked up a lot from ministry and traded some at free tables. I dropped one of my tanks because we couldn’t show our shoulders in some countries and it wasn’t worth the extra room in my pack plus I hardly ever wore it. I wish that I would have only brought one long skirt and one shorter one not 3- You can share with your team. I also picked up another pair of shorts and jeans. Sent my jeans home since I lost weight. I also picked up elephant pants in Asia. My advice is bring as minimum clothes as you can because you will either buy some in country or grab things off of the free table. Also only bring what you wear at home, no need to buy new clothes, trust me you won’t like wearing them.
Things I wish I would have brought on the Race:
Steripods –Steripod Clip-On Toothbrush Sanitizer. They keep your toothbrush clean, it sterilizes it every time you use it. I bought some but didn’t bring it on the Race one of my biggest regrets.
Scrubba– Scrubba Wash Bag. Some of my squad had one and I wish I did too. There are some months where you will have to wash your clothes by hand and a scruba comes in handy.
This I wish I would have not brought on the Race:
Pocket shower – Sea to Summit Pocket Shower. Thought I would use this never did not worth it.
Hammock– read description above for details.
Knee brace and ankle brace– I have knee and ankle problems I thought I would use them more often than I did wasn’t worth the space.
Ok my last advice would be you have to pack what best suits you. I know every blog you will read will say if you don’t ware it at home don’t bring it on the Race but I didn’t listen and wish I would have. I 100% support buying things at REI Garage Sale or off of other online sites. Even second-hand gear is better than brand new full price ones. Also, be prepared to dress culturally some months and some months it won’t matter. Don’t plan for every situation because you usually will have enough warning to grab clothes from squad mates.
Ok I think that is everything I can think of. Again, it’s not the end of the world if you don’t get this right. You have 11 months to figure it out! Haha
I fly home in 12 days, see you all soon!
