List of Essential Gear
This is what remained with us at the end of the trip, after months of paring down everything unessential to lighten our load.
- Backpacks (no external frame)
- Daypacks
- Camping Gaz stove
- Lighter or matches
- Teapot
- Pot
- Frying pan
- Metal plate (doubled as a lid)
- Metal cups (could heat water in them atop the lantern)
- Bowls
- Spoons and forks
- Swiss army knife (can opener, bottle opener, corkscrew)
- Salt and pepper shakers with screw-on lids
- Sugar
- Tea bags
- Mixed herbs
- Canteen
- Water purification
- Green scrubber for cleaning dishes
- Clothing (worn in layers)
- Swimsuits
- Underwear
- Halter top (Susan), T-shirt (Dennis)
- Light cotton shirt
- Knit or flannel shirt
- Sweater
- Light jacket
- Skirt (Sue), nylon running pants (Dennis)
- Jeans and belt
- Raingear
- Flip-flops or sandals
- Socks
- Tennis shoes
- Handkerchief
- Gloves
- Wool neckscarf and wool hat
- Down jacket
- Laundry bag
- Clothespins and a length of clothesline
- Detergent
- Sewing kit (needles, thread, safety pins)
- Freestanding, two-person tent
- Roll mat / air mattress
- Sheet sleeping bags
- Sleeping bags
- Flashlight
- Small pouch for personal things
- Small towel and washrag
- Razors
- Soap and shampoo
- Hairbrush and comb
- Scissors for cutting hair
- Toothbrush, dental floss, toothpaste
- Tweezers and fingernail clippers
- Hair clip
- First aid kit (band-aids, antibiotic cream, aspirin)
- Toilet paper
- Handiwipes (saved from airplane flights)
- Chapstick
- Lotion
- Sunscreen
- Mosquito repellent
- Money pouch
- Passports
- Small photos or us (for visa applications)
- Immunization certificates
- Driver's license
- International driver's license
- Youth Hostel cards
- Student cards (we used these only in Egypt)
- Charge cards (Visa, American Express Gold)
- Traveler's checks
- Checkbook
- Small notebook for recording expenditures
- Solar calculator
- Wallet for local currency
- Address book, pens, paper and envelopes
- Log book / journal
- Pictures of family
- Maps and travel books
- Language phrase books
- Paperback fiction
- Camera and camera case
- Film
- Notebook for notes on photos taken
Go on to A Few Things We Learned, the Hard Way and Otherwise
Source: www.SusanCAnthony.com, ©Susan C. Anthony