Our Gear

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Here you can find an up to date, ever evolving, list of gear which we take when we travel. This is meant to be a brief and accessible list for easy  reference. For more in depth reviews and advice regarding get, check out the Gear category of our blog. So, without further ado…

• Backpacks

  On our most recent big trip we each took a main back and a daypack. One of use took the Osprey Porter 46L along with the collapsible Stowaway 20L from Eddie Bauer, while the other used the (now unavailable) Osprey Waypoint 65L, with the attachable day pack.

  

  

  

  In the future, we might look at consolidating a bit, and both use the newer Osprey Farpoint 55L (with the attachable day pack).

  
  In additional to these, we made good use of several sizes of packing cube. These were great for organizing our lives, and for storing our colder weather out of sight when we spent several months in warmer climates!

• Jackson’s Clothes

  Tops

  • 4 T-shirts
  • 1 casual button up shirt
    (good for layering)
  • 1 nicer button up shirt
    (in case we want to get a little fancy)
  • 1 sweatshirt
    (I use a wool blend sweatshirt)

   Pants

  • 1 pair of travel/hiking pants
    (I use a pair of  Bluffworks travel pants)
  • 1 pair of jeans
    (in the future, I’ll probably substitute my pair of jeans for a second pair of Bluffworks travel pants, or perhaps the jeans that Bluffworks now offers)
  • 1 pair of nice pants
    (in case we want to get a little fancy. I might drop these altogether if the two pairs of Bluffworks pants works to the point where one of them stays looking pretty nice)
  • 2 pairs of travel/hiking shorts
    (on our last trip, I only had one pair, and it was quite irritating in hot climates)

  Underwear

  • 3 pairs of underwear. 1 pair to wear, 1 pair to wash, and 1 pair for emergencies
    (these David Archy athletic boxer briefs are fantastic! Quick dry, comfy, and cheap. You can wash them in the sink and they’ll dry overnight easily)
  • 4 pairs of socks
    (Darn Tough socks are excellent for long term travel, as they’re incredibly resilient)
  • 1 pair of merino wool leggings
    (great for laying in colder weather. Icebreaker has some nice options)

  Outerwear

  • 1 light down jacket
    (packs down small, is very warm, layers well)
  • 1 rain jacket
    (I used an Eddie Bauer jacket similar to this one)

  Misc

  • 1 foldable cap
  • 1 neck cowl/gaiter
    (keeps the sun off, and doubles as extra warmth)
  • 1 belt
  • 1 pair of sunglasses
    (Anything you like will do, but we both wear Rayban Wayfarers. They’re comfortable, versatile, and classic.)
    
    
  • travel towel
    (Next time, we’ll probably invest in a pure linen towels, for their superior drying speed and compactness)

  Shoes

  • 1 pair of jandles/flip-flops
    (I take a pair of plain Havianas)
    
    
  • 1 pair of everyday shoes
    (I take a pair of Converse high tops)
    
    
  • 1 pair of hiking shoes
    (I take a pair of Vivobarefoot trail runners. They are very light and compact, however they do lack in ankle support and foot padding)
    
    

• Natalie’s Clothes

  Tops

  • 2 loose tank tops
  • 1 fitted tank top
  • 2 T-shirts
  • 1 long-sleeved shirt
  • 1 flannel button-up shirt
  • 1 pull-over “nice” tunic
  • 1 large PJ top
  • 1 grey wool sweater

   Pants

  • 1 pair of khaki shorts
  • 1 pair of work-out tights
  • 1 pair of hiking pants
  • 1 pair of chinos
  • 1 pair of blue jeans

  Underwear

  • 2 bras
    (one light and one dark)
  • 2 sports bras
    (one will get super yucky or wet and it’s really nice to have a change!)
  • 1 bathing suit
  • 7 pairs of undies
  • 3 thongs
  • 4 pairs of socks
    (2 that are hightop wool and 2 low top; 1 wool and 1 cotton)

  Outerwear

  • 1 raincoat
  • 1 packable feather down coat
  • 1 sarong
    (doubles as a scarf!)

  Misc

  • 1 foldable cap
  • 1 neck cowl/gaiter
    (keeps the sun off, and doubles as extra warmth)
  • 1 pair of sunglasses
    (Anything you like will do, but we both wear Rayban Wayfarers. They’re comfortable, versatile, and classic.)
    
  • a light-weight cotton dress
    (great as a pull-over when going to the beach or it’s laundry day!)
  • a small belt
  • travel towel
    (Next time, we’ll probably invest in a pure linen towels, for their superior drying speed and compactness)
    

  Shoes

  • 1 pair of hiking sandles
    (I take hiking these Columbia Hiking Sandals)
    
    
  • 1 pair of flats
    (I take a pair of Teiks)
    
    
  • 1 pair of everyday shoes
    (I take a pair of low top Converse sneakers)
    
    
  • 1 pair of hiking shoes
    (I use these Adidas Trail Runners, but am on the look out for something with more ankle support)
    
    

• Gadgets

  This is what we take for the two of us:

  • 2 laptops
  • 2 unlocked smart phones
    (having access to various apps on the go makes life a lot easier, and if you get them unlocked then you can always just slip a new SIM in, and off you go)
  • 2 sets of headphones / ear buds
    (at some point we may upgrade to noise cancelling headphones)
  • 1 Kindle
    (might have to get another, as they’re just so convenient)
  • 1 power extension cable, with multi-plug on the end
    (you never know when the only plug is going to be inconveniently placed, plus having the multi-plug means you only need one adapter)
    
    
  • 1 DSLR camera + charger and spare battery
    (we have a Nikon D5300. Having the spare battery means you can afford to get a little bit lazy with remembering to charge the battery)
    
    
  • 1 all-in-one zoom lens
    (we have the Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm)
    
    
  • 1 SD card
    (it’s good to get a big one, as the last thing you want is to have to stop and clear up space. Also, don’t skimp on the speed)
  • 1 SD card reader
    (some laptops have this built in. Super handy for backing up photos without needing yet another cable)
    
    
  • 1 external hard drive
    (we use a 2 TB Seagate drive, which allowed us to backup any and all of our photos, even when shooting RAW)

• Toiletries / Medical

  Some of the may have varying degrees of relevance to you personally… this is what we have between the two of us

  • toothbrushes
  • toothpaste
  • floss
  • mascara
  • eyeliner
  • tampons/pantie-liners
  • laundry detergent
    (you might be able to find a body soap / detergent / shampoo combo, which can save on space)
  • soap / two-in-one shampoo
    (if you find a soap + shampoo combo you like, stick with that)
  • deodorant
  • nail clippers + file
  • tweezers
  • a razor
  • beard trimmer

  Most of your medical stuff should fit in a small pouch (with the exception of the sunscreen and hand sanitizer)

  • anti-diarrhea
  • anti-itch
  • mosquito repellent
  • pain killer
  • birth control pills
  • moisturizer
  • anti-gas
  • sunscreen
  • hand sanitizer

• Misc

  • several pens
  • a diary
  • a pad of paper
  • a 1L water bottle
    (Next trip, we’ll investigate getting a couple of collapsible bottles. This bottle did the trick, but took up a lot of room, and was particularly annoying when flying, as we’d have to empty it and it would take up all that space for nothing.)
  • a small day purse