There are a couple of items that I ordered that will not be major pieces for my trip, mainly security and safety items. Waterproof matches and a first aid kit and a whistle are those. I say they aren't major pieces solely because I hope to not need them at all on my trip. Who wants to need a first aid kit? Nobody. I know it's necessary though, so I got one that will hopefully do well towards any injuries that I may have. I know that if I end up in a torrential downpour and my gear gets wet, I may need the waterproof matches to start a fire to dry my gear. I could be freezing and have nowhere to go that is indoors. In which case I may also need to start a fire. I may get into trouble and need someone to rescue me if I cannot move. I'm getting those things because they are a necessity. I'm not going around the world with no safety precautions. There will be more precautions that I take and I'll add them to my list when I purchase them.
I ordered all of these things off of REI's website because they back all of their items. If something isn't to my liking and isn't up to par of where I feel like it should be, I can return them within a year or get them replaced if there is anything damaged on the way here. They also have a membership program that costs an initial $20 dollars and with that, I can get an annual refund on all things that I purchase from them! Talk about excellence! Who doesn't want a refund in their pocket if they purchase something for more gear at the end of the year?!
My first item that I purchased was a backpack! I chose the Osprey Volt 60. It's 60 liter pack (obviously, hence the 60 in the name). It comes with everything that I believe I'm going to need for a trip and if I find it unworthy to hold all of my gear, I may upgrade. I don't think that I'll honestly need another though because I want to go lightweight without missing the gear that I think will be necessary. I know many of you don't believe a huge pack would be completely necessary and you're probably right. I am going to be on the road for many years though and who knows what kinds of things I'll be getting into. I needed something sturdy, lightweight and that would hold anything that I may want to carry with me. This pack comes with more than adequate space as 60 liters is all I'm going to need. I may not even use the entire thing! I may need a bigger pack but I genuinely think this will be more than enough. It comes with compression straps on the sides for cinching it down if I don't have enough to fill it out so it will fit better on my back and things aren't rolling around. The pack also weighs in at only a hair over 3 and a half pounds which will be very nice as I'm trying to keep my overall weight down to around 35 to 40 pounds. I'd rather not be lugging around 50 pounds of weight and with keeping my pack size smaller, I think that will go a long way towards not over-packing.
My first item that I'm going to talk about is the Kelty Salida 2 tent. It's a 2 person tent and has one of the highest ratings on REI's website from customers. Why in the heck would I buy a 2 person tent if it's just going to be myself? Well I don't think that I'm going to need all of that room most of the time. I do, however need space for my pack as well as for the possibility of having someone else sleeping in the tent if it happens. You never know when you're going to find someone else doing the same thing as I am and it just makes sense to carry a single tent instead of multiple. Another reason I picked this tent is because of it's lightweight design. It weighs a grand total of 4 and a half pounds with the packaging and such! No, it's not the lightest tent I can buy but were I to find another somewhere that is lighter, odds are it would cost much more. I am trying to make this trip as affordable as possible and I can't do that if I spend more than what I am! I also want comfort and that's something that this tent provides quite well considering it's a 3 season tent! I've read the stakes are not up to par and, after testing it, I'll decide whether to buy some sturdier, heavyweight stakes. As of right now, before testing it, I believe I made an excellent choice in the middle ground of lightweight for a good price! More information when it gets here!
My next item is an Osprey Hydro Reservoir. It's a 2 liter water bladder that I'll be using every single day over my trip I'm sure. That's a lot of water to hold and this may be one of the weightiest things in my pack when it's filled. It will weigh almost 5 pounds all told when filled and just 10 ounces when empty. It is made with an antimicrobial formula that will stop any bacteria from growing inside the reservoir. This is definitely the one for me as it's not gigantic and it's not too small at the same time so I don't have to worry about running out of water. My pack comes with a built-in pocket for the bladder as well just in case this does break, it won't drench all of my gear/clothes in water.
My next piece that I purchased was an REI Polar Pod Sleeping Bag. Another lightweight but not ultra-lightweight piece that should have no problems keeping me warm in any weather I plan on being in. It's rated only down to 31 degrees Fahrenheit though I don't have any plans to go places incredibly cold. If it gets colder than I expected, I'll have layers of clothing along with me so I can pack them on while I'm sleeping. I got this bag on sale for $45 dollars as the deal of the day on REI's website while it's originally double that and I think that I won't have any problems with this bag. It also has an inside pocket for storing anything small that I may want as well as a pocket for a small travel pillow if I decide to buy one, or something else soft if I don't have one!
The last thing on my list that I bought a few days ago was a Black Diamond Headlamp. This thing is a beast and looks awesome too! Okay it won't look that great when I'm actually wearing it, but hey, you can't look good all the time right? This thing really does everything though! It changes the lighting it gives off with a simple touch of your finger, has a great locking feature with a button on the top and can even tell you when your batteries are getting low! Don't forget, it also has a red light for night walking just in-case you are walking/hiking at night, if you turn it off, you won't lose your night vision. I can't wait to try out this thing!
I can't wait to try out all of this gear to be honest! These are the things that I plan on using for a backpacking trip around the world and I'm going to learn them inside and out before I go so that I don't have any problems with any of it. I'm really excited! Thanks for reading this if you got this far and if you have any questions/ suggestions let me know in the comment section! Don't forget to follow me!
