Pack Trial #1

i feel as though the past few days have simply flown by. hell - i even forgot it was my birthday on friday - that was until my sister msged me, wishing me the best. haha. funny what happens when the brain is completely preoccupied. mine's been so incredibly focused on trying to get ready to go that i think im probably going crazy. it was today that i thought it'd be a good plan to try to fit everything in my pack just to see if i could.

first things first - i had to buy everything that i had left to get. so up bright and early at 6:30 a.m. i was making lists. lists for my clothes, the food, the first aid and safety-related items. lists for my hygiene products, camping gear and dishware. then there was the list for paperwork (can't forget my visa) and all the other things that didn't quite seem to fit in the previous categories. by 7:30 a.m. i had showered and was out the door to hit up superstore. then MEC (mountain equipment co-op). then there was the camera store. finally i stopped at best buy then canadian tire.

i finished it all. i got the oatmeal. the energy bars and backpacker's meals. i got powerdered milk, pita bread and trail mix. dried fruit and green tea (both cold and hot) were added to my cart. i made sure to throw in some hard candy before running my items through the till. $100 later i was off to the next place. i got some new water bottles, a pot and extra fuel. i got some rope (gotta make sure my food is up high and away from my tent and bears) and carabiners (great for attaching random dangling things to my bag). i made sure i had a waterproof flashlight, sunscreen, bugspray and surveyor's tape (i hear it works 100x better than bread crumbs). i brought it all back to my apartment and added it to my endless piles of supplies.

toothbrush and toothpast. deoderant (i figure i should still TRY to smell purdy). tweezers, hair ties and bandana. dental floss, bobby pins and nail clippers. toilet paper, multipurpose soap and q-tips. small camera, big camera, extra batteries and memory cards. my plug in converters, cards, wallet and ear plugs. passport, travel immunization book, phone book, survival book, around the world book (yes - im freakin packing my library here), journal and maps. a bowl, mug and utensils. a tent, mat, sleeping bag and fire starters (flint, waterproof matches and lighter). a survival kit complete with: whistle, mirror, duct tape, wire, cord, sewing needle, fishing line, fishing hook, pocket knife, sinker weights, compass, safety pins and aluminum foil. i personally added bear spray, a digital compass watch, flares (both bear bangers and original) and water purification drops. not to mention all my first aid gear that includes an elastic wrap bandage, anti-diarrhoea medication, immodium, laxatives, antihistamines, hydrocortisone cream, aspirin, re-hydration packets, bandaids and blister packs. tiger balm, gauze, petroleum jelly and sports tape. motion sickness pills, hand sanitizer, gloves, afterbite, wound closure strips, syringe and polysporin.

i pilled it all there. right in the middle of what is left of my living room. i felt a nice wave of self-satisfaction wash over me before i figured i should get on checking things off my list and deciding what i could afford to do about my clothes. i have plenty of clothes, but some things are more better for being out in the wild, day-after-day, walking up and down hills and going through some bush. some things are better for the different weather types i could expect and some things are simply more accommodating for the thought of me flying to australia after going through BC. so i made another list and added to it what i thought i might need for dry sacks. for those who don't know - dry sacks are a type of bag that can waterproof whatever gear/supplies a person puts inside. it is great for separating things (hate for food bags to break open and dump all over my clothes while im hiking along a trail) - but it's also awesome if i were to hit a rough rain storm and my pack leaked in some of the rain. or if i set my bag in a puddle (it's happened before) by mistake and it soaks though. anyway - i made off to MEC (2nd time today) to go and get my final list of things.

i got my remaining clothes and made it to the front of the line for the tills. turns out i get the same cashier i've had for the past 2 times ive been into MEC (i was there yesterday as well) - she laughed at seeing me again so i had to explain my complicated trip and how it's been difficult trying to get everything together for it. she rang me through and wished me the best in my travels and i left, crossing my fingers that that would be the last time i had to see her.

it was when i got home i started to run into some issues. first off - all the dry sacks i had gotten were the wrong size. they were WAY too big. i have no idea what was goin through my mind when i bought them, but i sighed at the thought that i would have to go BACK to MEC to return them. joy. then i also spent over 30 mins running through the apartment trying to find the bag to fit my sleeping bag in. when i finally found it it was full of my cookware and fuel. i haven't a clue what was going through my mind when i did that. sigh.

so back at MEC - 3rd time today - i exchanged my dry sacks, got the right ones and came home to do some serious packing. and serious packing it was. i hemmed and hawed and stuffed that pack with everythin i had in me. it took all my strength and brains to get everything inside. one problem. i couldn't fit the water bottles in the side mesh pockets. no biggie - i figure ill just attach to the sides. proud that i solved my minor problem, i sat down and relaxed. it was then i noticed somethin. i had forgotten to fit in my cookware an fuel. crap. my bag was already stuffed to the max. i pondered if that would mean that i would have to leave one of my cameras behind. but which one? i wanted both so bad. the big one is perfect for the great shots and the small one works wonders for capturing moments on the fly. i "need" both. maybe it was the food. i probably bought WAY too much - but then what would i give up? the backcountry meals? the energy bars? the powdered milk? all the original packaging was ruined on my food so there would be no way to return it.

i furrowed my brow in thought and then noticed something else. my library of books and papers that i needed to bring was also somehow outside my pack. so was my wallets. and my bandana, card game and electrical socket converters. crappy.

something will have to go. but what?





tomorrow.






8 days and counting.