I’m back from a one month solo trip to Portugal and northwestern Spain. I used a small backpack in place of the wheely-bag that I usually take traveling.
Resources
Since I was originally going to walk for a long time on the Camino de Santiago, I used the Stingy Nomad site to help me with my packing.
While preparing for the journey I discovered this book To Walk Far Carry Less by Jean Christie Ashmore.
My Packing Thinking
I was going to pack for the trail, very lightly and hope that worked for the entire month, but then I changed my trip a little and I took more stuff. Because…
First, I was going away for long enough I felt like I had to work remotely. I wanted my boss to encourage me to travel in the future so went the extra mile and brought my computer.
Second, I decided to walk a shorter Camino than I first thought so I would be spending more time exploring the cities as a tourist than backpacking between hostels on the trail.
Here is the complete list, excuse the wrinkled clothes, I took pictures right when I got home so I wouldn’t lose the information.
Packs and Carriers
- One Osprey Archeon 30 liter backpack for clothing, first aid and shoes.
- One ‘Mos’ Brand Computer Pack with built in power strip for electronics, papers and money. This bag was as heavy or heavier than the Osprey (3lbs 12 oz), but I love it, but might not recommend it.
- One String Pack for water, lunch and essential ID when leaving everything else in the hotel.
- One ‘Perhaps Bag’ for groceries.
Biggest Backpack Contents
- one pair of flip flops
- one swim suit
- five short sleeved t-shirts
- on long sleeved sweater, long sleeved athletic shirt, long sleeved turtleneck and long sleeved cotton T-shirt
- two bras, 6 underwear, 6 pairs of socks
- two pairs of leggings
- two loose, light pair of cargo pants in dark colors
- one rain jacket
- one warm fleece zip up
- one large cotton scarf
- one pair of shoe inserts
- grocery bag, deodorant, whistle, flashlight, compass, first aid, padlock, covid test, comb, ear plugs, toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, eye pencil, medical mask, nail file,and extra readers.
Computer Pack Contents
- Computer
- Notebooks
- Camino Guidebook and Credential
- Eye Mask
- Sunglasses
- Chargers for Computer, Kindle and Phone and converter for powerstrip.
- Vitamins
- Headphones
- Money
- Tissues
- Bandana
- Water Bottle
- Two decks of cards
- Passport, credit cards, backup credit cards, kindle, snacks, medical information and travel insurance information.
More than once I was asked how I was going to live with only what fit in these small packs.
It worked out OK. I definitely didn’t have any fancy dinners (which I wasn’t prepared for), but felt totally fine on tours and comfortable when it came time to hike.
Once on the trail, I was able to send my smaller backpack (filled with stuff) to my destination so I wouldn’t have to carry them both.
A lot of Airbnbs and hotels had laundry facilities that I used.
I wore a lot of the clothes (and jackets) on the plane an didn’t have to pack those.
Whole Bunch of Projects 