Help! I have a 65L travel pack I will be taking with me RTW
for one year. I also have a small daypac that I have found
very useful on shorter trips (carry water, camera,
sunglasses, etc.). The question is, if I'm going to be on
the road for a long time & I will be travelling solo, do I
take the small daypac along too? If I do, how do I manage
it and the 65L in train & bus stations, airports, etc.
without having one stolen. What do other women do? Is
a multi-pocket vest the answer? Help!
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I don't know liter sizes -- is 65 very big? Well, no matter what size it is, you'll definitely want the daypack with you, since you'll have lots of time away from your big pack when you'll want water, camera, sunglasses, etc. My advice for security is to take a good, lightweight bike lock -- when necessary (on trains, for example), you can lock your big pack to something so it won't go walking, and you can carry your daypack with you. A good general rule -- if you can't carry both packs comfortably at the same time (the big one on the back and the small one on the front, for example -- strange animals, us backpackers!), you've got too much stuff. My first trip out I took a terribly big, heavy, cumbersome pack and I was miserable!
Don't know anything about those multi-pocket vests, but I ignored all the rules about bum-bags -- well, not ALL the rules (I wouldn't keep my passport and money in it), but I found it great for things I might need while walking with all my stuff, such as my camera, my sunglasses, my Swiss Army knife...
Good luck!
dump the pack!
O right, I've got some RTW bike travelogue links at
http://travel.to/bolivia
You can schlep through airports and city streets with a
small, foldable, wheeled luggage cart, about 3-4 pounds at
any luggage store.
I agree with everything Karen said. I carried both RTW for 1 1/2 yrs. & on shorter trips (solo) & the small pack was indispensable. There were times when I left the big pack in a large city for a few days or weeks & carried everything I needed in the small pack.
Before you go, pack what you plan to bring & try out carrying them both (front & back). You'll know if you have too much stuff. It's probably worth walking around for awhile if you're in doubt about cutting things out, because you WILL have to be able to walk places carrying what you have -- and you'll want to have room to add some things.
As for security, having the small pack in the front can be a very secure way to carry it. I routinely carry it this way in places noted for pickpockets & once it saved me from the loss of my camera in Lima, Peru. Someone tried to grab the bag from me while I was sitting at an outdoor restaurant & I was able to simply hang onto the bag -- 2 shoulder straps provide some leverage.
I don't know what a 65L size is either but I traveled with
both. I took a Rick Steves type bag which converted from a
handle to shoulderstrap to backpack straps. Inside I
carried a very light weight daypack rolled up. You could
also put the daypack inside, full, and pack around it, then
unload it when you wanted to use it. I also traveled with a
small lock with cable--sold in travel stores. My travel
partner and I locked our bags together and to the closet
when we left them in the room. As I heard from someone
somewhere, you're just trying to keep honest people honest
using these locks. If someone really wanted to slit your
bag and take everything out they could. Travel light
though, you'll be sorry if you don't. But, you can always
get rid of things you don't need or want and pick things up
that you do need as you go along. I had to be convinced to
travel light and I was amazed at how little I could get by
on.
Thanks for all of the great advice! I will be taking my
smaller daypack with me for sure!
Oh and by the way, I'm a Canadian and my travel pack is an
Andromeda from Mountain Equipment Co-op (www.mec.ca), made
by Serratus (if you're curious about what it looks like, the
www.serratus.com site has a picture of it!). The bag has
internal framing & backpack straps that zip up so it looks
like a regular piece of soft-sided luggage. It also has
shoulder straps & a bottom sleeping bag compartment.
And, 65 L = 4,000 cu.in.
My smaller pack is also an MEC bag.
65 liters!?! Are you crazy?!?! I am a diabetic who wears
contact lenses and is female...as well, the majority of my
2+ years spent on the road has been whiled away in "modest
clothing on females" countries. Even so, a 45 liter pack
(carry on size) and a day pack is more than enough (I
usually have room for souvenirs, carpets, etc.).
-
Look, if I can do it with blood testing and insulin
supplies, contact lens stuff, scarves, long dresses and
sensible shoes, surely you can return your pack to MEC and
get a smaller version. You'll thank me later!
Its far too large, the largest you should need is the 56L.
And who shleps through dirt roads, mud, snow and the
terraced hills of Nepal with a suitcase on wheels?? Really!
I have found that I pefer to have two bags and I have been
travelling for a few years now. The answer is that your big
pack goes on your back and your small pack you wear on the
front and that carries all the real valuables and they are
right there in front of you.
When you are stoppen at railway stations etc wrap pack
straps aroud your legs and be very aware af your
surroundings
Perhaps #9, jen, you read something that was not there?
Where did you get the idea that my pack had wheels? It
certainly doesn't...and for the monster pack people, the
idea behind this pack is that my sleeping bag goes INSIDE
the bag in its own compartment!!! It takes up about ╝ of
the bag's space. The clothing, shoes, carpets, paraphenelia
have to fit inside a much smaller 'luggage' space...
Really now people, I feel ganged up on :(
Just to join in with a lot of other women and tell you to
take as little as possible ... think of everything that you
will accumulate while travelling and it is a bugger carting
things around, especially, if you are by yourself and
lugging things around airports or bus stations. At most my
pack was 45L and that was too much!
I always take a small MEC day pack with me which I pack
inside my larger pack for one I am travelling through busy
transit points. I have a small pouch which fits onto a
sturdy belt or around my neck and this is all I carry for
essential docs. I have my essential documents sorted
through prior to buying tickets, etc. so that I am not
opening up too many bags infront of people searching for my
wallet, etc.. This is a prime pickpocketing time!
Stay light!
My hot little tip which has seen me through many a dodgy Chinese Train station ( notorious for pickpockets and bag slashing) involves keeping your valuable bits safely tucked down your trousers. While many people seem to favour the old money belt or bum bag for keeping their passport, VISA card or money in these can quite easily be cut off in a crowd or if you are dozing in a bus or on a train. Instead I have just made another pocket hidden behind your normal pocket by sewing one of those kiddies hankies on the inside of the pocket of my trousers or shorts, where I keep my valuables and then just keep a little wallet with some change etc in it in my normal pocket. This means that if some one is going to pickpocket you they will either take the valueless wallet or won't be able to get anywhere near your important bits without you noticing!
It may sound lots of hassle but really it's not and although it may sound really dweebish I find it a lot safer and more secure and you have the added fun of funny looks when you have your hands down your trousers!!
Don't forget, in many places you can have laundry done,
charged by article. Don't take too many items along. Hand in
the laundry in the morning and in most places it will be
returned in the afternoon. Just hit the road with as little
as possible. If you are really in need of something while
you're away you can nearly always buy it. The first time I
travelled with a backpack I put things in it that I only
took out three weeks later when I was back home again. And
all this time I had been carrying the load, silly me...
Good luck.
Don't know if you'll get this Solo Traveller but I don't
think your pack has wheels, I was refering to post #3!!
Hope you were able to make a decision.
I traveled for half a year with both a 65l pack and a day
pack and I'm a short 162cm/5ft 3inch female it can be done.
pack your big pack with every thing you are going to take.
Then put it on after you've taken out all the just in case
stuff attach two dog clips to the straps, clip day pack to
big pack and away you go - Hands free
Happy travels
Don't be too locked in your thoughts about travelers with
lots of stuff. I compete in sport in other countries and
apart from carrying the essential extra sporting
clothes/shoes/equipment, not everyone can have the luggery
of staying in hostels in wayout places. So, where does the
sports gear, tent and trangia fit in the tiny packs some of
you suggest?
Yes to 2 packs. I don't know that size, but there will be
times when you'll stay in one place for several days. A day
pack will carry your water, camera, rain jacket and Lonely
Planet guide. I never pack my big pack full. I use my day
pack as my airplane carry-on, but am also able to stuff it
in the top of big pack. By the end of your trip, you'll
have bought some souveniers that will fill up that space.