Have you been dreaming about Into the Wild? Wondering what you would take with you for six months in the wilderness? Or even what foods you might eat out there?
Well, I’m no Christopher McCandless, but I am your lady.
While I’m not setting fire to my passport or any money*, I am wandering north. Kinda in the wild. And I can help with some of those questions. And you are more than welcome to live those dreams vicariously through me.
Good deal, hey?

THE LOW DOWN

Here’s the general spread:

I’ll try to break it down into easier categories to wrap your head around, but just don’t expect it to match up with the picture nicely. Actually, how about you just think of it like a find-a-word, but you find the gear? 😉

BIG STUFF

• Pack: REI Traverse 65L (Yep, I’m stoked it’s kinda pink. I’m all about the happy colours this trip – that was my favourite part about the Italians and Frank: spotting them down the track or in town!)
• Tent: Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL2
• Sleeping bag: Enlightened Equipment Revelation
• Mattress: Therm-a-rest NeoAir XLite
• Ground sheet: Tyvek
• Ukulele: 2014 Prague trip special

CLOTHES/WEARABLES

• Shoes: Salomon Speedcross 4
• Hiking clothes: Kmart bike shorts x1, Kmart singlet x1 (recognise that blue from my 2016 Camino? You should! Same top, still going strong!), Kmart sports bra (Kmart’s got the goods)
• Hat: Amada Monteiro gifted me this green beauty a few years back
• Camp clothes: lightweight happy/floral shorts, white tshirt
• Socks: Injiji running socks
• Thermals: Kathmandu
• Rain jacket: North Face
• Warmer jacket: Salomon reversible puff jacket

ELECTRONICS

• Phone: iPhone 7
• Portable charger: Anker Powercore 20100mAh
• eReader: Kobo
• Light: Lighthouse Micro Flash
• GPS: Spot Gen3

ODDS & ENDS

• Stove: Jetboil Minimo
• Water sterilisation: SteriPen
• Knife: one of Dad’s good ones? (Check out www.bushgear.com.au for the best lightweight, durable, trusted selection of camping and bush gear! Plus, give me a shout out and you might get an extra sweet deal!)
• Spoon: Sea to Summit
• Poo shovel: Wild Earth (yes this is a thing – I have to dig a hole each time. And carry out used toilet paper in ziplock bags. All fun and games, hey?!)
• Pillow: local dollar store special

“PERSONAL”

• Towels: microfibre cloths – Have you heard of a ‘bandana bath’? Neither had I. Basically, it’s a sponge bath. Which is all I get between towns and rivers – now remember, my first two weeks are in the desert. Do the math… or don’t. I’ll use one wet cloth for the sponge down, and the other to dry off. #hikerlife
• Sunscreen: of course!
• ‘That time of the month’: I know you’re wondering. I would be wondering, if I were you. May be too much information, but consider me now acquainted with the Diva Cup. You can google it if you want to, but you probably don’t want to (trust me). Also not as bad as imagined!
• Detergent: Dr Bronner’s (Granted, can’t use it in my bandana baths – how would I get there soap off? – both will wash my clothes out in towns, and doubles as shampoo!)
• Journal: it’s a personalised leather bound brick, but it’s beautiful and was a gift and I carry it gladly
• Love letters from home
• Half a toothbrush (saving grams!)
• doTERRA oils: Lavender and On Guard (lavender oil is GOLD and On Guard is my immune booster for lack of green food)
• Pills: ibuprofen, antihistamine, Naprogesic, a couple codeine etc
• Vegemite ✔️

And of course, VICK’S!

Vick’s Vaporub is just about my favourite belonging, even in the real world. I have to apologise. I was planning on giving you a run down of my food, but I’m beat, and we’re up at 5AM tomorrow morning to hit the road for the border and get started. Here’s a photo, anyway:

Maybe one day I’ll run you through it in more detail, but I kinda set this one out better with brekky up top, lunch/snacks in the middle and dinner down bottom.

Oh, that dark jar to the right there?

That’s red wine.
#necessities

And because I finished this off quicker than I imagined (quicker being the content, not the time it took me to detail it all above), here’s my stoked face with those scrap cloths for my sponge baths:

Yay for colour coding!

and YAY FOR TOMORROW!

*I didn’t want to gloss over this quickly, but even more so I didn’t want to leave it unsaid: a huuuuuge thank you to those who have donated and supported me in this adventure.
There have been many little costs I didn’t count on, and already your help has been such a blessing. I am so so grateful and cannot thank you enough ❤️
Watch your letterboxes for postcards – I’ll have to send the extra goodies when I get back to the homeland but I promise they’re coming!