How To Pack A Tramping Pack

Learning how to pack a tramping pack shouldn't be a complex affair, once you have your list of core essentials and have tested out what actually gets used and remove what doesn't it's a pretty simple checkbox affair to get prepped for any trip at a moments notice. the following is a list of the tramping gear I was carrying throughout my journey on the 45^th Parallel Traverse and it should be helpful for you when it comes to planning out a gear list for your own backcountry adventures, no matter if it’s one day, or one month.

I had all the shared gear as Ben was carrying the filming equipment and I wanted to be self-sufficient for the trip. I used everything and wouldn’t change anything about the way I packed. Being a small human my main objective was to do everything I could to keep my pack weight down while not skimping on essentials, but also leaving behind luxuries.

HOW TO PACK A TRAMPING PACK - ESSENTIALS THAT I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT

• Hiking Poles, with a heavy pack and steep terrain they were the most essential kit
• Shin Gaiters for leg protection while bush bashing
• Gore-Tex Pants also for leg protection when climbing and dragging myself up through the bush and sliding down!
• Sandfly headnet
• Back Country meals, quick, easy and delicious

THE TRAMPING PACKS I USED FOR THE TRAVERSE

• Osprey 65L Pack
• Osprey 30L Pack
• Ultimate Direction Hydration Vest

MY 65L PACK CONTENTS

This is my West Coast to Wye Creek, Queenstown pack and it weighed in at roughly 17kg when loaded up with four days worth of food.

TENT

• Rab tent

SLEEP SYSTEM

• Klimet Rollmat

• Sea to Summit sleeping bag

• Sea to Summit pillow

CLOTHING

• Puffer Jacket

• Gore Tex Jacket

• Gore Tex Longs

• 1 Longsleeve Thermal (for hut/tent wear)

• Sun Hoodie (long sleeved active layer)

• 3 pairs of sock - 1 wear, 1 spare, hut/tent socks

• 1 pair of shorts (worn every day changed at gear drops)

• 1 crop top (worn every day changed a gear drops)

• 1 T Shirt (worn every day changed at gear drops)

• Long tights

• Three pairs of gloves - 1 for night/hut, 1 heavyweight (used once), 1 light for bush bashing

• 1 pair of Inov8 trail shoes (worn every day)

• Shin and ankle gaiters (worn every day)

FOOD & COOKING

• JetBoil Micromo + 1-2 small gas canisters

• 1L Thermomix silicone ziplock bag for mixing my Back Country Cuisine freeze dried meals in

• 1 sea to summit collapsible cup

• 1 spork

• Each day 4 Back Country Meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert) plus 2 snacks = around 900gm/day and 1 Epic Coffee bag

• GU Energy gels 2-3 per leg

• REVVIES Caffeine strips 2-3 per leg

TOILETRIES

• Small trowel, toilet paper, hand sanitiser, zip lock bag and blue scented nappy bag (for anything that needed packing out), small natural soap and half chux cloth, toothbrush and paste, comb, nail clippers

MEDICATIONS

• Paracetamol and ibuprofen

• Antihistamine spray

• Prescription Antibiotics (prescribed in case anything came up in Fiordland), used when a number of small cuts were not healing and were looking and smelling infected!

SAFETY GEAR

• First aid kit (small)

• Garmin InReach

OTHER

• 2 headlamps (rechargeable) and one spare set of batteries

• SunSaver Powerpack and solar panel

• 2 charging cables

• Mobile phone

• Sunscreen and SPF lip balm

• Kindle E-Reader

• 1L Nalgene Bottle

• Water purification tabs

MY 30L PACK CONTENTS

This is my overnight, lightweight, fastpack option for Queenstown to Bannockburn leg.

SLEEP SYSTEM

• Black Diamond Bivy

• Sea to Summit sleeping bag

• Sea to Summit pillow

CLOTHING

• Puffer Jacket

• Gore Tex Pants

• Gore Tex Jacket

• Sun Hoodie (long sleeved active layer)

• 1 pair of shorts (worn every day changed at gear drops)

• 1 crop top (worn every day changed a gear drops)

• 1 T Shirt (worn every day changed at gear drops)

• 1 pair of gloves

• 1 pair spare socks

• 1 pair of Inov shoes (worn every day)

• Shin and ankle gaiters (worn every day)

FOOD, NO COOKING REQUIRED

• 1L Thermomix silicone ziplock bag for mixing BCC in

• 1 spork

• 3 Back Country Cuisine Meals (cold rehydrate to save carrying the Jetboil and gas)

• GU Roctane Energy drink (approx 1200 calories)

• GU Energy gels

• Snacks

• REVVIES Caffeine strips

TOILETRIES

• Toilet paper, hand sanitiser, zip lock bag and blue scented nappy bag (for anything that needed packing out), toothbrush and paste, comb, nail clippers

MEDICATIONS

• Paracetamol and ibuprofen

• Antihistamine spray

SAFETY GEAR

• First aid kit (small)

• Garmin InReach

OTHER

• 1 headlamp (rechargeable) and one spare set of batteries

• SunSaver Powerpack

• 2 charging cables

• Mobile phone

• Sunscreen and SPF lip balm

• Kindle E-Reader

• 1L Nalgene Bottle

• Water purification tabs

MY 15L HYDRATION PACK

This was for the two nights from Bannockburn to Oamaru.

CLOTHING

• Puffer Jacket

• 1 pair of gloves

FOOD, NO COOKING

• Food was brought along the way at cafes!

• 750ml Water to go bottle on my bike

• GU Roctane Energy drink (approx 1200 calories)

• GU Energy gels

• Snacks

• REVVIES Caffeine strips

TOILETRIES

• Toothbrush and paste, comb

MEDICATIONS

• Paracetamol and ibuprofen

• Antihistamine spray

SAFETY GEAR

• First aid kit (small)

• Garmin InReach

OTHER

• 1 headlamp (rechargeable) and one spare set of batteries

• Mobile phone

• Sunscreen and SPF lip balm

• Kindle E-Reader

I was a complete dirtbag and wore the same set of clothing everyday of each leg, with the longest being worn for eight days! When wearing the same gear bathing was essential, and for that I had a small nature safe bar of soap and a Chux cloth!

We had seven gear drops all up with extra food and gear along the way. We helicoptered two drops into Fiordland and a third drop was taken in by boat. The rest of the drops were made by our awesome friends who met us along the way and ferried our gear from one drop to another.

I feel this is a pretty good starting point for learning how to pack a tramping pack for any trip, tramping, hunting, fishing - the basics all stay the same and then you can just tweak it how you see fit!