MyOAN! Backpacking Checklist

On any trip in the great outdoors you have to plan ahead and make sure you leave nothing behind. Our list is a starting point for the thinking process in preparation for any trip. Make and modify your lists based on:

• How long the trip will be
• Can you share common gear
• Weather conditions (but be prepared for unexpected conditions, too!)
• Weight of the pack after you finish loading i
• What doesn't fit into the pack as you finish loading it that's necessary
• Sleeping Bag or light weight blankets depending on time of the year.

So print the list in a printer friendly format if it looks helpful to you and then customize it to your personal needs/preferences. But don't take all of the following stuff!

Emergency gear:
- mirror & whistle
- spare glasses
- waterproof/windproof matches
- compass/maps
- pliers& picture wire
- duct tape
- rubber bands
- tent repair kit
- ThermaRest repair kit
- seam sealer
- sewing kit
- spare cord locks
- emergency blanket
- backpack repair pieces
- spare batteries
- Swiss Army knife
- 50' cord/rope
- flashlight & headband
- garbage bags (2) (tie type) (pack covers, etc.)

First Aid Supplies
- Wilderness Medicine (First Aid book)
- Bacitracin ointment
- Kaopecate caplets
- gauze
- Ben Gay
- Band Aids
- Aka Seltzer
- adhesive tape
- safety pins
- tweezers
- cough drops
- eye cup
- moleskin/molefoam
- Q-tips
- anti-gas pills
- snake bite kit
- Advil or Tylenol
- lip balm
- nail clippers
- nose spray
- sun block (25)
- thermometer
- WashNDries
- Ace bandages
- AfterBite
- antihistimine drugs (Diphenhydramine 50 mg) or Benadryl

If you fish:
- fishing pole/lures
- Teflon fry pan
- filet knife

Health/personal toiletries:
- PUR water filter
- water bottles (3)
- toothbrush/toothpaste
- deodorant/soap
- pack towels (2)
- trowel/TP
- DEET repellent
- Iodine tablets
- eyeglass strap
- hand lotion
- clothes pins
- medications/vitamins

Cooking:
- cook set
- pot lifter
- bamboo spatulas
- stick matches
- Sierra cup
- utensils
- stove
- spare gas/ cartridge
- white kitchen trash bags (for toting out your garbage)

Entertainment:
- deck of cards
- steno pad/pen/pencil
- book(s) to read
- binoculars

Sleeping gear:
- tent/ground cloth
- sleeping bag
- pillow
- ThermaRest mattress
- candle lantern/spare candles (2)

Photography:
- camera
- Panoramic camera
- spare camera batteries
- film/unipod

Clothing:
- GoreTex top & bottom
- sweatshirt with hood
- sweatpants
- hiking shorts
- spare pants
- T-shirts
- GoreTex rain hat
- kerchiefs
- camp shoes
- hiking boots
- socks (hiking & regular)
- underwear

Food
- freeze-dried food
- vegetables
- tortillas
- raisins
- tuna fish/bread/crackers
- apples
- hot chocolate
- licorice bites
- mayo packets
- soup
- jelly beans/trail mix

How much and what should you carry in the pack?
Are you going out FOR exercise? Then carrying extra stuff is part of the "workout." Are you going out to have a good time and take it easy? Then perhaps certain luxury items are just that -- a luxury. Only you can decide and it usually takes several backpack trips to help you in the thought process. No one else can dictate what you should or shouldn't take.

How much food do you want to eat? How involved will food preparation be? Or how much food do you want to carry? Are you a minimalist or extremist? You probably don't even know and won't know until you've done a few trips.

How many miles will you be covering each day? How often are you willing to stop and rest? How flat is the terrain? What condition are you in? How many are in your group to share common whole-group items? What will the weather probably be like? What may the weather possibly be like? Will you encounter ice? Or a river or creek to ford? There are far too many variables to dictate right and wrong.

Look at the checklist above again and scratch out stuff you obviously don't need or don't yet possess. Add things you want. Then see if it all fits in your pack. If not (and it probably won't the 1st time!) remove items until it all fits. Then try it on. Too heavy? Take out some more. Eventually you'll come to a mental/physical balance where what is in the pack is manageable and your mind can accept what is left out. And then as you backpack, keep a written list of stuff you should have brought or should have left behind. Experience helps me decide what to take or leave behind on any particular backpack trip.