As an experienced backpacker and someone who is continually looking to live their life in a more minimalist way, one of the questions I continually ask myself is whether I can reduce my luggage to a simple small backpack (let’s say with a volume of 35 liters). ). This article is a brief summary of the kind of choice that I and other backpackers have to consider when trying to make this change.
As it is, my backpack isn’t particularly big in the grand scheme of things. It is a MacPac model that carries around 55 litres. So it’s not like I’m carrying everything but the kitchen sink on my back! In fact, when I bought it several years ago, I was caught between the ideas that I don’t like to carry more luggage, but I still prefer to carry some semi-luxuries. It seemed to fit somewhere in the middle.
Since I tend to only carry the shoes I’m wearing, my bag, a camera, a book, and my clothes, it seems like the main way I could reduce my luggage would be to reduce the amount of clothing I carry. Took. This is probably the only thing I’m not ultrafrugal with when traveling. The reason is that I just feel better about myself when I feel clean and hygienic! I certainly don’t have fancy clothes, but I do have about 8 or 9 T-shirts and a change of underwear. Now to many people that may still seem small, but there is a section of people who prefer the idea of just a couple of changes of clothes. The idea is that you wear a pair, have a clean pair and probably a dirty pair. The problem for me is that assuming I want to keep myself clean, having such a small amount of clothes actually adds more stress to the travel experience by constantly having to clean them and find a place to do it. For me, that drawback far outweighs the relative comfort of traveling extremely light.
Another way to reduce the burden would be to not bring my DSLR and extra lens, but if I’m seeing the world and already have the camera in my possession, it would be a shame not to bring it! If I didn’t already have the camera, I might think differently.
Returning to the topic of clothing, the climate of the destination greatly influences how and what type of clothing is worn. For example, a place with variable temperatures and unpredictable rainfall patterns often requires me to pack a waterproof jacket and fleece. These can be quite bulky items that I can avoid carrying when going to a consistently hot country. In such a place, even daytime rain is quite irrelevant as the sun soon dries up any wet clothing.
In short, it seems that the main way to reduce my travel luggage would be simply to travel more to warmer countries that require less bulky and specialized clothing. Otherwise, considering I don’t intend to get rid of the camera just yet, it looks like I’m not going to turn into a small 35 liter backpack any time soon!