It's a new life. I turn 46 tomorrow and on Monday I will fly to Panama to crew on a 33' sailboat. They only allow 25 lbs of luggage on the small connector plane that will take me to the dock where I will meet my ship's captain. What do you take when you're leaving for the second half of your life with the possibility of never returning to life on land?
The old saying is true. You can't take it with you! But I want to.... I have been doing long distance hiking since 2002 and so I am familiar with weight limits, but I always could get mail drops. I don't know where I'm going, so that kinda makes mail drops out of the question. Then, I've always travelled by car or truck. I've not had to deal with customs except on vacations, where they practically hold your hand through the whole process! Well, there was that one time coming back to the US after finishing the Pacific Crest Trail. I bought a roast beef and cheese sandwich and had a bite left when the bus crossed into the US. The customs official really gave me the what for. Apparently there was a mad cow disease outbreak! (They weren't rushing me to the hospital!!!)
OK, so back to the question. What do I pack? Well, my pack of course. That's what I know. I won't feel comfortable with a duffle after so many years of backpacking. Then I want shelter and a sleeping bag. How can I take a bulky bag? I love the compactness of goose down. But will it survive the obvious moisture issues of living at sea? And for shelter? I probably should not be worried about it, but since I have a Hennesy Hammock with mosquito netting and tarp, I thought it would hang nicely on a deserted island between palm trees!
Clothing! again a hard choice. The captain suggests I bring lightweight, quick drying, light colored, but not white clothing! Perfect...I already have that in my hiking wardrobe. But I got this ingenious idea of wearing several layers so as to get more options and not use up my luggage weight. I'll wear my underwear, tight shorts, running shorts, and zip off hiking pants. My sports bra, sleeveless top, surfer top, and long sleeved hiking shirt all at the same time! Maybe if I can get away with it, my windbreaker and wool sweater too! Then my spare hiking set, swimsuit and dress clothes can be tucked away with my new snazzy crocs in my carry on.
Speaking of shoes, I was told the deck is Teak and it's not a new boat, so I can bring my trail runners! Yay! But I got white soled crocs with the heel strap just in case. I may not always be on this boat. After all, It's a long way around the world and it might take more than one boat to get there! And I may go around again and again anyways. Maybe even on my own boat someday!
So then the survivalist in me wants to take the cool little sea-land-air kit my mom found me a long time ago. Turns out the most important parts of those kits are not allowed in carry on baggage anyways. So of all the cool knives, hatchets, and multi-tools I could take with me, I'm basically down to just a GPS and a light strobe from my whitewater kayak days. Oh, and the SPOT! The satellite personal transponder. I'm thinking...I have so little knowledge of what my daily life will be like, but...I'm thinking I'll set it off everyday at noon when at sea just like the navigators always took noon sights with their sextants. (That's gonna be cool to learn too!) So check below for the link to see where I'm at!
The last concern is can I fit my computer in! I'd sure like to have it. Phone service could be far and few between. But how often will I find wifi? How fast will it upload pictures? Yeah, so much to know! So little info. So little time. As I will be leaving it all behind, I've even thought of not taking the computer and just using what I can find along the way. It's almost as if I am just now abandoning ship. I truly am starting out on a life raft. Having only grabbed a 25 lb survival grab bag and making do with whatever comes my way. My first rescue boat waits at the end of 48 hours of airplanes, hotels, and taxis in a foreign country that strangely uses US dollars and Panama Balboa coins.
Cheers,
Jellybean
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