Pre-Packing, Bad Idea

[Black_Fly]

I took a long term approach to packing for my recent camping trip, adding things to packs as I thought of them weeks before leaving. Never again. Too many duplicates, excess food, tackle, personal gear.

• way too many heavy granola bars
• extra towel
• 3 lbs of nuts PLUS trail mix
• excess jerky, dehydrated meals
• useless tackle and lures

From now on, I’ll segregate stuff but not pack anything until I go. Just knowing where stuff is is important.

I took 3 bear vaults (1 for dog food). I could have trimmed it to 2 bear vaults with more judicious packing, vetting of meals.

Additionally , I missed my hatchet, a saw and knife just aren’t fast enough for collecting fuel for a twig stove. Using a rock for tent stakes is damaging. A campfire is rarely useful and nearly impossible on a windy outcrop camp. BWCA routes rarely have sweepers to saw through.

 

[scoutergriz]

i use a list- same one I've used to 40+ years, and as I think of them I add/ subtract items as needed for that particular trip and edit the list, all those items get piled in the garage or basement. A few days before the trip I go through the piles and check things off on my master list, this forces me to notice any missing or duplicate items.

 

[Brly]

Same as scoutergriz. I put a check mark next to items as I get them out and into the pile. When they go in the pack they get crossed off the list. Prevents missing something or duplicating.

 

[Modified Ottertail]

Likewise, I use a list. (Lists are how pilots and surgeons prevent simple mistakes of omission.) I start with my base template (attached—feel free to use and adapt), and for each new trip make a trip-specific copy. On the trip-specific copy, I customize, adding sheets for each trip member, adding and subtracting optional and trip-specific items as needed. The list is shared with each trip member so that they can customize and use their individual sheet and see what is expected of them to provide for the group gear. After the trip, I make notes on the trip-specific list about what was used and what wasn't, what would have been nice to have, et cetera. I update the base template as needed.

Note about the spreadsheet: "Staged" means pulled out of the gear room storage and ready to be packed in the car. "Packed" means the item is actually in the car. One of the last things I do before leaving my driveway is to review the list. I review it again before launching our boats to make sure everything needed has made it from the car to the boats.

 

[Johnny 5]

i use a list- same one I've used to 40+ years, and as I think of them I add/ subtract items as needed for that particular trip and edit the list, all those items get piled in the garage or basement. A few days before the trip I go through the piles and check things off on my master list, this forces me to notice any missing or duplicate items.

I basically use a similar procedure except my list is only about 7 years old and I will test critical equipment such as the stove and tents to ensure that they function properly and to familiarize myself with the proper and efficient use.

 

[Black_Fly]

Yeah, I should have staged everything and updated my list as I change my focus to weight reduction. In the end, I didn’t attempt a portage, but there’s just so many nuts a person can eat.

98% of my tackle goes unused. From now on, a few rapalas for various depths (no topwaters for summer trips) and some dark green tubes, jigs. For trolling, a deep down shad rap will work on everything from walleye to lakers, a husky jerk is perfect for 3-4’ depth, and a tube will troll nicely too. I can Texas rig a tube for weeds and that’s all I need. Maybe just one whopper plopper in case smallies are hitting on top. Oh, a skitter popper is great to have along, maybe a couple yellow twister tails…

See what I mean? It is sooo hard to leave stuff behind!

One factor is canoe capacity. My magic was near its limit, I’m sure. 3-40lb packs, me, and a 55lb dog, plus fishing tackle, water, it’s a wonder my canoe moved at all.

 

[Seeker]

This applies more to non-camping, but my wife will pack weeks in advance. I travel 1-2 weeks a month for work, and typically pack the night before a business trip (if for the week), sometimes even the morning of, if I leave late-morning.

For camping, I'm about the same way; pack all at once, no questions about 'did I pack such and such?' I generally know what I'm bringing every time, with a slight variation due to season: 1 of 2 outer shirts, either a light quick-dry nylon one or a heavier fleece puffier layer, and maybe a choice between knit hats and footwear for the same reason. This means I can pack my gear in about 20-30 minutes.

What takes me forever is the food... I pretty much pack every breakfast and lunch as a stand-alone, and eat dinner out of a couple large bags of dried stews, alternating one and then the other for however many days... bfast and lunch all take forever to measure out and make up... about an hour to set up a week's worth. Hate that part of it... But that I can pre-pack, and sometimes do, and then just throw it in the freezer for a day or so to keep the cheese and landjaeger fresher.

 

[Pseudonym]

I have a similar process to @Modified Ottertail. An Excel spreadsheet that I update over time. Because I often end up provisioning for big groups, I have it set up so that I can sort it through the pivot table feature and make curated packing lists. For instance, I'll list an item and then designate if it is "personal" or "group" and then I can sort the list accordingly. I establish further "categories," like "repair kit" or "kitchen wanigan," and even subcategories like "utensil roll."

I print them out and check things off manually as I go, including writing in notes for the things I still need to procure enroute. My lists are organized way in advance but my packing tends to happen at the last minute.

A printed version of my personal packing list gets used repeatedly and I end up with columns of check marks from various trips. It can be informative to see what I did or did not decide to bring, or wish I had, on any given trip depending on the latitude, time of year, etc. Very nerdy but it works for me.

 

[Jim Dodd]

I'm guilty of TOO much gear too !
The only time it really bothers me, is Portaging ! Da !

Oh Food ! I really need to cut back ! A guy shouldn't gain weight, paddling all day and portaging !

I keep wanting to pack a hammock, to lounge in at camp, a pair of small binos, and way too many socks, and clothes.

Fishing is another thing ! I love to paddle, dragging a lure. But the extra gear, to cook a meal or two, adds a lot of weight !

Going to the BWCA the end of the month, time to whittle my list, or go somewhere, I don't have to portage !

Jim

 

[clemency]

I start piling things up a few days before departure as they come to mind, but the day before I spread it all out and confirm that I have everything I need, get the stuff I don't have, and set aside the things I don't need. Then I pack it all up nice and organized, and make sure it fits..

Then I hit camp, unpack everything, and it all becomes a big jumbled mess.

 

[Blukanu]

Yup, start with a list and start staging items in my garage usually the weekend prior to the trip. Food barrel gets packed the night before departure but most food gets staged on the kitchen table.

I even lay out the clothes I’m gonna wear the night before so I can be half asleep while I get ready and throw my staged pile in the car.

Haven’t forgot anything yet but I did get to camp already and realized I left something back in the car. Doh!

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

Many of you folks are more organized than I am. I don't know Excel and don't do computer lists. To remember what to take, I made a list on a sheet of paper 20 years ago.

But now I can't remember where the sheet of paper is.

Not really a problem.

Because in my tripping prime, I was always "packed" in @Modified Ottertail's terminology. My Magic Bus van has been primarily used only for canoe trips, and it has lots of room and a clothes hanging bar. All my canoe gear, camping gear, relevant clothing, cooking gear, Duluth packs, dry bags, paddles, and even my commercial freeze-dried meals, are all only for canoeing. Therefore, none of that stuff had any business ever coming into the house other than to be washed.

So . . . I would keep virtually everything all year long in my van. I have 20 year old Mountain House packets and energy bars in there. Unless the mice have eaten them. I would even keep three different watercraft on my van roof all paddling season so I could make or change selections on the spot.



Hence, as a practical matter, all I ever had to do is get in my van and drive away. No thinking about packing or de facto packing necessary.

Moral of the story: Get an old junky vehicle dedicated to canoeing and keep everything in and on it.

 

[Keeled Over]

I suppose mine is a hybrid. I always start to pack 2 weeks before the departure. For whatever reason I start with tackle and work my way until it's barrel time the day before departure. Everything is staged in the sunroom in neat stacks on top of whatever duffel will be hauling it, and then an Excel spreadsheet is used to pack. I always use multi-colored pens in my work and continue in retirement. First pass on the list gets a blue checkmark for just being in the sunroom, and then a red check as it goes into the pack. Works pretty well for me.

 

[Robin]

But now I can't remember where the sheet of paper is

I make a list just like Glenn and can never find it again. So I make new list each trip, starting a week in advance and add/subtract things as I go. Since I’m either solo or solo with others my outfit stays the same.
I had all my gear packed for a family trip over a month ago which got canceled at the last minute, I left my packs loaded as I had another trip planned but ended up unpacking and repacking, I just didn’t feel comfortable unless I went over everything the day before departure.

 

[Chip]

I’m also a list user. One thing I do a little different is rather than use check marks to indicate each item is packed, I put a letter indicating into what the item is packed. “B” means it’s in the big blue dry bag, “AP” means it’s in the Action Packer box with kitchen stuff, and so forth.

I often call camping the act of taking 100 things into the woods and spending the whole time searching for the 1 thing you need. The list with the letter for where things are packed doesn’t go in the woods, and I still spend time looking for where I put one item or another, but I feel smug at the put in like I know where everything is.

 

[Gamma1214]

Wow. Am I the only guy that just haphazardly throws it in a bag the day I'm leaving... no lists, no sorting until I get to the first camp?

Granted, all camping gear is in one spot and I've been known to forget things (like my tent once) but I'm completely stress-free for the whole time except that one hour of shoving things in a bag.

 

[scoutergriz]

I’m also a list user. One thing I do a little different is rather than use check marks to indicate each item is packed, I put a letter indicating into what the item is packed. “B” means it’s in the big blue dry bag, “AP” means it’s in the Action Packer box with kitchen stuff, and so forth.

I often call camping the act of taking 100 things into the woods and spending the whole time searching for the 1 thing you need. The list with the letter for where things are packed doesn’t go in the woods, and I still spend time looking for where I put one item or another, but I feel smug at the put in like I know where everything is.

I do the same, but instead of letters, I color code my items- blue is freezer, green is fridge, red is garage, and brown is basement, when I actually pack I remove the color and add a check mark, the only difference now is I don't need a half-dozen colored pencils and erasers, I can just change the print color on the computer
I also have a master list on a clipboard over my workbench which harkens back to my pre-computer days- it helps me find everything for the next trip, IF I put away everything properly....

 

[PaddlingPitt]

Whenever Kathleen and I arrived home from a wilderness canoe trip, we immediately replaced/repaired any damaged gear. We then put everything away in thee different storage areas: an outdoor shed, the machine room in the basement, and a gear closet in the basement. About a week before the next trip, I gathered all the gear, and dumped it in a pile in the basement. To this pile we added clothing, the daily dehydrated suppers & breakfast bannocks, and lunch snacks. Didn’t need checklists or spread sheets. There was the gear, food, and clothing. It’s the same everytime. We could clearly see it. Simply pack it up and head north. Of course the canoe and paddles were not in the pile. We had to remember those all on our own. Never forgot them, though. After all, it was a canoe trip.

When we paddled the Yukon River in 2019, we took our dog Shadow to board him in Whitehorse. We dumped all of our gear in our friend’s garage in Whitehorse, drove our van to Dawson City, and took the bus back to Whitehorse. The next morning we loaded all our stuff in our friend’s vehicle, and drove down to the put-in. We carried the canoe down to the water, and I called for the grate, which I always loaded first, on the bottom of the canoe. What? No grate! Where could it be! Well. I had loaded the grate in the van underneath our dog’s kennel. The grate and the kennel were in Dawson City. We had to have a grate. Fortunately we were only a few minutes drive away from Canadian Tire, where Kathleen and our friend bought a new grate.

That’s the only gear setback we ever endured. Not too serious, and somewhat amusing in retrospect.