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Trip Prep

The Route:

So after deciding I wanted to go to Patagonia, I picked up a map to determine a route. I knew I had about two months I wanted to spend abroad and working my way up the West coast of South America seemed reasonable.

Where to go in Patagonia was perfectly laid out to me in a coffee shop in Brooklyn thanks to my Chilean friend Nicolas who used to be a tour guide in Torres Del Paine. From there, I tentatively lined up Argentina to Chile to Bolivia to Peru to Ecuador and Colombia.

Packing:

After my last day of work, I gave myself one week to prep to leave. Why? Because I make everything more difficult than it should be. Thankfully Amazon Prime and REI made this doable.

I knew I wanted to pack carry on size to avoid checking bags and breaking my back. That being said, I had to pack for freezing temperatures in Patagonia to beach weather in Colombia. Slightly difficult to do in a backpack. I have a 40 liter Osprey backpack from Thailand a few years ago that is carry on size so I decided to buy a 20 liter daypack to attach to it. Unfortunately, Osprey has changed their locking systems in the last 3 years so mine don't actually attach, but a few straps do the trick.

Here's my packing list:

  • 1 Short Sleeve Dress (for times I have to be presentable like dinner in Buenos Aires)

  • 1 Skirt

  • 2 Pairs of Shorts (1 for exercise)

  • 1 Pair of Jeans

  • 2 Pairs of Travel/Hiking Pants

  • 1 Long Underwear Bottoms

  • 1 Long Underwear Top

  • 2 Tank Tops (great as base layers or alone for warm weather)

  • 2 Exercise Tanks (1 Smartwool)

  • 3 Short Sleeve T-Shirts

  • 1 Long Sleeve T-Shirt

  • 1 Outer Layer Shell Jacket (for wind and rain)

  • 1 Zip-Up Lightweight Fleece

  • 1 Lightweight Packable Down Jacket

  • 1 Beanie/Wool Hat

  • 1 Sun Hat/ Baseball Cap

  • 1 Pair of Lightweight Waterproof Trailrunners (can be used for regular exercise and hikes - recommend Salomon Speedcross 3)

  • 1 Pair of Walking Shoes (I chose Toms because they are almost weightless)

  • 1 Pair of Sandals

  • 4 Pairs of Socks

  • 7 Pairs of Underwear

  • 1 Regular Bra + 2 Sports Bras

  • 1 Bathing Suit

  • 1 Pair of Sunglasses

  • 1 GoPro + Accessories (Selfie stick, tripod, clip - I bought a whole bag full for $30 from amazon) + Charger + SIM Cards

  • 1 Travel Journal + Pen

  • 1 Book

  • 1 Water Bottle

  • 1 Sleeping Mask

  • 1 Portable Charger (10,000 MHz)

  • 1 Travel Adaptor

  • 1 Medium Waterproof Sack

  • 1 Backpack Raincover

  • 1 Headphones + Charger

  • 1 iPhone + Charger

  • 1 First Aid Kit (i.e. safety pin, antiseptic, lots of bandaids, tweezers, advil, pepto, alka seltzer, motion sickness, arnica)

  • Toiletries + Makeup

  • 1 Sports watch (non expensive looking)

  • 3 Prescriptions: travelers sickness, malaria, and attitude sickness

  • 1 Headlamp

  • 1 Makeshift Clothesline + Laundry Sheets

  • 1 Solar Powered Charger

  • 1 Sleeping Bag Liner for potential camping or sketchy hostels (overkill?)

  • Water Filter + Iodine Tablets (overkill?)

Note: 97% of the listed above are black because it matches with everything and I'm coming from Manhattan so it's all I own really.

Apps:

  • Google Maps (download areas offline in advance)

  • Fancy Units (works for currency and the metric system because we Americans are dumb) or XE Currency

  • Google Translate (download language offline)

  • Google Drive or Dropbox (my important docs available on mobile)

  • TripIt (my itinerary in one place) or Google Trips

  • Booking.com

  • TripAdvisor

  • Audible + Podcasts

  • Apple Music or Spotify

  • GoPro Capture

  • WhatsApp

  • World Nomads Travel Insurance

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