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