gear. part 2. • 15 comments • Remember the Gregory z30 backpack from our first gear post? Well, it turns out that it's just not big enough. As much as we love the back-venting system, it reduces much-needed space. So, we have exchanged both bags (the Gregory and the MEC Brio 60) for: MEC Brio 50 Plus Backpack and the MEC Brio 70 Backpack Compared to the other backpacks they sell at Mountain Equipment Co-op, the value for these is amazing. With a combined space of 120 litres I think we should have all the room we'll need. Coglan's Emergency Blanket - This 'blanket' cost less than 2 dollars and it's size, when folded up, is slightly bigger than a credit card. On Sight Universal Pouch - We purchased several of these pouches. Other travelers swear by packing cubes. These are essentially the same thing. They allow you to organize items separately so that you're not rifling through your whole bag for one item. We purchased different sizes and colors as well as some that have plastic instead of mesh. MEC Travel Pouch - A similar idea to the last item but with more organizational fun. MEC Document Holder - The title explains it all. Tissue On The Go! - This cost just over a dollar and is really tiny. We're also taking a full roll because every travel book/blog we ever read said that it's an essential item. Charmin Toilet Seat Covers - If people weren't so disgusting, these wouldn't really be necessary. However, we have a feeling we won't be using these anyway... better to get our quad muscles ripped. Transcend External Hard Drive: - We had all of our previous photos on two computers and thought that it didn't matter if one broke. When my old Macbook's hard drive broke, we realized that our pictures from Tokyo were only on that computer. Although we lost several great photos, we had them on Facebook, and had given some CDs to family so we were able to salvage most of them. This thing will prevent that loss from happening again. It's encased in rubber and is apparently drop-tested using US Military standards. We went with the 500 GB capacity in hopes that it will accommodate the ridiculous amount of photos we will most likely take. MEC Pocket Dry Bag-We're planning on using this to keep our camera dry between uses on rainy days. Silk Sleeping Bag Liner: -These have come highly recommended by other around-the-world travellers as a way of avoiding suspect sheets and bed bugs. CLIF Energy Bars: - As far as energy bars go, the flavors of the CLIF brand aren't so bad. The added bonus: they fill you up for hours. Tekk Cutlery: -Small and cheap. I'm sure we'll use these at some point. SuperSak Laundry Bag: -33 cents well spent! SweetWater Purifier Solution: - We were given a great tip about this stuff from the guy from MEC. We were considering the steri-pen but read some bad reviews online. Everyone tells us we're better off drinking beer, but Mina isn't a fan. If any of you have had any pleasant experiences in Mexico City - we would love to hear them! Particularly a nice place to stay. Yep, this means we're finally heading out of Toronto. Stay tuned for status updates! photos from mec.ca
