Resfeber (n.): the restless race of the traveller’s heart before the journey begins, when anxiety and anticipation are tangled together…
What a perfect word for what I experience before every trip, big or small and something that reaches a feverish pitch as the departure date closes in. A time when excitement and stress are matted together.
Before every trip, I spend days researching and agonising over what to pack and shop; ever concerned about missing out on something and packing for all possible situations. Sounds serious? You bet it is.
Worst of all, after all the meticulous prep, you still get the feeling of being, to borrow a phrase, “overpacked and ill-equipped” on the trip.
This time I am really feeling the pressure because coming up is a 10 day “Girl’s Only” trip that a dear friend and I are undertaking, to a destination that has been on our bucket list for ever – Ladakh!
What Ladakh brings to my mind is beautiful, never-ending vistas; stark mountains, lush valleys and indigo lakes and tons of culture. What it also brings forth is harsh conditions that can truly challenge you. After all, this is a high altitude desert. So the questions, when packing for Ladakh, are many and the choices, tricky. Are windcheaters a must in July or a fleece is better? Waterproof shoes or regular keds? What about a balaclava and arm sleeves? Binoculars? Tough. Especially when my goal is to fit everything into one rucksack and a camera bag.
So with the mantra of “Pack Light, Pack Right” in mind, we have drawn up a detailed packing list for Ladakh below. And so that we may all learn from our mistakes, we will revisit this list and assess what we needlessly carried and what we missed out on, in our follow up blog!
Additionally, this time we have also tried to minimize our upfront gear shopping to a minimum. Instead, we have greedily tapped into Bragpacker’s rental inventory to take with us gear that we would normally consider too tempting but also too pricey and indulgent! 🙂
So, here’s the list and a pic of the gear lined up:
| Items | Source | Remarks |
| Luggage | ||
| Rucksack | Bragpacker | Deuter Aircontact – 55 lit |
| Bagpack/Suitcase/ Hybrid | Bragpacker | Deuter Helion – 60 lit |
| Day Backpack | Bragpacker | Deuter Speed Lite – 15 lit |
| Transport Cover | Bragpacker | Dueter |
| Camera bag | Bragpacker | |
| Packing Cubes | Bragpacker | Dueter |
| Clothes | ||
| Thermals (Upper & Lower) | Bought | |
| Leggings/ Jeggings | Already Owned | |
| Jeans | Already Owned | |
| Full sleeve tees | Already Owned | |
| Half sleeve tees | Already Owned | |
| Knits/ Light Sweaters | Already Owned | |
| Jacket with outer windcheater shell | Bought | Northface Triclimate |
| Night Wear | Already Owned | |
| Woollen Headband | Bought | |
| Woollen Beanie | Borrowed | |
| Cap | Already Owned | Baseball cap |
| Woollen Gloves | Already Owned | |
| Woollen Socks | Already Owned | |
| Regular Socks | Already Owned | |
| Stole/ Muffler | Already Owned | |
| Protective Arm Sleeve | Borrowed | |
| Travel Towel | Bought | Microfiber |
| Photography | ||
| DSLR with memory card | Bragpacker | Nikon D90 |
| Telephoto Lens | Bragpacker | Nikkor 18- 135 f4-5.6 |
| Prime Lens | Bragpacker | 50mm f1.4 |
| Tripod | Bragpacker | Yopro/ Manfrotto |
| Selfie Stick | Bragpacker | StuffCool |
| Camera Remote | Bragpacker | To capture the night sky |
| Travel Essentials | ||
| Flashlight with spare batteries | Bragpacker | Led Lenser |
| Safety Alarm | Bought | iscream |
| Pepper Spray | Bought | The Bodyguard Spray |
| Pocket Knife | Bragpacker | Victorinox |
| Sunglasses | Already Owned | |
| Photo ID – Original, Copies | ||
| Photo ID – Attested Copy | ||
| Garbage/Plastic Bags – Wet Clothes/ Trash | ||
| Books/ Kindle | Already Owned | |
| Thermos | Bragpacker | |
| Car Charger/ Adaptor | Bragpacker | Scosche PowerFuse |
| Portable Umbrella | Bragpacker | |
| Portable Blue Tooth Speaker | Bragpacker | JBL |
| Footwear | ||
| Keds | Already owned | |
| Slip On Sneakers | Already owned | |
| Flip Flops | Already owned | |
| Toiletries | ||
| Sunscreen – SPF 50 | ||
| Body Lotion | ||
| Face Cream | ||
| Foot Cream/ Vaseline | ||
| Lip Balm – SPF | ||
| Shampoo & Conditioner | ||
| Shower Gel | ||
| Face Wash | ||
| Toilet Paper | ||
| Toothbrush | ||
| Toothpaste | ||
| Mouthwash | ||
| Wet Wipes | ||
| Dry Face Tissues | ||
| Sanitizer | ||
| Deodorant | ||
| Soap Strips | ||
| Cotton Wipes | ||
| Food/ Misc. | ||
| Dried Fruit | ||
| Premix tea | ||
| Granola Bars | ||
| Chocolate/ Books to distribute | ||
| Medicines | Don’t forget the Diamox |
Within this list, we have chosen our gear carefully for the following attributes:
- Apparel: functional and comfortable, easy to re-use, suited to layering
- Luggage: Rugged but comfortable, Roomy enough to fit everything but easy to carry
- Photography Equipment: good enough to do justice to the place without being too bulky (We have some aspirations to come back with a whole lot of killer photos and better photography skills)
- Gadgets/ Essentials: functional to provide utility and entertainment but most importantly protection for two women travellers
Note that this list is meant for a regular touristy visit to Ladakh and it’s major sights. No major hiking, camping, biking etc, which would require additional specialized gear.
In part 2 (link here), which we will post after the trip, we will review each item on a scale of 0 to 5; 0 being “Didn’t Use At All” and 5 being “Lifesaver/Used multiple times”. We will also list things we missed carrying and reviews of certain products.
Ladakh, here we come!