Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Weigh down the pack.
A quality outdoors store will have weights (sandbags) to help sim-
ulate carrying a load in your pack. It is important to try out a weighted pack so you can really
know what it feels like.
Packing Aids and Organization
Living out of a backpack or suitcase can be frustrating—especially when you move locations
every few days. Constantly packing and repacking everything is not only annoying, but it
also leads to wrinkled clothing. Fortunately, there are methods to make it a little less pain-
less. In this section, you'll find advice on how to correctly pack your backpack so you can find
everything you need as easily as possible.
PACKING CUBES AND PACKING FOLDERS
The biggest annoyance of living out of a backpack is gaining access to the contents of your
bag. Having to pull everything out of your backpack to reach something at the bottom of your
pack is one of those things every traveler hates. That's why organization is essential. I've found
that packing cubes and packing folders are a great way to keep all your stuff as organized as
possible.
Packing cubes help keep clothes organized.
A
packing cube
is simply a small lightweight mesh cube/container that you pack your
clothes in. There are different sized cubes and you generally pack clothing groups in separate
cubes. For example, pack all your socks and underwear in one cube and t-shirts in another.
This makes it easy to know exactly where to find whatever it is you're looking for.
To get the most out of packing cubes, you need to learn how to roll your clothes. This is
really simple and it will cut down on wrinkling. For tops, place them face down, fold arms
back so it looks like a long rectangle, fold lengthwise, and roll up. This same technique can be
done on skirts, underwear, and other garments. I prefer to pack pants, button-up shirts, and
sweaters with packing folders because they do a better job of preventing wrinkles.
ORGANIZE YOUR TOILETRIES
