If you’re going traveling and you’re planning to do traveling in a “real” way – spending a lot of time under canvas, a lot of time walking through different environments and climatic extremes, then the best advice I can give you is not to skimp on your essentials.
If you’ve ever been walking over a long distance in footwear you thought was “probably going to be fine” you may know what I‘m talking about. The same goes for cycling – and carrying stuff on your back. That little niggle on your rucksack strap, or that slightly aggravating gear clicking noise on your bike, can become all-consuming obsessions in moments of extremis.
There are two easy ways around this. One is to buy quality – the other is practice. So if you’re planning a major trip that you know will be taxing, then treat yourself to the best stuff you can afford; this means recognisable quality brands like Merrell boots, North Face jackets, Vango sleeping bags and Giant bikes, for example; whatever your preference is, just make sure you buy real quality and that you get expert advice in the buying process.
Staying warm and dry and having sufficient fuel on board (calories and hydration) are the absolute essentials. Perhaps the next most important thing is footwear. Again, stay warm and dry and as comfortable as possible about your feet. If you can get these basics in place during difficult conditions – pretty much anything else is a bonus.
Then rehearse as much and as realistically as you possibly can. Wearing things in and getting to really know your equipment inside out will pay real dividends in moments of extreme duress and under climatic extremes – when you’re at your most fatigued.
And it’s at that very moment of exhaustion that you’ll truly be glad you went for the best stuff you could afford.
