Pre Trip Prep

Welcome to our Asia Travel updates. The true test is about to begin; whether two people can travel around the world with only 18 pounds on their backs. We've spent a long time whittling our pack weight to a more manageable load; (our last trip around the world had us carting 28+ pounds each not including food or water). This time we vowed we would do better. Any item not able to stand of test of dual-functionality was banished from the pack.

Over the last six months, we've designed our own ultra-light weight sleeping bag/sleep sheet system, we've experimented with a variety of small camping stoves, and we've taken our little postal scale to almost every shoe shop in town in search of the lightest weight sandal. "Yes, it fits, " I'd say to the shoe salesman, "but what does it weigh?"

In our quest for the lightest weight back-packs, we've settled on the Kelty Vapor (capacity 3500 -4000 cubic inches) which tips the scale at a mere 2 pounds, 14 ounces. "If we trim 6 inches off that strap, maybe we can cut another 0.2 ounces." John was determined.

Short of cutting the handles off our toothbrushes and the tongues out of our shoes (don't laugh, people have done it), we are now at what we consider to be our lightest. "What, you want to add the entire Russian Guide book? Can't you just cut out the pages we'll need?" (ps - it saved us 12 ounces!)

So, tomorrow we are off. American Airlines (doing what they do best) will whisk us off to London. We plan to visit friends there for a week before heading east to Russia. The loose itinerary from there is St Petersburg, Moscow, Siberia (Lake Bikal region), Mongolia, China, Tibet and Indonesia. As is typical with our travels, we don't book any tickets in advance so we are free to do as we please, when we please without being tied to a time-table. So, don't be surprised if you get a message one day from some other remote region of the world.