Adventure, Fitness

Wild Camping Microadventure Kit List

After hiking around the Isle of Wight with my bestie, I was so impressed with my kit, I’ve written it down for future reference.
We walked 71 miles over 3 days and wild camped for 3 nights, carrying everything we needed, including all camping gear and food.

The list looks enormous but this picture shows everything.

I have put the brands I use next to the item.
You can copy and print it for your reference.
There is also an explanation about the items at the bottom of the page if you’re interested.

Back Pack
Total Bag Weight: 12.5kg

  • Backpack – 5.11 Rush 24 Multicam 
  • Backpack Pouch – 5.11 6.6 Pouch because everything didn’t quite fit in
  • Elastic Band – attached to top handle
  • Carabiner – good quality, attached to strap
  • Waterproof Phone case – Lifeproof Fre case
  • Small red bicycle bike light – bog-standard, cheap and cheerful

Bedroom

  • 6’ x 4’ Tarp – £1.79 from a hardware store
  • Sleeping Bag – Vango Planet 50 
  • Roll Mat – Thermarest Neoair XLite
  • Military bivvy bag – eBay
  • 15m Paracord
  • Tent pegs x 6 – Alloy Y from Millets

Wardrobe

This includes the outfit I was wearing

  • Salomon Mudstone GTX Walking Boots
  • Sunglasses
  • Base Layer leggings – Columbia
  • Leggings – workout style
  • Running shorts
  • Tech T-Shirt
  • Long sleeve merino wool t-shirt – Icebreaker
  • Long sleeve white tech t-shirt (for sun protection) – cheap one
  • Underwear x 3
  • Sports bra/crop top
  • Sports bikini – Freya
  • Pre talced socks x 3 – Darn Tough
  • Waterproof hat – Sealskinz
  • Buff Original – cut in half to give me 2, used as headbands
  • Buff UV Visor (for sun protection)
  • Waterproof Jacket – Inov-8 RaceElite 140 Stormshell

Bathroom

  • Toothbrush – travel size
  • Toothpaste – travel size
  • Mini Soap – packed in a plastic resealable bag
  • Small travel towel – Eurohike
  • Tissue packets x 2
  • Suncream SPF 50
  • Talcum powder – travel size
  • Gurneys Goo
  • Compeed blister plasters – mixed sizes
  • Antibacterial gel – travel size
  • First Aid Kit – travel size
  • Paracetamol
  • Ibroprofen

Kitchen

  • Water Filter Bottle or Straw – Water To Go
  • Water Bottle 600ml – CamelBak Eddy
  • Cook Set – EuroHike Trek Solo
  • Pocket Stove – MSR PocketRocket
  • Gas Cartridge 240g (stored in cook set)
  • Cutlery – Lifeventure Ellipse
  • Windproof Matches – Millets
  • Windproof Lighter – Millets
  • Peppermint & Nettle Tea Bags x 10 (in plastic resealable bag with lighter stored in cook set)

Pantry

Kitchen Drawer

  • Purse
  • Ordnance Survey Maps – printed from Premium subscription
  • Compass – Silva
  • Map Case
  • Knife – Opinel No.8 Outdoor – whistle built in too
  • Cable Ties x 10
  • Medium sandwich bags x 4 (in plastic resealable bag) (good for rubbish)
  • Supermarket carrier bag – good for laundry
  • Gaffa tape – half used roll, or some wrapped around a marker pen or old credit card to save space
  • Black plastic bag – stuffed into gaffa tape roll
  • Pencil
  • Biro
  • Mini Sharpie marker
  • Headtorch – LED Lenser
  • Spare batteries x 6 (in plastic resealable bag)
  • Striker – Light My Fire
  • Action Camera – Go Pto
  • Spare action camera battery – Go Pro (in plastic resealable bag)
  • Battery Pack x 2 – Lifeproof
  • Plug adaptor – iPhone
  • Micro USB charging wire – a short wire
  • Lightening to micro USB adaptor – Apple

Storage:

  • 1 x 8L dry bag – Exped- for wardrobe clothes
  • 1 x 5L dry bag – Exped – for wardrobe accessories
  • 1 x 3L dry bag – Exped – for kitchen drawer electricals

Notes about Backpack

  • For 3 days, I found a 37-litre backpack big enough. It was a bit of a squeeze but anything bigger would have meant I’d found extra things to take and it would have been heavier.
  • The 5.11 pouches are super useful to attach to the outside of the pack using the molle web. It’s also useful for quick access items.
  • Elastic bands are carabiners are useful for any adventure.
  • The small red bicycle light is used for safety and visibility. Attach it to the back of your pack and use at night.

Notes about Bedroom

  • The sleeping bag stuff sack is lined with fleece, so when turned inside out and stuffed with clothes, it can be used as a pillow. Genius!  The sleeping bag has an insect net over the face and feet and impregnated with an insect repellent and anti-bacterial treatment.
  • I pack the sleeping bag and roll mat inside the bivvy bag, then pack it inside my bag so everything stays dry and protected.

Notes About the Wardrobe

  • I used to wear expensive kit for my adventures but since doing the Great Wall of China marathon in low budget gear, I’m no longer fussed about branded stuff. Most of the items I took on this adventure were given to me, in the sale or I’d owned for some time.  The only bit of kit worth spending money on are boots and a waterproof jacket.

Plastic Resealable Bags
These are great to ration food portions in. They can be resealed and are watertight.  Once a shop-bought packet of peanuts for instance, is opened, it’s hard to store them and there’s a potential for them to spill, making a mess and losing calories to the depths of your pack.  I ration my morale-boosting treats into 100-150g bags (sometimes even writing the nutritional stats on. I know, that’s geeky) so I know how much I have eaten and it stops me from being a pig.


Notes About the Pantry

Nuts seem to be the highest source of calories versus weight by far!  A bag of nuts compared to a bag of dried fruit wins every time on fats, carbs, protein, and calories plus there’s no sugar crash. It’s easy to want to fuel on sugar but I think nuts are a winner.

The freeze-dried Be Well Expedition Food was delicious and I will definitely buy it again!  It was my first time trying it and I was very impressed.
Other brands I like are Lyo and Firepot Outdoor Foods.

Dry Bags

  • Clothes and electrical devices get packed into dry bags. Everything else is packed into the compartments of my bag so it’s easy to find.
  • Things like cable ties, the elastic band, bags and gaffa tape have no specific use apart from just being useful in certain situations.  It’s always handy to carry these wherever you go.

What would I do differently next time?

  • Not take my Lifeventure plastic knife as didn’t use it, I had my Outdoor knife to use instead.
  • Transfer suncream into a smaller bottle to save space and weight.
  • Take talc in a smaller bottle to save space and weight.
  • Take some bicarbonate of soda in a resealable plastic bag to use as deodorant on body, clothes, and bedding for when times get stinky. Mixed with a little water to be applied to underarms or sprinkled over the fabric to eliminate odour will make me feel a little happier on an urban hike next time 🙂

Here are a few piccies from the adventure:

More pictures can be seen here.
The video can be seen here.