Over 18 years ago I was fortunate enough to backpack through Europe for 10 months and consequently went through much the same pre-trip research and gear-buying that I’ve been doing for the last 6mths.
Of course, the gear I was buying back then was for a different travel-style and had to cover me for all four seasons including a European Winter. Couple that with all the technological advances we’ve seen in that time for both manufacturing and personal electronics and it’s no wonder a good portion of my old gear needed an upgrade.
So I thought it might be fun to do a few comparisons of the gear I could have re-used but rejected and replaced for various reasons.
Sleeping Bag
| Old | New |
| Brand: Roman | Brand: Sea to Summit (original blog entry) |
| Weight: 1.731 kg | Weight: 0.381 kg |
| Volume: 0.012 m3 | Volume: 0.002 m3 |
| Temp. Rating: -5 ºC | Temp. Rating: 9 ºC |
| Filling: Insufil Thermo™ | Filling: Ultra Dry Down™ |
At a quarter the weight, and a sixth the volume, this was a no brainer. The old sleeping bag would’ve taken up the entirety of my new pack’s interior. Obviously the only compromise is the temperature rating. The new sleeping bag would definately NOT be ideal for the Himalayas, but luckily I’m going to Spain.
Gloves
| Old | New |
| Brand: Kathmandu (??) | Brand: Sherpa (original blog entry) |
| Weight: 100 g (pair) | Weight: 40 g (pair) |
| Volume: Thick | Volume: Thin |
| Material: Thinsulate™ | Material: Merino Wool |
Another decision based on the “fit for purpose” criteria. Heavy, thick gloves we’re great for Scotland and North Ireland but would be overkill for a Spanish Autumn. Their only purpose this trip is for some warmth in the early mornings and evenings, and as protection against possible blisters caused by my trekking poles.
Money Belt
| Old | New |
| Brand: Sea to Summit | Brand: Kathmandu |
| Weight: 65 g | Weight: 82 g |
| Protection: None | Protection: RFID blocking |
| Buckle Type: Top-Release | Buckle Type: Side-Release |
| Padding: Thin | Padding: Thick |
Okay so this was not originally on my radar for replacement and I actually didn’t make the decision or purchase until a couple of days ago (less than a week before I leave). The old money belt has served me well for many years on many overseas trips but recently the top-release buckle popped open with the slightest bump and the money belt started making it’s way down my pant leg. And if there’s one thing I DON’T want a money belt to do – it’s come loose mid-walk and stealthily sneak out the back door without me. After all, losing holiday money, credit cards, tickets, passports and the like is one challenge I’m sure we’d all rather not have to overcome, especially while travelling overseas.
The upside to making this new purchase though, is that the buckles are now the more secure side-release type, the money belt is larger and is more comfortable, and it has an extra RFID-blocking compartment. These buckles and RFID technology just weren’t a thing 18 years ago. The downside of being larger and more padded is of course the extra 17g in weight but I think the benefits outweigh the weight burden.
Hiking Boots
| Old | New |
| Brand: Kathmandu | Brand: Salomon (original blog entry) |
| Weight: 1.441 kg | Weight: 0.849 kg |
| Size: 10 | Size: 11 |
| Weather Protection: SympaTex® | Weather Protection: Gore-Tex® |
| Sole Tech: Vibram® | Sole Tech: Contagrip® |
So for those playing at home, calling my chosen Camino hiking boots “new” at this stage would not precisely describe them considering I’ve walked almost 500km in them during my Pre-Camino training. In fact, I’ve probably walked more kms in the “new” boots than I did wearing my “old” boots throughout Europe for 10 months. But it’s that precise reason that it was once again a no-brainer to upgrade.
If I’m going to be walking many, many kms (sometimes up to 35km a day) then the lighter those boots the less tired my legs. Additionally, 18 years ago I knew nothing about boots or long distance walking, so I bought boots in my regular size (10) which was fine for that trip as it turned out. But on these really big walking days, feet can swell and therefore the new boots are actually one size larger to compensate for that possibility. And once again, new materials and manufacturing technologies have allowed me to buy a pair of boots that are almost half the weight despite being a whole size bigger.
Vest (Insulation Layer)
| Old | New |
| Brand: Kathmandu | Brand: Kathmandu |
| Weight: 338 g | Weight: 398 g |
| Volume: 0.002 m3 | Volume: 0.003 m3 |
| Material Tech: Altica Fleece | Material Tech: Down (600 fill) |
| Extras: Two front zip pockets | Extras: Two front zip pockets, two internal pockets (one zippered) |
Another last minute decision and essentially the equivalent of “crispy fried onion rings”. I was just about to purchase my $50 money belt and the “Get $50 back for every $150 spent” draw was too powerful for me. So total for both was $350 down to $250 (prob worth $150 ha ha).
Anyway, despite my rudimentary comparison measurements above, which suggest the new vest takes up more volume, I think it will compress further if needed whereas the fleece was pretty much wrapped as small as it was ever gonna get.
And once again time changes everything. 18 years ago I was taking my backpacking photos on a digital camera at a whopping 4 Mega pixels and I accompanied that with an Archos AV320 storage and playback device sporting a humongous 20Gb HDD. Between the two I could take and store new pics and video, and watch/listen to stored music, movies, photos, documents etc (see below image for archaic travel tech).
Warning: The point to this is on the horizon… But now of course all this and more has been replaced by the extraordinarily powerful modern mobile phone. Soooooo… the internal zip pocket is a new addition to modern vests and is an evolution borne from the fact we ALL (mostly) have a mobile phone to carry within arms reach at any one time. SOLD. And Yes, I would like some crispy fried onion rings with that thanks.
Rain Jacket
| Old | New |
| Brand: Kathmandu | Brand: The North Face (original blog entry) |
| Weight: 900 g | Weight: 300 g |
| Volume: 0.004 m3 | Volume: 0.002 m3 |
| Weather Protection: Gore-Tex | Weather Protection: DryVent 2.5L shell |
| Effectiveness: Hurricane/Blizzard worthy | Effectiveness: Light-shower worthy |
Another risk-based decision led me down this path. The old Gore-Tex jacket is still an awesome piece of kit except it does need it’s interior seams re-sealed for it to perform as effectively as it once did trekking throughout Europe, NZ and on a few other “cold” adventures.
The Spanish Stroll I’m about to embark on is during Autumn. Apparently I can expect cloudy skies in October and a high chance of rain in November. So the choice was to lug around a jacket three times the weight and twice the volume for perhaps a two week rainy period OR take the lighter, more compact, albeit less effective jacket and risk it for the biscuit. I happen to like biscuits so I went with the latter option.
You can tell from the photos above the thickness of the respective materials where one looks like it’s ready to hit the town and the other looks like it just woke up. The new jacket looks like it’s made of cellaphane paper (and it’s not far off comparitively) but I believe it will do the job (enough) to get me through. If it rains a lot I can always just HTFU. Ha ha.
If you want to see what it looks like when it’s had time to take a shower and have it’s morning coffee, check out my previous blog entry here.
Backpack
| Old | New |
| Brand: One Planet | Brand: Osprey (original blog entry) |
| Weight: 2.9 kg | Weight: 1.496 kg |
| Capacity: 65L | Capacity: 34L |
If you’ve watched the movie “The Way”, which has inspired many pilgrims to embark on this walk from Saint Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela, you’ll see that Martin Sheen’s character has a pack almost as big as my old one. Stuff that for a joke. Most people I read about are trying to get their pack weight down to 10% of their body weight and I’d hate to think (or remember) how heavy my old pack could get when full.
You’ve already seen some of the large items I was stuffing in it 18 years ago, well add to those a tent, binoculars, too many clothes, a first aid kit to rival a paramedic, etc etc. I reckon I could put up with a loaded pack that big for maybe five kilometers. But 30km? Nah, I’ll pass on that one.
I must admit though, I find myself wishing I’d bought the Stratos 36L just for that extra 2L, but then I know if I had I’d probably be sitting here writing “I wish I’d bought the Stratos 38L”. Where does it stop? Stratos 44L? Before I’d know it I’d be strapping my old One Planet 65L to my back. Ha ha.
So instead I concentrate on what’s important and necessary and not what’s a luxury. They say people pack their fears and I know that’s been true of me in the past. I’d say, “But what if I need <insert any non-essential and often rarely used item>?”.
Anyway, back to trying to squeeze my life for a month and half into a 34L vessel. FML.
Daypack
| Old | New |
| Brand: One Planet | Brand: Sea to Summit (original blog entry) |
| Weight: 831 g | Weight: 32 g |
| Capacity: 30-odd L | Capacity: 18L |
Okay I’ve thrown this one on half-heartedly. I mean at least 100-200g of that would be the cloth patches I painstakenly hand-sewed on there. This One Planet day pack can zip onto the front of the mothership backpack just reviewed above, making for one gianormous and heavy canvas cupboard. And laughingly what I’m comparing it to now is what I’ll be using as a “nip off to the shops” pack while Mama 34L stays back in the albergue.
Of course the image shows the new Ultra-Sil-Nano (whatever that means) 18L pack all tucked away in it’s little egg-sized baggy. I can’t be bothered pulling it out just to photograph it so if you what to learn more about the new pack you can review my previous blog entry on its purchase here.
GoPro Remote (Telesin vs GoPro)
| Old | New |
| Brand: Telesin (original blog entry) | Brand: GoPro |
| Weight: 52 g (40 g + 12 g bespoke cable) | Weight: 44 g (can utilise my other USB C cable) |
| Battery Lasts: Quoted 10hrs but more like 4-5 in actuality | Battery Lasts: Have only seen it drop to 70% so far |
| Price: $45 | Price: $130 |
Okay so right off the bat I’ll put it out there that we are comparing a $45 remote to a $130 remote. If there weren’t considerable differences I’d be surprised. But, when I initially bought the cheap version, I knew full well that if it didn’t perform as I needed it to I would splurge on the genuine jobby.
And for the most part the Telesin did what I needed it to do. It could stop and start the record function and could switch between modes (Timelapse/TimeWarp, Video & Photo). I think the manufacturers were a little generous in their estimation of battery life which is one thing I place a lot of weight on. The longer it can last, the less I have to charge it when I could be charging other important gear (mobile, GoPro batteries, watch, powerbank etc).
Another important feature I found lacking in the Telesin was it’s lack of fidelity in the information it provided on its display. Sure it’s told me I’m in a “time xxx” mode but I don’t know if it’s TimeLapse or TimeWarp. Additionally, is it TimeLapse 1080p, Narrow perspective, with a lapse value of 10 sec or, something completely different? As you can see from the images above, the GoPro tells me exactly what settings I’m recording with.
The third feature I find invaluable on the original GoPro remote is the red LED light at the top. When recording this flashes – when not recording it is off. There’s no quick way to tell with the Telesin other than looking at the GoPro itself or looking for an incrementing number on its display. I wonder then “what is the benefit of the remote” in that instance.
And finally, the Telesin uses a bespoke charging cable and connection, whereas the GoPro has a standard USB C connection. I can re-use other USB C cables I have for my other devices instead of lugging around an extra one just for the Telesin. Also, the USB C cable fits securely and doesn’t feel like you could accidentally bump it off charge, whereas the Telesin uses (weak) magnets to hold the cable against the remote and it could easily break connection without you realising it. Charging times are considerably faster with the USB C cable as you would expect.
Anyway, it was worth trying the cheaper model during my Pre-Camino training ’cause, as they say, you don’t know what you don’t know. In this instance however, I think it’s definately worth paying the extra money for the GoPro version.
Summary
Sometimes, as much as I’d love to re-use gear I already own, you just have to upgrade to gear that better suits the specific needs of your trip.
It’s not like I don’t still own all that other stuff. And presented with different future trip parameters, I can always dig out that extra big (but really warm) sleeping bag and house it (and my binoculars) in that monster green backpack.
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