For my first post about travel gear and packing, what more fitting topic to discuss than my backpack!

I did a lot of research leading up to the final choosing of a backpack. Thanks to information gathered through the many travel blogs I follow, I knew straight away that I wanted to travel light. I am a fairly small person and had no desire to be dragging around 30+ lbs of stuff on my back for days, weeks, months on end.

I also knew that I planned to do a fair bit of trekking on my trip (including Everest base camp) so right there is yet another reason to pack light. Based on carry-on restrictions I knew my pack should be a maximum of 40L.

I also knew I wanted a panel loading backpack. I didn’t want to have to completely unpack my backpack just to reach my iPhone cable that somehow made its way to the bottom of my pack. Therefore top loading only was out.

Waterproofing was a necessity. Or at least a rain cover. I knew my backpack was going to be taking quite a lot of abuse from planes, buses, tuk tuks, and clumsy old me, so if I could reduce at least one element of wear and tear (in this case mother nature), that would probably be best.

I went to REI multiple times to try on packs. While I tried on many packs I kept going back to the first one I tried - the Gregory Jade 38. It was under 40L, it had top, bottom, and side access, and came with its own rain cover. It was also pretty which definitely helped! It fit me great, hugged my back in all the right spots (it’s a pack specifically designed for women), and was very comfortable.

It was a bit on the pricy side - about $160 - so I religiously checked the amazing Steep and Cheap daily to see if it would make an appearance. For those of you who don’t know, Steep and Cheap is a fantastic website that sells outdoor/adventure gear and clothing for sometimes extremely discounted prices - usually at least 50% off.

But the catch is the items are generally only available for a very limited amount of time. Once they’re bought the item is gone - and at these prices let me tell you they sell out quickly sometimes. So you can believe my excitement when one day upon waking up for work (at about 430am) I happened to log in and see my backpack available for 57% off! In a sleep induced haze I ran upstairs, grabbed my credit card, and bought it. With shipping it came to about $86 - a total steal!

So far I have only used my pack once on a trip home to Massachusetts for a week, but it was fantastic! It also showed me that I have a lot of work to do when it comes to downsizing my life. If I thought packing for a week in a small bag was tough how am I going to handle 3 years??

Wish me luck.

As soon as I start to really collect travel gear I’ll definitely keep you updated and post everything that I can fit into my lovely backpack!

Disclaimer: In the spirit of full disclosure, some of these are affiliate links, which means that I may get a commission if you decide to purchase anything by clicking on the links above. I only recommend products & systems that I use and love myself, so I know you’ll be in good hands.