Must-Have Trekking Gear
As we travel or plan trekking, stepping out of our comfort zone. It becomes very important to carry the necessary Gear that we may need, keeping the minimalist approach. We need to keep everything to make our trekking comfortable with a constraint of carrying as little as possible. As we will have to carry everything on our shoulders for hours.
So with that thought, here is sort of a checklist of the gear that you must have before you leave for trekking.
A good bag with rain cover
A good Bag (preferably a Rucksack) is an integral part of your trekking. Your bag is your most trusted friend. It keeps all your stuff together, and the last thing you want is your bag being torn in the middle of nowhere. Hence, it becomes essentially important to choose a bag that is good in quality as well as have a design that gives comfort (you will carry it on a slope for hours).
Plus it is always a good idea to have a rain cover with yourself, even if the bag is water-resistant. Especially in the Mountains, at higher altitudes, it does not rain as such, but there is a lot of moisture in the air, which can damp all your clothes.
Heavy-duty Shoes
After your bag, the Next thing you need is a good pair of shoes, that are made for heavy-duty tasks (like woodland or army shoes). Trust me, trekking and normal shoes don’t go hand in hand. You will face a lot of mud, water, offroad. With your normal sports shoes, it creates a lot of risk of slipping. They will be damp within the first hour and you will have to trek with the damp shoes (very uncomfortable). Moreover, shoes that are made for trekking provides much better comfort and grip.
Comfortable Clothing
This one is a no-brainer. Since you are going for trekking, a good physical task, it is very much recommended to wear and keep streachable comfortable clothes. The plus point is, they don’t even weigh much, so your luggage becomes much lighter.
A Multi-Purpose Tool, a Lighter & a flashlight
A good multi-purpose tool is always recommended from my side even if you are not going in the woods. These tools can literally save the day sometimes! You never know what you may need it for until the situation arrives.
A lighter can also come in handy in various situations. The thing with these tools is unless the situation arrives, you can never know how they will save the day!
Camera
You are going trekking and don’t take a camera, how is that even possible. Not necessarily a DSLR, today mobile phones to have much better cameras. So take them out, click the photo of the awesome view. The thing is those photos do not matter much when you have that view in front of you, but years after, those photos give you a good shot of nostalgia!
Power Banks
Very necessary to always have backup power. I will even say, you should also have a backup phone (especially if you are traveling solo). The thing is, in cold weather the battery drains out comparatively faster. And you don’t want to run out of battery when you are lost, so always keep the power backup.
First-Aid Kit
You must always have pain killers, antiseptics, band-aids, crepe roll, Moov spray, Mosquito repellents, Moisturizer, face wash, etc. (small bottles only).
Plastic Bags
This one is for keeping your shoes when you sleep, your damp cloths, and most importantly, your spit-out chewing gums, wrappers, etc. You must never litter the mountains, take a bag with you and dump it when you see a dustbin.
Paper Soaps and Disinfectants
These and the other necessary toiletries if you like. But paper soaps and disinfectants are necessary as you don’t know where you will go to use the loo, and before eating you would want to wash your hands.
Money in cash
Its mountains, there is a very high chance that you will not find an ATM or even digital payments. So, when you trek always keep money with you in cash, also in smaller denominations as well. Just be prepared for the worst.
Water Bottles
No need to mention why they are important.
Speakers or earphones
It is completely a matter of choice and preference. You can have a portable speaker with you and enjoy your favorite music while trekking. As trekking usually takes hours or even days, and little music always helps!
Well, these were a few things that came to mind at present. I will publish Part 2 of this article as I discover more essentials for trekking!
You can also check out my youtube channel where I post vlogs and my Instagram @prajwal_agarwal
See you soon!
