Assessing long-term backpacking

Backpacking is quite different from other modes of travelling. Long-term backpacking is another beast altogether. By backpacking, I mean all your stuff on your back and no car to stuff things in or get you around. Long-term is measured in months, not weeks. With shorter-term travel, you can cheat a bit or just suck it up and ignore things. On a longer trip, everything must get dealt with sooner or later.

I am on a long trip (2 months out West with some of that Wwoofing, some travelling about and some at relatives like sister, brother and niece, followed by 2 months in New Zealand and possibly 3 more months in getting myself back to Canada by circling the globe).

FOOD

It took me awhile to get my food setup the way I like. What to look for in the stores, what can be found in big/small stores/towns, what to carry each day. In Ireland, every little joint had little salad bars and fresh bread. Not so in New Zealand. I am getting enough fruit/veggie/protein in any one week, as consistently as possible. In my bag, I carry some utensils (hostels lack), tea/coffee/sugar, cheese, pepper/salt, some form of bread, muesli, some fruit, a few chocolate bars and water.

My breakfasts are yogurt, banana, muesli, juice and bread. Lunches are bread, cheese, fruit. Suppers are pasta/rice affairs, sometimes with meat, always with cut veggies.

Break from the routine is a sandwich shop or Asian noodle place for lunch. Food is expensive here, restaurants doubly so.

CLOTHES

I am carrying 2 shorts, 4 tops, sleep/swim/rain gear, shoes/sandals, a fleece top and nylon jacket. Very pleased with the setup. The 4th top has not been used and is for social emergencies, should I really mess up on the laundry, which I do in sinks or hostel setups as often as possible.

No real sense of missing something or dragging stuff around.

TRAVEL

Doing a lot of hitch-hiking (pleasant surprise), a decent amount of walking and buses in and out of cities. Booking hostels in advance if they involve Friday/Saturday. Booking online and using the option to Txt me instead of chasing down printer access.

Happy enough with how much overhead this entails and how long I stay in places, at least 2 nights. I like hitch-hiking into a town and finding a hostel, getting to know the place, find the Info place and a good grocery store, then touristing.

The Wwoofing is hard to match up with your own schedule, but really, has been working out well. My itinerary is quite flexible.

Trying to deal with airlines/embassies/visas is always a real pain. Outside your own country, the very idea makes me flustered.

INTERNET

I have found lots of access, just the cost is too high, averaging $4-5 an hour. They even charge for WiFi, so your own PC is not cheaper, just more convenient. If I had an open Data device (like iPhone), it would work out cheaper and more convenient. Damn! I miss reading online a lot. Realistically, I would like an hour online, everyday.

BUDGET

With the Wwoofing, this has been working out as expected. That being said, the little stash of cash just keeps diminishing. The surprises have been internet, toiletries and misc stuff: flash drives/museums. With flexibility and last-minute decisions comes higher travel costs. It's a pain, but I really enjoy the floppy front-end of my travelling.

People do travel cheaper than me, but I am happy with my price points.

WWOOFING

Glad I Wwoofed in Canada before coming here. each setup is quite different and while there are usually frustrations along the way, overall, the experiences are quite positive. The work I did staying with the Maori family was the worst job ever, yet, for the week, it was all balanced out by the very positive, cool cultural experiences. That is why I am travelling, for the new experiences.

SOCIALIZING

I have been sleeping in dozens of places and setups (beach, deck, hostel, couch, bed, plane, etc) the past few months, meeting new people everyday (hostels, hitch-hiking, Wwoofing). I enjoy the whole routine and have made some new email/Facebook friends along the way. Some people, you just click with. I am interested in how people get through their lives and have found people interested in my take on the world.

I am comfortable with my age and past experiences and don't feel that age has too much effect on my social interactions. The only real exception is bars. I have been in a few. Besides the expense I am not a late night, crazy, boozing person and never really was. I have been in a few situations like this, but not for long.

OVERALL

I feel that I am the right person at the right time for this trip. I enjoy the lifestyle, my body is enjoying the stresses I am putting on it. These many situations force me to be much more flexible in dealing with all situations, always a good thing. It all feels good.

I have been lucky enough to get in a bunch of hiking, running, biking, swimming and even some surfing. Some of the hikes have been astounding (Comox, Tofino, 90 mile, Tongariro).

Now, the real question is how to get back to Canada, Do I do what it takes to get thru China ($$$ and visa concerns). Do I have what it takes to backpack India?

Who knows. The doors are still open. The road beckons