We give ourselves a solid B on packing. A running commentary between us on the trip was what we brought that we could have lived without, and what we didn’t bring that we really wished we had. Philosophically, Jill prefers to travel lighter. She prefers tidy, neat, light panniers that she can lift comfortably and have less stuff to lose track of. Dave is more concerned about not having something he really wants, and because he is  stronger, he doesn’t find the extra weight as distressing. 

 (1) Rain gear.  This took up a lot of space.The first six weeks we didn’t need any of it, and then the last two weeks it was necessary every day. We were also happy with our Showers Pass neoprene socks which saved us on those last awful cold, rainy days. They also worked well for extra warmth on a cold day, even with no rain. One downside: they don’t dry out over night.  My Proviz waterproof lobster gloves did well but were not entirely waterproof and eventually water seaped through. They are a little awkward to use and so I only used them when the weather was really bad. Next time I will bring a pair of full-fingered gloves for the in-between weather, ie: it’s cold but not overwhelmingly awful.  Dave struggled with his Proviz full-fingered waterproof gloves too; they were difficult to get on if his hands were wet and then he couldn’t operate the phone. He was still happy to have them.

(2) Cycling kit: I started with one pair of cycling shorts and one jersey and bought a second set early in the trip;  next time I will take two sets of shorts, and instead of a second jersey I will include an extra wool t-shirt for on and off the bike. We both had winter cycling jackets that worked well but took up a lot of space and we will experiment with something lighter and less bulky; maybe puffer jackets? 

(3) Off the bike kit: we each had one pair of lightweight pants (Dave’s were convertible to shorts) and I had a pair of shorts. I had one wool t-shirt, one sleeveless wool tank and one long sleeved wool top. I love ultra- light merino wool because it dries overnight, it doesn’t stink, and you can easily layer it.  In hindsight, we should have added some extra items of clothing.  On the parts of the trip where we staying multiple days in one location (so we were off the bike a lot) it was a pain to get by on only one pair of pants. I may bring a lightweight dress or extra pair of pants. We also had only one pair of off the bike shoes -light hikers- which worked well. Next time though, we will bring our flip flops for walking around hotels and for use on hot summer days. 

(4) Electronics: my mini pad worked well (when it worked).  We brought a blue tooth keyboard which we shared successfully. Dave also had a tablet and we both had phones. We used our US phones which is a little more expensive than using European SIM cards and so far T mobile hasn’t squawked about our European usage. We shall see. (We had some family stuff going on back in the States and didn’t want to make it difficult for family to get ahold of us).  Even Dave now believes that we could streamline our charging stuff and we could save a lot of space and weight. 

(5) Miscellanous:  I had a sack of non-clothing miscellaneous items: Swimsuit, goggles, swim cap, Therabands, first aid kit, extra eyewear, extra sunscreen, laundry detergent, plastic bags, Kleenex. I could streamline this greatly. We used the first aid kit and was happy to have it but everything else I either never used or didn’t use enough to merit hauling it along. Lesson learned. Dave was happy to have his portable fan on hot nights and I certainly wished I had mine but I don’t think I want to haul it around.

(6) The portable tea kettle! This got left in the last minute cull of Jill’s  panniers at the storage unit and even though it’s kind of heavy, we will find room for it next time. We love a cup of coffee/ tea in the morning and we thought of that every day!