Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3

Isn't she purdy?

Now it's just about figuring out what to do with all those straps!

It can be a good idea to test an item out before you use it for it's planned purpose, especially when it comes to something like a backpack that you will be using as your sole piece of luggage on an around the world journey lasting several months!


This weekend, hubby and I have the perfect opportunity to test out our new backpacks.  Our friend is getting married, but this isn't your typical church wedding and hotel/country club reception.  No, our friend's family owns a remote island in Ontario, Canada, about four hours north of Toronto.  It's a small, humble island with a simple main cabin, small guest bunkhouse and quaint outhouse.  Despite of and because of it's simple aesthetics, remote location, and lack of electricity (there's a generator, but that doesn't go on much), this gorgeous island is the perfect location for our park ranger friend and his laidback, nature-loving bride-to-be to tie the knot.  It will be a small gathering, totalling about 25 guests, limited to close family and friends. 


It's the perfect time to test out our packs for several reasons.

1. We'll be camping in our tent for the three nights we are staying there, so we don't have a ton of room.
2. It's an island where the main activities besides the wedding will be relaxing, fishing, swimming, drinking, stargazing, and laughing, so we don't need to bring that much-just enough to cover temperature fluctuations.
3. It's crazy to realize this, but the amount of stuff we are taking for this four-day getaway will be close to comparable to what we will take on our RTW adventure! 
4. It's very easy to over pack, but limiting ourselves to our packs is good practice and will keep our things manageable as we go from six hours in our car to about 30 minutes in a boat to setting up our tent and living out of it.

I am looking forward to finally testing out my lovely backpack, but I'm a bit apprehensive.  Mostly because I'm not completely familiar with my pack yet (which is exactly why I need to "practice!").  I started packing on Sunday because I was really excited about using it, but tonight I got frustrated.  I am packing some of my last things and I don't know what to put where and what makes the most sense, thinking about actually needing to find items of clothing or toiletries while living out of a small tent.  I'm hoping as I use it this weekend I will get a good handle on figuring the puzzle out!

It's funny, but I'm already sort of attached to my pretty little pack, the Gregory Deva 60.  It took me a little while to find it, I was nervous about it being "the one", but now I've been seeing it every time I walk into my office/art studio, and I like it!  It's a usable symbol of our impending adventure! SOOOO...I just hope I like it even more after using it for a few days!

(And yes, I do plan to remove the tags before I leave tomorrow!!)

For more info on my pack, see my blog from April 16th called Go With the Flow or click here to visit the e-OMC website where I purchased mine (the price has gone up since I purchased mine, so I would look around and google the pack to see if it's available cheaper anywhere else!)

Wish us luck!