Adventure Travel Essentials

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Today I am kicking off a week of travel posts! I will be sharing stories from my recent trips to New York City, Utah, Maine, and Finland this week. But first – I am going to share a list of travel essentials that I can’t leave home without, and I have an amazing giveaway for you!

In the past few months I have gone on some more adventurous trips, and I have learned that packing for these trips is totally different than packing for a city or beach vacation. Here are some adventure travel essentials that proved to be very useful when I was hiking on volcanos in Costa Rica and rappelling through canyons in Utah.

Shoes
I love my Keen Koven Hiking Boots. They have lots of grip and support – which is key when you are hiking mountains, plus they are waterproof. I find them to be very comfortable too. I also pack standard gym shoes, since wearing the same shoes day after day gets uncomfortable.

Clothing
I recommend packing a mix of athletic gear. Sometimes pants are best – even when it is hot out. Pants can protect you from getting scraped when you are horseback riding, or rappelling, and they also protect your skin from bug bites and sunburn. In addition to pants I do bring a couple pairs of gym shorts for hiking or other activities. When I comes to shirts I love my Lululemon long sleeve shirt – it’s a light mesh material, that is just thick enough to shield you from a sunburn. Plus, it’s thin material is easy to wash in the sink, and it dries quickly. I pack a bunch of tank tops too, but often I prefer long sleeves so that I don’t need to worry about sunburns.

Sunglasses
A great pair of comfortable sunnies is an essential when you are rappelling. They not only keep the sun out of your eyes, they shield them from dust and dirt. Sunglasses were also great to have when I was horseback riding through dry dusty desert land. I love my Ray Ban Erika sunnies.

Backpacks
A camelback was an essential when we were canyoneering, since we needed to carry two liters of water each. For a shorter hike you might be able to put everything in a camelback, but for our 8 hour hike/canyoneering adventure I put the camelback on over my Henri Bendel Jetsetter Convertible Backpack (it might have been a bit formal for the journey, but it held up perfectly).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I am obsessed with this bag – I have taken it with me to NYC, Costa Rica, Finland, Maine, and Utah so far. And lucky for you… Henri Bendel is giving away a mini version of this bag to a lucky reader!!!

The new line to Jetsetter Backpacks comes out on July 6th – the Bel Aire Blue/Black Mini Jetsetter Convertible Backpack is pictured above, and the giveaway winner can pick between Bel Aire Blue/Black, Doe/Black, and Peach/Biking Red. The Mini Jetsetter is big enough to carry all of my day-to-day essentials including my planner, camera, power adapter, passport, sunscreen, wallet, sunglasses, and lip balm. And I love how it has handles on the top and straps that convert into a backpack and cross body bag.

Other Essentials
Water Bottle: A wide mouth water bottle that you can fill with ice is a wonderful thing to have. I love S’well water bottle since is comes in so many colors and designs and keeps water cold for 24 hours and keeps drinks warm for 12 hours.
Camera: A camera is obvious, a waterproof cover for your camera is less obvious but really helpful by waterfalls.
A Selfie Stick: Just in case you are heading somewhere remote and you don’t have someone to take photos.
Shampoo/Conditioner/Body Wash: Adventure and luxury tend not to go hand in hand, and you might end up staying in bare bones accommodations, which means you will be really happy that you packed products that you love.
A Hat: I think a baseball hat is best since you can wear a helmet over it if necessary.
Sunscreen: It’s always in my bag since I burn really easily.

Do you have any travel essentials? I would love for you to share them in the comments!