12 Days Out (First Aid, Toiletries, and Glasses, Oh My)

12 Days

*changes pants*

The time has flown by so quickly and now I have only 12 days to prepare for a 2,200-mile adventure. There are so many things that I kept putting off saying to myself, “Ahh, it’ll get done, you have the time, don’t stress about it right now.”  Well, I am telling you folks right now that shit does not get done by itself.

Work, Work, Work, Work, Work, Work

My schedule until recently has been pretty limited to bartending my butt off to make as much money as possible before I leave and reading the last few books on my reading list. Then came today. I woke up and I realized that I have 12 days left. Panic ensues. So here are all the things that I forgot to do, so you don’t have to!

First Aid Kit

You need a first aid kit, no questions about it. May it be small or large? Your call.

I was definitely putting this off because I felt like it would just all magically come together by itself. My mom and I sat down to make mine and it took surprisingly no time at all. We had all of this stuff just lying around the house in various “bug out bags.” I am storing it in a waterproof LokSak to keep it extra safe in the weather. If you need some ideas on what to bring, this is what’s included in mine.

• Four blister Band-Aids
• Three fabric Band-Aids
• One big (knee sized) Band-Aid
• One butterfly (makeshift stitch) Band-Aid
• Two gauze pads
• First aid tape
• Two alcohol prep pads
• First aid antiseptic, .5 fl. oz.
• Neosporin tube, 1 oz.
• Five Q-Tips
• Teeny tiny reusable thermometer
• Ten Benadryl (for allergic reactions)
• 20 Excedrin (for migraines)
• Ten Tylenol (for fever)
• 20 ibuprofen (for body aches)

If you’re wondering about weight, this all comes in at about five ounces.

Toiletries

Additionally, I completely forgot wellness. I’m bringing a couple of things that some hikers may think are overkill. Frankly, I’d like to be able to brush my hair and possibly shave my legs every once and awhile. If I find that I”m not using things? I’ll toss ’em.

• Toothbrush (cut in half)
• Travel sized toothpaste
• Disposable razor (cut in half)
• Blistex
• Mini Swiss Army Knife
• Mini brush
• 30 Ritual multivitamins
• 30 probiotics
• Sawyer Picardin

This bad boy weighs about nine ounces.

Eyeballs

I super can’t see. It’s a rough life and I’m very used to dailies contacts. Originally, I was planning on getting Lasik for the trail. However, the surgeon told me that my pupils are too big to do the procedure on and to come back when they get smaller.

Me: “Lol OK?”

Then I figured that maybe my mom could ship me my lenses every month but that’s just a hassle and a half. So I finally landed on getting a pair of glasses. Four hours of me virtually trying on lenses later.

I decided on this pair from eyebuydirect a couple days ago. My eyes are very, very, sensitive to the light due to my “abnormally large pupils,” so I got one pair of regular prescription lenses and one pair of prescription sunglasses. Due to my very last-minute style, the lenses just arrived today and I love them so, so, so much. Highly recommend!*

*Not an ad, just a really happy customer.

Final Thoughts

Try to remember to not leave things until the last minute. However, no matter how much planning and prep we do for our thru-hikes, we are bound to mess something up. All we can do is ask the universe to be gentle with us our first few weeks on trail.

Happy trails!