In this Lightweight Travel Tip I discuss how I use items I carry for basic first aid. Most of this comes from my back-country experience where good-enough is good enough. So, I present this video not as advice, but in how I think through common media situations and how I would approach them. If you have access to a proper medical kit then do use it.
The leuko tape I carry on my pen for blisters can also make a decent dressing, with a bit of tissue as gauze. I'd only do this for small scratches because getting tissue into a wound could make it worse.
I use hand santiser to clean out a wound because it kills germs and drives out moisture. The downise is the hand santiser on an open wound is going to sting - a lot.
Do what you want with this advice, but I'd recommend getting some training in first aid for everyone. Each group of travellers should have a medical officer IMO.
Lightweight Travel Tips is a series of short videos where I showcase the lightweight travel philosophy by discussing specific situations. The individual tips are gateways to the lightweight travel mindset.
I can recall my first trip overseas with overweight suitcases full of things I never used. Even though I have larger baggage allowances than ever, I take less. Less luggage makes it easier to move around, and I'm less likely to lose an item because I have fewer items to track. It's easier to move through crowds and over imperfect ground.
Lightweight travel tips combine my experience in travel and the outdoors to examine what I carry and if I could do without it. I'm not an ultra-light backpacking gram weeny - my outdoors philosophy is more informed by bushcraft, where I learned to make the most out of whatever I carry while keeping necessities and local conditions in mind. So, lightweight travel is a mindset of efficiency - that each item must be helpful or it should be left behind.
At the core of my philosophy is: Passport, Credit card, Phone - everything else is a solvable problem or a luxury item.
This isn't to say you shouldn't carry anything - decide what balances weight, size, convenience and comfort for yourself and where you're going! Figure out what is available where you're going - both free at your accommodation or what you can easily buy.
How do I start thinking through a pack list? First, learn about the trip: what about the weather when I am there? What activities do I expect to do? What can I obtain at the destination if I need it? What equipment must I take? These questions are the genesis of thinking through what to bring.
And the biggest tip: Start with a small bag. If you can't make your load-out fit, it's easier to get a larger bag rather than the other way around. People tend to think in terms of bag size: it's the airlines that make us weigh everything!
Do you have some lightweight travel tips of your own? Please share in the comments.
Until next time.
▶️ 3Speak
Do dressing really affect our light weight travelling
Every little thing should be considered. If you decide to carry it, fine.
Of course, we all should remember that first aid box is a must-have when traveling because any accident can happen, so we must have all these things.
This is a good tip. I usually prefer alcohol versus hand sanitizers, but having one is always good.
Starting with a small bag is always the best thing to do
Starting with a big bag will just make you pack the things that are not useful for you
no super glue?? :P how bout this stuff?
ever used or know anyone who did?
I carry haemo-static crystals in the back-country first aid kit because they stop bleeding fast. For general travel, the risk is not high enough to bother carrying these things. I haven't used wound seal myself, though I have that in my home first aid kit. I also have liquid bandaids. My concern with using a wound sealer is that the wound should be properly cleaned before sealing - so that means carrying a bunch of other stuff. If I need a wound sealer (ie more than a bandaid) then I'm off to a clinic.
yes. that makes a lot of good sense. thanks for teaching me something. 👊
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