Homecoming And Gear Review (Day -1??)
So I made it back to Portland around midnight after an insanely long travel day (27 hours from my calculations). I’ve got today off and am trying to acclimate a little bit before I head back to work tomorrow. I sense it’s going to be difficult but I’m trying to stay optimistic. Which part will be difficult you might ask? Will it be the different time zone? Getting used to a work schedule again? Having to dress like a normal person rather than a wandering pilgrim? Sitting at a desk for a big chunk of the day? The hustle and bustle of everyday life in Portland? The answer is yes. Those things and more.
But for today at least i’m keeping a little of my camino lifestyle alive. I started the day with a wonderful coffee from Grindhouse and went on two long walks totaling about 6 miles (one of which was to the barber shop to get everything trimmed up. No more “crazy Santa”. Now it’s more “apathetic office worker”). It’s not a lot but I knew just sitting around today was a bad idea both physically and mentally. Another enjoyable part of my daily routine was writing in this blog so I’ve decided to do that today as well. I haven’t been back nearly long enough to digest the camino experience so I’m saving that for a later entry. I thought today i would give a quick review on the gear I purchased and used throughout the walk. I’ve actually been asked a number of questions about different items I used, some questions were even from strangers. Again, not sure how strangers found their way here but they’re always welcome (although I suspect it has a lot to do with me promising thirst trap pics of my legs in an earlier post).
So here’s what worked and didn’t over the last 35 days and 521 miles. I want to start this by saying two things:
I’m not being compensated for any of these opinions. With that said, I would happily take any money offered to modify one of my reviews. Honestly, any of these companies could write me exactly what they want me to put down and i would do it. It could be minimal compensation. Hell, a Starbucks gift card would work. It would be our little secret. Just message me (sexylegs69@crimdom.net).
I kind of nailed it on my gear. I don’t do things well very often (some would argue never, and those people would be mean and petty and correct) but I did quite a bit of research before I purchased and packed and I’m glad I did.
So here goes:
Backpack: Osprey Stratus 36
Such a great pack. Can’t recommend it enough.
My smartest purchase made. The size was PERFECT for the amount of gear I brought. The pack fit well, had enough pockets and straps without having too much going on. I saw some packs on the trail that had so many straps hanging down they looked like a 70’s suede fringe jacket. A cool look but not for the camino. I only saw three brands of backpack on the camino. This is really kind of amazing when you consider the number of other hikers I saw. I would estimate 80-90% of the packs are Osprey. That’s pretty damned impressive when you think about it. Keep in mind it’s a foreign brand in Spain as well and the majority of walkers are from Spain or nearby Spain. The other two brands I encountered were Quechua (a store brand backpack from the biggest sporting goods store in that area - Decathlon. Kind of a European version of Big 5) and Deuter - a German brand I believe and one of my favorites because it sounds like doody (I’ve mentioned numerous times that I’m a child).
Anway, there’s a reason that Osprey seems to own the camino pack market, it’s just plain awesome. I now have three different Osprey packs and I’m happy with each.
Shoes: Hoka Speedgoat Mid (Waterproof)
I named the shoes Joey and DeeDee. I left them in Santiago but I do think I could’ve gotten a few more hikes out of them if required.
My second smartest purchase. Those with a keen eye will notice that I did have a second set of shoes packed (and a pair of small Teeva sandals as well). I had these in case the Hokas suffered a failure or I wanted to change my foot bed temporarily for some reason (blister, soreness, etc). I never wore the second set for a single step on the trail. That means that my Hokas (Joey and DeeDee) took a million steps and never had an issue. Not one torn seam, no broken laces, no holes in the soles, etc. Nothing. They could’ve gone another 50 miles in my estimation. Don’t get me wrong, the tread was gone in some areas but they went over 500 miles in all types of terrain. They were very waterproof as well and I walked through a couple of creeks and in the rain without getting wet socks. An awesome product through and through. I highly recommend them. If you don’t wear Hokas now you should definitely test drive before hand though. They’ve got a really big and cushioned sole that some people find destabilizing.
Shirts: Wooly brand mid weight Henley, lightweight short sleeve and lightweight long sleeve
I don’t really have a picture of just the shirt but pretty much any picture of me walking I will be in one of these shirts. I went with the Merino wool because of everything I read online about how amazing it is. I found all of these shirts to be extremely comfortable and resilient. I also found them to be quick drying, which is a huge deal on the camino. You are sink washing and hand drying a lot of the time so having quick dry meaterial is an important feature. Wooly had a good selection and was mid-priced. There are ultra fine Merino shirts that cost more but I can’t imagine there’s that big of a difference. I was happy with the shirts.
I also brought a Wooly sweater that I only had to wear once or twice but it was warm and I was glad I had brought it.
Pants and Shorts: Prana Men’s (duh) Stretch Zion
Again, I got these based on internet opinion and hikers reviews. Prana is known for yoga wear so I never would’ve thought to look for hiking pants from them but the pants and shorts were fantastic. They fit well, had good pockets, had a built in belt thingie, were really quick dry and most importantly, they look like new even after all the miles.
I’ve no doubts that some good Columbia or Patagonia pants would also be great (as long as they were quick dry) but I don’t see me getting anything other than Prana for quite some time.
Hats: Bluffworks (cap) and Columbia (floppy hat)
Okay, so I was giving my floppy hat shit in an early post. I stand by how silly it looks on me but it was an absolute requirement for at least 10 days on this journey. You MUST bring a floppy hat on this hike. The sun in the Meseta (and some other areas as well) is brutal and you’re fully exposed for hours at a time. The Columbia floppy kept the neck and face covered. it was sink washable and also dried pretty quickly. I don’t think I’ll be trading it in on a cool looking one after all. It’s earned it’s place in the travel box.
Some of you might have noticed that I’m follicly challenged. That means I pretty much had to wear a hat at all times for I also brought two caps with me. I got the caps from Bluffworks, a company known for travel clothes, They worked well and again, they were quick dry. I’ve also had caps from Columbia that worked nicely. At the end of the day my head and neck never got sunburned because of these hats and of course, the ultimate travel companion - the Buff.
Sandals - Teeva Original Universal
This is the original and very simple Teeva sandal. I don’t like flip flops and everyone needs some type of sandal to switch into at the end of the day. I chose this one due to it’s super light weight. It was great and served it’s purpose. Any sandal will do, this was just the one I chose.
Socks - Darn Tough Merino Wool Hiker Cushioned Sock and Nylon Sock Liners
A super important part of the equipment and something to definitely thoroughly try out before leaving for the camino. These socks are still in perfect shape and worked great. I got one blister. One (Michael Buble). These socks also dried pretty quickly for wool socks. I think the sock liners were the part that saved me. They were essentially man nylons. I lubed up my feet with my emu beak oil, put on the man nylons and then put on the socks. Everyone on the camino has different blister prevention techniques. Lubing up the feet is almost universal and I would say sock liners are number two.
Underwear - (2) ExOfficio Boxer Brief, (2) Smart Wool
Both types of underwear fit nicely but the ExOfficio took forever to dry while the Smart Wool didn’t. Smart Wool was the clear winner and I wouldn’t hike with the ExOfficios again for the slow drying aspect. They held up nicely however. Smart Wool on this one all the way.
Computer - Acer Chromebook Convertible
I struggled with this when I was packing. It seemed excessive and was one of the heaviest items in my pack despite it being under 3lbs. In the end I could not have been more pleased to have it and in how it performed. For what i was doing, which was essentially surfing, reading ebooks and writing this blog (which I’m doing now on the Chromebook) it was ideal. I need a full keyboard to write comfortably and I loved the convertible aspect for when i was reading books. I dropped this thing more than i could count and it just kept going. I’m very impressed.
A note on Chromebook - throughout this blog you’ve likely noticed that when I type I’m or a similar word that instead of an ‘ I have sometimes put in a “. As I’m humming along I sometimes don’t press the shift key hard enough and this happens. The issue is that in Square Space when I’m typing this I can’t see the difference. Something with the font or my old ass eyes. Either way I’ve just been too lazy to go back and fix them. It’s not the fault of my trusty Acer Chromebook, just my bad eyesight and poor work ethic.
Walking Sticks: Two pair of cheap sticks, don’t know the brand and left both behind
If you’re checking your bags bring your favorite sticks from home. If you are carrying on you can buy some for less than $20 where you start. Just make sure to have some. They’ll save you big time.
The Rest
There are a number of items that i haven’t reviewed because they either were never used (the sleep sack and travel towel) or they worked just fine but weren’t a special item and anything you like would work (the headlamp and raincoat).
In conclusion, I was really happy with everything but the underwear (Everything But The Underwear being a prospective title of my new blog) and would happily send anyone links to the products if they like.
On my next camino I will use all of the exact same equipment. And probably go commando.
