Packing for Shikoku has become a challenge within the adventure. Before we’ve climbed a mountain, followed a trail or found our first onsen, I have three things to conquer:

• the backpack
• The carry on case
• the cross body bag (and my shoe for perspective as these are SMALL!)

Each has a job. Each has limited space. And none of them needs to contain enough supplies to support a small expedition.

This is where experience has really changed the way I pack. After our Kumano Kodo trip, I know how many “just in case” items can travel thousands of miles without ever seeing daylight.

This time, everyhthing has to earn its place. I’m going light, light, LIGHT!

Challenge One – The Backpack

My 20L backpack is for the things I need while hiking. Keeping it small is quite deliberate, give me more space and I’ll find something to fill it.

And every unnecessary thing I put in it becomes something I have to carry uphill. Personally. With my legs. Here’s what’s coming on the trail.

Gloves and Ear Warmers – Small, light and worth having for chilly mountain mornings. I’d much rather tuck these into a pocket than spend the first hour trying to convince my fingers to function, and I HATE having cold ears.

Raincoat – Hopefully it spends most of the trip neatly folded inside my pack. But our last hiking trip taught me to respect changing weather, so its coming regardless of the forecast.

Emergency Blanket – Otherwise known as my “Crunchie Wrapper”. Tiny, light and hopefully never needed, but always in my backpack. ALWAYS. There’s packing light, and then there’s leaving behind something you might really need. This little pack stays.

Medical Kit and Hikers Wool – If you know about hiker’s wool, you know. it helps me deal with those little hotspots before they become something more annoying and takes up next to no room. It’s sometimes as simple as walking a little differently than the day before and creating a wee hotspot. All part of the journey. The medical kit is similarly modest. Pain relief, anti-inflammatories, antihistamines, band-aids, strapping tape, and blister supplies. I’ve never had a hiking blister, but I’m not about to announce that to the universe without having a backup plan!

Paper Maps – yes, we have phones, apps and GPS. But batteries go flat, phones get dropped, and e-sims occasionally choose the worst possible moment to have a meltdown. A paper map doesn’t need charging. Call me old fashioned but I like that.

Trusty Thermos – I’m taking the insulated bottle I bought on my last trip to Japan. It only holds 500ml, but its beautifully made and keeps liquid cold (or hot) for hours. I love drinking coconut water on a long hike so its a no brainer.

Room for Snacks – There needs to be room in the backpack for Japanese 7-Eleven snacks, which are next-level IMPRESSIVE. Bento boxes, onigiri, little sandwiches, sweet treats….choosing provisions could take longer than packing the bag. These aren’t emergency rations. They’re a highlight of the day, with a bit of walking inbetween snack stops.

I’m leaving space deliberately. Going light is sensible. Leaving no room for snacks would be madness.

Challenge Two – The Carry On

This is where the rest of my little travelling wardrobe lives. Looking at everything laid out on the floor, it seems quite reasonable. Looking at the case, it becomes a spatial reasoning exercise. The clothing selection is deliberately small. Hiking trousers, tops that can be layered, underwear, bras, hiking socks and a cap. Pieces I can wear repeatedly, mix together and wash along the way if needed.

There is no separate outfit for every possible mood, temperature of photo opportunity. The forests of Shikoku will have to cope with seeing me in the same trousers day after day.

The carry-on also holds my toiletries (trimmed down), chargers and adaptor, with footwear taking up a rather noticeable share of available space. Shoes have absolutely no respect for a minimalist packing philosophy. The aim is to take what I’ll use, in sensible quantities. Toiletries for the trip and no more, rather than a portable bathroom. The charging gear I need, rather than a bag of cables and charger packs that I haven’t used…well…ever.

And fewer clothes means fewer decisions every morning. When the choice is between two tops, I can get on with more important decisions, what bento box to buy???!

Challenge Three – The Cross Body Bag

This is my little travel bag of things I want close at hand when I’m in transit. Passport, phone, money, cards, travel details, lip salve and reading glasses. The essentials I don’t want to excavate from a backpack or a suitcase every time someone asks for something.

It’s also useful for heading out for dinner or a wander when I don’t want a whole hiking pack.

And yes, the reading glasses are absolutely coming. No discussion. At some point, I’ll need to read a menu, a map or check a booking to work out where we are off to. Despite my ongoing attempts to convince myself otherwise, I can’t read shit without them.

There’s no point in travelling light if I accidentally order dinner for four when all I’m trying to do is feed one hungry hiker, with absolutely no idea what she’s just ordered! The challenge with this bag is keeping it small. It’s remarkably easy for “just the essentials” to turn into receipts, tissues, loose coins and an assortment of objects that apparently moved in while I wasn’t looking.

This time, I’m keeping an eye on the tenants. And my rental space is pretty tight.

What’s Staying at Home

Probably about half the things I packed for the Kumano Kodo. The extra clothes I never wore. The backup gadgets. The things that came along because I could imagine one wildly specific situation in which they might be useful.

I’ve learnt that “it might come in handy” is a dangerous sentence when you’re packing for a hiking trip. Every unnecessary kilogram asks a little more of you – on the climb, on the stairs, through a station, or at the end of a long day when all you want is a shower and something delicious to eat (drink). I’d rather save that energy for the actual adventure.

So when I pick something up and think, “Maybe I’ll need this”, my next question is: “Enough to carry it all the way there?”

That tends to clarify things.

Why I’m going light, light, LIGHT!

I want to move comfortably, find things easily and spend less time managing my belongings. I want my backpack to feel manageable when the trail gets steep. I want my case to close without me sitting on it and negotiating with the zip. And I want to find my passport without tipping the contents of a bag onto an airport floor.

There are still a few non-negotiables. Safety essentials stay. Comfortable feet matter. And my sentimental water bottle gets a small exemption from the ruthless weight review. But everything else needs a good reason to come.

The point of this trip is to enjoy the forests, villages, temples, and mountains of Shikoku with TAB, leaving enough energy for an onsen and some very important 7-Eleven snack research afterwards. Three bags. A much smaller pile of belongings.

And hopefully, two very grateful feet.

See you out on the trails! (Shikoku style)