Let me start by giving a brief overview of this section and what to expect. First off this is a list of the gear we took with us when undertaking the Laprapinta Trail, and whilst this is a guide, everybody is different and will want to customise the gear they take. Secondly this is not a definitive list of what to take, some will want to take more and others more likely less. Thirdly, our style of backpacking is not to achieve ultra lightweight, we like our creature comforts but we also don’t want to go over the top and carry too much. We certainly took advantage of the Larapinta Trail Trek Support collection service where gear could be left in the food boxes and dropped off to you at the end of the trail as we did take too much to begin with.
I have listed the gear below in tables and categories. The first column is the name of the equipment with a link, the second column is any useful notes and the third contains any reviews we have undertaken of that product. Our product links do go to Wild Earth who we are an affiliate member or direct to the supplier page.
Tent & Sleeping Gear
Gear
Notes
FFA Reviews
Big Agnes Copper Spur 2 Person Tent
This is our Backpacking Tent, we have put together a review on this so you can check it out.
Available in different sizes we each have one of these to keep the water out.
No FFA Review
Sea to Summit Dry Bags
We carry an assortment of S2S Dry Bags to keep all our kit in. Some we have as the Lightweight bags and others as ultra-sil (Lighter but not as durable)
No FFA Review
Sea to Summit Ultra-Sil Rucksack Cover
We did carry our rucksack covers at the start although with the weather decided to put them into one of our food boxes for transport back to Alice. We did not need them on this trip due to the weather.
No FFA Review
Sea to Summit Ultra-Sil Side Rucksack
This is the rucksack we used for side trips which came in quite handy
We carry Hydrapak's as they give us extra water capacity and slide into the 2 One Planet Bottle holders. Plenty of alternatives such as platypus bottles etc.
We use a Garmin GPS watch to track the route and charge this every night.
No FFA Review
Petal & Black Diamond Head Torches (Not linked as so old now!)
We found we used the head torches a lot so great to have different light modes for packing up and then bright enough for early morning on the trail. We will look to replace ours for a more modern lighter/brighter head torch soon.
We both had an iPhone which we kept in aeroplane mode most of the time and used for all our pictures and videos. All charged with the Goal Zero Equipment
Sarah and I both have Oboz Bridger Boots which have served us very well over the last year. We started with Salmon x Ultra which were terrible and Kathmandu actually changed both pairs for us in Tasmania.
Sarah loved her ankle gaiters for the Spinifex. However I didn't take any and didn't find I needed them. IF it was wet I would have taken my full length gaiters though.
No FFA Reviews
Clothing
Gear
Notes
FFA Reviews
Breathable Underwear and socks
Just don't take too many. You can always wash on the way...
No FFA Review
Trousers & Shorts
Trousers do come in handy for cold nights/insects but I rarely wore them. hiking shorts are what I wore every day and a pair of swimming shorts is handy.
No FFA Review
Breathable T-shirts
Long or short sleeved or both depending on preference for sun protection
No FFA Review
Wind Shirt
Wind shirt came in handy early in the mornings as an extra layer.
No FFA Review
Down Jacket & Buff
We wore our lightweight Down Jackets most nights and packing up in the mornings. One of my favourite pieces of kit!
No FFA Review
Hats
Wide rimmed hat for the sun is essential and we even had a warm hat for the night time but not essential
No FFA Review
Lightweight Waterproof Jacket
We never used the waterproofs but you never know. I have a Paramo (Nikwax Analogy) lightweight jacket and Sarah a Haglofs.
No FFA Review
Sleep Wear
A change to non sweaty cleanish clothes is a must, you don't need much though if you have a decent sleeping solution.
No FFA Review
Sunglasses
Decent Sunglasses
No FFA Review
Other Equipment
Gear
Notes
FFA Reviews
First Aid Kit
I always carry my own home made first aid kit. We used a lot of blister first aid on this trip and should have had more with us.
No FFA Review
Maps & Compass
We had all the official maps as well as my compass I always take with us. We also have offline electronic maps on our iPhones.
No FFA Review
Suncream
This does depend what you are wearing and what protection you will need. We used quite a lot of suncream. Of course you can add more to your food boxes as you go so can carry smaller amounts. It's not easy to find on the trail.
No FFA Review
Hydralyte Electrolyte
We ran out of these and should have carried more due to the conditions. A few girls coming to the end of their trail (opposite Direction) gave us a spare tube.
We used this every day. Carrying something like this saves the tank water rather than letting the tap run which lots of people do! We put a little water in the bowl and could have a wash down each evening as well as wash the dishes. 5L was a good size.
No FFA Review
Personal Wash Kit
Limited wash kit.. we found a cheap flannel from the supermarket great for wash downs and had a new one in each food box. A bit of soap and a roll on deodorant. A little pack of Baby Wipes is of course essential! Also a little Anti-Bag to hang off the rucksack is handy for after toilet stops etc.
Sarah used the Black Diamond Poles in the link and I used a very old cheap pair of poles from Europe. Both were great and we used them every day. Sarah's had a much softer handle for sweaty hands so decreased blisters but other than that choose a pair that best fits the budget and are reasonably strong. Also used for poles on the Tarp.
Great to have a decent knife with you and we used some of the other parts to this small lightweight multi-tool. Carried it in my pocket for the whole trail. Lots of choice of course.
Let me start by giving a brief overview of this section and what to expect. First off this is a list of the gear we took with us when undertaking the Laprapinta Trail, and whilst this is a guide, everybody is different and will want to customise the gear they take. Secondly this is not a definitive list of what to take, some will want to take more and others more likely less. Thirdly, our style of backpacking is not to achieve ultra lightweight, we like our creature comforts but we also don’t want to go over the top and carry too much. We certainly took advantage of the Larapinta Trail Trek Support collection service where gear could be left in the food boxes and dropped off to you at the end of the trail as we did take too much to begin with.
