St George, UT July 16, 2012.

Now for Carols backpack. Packing list For those who are interested in what we packed for 3 months in Europe, here is the official list of items and weights rounded to the nearest ounce.

Carols Pack. 3 lbs. 11 oz     Down jacket. 13 oz     Rain jacket 13 oz    Rain pants. 11 oz            2 pairs of pants. 1 lb. 10 oz     4 shirts. 1 lb 5 oz     2 pairs of socks. 4 oz   2 underwear. 2 oz  2 bras. 3 oz    Night wear. 5  oz     1 pair of shorts. 4 oz.   Knee pads 5. Oz  2pairs gloves. 5 oz Bike gloves ( For hiking). 1 oz    Handkerchiefs and earmuffs. 3 oz   Pillow. 4 oz    Hat. 1 oz Baseball cap. 3 oz   Scissors, clothesline,etc. 3 oz     Hiking poles. 1 lb 5 oz     Emergency blanket. 2 oz    Pack cover. 5 oz    Dirty girl gators. 1 oz     First aid kit. 8 oz    Sandals. 6 oz Reading glasses 1 pair, sunglasses 2 pair 5 oz    Liquids (toiletries). 1 lb 8 oz    Tissues. 2 oz Aquafina liter bottles(3 empty). 4 oz    Gatorade bottle (empty). 2 oz    Pills. 2 lb 12 oz Earplugs. 1 oz     Battery charger/batteries 12 oz    Headlight. 2 oz     Toiletries for both of us (toothbrush /razor,etc.). 1 lb 3 oz    Q tips. 2 oz     Berets for hair. 1 oz    Corkscrew/bottle opener. 1 oz   Sinkstopper. 1 oz    Pack towel. 1 oz    Cough drops. 3 oz   TP. 4 oz     Paper (museum,walking tours,gen info and tickets). 14 oz    Total pack weight including pack. 23 lb 10 oz

Things Carol has but wears: shirt, pants, bra, underwear, socks, Merrill trail runners, money belt which has passport, credit and debit cards, train passes, and money.

The pack does lighten over time as we discard paper as we go and liquids decrease as well as discarding water bottles after our Swiss hike. The hike added weight with the hiking poles, gps, extra maps and directions, emergency blanket, bike gloves, gators, headband, and sweatbands. We also figure to add about 10 pounds in water weight and snack weight at the beginning of each swiss hiking day. All in all, we are happy with the weight although we were shooting for 20 pounds.