Yeesh...I'm terrible about this, and it looks as though I'm going to be getting worse, now that I've bought camera equipment and am about to purchase a microlaptop. I'm a creature of diversion if I'm given several days to play in the woods, end even worse, I like to have multiple diversions to choose from.

Here's the list:
1) Two books--usually books that will make me think or learn. I like to take foreign language coursework and chess books a lot, and I always take a notebook and a small sketchpad.

2) Travel chess set--I never know when I might want to play or study, and they make them quite small now.

3) Optimus 99 stove--really, these things are luxuries, and I can get along on uncooked food easily. I've been thinking of dropping it from my items entirely.

4) Usually a bottle of wine or two go with me.

5) Toiletries

6) Roll-up Thermarest camp chair that makes dual use of my self-inflating sleep mat--this has become a prized item to me and I don't see myself ever getting rid of it.

7) LED headlight (straps onto a headband so that you don't have to hold it--very cool for late nights when you're not quite ready to sleep and maybe still want to read something)

8) mp3 discman and 32-cd caselogic case (surprisingly economical on space, but an iPod is looking like more and more of a necessity)

9) SLR digi-cam & tripod


Coming:
10) Laptop and roll-up solar panel (coming this summer--I'll have to drop something from the rest of this list to accommodate these)

11) Violin--still a consideration. I've never taken it out before, so it really shouldn't go on this list. I've been considering also just getting a ukelele. I've been wanting to play music while I'm in some of these lovely woods and mountains. I've often considered getting a compact flute and learning it, but I don't like flute very much.