Preparations

I've been caught up in preparations for an upcoming trip. Armed with a recommended gear list I have tackled the likes of REI and Amazon, slowly accumulating a small mountain of items. The trip is an awesome 7-day raft trip through the Grand Canyon, so I can't afford to forget anything important. Yet the maximum allowed luggage is 25 lbs. Tricky.

It is going to be HOT in the bottom of the Canyon, so at least the requisite clothing will be lightweight.  Several folks have recommended taking a sarong for light-weight bathing suit cover-up around camp.  I whipped up a standard-size one on the sewing machine and, after experimenting, decided I didn't like the tight knotting or resultant slippage.  So, using an old nightshirt as a basic cutting guide, I whipped up an extra-loose dress out of lightweight cotton. It counts as my first attempt to sew more than a skirt, bag or trailer curtains. 

I will be taking the Nikon Coolpix AW100 and handful of extra chips and batteries. In case the spare batteries are not enough, I have acquired a cool little gadget called the Solio Bolt (cheaper from Amazon). It is a pocket-sized solar charger. It only outputs through USB, so at first it was going to be unusable for the camera batteries. With some searching, I found a battery charger that can be powered by USB. Neither is speedy, mind you, but a workable backup.

Aware that many of the 17 other family members on this trip will be bringing identical cameras and REI-sourced gear, I have pulled out that wonder of modern science, the Sharpie.


First I put my name on my camera. Then I decided to customize my green duffel bag. It wouldn't help much to put my last name on the bag, since at least 5 of the other rafters will have the same name. And there is another Amy on the trip. I went for pictures instead.  (For much more elaborate Sharpie Art, check out the official blog.)

 
Should be useful to identify the bag in the airport, too. There's still plenty of ink in the Sharpie, but I draw the line at labeling my underwear.



And here's a shot of Saturday's harvest from the garden.