Electronics are a given in any backpacker’s kit these days. Cameras, phones, headlamps, water purifiers, and GPS units are all common items found in any pack. Chances are, some (or most) of these are powered by USB. Traditionally, backpackers have simply carried extra batteries or resupplied in town. With USB devices, that’s not an option. So, how do you charge these USB devices in the field?

While there are many solutions for each situation, I’ll share the solution I’ve found that works best for me. 

On almost every trip I’ve got three electronics; iPhone, steripen, and headlamp. The steripen and headlamp are both powered by disposable batteries. The iPhone, however, is charged via USB.

For many the answer may be to simply keep their smartphone turned off, and only turn it on if it’s needed. This is not an option for me. My iPhone serves many uses. By order of use, it is a camera (both still and video), map, guidebook, reference, notepad, blogging device (blog, twitter, instagram, etc.), entertainment, and finally, a phone¹.

With that in mind, it’s easy to see that it will need to be charged a few times between each resupply on a long trip. To do this, I rely on a mobile battery pack. More specifically, the best one I’ve found is the Just Mobile Gum Pro.

In my experience, if the Gum Pro has a full charge it is able to power my iPhone a solid three full charges. Even under heavy use, this enables me to go a good four days between towns. At that sort of capacity, you’d expect the Gum Pro to be heavy. It’s not. On my scale it comes in at 4.3oz. To make this thing even better, it’s incredibly affordable, costing $49.99. 

You should also be aware, there is a new power pack from Just Mobile available that has the same specs but is wrapped in an Apple-inspired design. This is the Just Mobile Gum Plus Power Pack and it comes in about $10 more at $58.

jenniferpharrdavis:

After 46 days, 11 hours and 20 minutes Jen has finally finished the 2,181 mile trail. She reached the end at 3:26 p.m. today. Hard to express how proud of her we are.  Pics and more stories from the trail to come soon.

This is so bad ass. It’s difficult to fathom just how difficult this is. She makes tour riders look like amateurs. They cover 2100 miles in 23 days.. on bikes! Not only was she on foot, she was on the Appalachian Trail - the most difficult of the three major US trails to maintain big miles on. I don’t think this record will be touched for a very long time.

I’m preparing for more days in the backcountry in 2010 by putting all of my essential backpacking gear in a bin. The idea is to enable spur of the moment 24s (24 hour outings in the backcountry) by having your go-to kit ready to go at a moments notice with minimal planning to get in the way.

My 24 kit consists of: Golite Jam pack (‘05 model), Mountain Hardwear Phantom 45 bag, 2 liter platy, petzl tikka, Thermarest Prolite 3, 5x8 silnylon tarp, & a bit of tyvek (about 3’x4’).

All my other goods are easily accessible in the same room. So, I can easily swap out for my winter quilt, larger tarp, foam sleeping pad, etc. I’ve also left my kitchen stuff out of this kit, since I’d prefer not to bother with it on a 24. That’s not to say I can’t throw it in if the temps are going to be low, though. Regarding clothing, I wear most of my gear on a daily basis, so it’s going to stay in my dresser/closet. I have enough experience that I feel comfortable making quick decisions about my clothing, but if you don’t have much experience this is something I’d encourage putting some planning into.

I’m looking forward to putting this kit to use in 2010. Maybe you’ve already got one, and if not you should give it a go. Here’s to more days in the backcountry in 2010!