I've decided to get organised for my La Palma trip well in advance of my flight date. I plan to wild camp and bivi the route but now I have a dilemma. I want to travel minimalist as possible and carry the least amount of 'stuff' and weight that I can. From reading about my planned route I will have to carry maximum water and maximum food as well as no shops en-route. So as a starting point I’m going to use my old Golight Jam rucksack as I can roll it up small, strap it down and carry it on the plane as hand luggage.
My problem is, which bivi shall I take with me? I have a Snugpack Stratosphere which I've used a few times and I also have an Alpkit Hunker bivi which I have only used twice since the day I bought it about 5 years ago. In my head, I want to take the Alpkit Hunker as it will fold down to a small size and is lightweight, plus I could take my Alpkit 3.5 tarp (in case it rains) with me as well. Or my Vaude Poncho instead? Added together they still weigh less and will fold smaller than the Stratosphere.
I really like this bit of the planning process prior to a hike, going through all the options that are possible or not possible. For example, when I've used the Stratoshere I have my inflatable mattress inside the bivi but I found I was more comfortable when in the Hunker to lay on top of my mattress. Of course, the reason why I have these 'options' is that over the years I've bought 'this and that,' of which some have proved to be useful, whilst others have just gathered dust in my garage. I confess and know that I’ve bought too many bits and pieces over the years and many of them now fit into the category of 'seemed a good idea at the time!'