Monday, November 16, 2015

C is for Checklists


I love to camp and hike, so I do it as often as I can -- usually at least once a month, so I'm frequently pulling out the camping gear.  You would think that I would be good at packing -- that I'd have it down by now.  But, alas, I'm not.  I used to pack for camping and backpacking trips by pulling out all of the gear, going through it, setting aside what I'd need, putting back what I wouldn't, replacing batteries, and so on.  If something we needed to take wasn't in the designated "camping bin", hopefully I would remember to grab it and set it out.  Otherwise we'd likely get there without it.  While that's not such a big deal car camping since you can just run into town, when you're carrying all your worldly possessions on your back out into the great unknown, forgetting your headlamp or toilet paper -- or worse, coffee -- could be a disaster.

Then one day, it hit me:  Why not instill the same rigor of checklist discipline that the Air Force uses into packing for a camping or backpacking trip?  So I used Excel to create one checklist for camping and another for backpacking.  I always leave blank spaces at the bottom to write in additional items that may be unique to that trip or to be added in to the next edition of the checklist because I forgot to add those items originally.  In fact, I've had so much success with these checklists that I've taken it one step farther, developing checklists for our stuff to take on family vacations as well.  That's especially important for us since we have a medically complicated child and taking a trip involves so much more than throwing a few clothes in a suitcase.

I've pasted screenshots of my camping and backpacking checklists below to give you a general idea of their format and content.  They're not really suitable for public consumption in that format, however, so if you'd like an electronic copy either message me or Cristi, or post your e-mail address in a comment, and I'll send it to you (I'll be happy to delete your comment afterward if you don't want your e-mail address left posted on a public blog.)



The camping and camp kitchen checklist is the same one we use for each trip.  The backpacking checklist is a generic one I developed that I used to use and have offered to others.  I have recently modified it to be more specific to the particular gear I use, so I encourage you to do the same, whether using my checklists as a starting point or developing your own.

Blogging Through the Alphabet” style=

14 comments:

  1. The best part of making lists is when the kids can read it and gather their own gear! I still pack the bags (and double check they got the right clothes), but it's so much easier when they can be the hunter-gatherers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes! I hand the kids a checklist and give them the weather forecast and make them pack their stuff themselves. I check Lauren's, but the big kids are on their own.

      Delete
  2. Wow, so organized and useful. I need to learn from this because I'm always grabbing a scrap piece of paper and jotting out the same lists for every trip. Thanks for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That used to be my plan. One time I thought to jot the packing list down in the back of my calendar and now I can refer back to it.

      Delete
  3. I'm impressed with the organization! Awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm impressed with the organization! Awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  5. We don't really camp/hike, but with four kids (including a toddler and baby) it feels like I have an infinitely long list on my scrap paper every time we go somewhere for the weekend! I need to get organized like this!

    ReplyDelete
  6. What great organization.
    Blessings, Dawn

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh yes....to be organised...I can only dream! Thanks for popping by my blog. Apart from my husband and son you are the first male ever to comment :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I enjoyed reading your post. Look forward to seeing the next in the series!

      Delete
  8. Oh yes....to be organised...I can only dream! Thanks for popping by my blog. Apart from my husband and son you are the first male ever to comment :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I need you to come give us organization lessons. My mom always tells me, "that wouldn't happen if you made a list" and I tell her "I did make a list, I just forgot to put that on it" :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I had that problem, too, which is why I now have a standing list that I add stuff to as it comes up so that I don't forget it the next time!

      Delete
  10. I need you to come give us organization lessons. My mom always tells me, "that wouldn't happen if you made a list" and I tell her "I did make a list, I just forgot to put that on it" :-)

    ReplyDelete