Unpacking from the Tour du Mont Blanc — What I Used & What I Didn't

As I've been mentioning/mourning on the blog, I'm fresh off the Tour du Mont Blanc, a 107-mile hut-to-hut thru-hike snaking through France, Italy, and Switzerland. The trip was thanks to a last-minute flight voucher opportunity, and is easily one of my favorite travel experiences, especially solo.

I didn't take my laptop, making this week my first opportunity to write about the trail since setting off two weeks ago. Because of time constraints, I wasn't able to complete the entire trail—which I knew going into it—so would love to return in the future to finish it.

On such a speedy turnaround, I hoped that a rapid-fire packing list would get the job done, and I loved seeing what various hikers and trail runners brought.

The TMB was a great trail selection for a few reasons, one being that you can scale up and down between hardship and luxury. You can stay in rifugios, or wild-camp the entire time. You can send your bags ahead, or hike with everything on your back.

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I ended up sleeping in the huts, and carrying my own things, so I aimed to keep my pack weight under twenty pounds overall.

As for minimalism vs. comfort, I wasn't particularly precious, so I think I was pretty straightforward about my needs, clothing, etc. while still indulging on a few carries. Items like an e-reader and fleece weren't technically necessary but added value for their respective ounces. So I'm probably somewhere in the middle?

I tried to remind myself that this was my vacation, so I didn't need to do it perfectly. Also, I'm lucky; as a style, travel, and gift-guide writer, I've gotten to sample plenty of goods across outdoors, lifestyle, and beauty brands that made gathering the essentials pretty easy. I'm going to resist the commerce writer urge to write a blurb for each item, but I will share some notes.

(I'll link most of these later—I'm sleepy! Some of these aren't exact, since I've had some items for a long time, but they're as close to the original as possible.)

But here's what I ended up bringing.

The Backpack + Sling Bag Combination

I touted everything in my backpack with the sling bag used as a front carry. My backpack didn't have hip pockets, so this arrangement worked out nicely.

Because it was dry and I took plenty of photos, I usually ended up wearing my camera on the outside of each, so the order went: big backpack on, then sling bag shifted to front, then camera across body. I'm sure the overall appearance was bulky, but it got the job done.

• Cotopaxi Allpa 35L Travel Backpack (main) — I noted this in my primer for the trail, but I don't have a backpacking backpack with me on-island. I considered literally overnighting one, but that's majorly expensive. That’s an investment I need to make this year for sure but the best outdoors gear is always the gear you have. Plus, my weight would be light enough that it wouldn't matter too much that I wasn't optimizing distribution, breathability, etc. I do think this bag makes me look like a turtle rather than a hiker in a way reminiscent of how freshmen boys in high school would scurry across the hallways, but c'est la vie.
• Hydroflask Slingback Bottle Pack (sling) — This bag is such an underrated winner. Hydroflask sent it to me a few years ago, and I use it all the time. The giant pocket in the front is made to fit a water bottle, so it fits a ton with convenient pockets and access. While living in Park City, I skiied with this every day.

Hiking Apparel

I ended up alternating between two on-trail outfits—a Bandit Running set and a Smartwool set. (Merino wool is great for all temps!)

I brought some variations I could wear on-trail or lounging to make up a third outfit if needed, but ultimately only wore them in transit or in town: a Left on Friday swimsuit (which doubles as a sports bra), a short-sleeve UV top layer, AYBL gym spandex, and pink Anthropologie parachute pants I often travel in. I’ve written love letters to the latter in many-a magazine article.

I did like having options in case of weather or formality changes, but my trail stayed pretty consistent and I stayed casual when off.

Paka sent me a UV hoodie, which didn't come in time—but I will get plenty of use out of it! Ideal for protecting against the rays while still staying cool: a jack-of-all-trades in regards to heat.

In the mornings, I usually ended up wearing my packable puffer to start the hike and shucking it on and off as the shadows and elevation called for it.

• Bandit Running sports bra + shorts
• Smartwool short sleeve + shorts
• Left on Friday swim top/sports bra + bottoms
• Left on Friday black UV short-sleeve top
• AYBL Empower shorts
• Paka Sol Hoodie
• Patagonia packable puffer
• Assorted wool socks (4-5 pairs)
• Trucker hat (it's this one, if y'all really care to know)
• Underthings
• And I packed all clothing into packing cubes

Other Hiking Gear

• Gossamer Gear LT5 Three Piece Carbon Trekking Poles — multiple people said they never liked trekking poles until doing this trail, and these were great. I broke them on literally the first day getting one caught in the side of a bus, but I wrapped 'em up with blister tape and will ultimately repair them. They saved my knees for sure.
• Black Diamond Spot 400 Headlamp — wrote about this last year for a gift guide for men, and needed to replace my own after years and years of holding onto the same unit as a camp counselor. I'm a lover of a red light setting.
• Teva Grandview Max GORE-TEX Hiking Boot — Teva very kindly sent these to me right before the trip, and they were so comfy too. I got a ton of compliments. I appreciated the sneaker feel, and love waterproofing. I do wish they had slightly more of a heel lock. More thoughts to come I'm sure.

Travel Necessities

• Passport
• Cash (euros + francs)
• Debit + credit cards, ID, etc.
• Printed map
• Smaller cloth zip bag to fit all this, inside sling bag!

Health, etc.

For meds, I took one or two days more than how long I planned to be on trail, with the exception of ibuprofen. (I took a massive handful.) And then Dramamine and DayQuil in case — God forbid — I caught a bug. Always better to have than not to have in Europe.

• Advil
• Dramamine + cold meds (in case)
• L-theanine (the one supplement I love, for my morning caffeine jitters)
• Adderall (lol)
• Travel capsules to fit meds + toiletrie s
• Inhaler (unfortunately, I have asthma)
• Blister stick
• Blister patches
• Blister tape
• Traditional band-aids
• Muscle balm + BioFreeze gel
• Electrolyte + vitamin C packets
• Clif Bloks energy chews
• Chapstick
• Dune sunscreen (body + face)
• Hand sanitizer
• Antimicrobial skin spray? (Also sort of hand sanitizer)
• A few Grove Co. hand soap sheets
• Travel pack of tissues
• Transparent zipper pouches (three—one for meds/health, one for toiletries, and one for random overflow)

Lodge Toiletries

Hairbrush accomplished nothing.

(Go ahead and assume all of these are mini-sized.) Most of my toiletries are samples from brands I've tested!

• Toothbrush
• Toothpaste
• Deodorant
• Shampoo/conditioner bar (tried it, but was so bad—I ended up filling a random container with shampoo elsewhere to avoid using it and got the travel capsules mixed up immediately, so there was a non-zero chance I ended up washing my hair with hand soap all week)
• Moisturizer
• Brush
• Hairbands
• Nail polish
• A few ziplocs + a trash bag to use as a pack liner if needed

Daily Use, Tech, & Other Accessories

Basically, what made it into the slingbag or clipped to my backpack beyond the meds, SPF, etc.

• Nalgene bottle (electrolytes + mixed drinks)
• Camelbak x Lifestraw water bottle (only water)
• Adidas polarized trail sunglasses
• Carabiner
• Phone + cord
• Garmin Forerunner 245 + charger
• Oura Ring + charger
• Sony ZVE10
• AirPods Pro (mostly just for plane)
• Wired Apple headphones
• Portable charger bank (10,000 mAh)
• EU charger adapter
• Kindle Paperwhite (I will not link Amazon, and y’all know this! I only read library books on here, and do not buy books there.)
• Sea to Summit dry bag
• Pack cover
• Bandana

Lounge Layers

I pretty much stuck to one warm/lounge layer for down time in the rifugios. Luckily, it ended up not being too chilly in the mornings, but I was glad to have them.

I'm originally Floridian (and live in Hawai'i) so I'd rather my chosen pack weight go to one great cozy outfit when relaxing. I never regretted the fleece or the sweats, but definitely felt Vuori was light enough to justify but good ol' classic sweats would not be. I brought gloves in case of cold weather, and was grateful not to need them.

As a note, most rifugios make you leave your backpack, poles, and boots outside or in a designated area. Some even provide slippers, but you probably want waterproof shoes for showering anyway (because showering on the trail is one of its luxuries!)

• Vuori tank + wide-leg sweats
• Huckberry fleece
• Teva waterproof classic sandals
• Kari Traa beanie
• Gloves

Other Rifugio Items (Necessities & Indulgences)

If sleeping in a hut, they'll probably ask you to bring a sleeping bag liner to avoid having to change the linens. (You might be able to rent one for a small fee.)

And then, of course, you’ll want to bring whatever you need overnight to be comfortable and prepare for the trail the next morning.

My days out were pretty long, so I pretty much just had dinner and crashed by 8pm every night — less rifugio reflection than I expected — but I’ve said before that one of my favorite aspects of backpacking is the resulting contrast and relief at the end of a day of pushing yourself. So being there made me gloriously happy.

For me, access to reading and writing is a necessity. I cannot function without either. My version of scaling this down was an e-reader instead of paperbacks, a single notebook and maybe three pens, and the Freewrite—which readers have been begging me for a review of, so that's coming shortly! I did finish a few books on trail, mostly while on a bus or two, and I chipped away at an audiobook while climbing.

• Geometry quick dry beach towel
• Sea to Summit sleeping bag liner
• Manta Sleep blackout mask
• Freewrite Traveler (this was my most out-of-pocket pick, but I loved having it)
• Journal + pens

Some Other Things I Brought But Didn't Use

• Mini tripod (will really just never get to the point of intentionally filming myself, I think, although I know it would be better for my career)
• Earplugs for sleep (I usually crashed so hard anyway, and got lucky with noise; the loudest was Pension en Plein Air and that was my last night, so I largely did not care.)
• Rain poncho (luckily, it did not rain!)
• CampSnap faux-disposable camera—taking out my "real" camera was just as easy, but it was comforting to know I had a durable throw-around one.
• Mosquito wipes—I had some single-serving wipes from Kinfield, and could have used them the first day when I found myself on the Val Veny balcony trail with the light dimming and the bugs buzzing, but for the most part was pretty comfortable. If you have longer days with dusks approaching, they’d be a good pick.
• Clothespin—someone said that not all the refugios had good spots to hang laundry, so I brought one in case I wanted to lay out a sports bra or something.

Casualties of the Trail + Swaps I'd Make Next Time

Unfortunately, I lost my Adidas trail sunglasses during a pack-off break (I believe—they were on my head, but a few miles away, they were not.)

Also, a lot of people launder their clothes in the sinks and then lay them out to dry at the rifugios. So once, I was able to save a pair of socks from being whisked away accidentally. With my Bandit sports bra, I was not so lucky and it disappeared. (I'm actually quite sad about that one; it was a favorite!) Unintentional, I'm sure, but still disappointing. It happens.

Next time, I'd hope to have an actually made-for-hiking pack with me, and I'd go for a smaller towel too. Aside from that, I had the smug satisfaction of using just about everything without waste, and having timed some of my quantities to run out perfectly.

Since I ended up not using my trash bag as a pack liner, I spent my last leg of the trail packing out litter I spied along the route. I was in no rush to get to my final destination. The TMB is pretty clean overall, but seeing the occasional wrapper or trash bummed me out. Leave no trace, y'all! So that was a nice-to-have.

I'll spare y'all the descriptions, but I ended the trail with some pretty gnarly bruises. I also lost some nails, and thought about the overlap between my pointe days (ballet, for those of y'all not in the know) and backpacking. I'd be so curious as to whether the gel toe pads we used in class would translate well to thru-hiking. My suspicion would be yes, but that you'd want to be careful about over-padding causing hot spots. Really, it was just the severity of the descents that got me on that front; my ballet background makes me pretty used to my feet getting absolutely wrecked in pursuit of beauty.

Throughout the TMB, I collected some default souvenirs: a few postcards, a fridge magnet, a stainless steel camping mug stamped with a particular stay. Wearing a fresh t-shirt and hat at the end of it felt incredible, so I built that into my budget planning.

Sad to be off the trail, I also bought a few paperbacks in a fantastic bookshop in the San Francisco airport. If I wasn't going to be backpacking more, at least I could add in some weight via Tender Is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard.

More to come for sure. If the TMB on your bucket list, I hope my experiences packing (as a professional reviewer to boot) might be helpful for you whether you're winging the trek or charting it months in advance.