POST HIKE GEAR LIST | LARAPINTA TRAIL END TO END

[@markhouston5232]

Thank you for providing the packing list on microsoft word. Most helpful. Happy adventuring :)

[@ChrisandDanya]

Hope you have a great adventure!

[@ingridmccarthy0707]

This is a great video and I liked how you showed how you split up the equipment between the two of you!

[@ChrisandDanya]

Thank you 🙏 We'll make sure to make more videos like this in the future ☺️

[@Davcreate125]

Gaiters or long pants are a must at the moment due to widespread overgrowth on the path.

[@ChrisandDanya]

Always a good choice in Australia regardless!

[@PeterMackay66]

Wow. Thanks for the detailed look at all your kit and the pros and cons of each item. I went hunting up gear for the Kumano Kodo two years back and it's been in cold storage since then. Totally sold on the Osprey range of packs. We have a Manta 34, Sirrus 24, and Talon 11, the smaller pack for day trips. Love the thoiught and practicality that goes into their packs. Black Diamond trek poles. I went through a pair of no=brand cheapies in training and replaced them with a pair that will last. I have that Olympus 12-40mm lens and it is a beauty. My only gripe is that every now and then the autofocus clutch would work loose and my shots would be out of focus until I worked out what had happened.

[@ChrisandDanya]

Osprey packs are so good! We have changed a lot of our gear since recording this video a couple of years ago, we've been meaning to do an update, but haven't gotten around to it I no longer have the Olympus 12-40mm, but I wish I still did! I actually tried to buy a used copy a couple of weeks ago, but the seller decided to keep it. Just pre-ordered the Panasonic GH6, can't wait to get my hands on it!

[@MissFrequestion]

Thank you so much for putting the time and effort making this awesome informative video. I m considering to do this trail next winter in June. The longest hike I ve done was a 3 days hike. So, this sort of information from people who already done Larapinta helps a lot. Could you please add/upload more information about food? Is there any stop on the trail where you can buy food and water?

[@ChrisandDanya]

Thank you for the kind words! We're happy you've gotten some use out of it. There is two kiosks on the trip, one is Ormiston Gorge, the other is Standley Chasm. You can buy a meal at this place, but you cannot restock food. There is water tanks at all the major campsites on the trail, which you camp at mostly every night. There is a couple sections on the trail where you camp inbetween trail heads and need to carry two days worth of whatever. We plan to do another "Guide to the Larapinta Trail" video, where we explain steps to book and prepare for the hike. For food, its really not too difficult. Whatever transport company you use will include food drops in their package. They provide you with 50L tubs, which you fill with your preferred dehydrated meals, snacks, etc, and they leave them at designated stops along the trail. You hit a food drop every roughly 3-5 days. You can almost break up the entire trail into 4 parts. Think of it as four 3-5 day hikes, because you restock your food every 3-5 days, and you refill your water almost every night.

[@falvz4197]

At least somewhat?! Super useful Chris and Danya! Watched it twice! Still laugh at how much Chris loves his sleep mat!! Would they have let you pack some veggies in your drop boxes? And what did you do with your ginger beer bottles!!

[@ChrisandDanya]

Thank you for the kind words Falvz 🙏 Really glad this video was of use to you A lot of our gear is lighter now and we'd probably not take as much clothes if we were to do it again. However, the basic principles are still valid You can put whatever you want in the food drops, but fresh veg probably won't last so I would recommend against it. Fresh fruit like oranges may work. We put canned peaches in and really enjoyed that There is garbage/recycling bins at each of the food drop locations, so you can dispose of stuff there

[@falvz4197]

@@ChrisandDanya thanks for that info! I was thinking of a bit of a feast at the food drops since I’d only have to carry from drop to tent! I was thinking fresh eggs to address your variety issue would last if they don’t get too hot (and have never been in a fridge - apparently once they’re in they have to stay in). Yeah maybe veggies is a big ask. Maybe carrots/apples. Something not dehydrated to mush first at least! Thanks again.

[@ChrisandDanya]

I'm sure you'll figure it out! I honestly can't remember if the rooms got very hot, but considering it's in the middle of Australia I would assume so 😅

[@kickchick1974]

Oh my god - THOSE FLIES.....

[@ChrisandDanya]

Yeah, they were particularly bad that year! I believe all the fires drove the birds away, so there was nothing there to eat the flies

[@OurWeekendAdventures]

Great info and tips guys. This is a big walk so proper prep is pretty important hey

[@ChrisandDanya]

Agreed, prep is always the most important thing about a hike! 😊 We found it helpful to break the hike down into four smaller hikes; one for each food restock

[@OurWeekendAdventures]

@@ChrisandDanya that’s a really good point. Did you find your appetite went up? We have a friend that does a lot of multi day hikes and he said that at about day 2 or 3 it ramps right up.

[@ChrisandDanya]

We haven't really found that happens with us tbh, but I know that is a common thing among hikers. We usually just crave junk food and start fantasizing about what we're going to eat when we finish haha The food droos are great for storing some goodies that you can eat that day and ditch in the garbage cans before continuing on

[@OurWeekendAdventures]

@@ChrisandDanya ha ha ha thanks for taking the time to reply 🙏

[@ChrisandDanya]

Any questions, don't hesitate to ask 👍

[@ASTHECROWFLIESHIKING]

Super cool video and channel. I was able to watch some of the trail video. Great information and gear choices. This took some effort and time to make this video. I subscribed. Look forward to the next video. ✌️

[@ChrisandDanya]

Thanks for joining us! If you are planning on doing the larapinta trail at any point in the future we more than happy to help with any questions you might have. We also just got back from a hike in Japan so will have some videos on that coming up 👍

[@ASTHECROWFLIESHIKING]

Look forward to the video from Japan. That should be epic. The mountains and topography there are incredible. ✌️

[@ChrisandDanya]

Japan blows us away every time we go there. Thanks again for the support

[@glambycheryl212]

Thanks for sharing. My hike was cancelled in 2021 and incant wait to do it in 2023.

[@ChrisandDanya]

You'll have an amazing time Cheryl!!

[@natashaattiwill5382]

What kind of meals did you have? What do you recommend? Are you saying higher fat content? 😊

[@ChrisandDanya]

We found recipes on Backpacking Chef and then dehydrated most of our own meals. We thought our upset stomachs were due to our diet, but turns out there was a case of gastro along the trail when we were there and lots of people got sick. I think we got quite luckily actually, because ours was just very very mild

[@billburnett7462]

Thanks for the video's adding this walk to the bucket list. What was your decision to hike west to east? Also what's the name of the dehydrator you used Thanks again Happy walking Bill

[@ChrisandDanya]

Hey Bill, thanks for watching! We decided to hike West to East so we could be a bit more flexible in our schedule. We weren't sure how long certain sections were going to take us, so if we finished in Alice Springs, we didn't have to worry about scheduling a ride. The name of our dehydrator is the BioChef Arizona Sol 6; it's a great product!

[@jenniferfergus4285]

Thank you so much for this video! I'm heading out next weekend and have gained some uselful tips! Bought a wide brim hat too haha

[@ChrisandDanya]

Good choice!

[@GaryTischer]

Seems like I'm following you guys (I did the OT in April) and am now interested in the Larapinta. Look forward to watching your videos. Thanks :)

[@ChrisandDanya]

Well it sounds like we might be going to Japan in November, so start packing your bags haha

[@GaryTischer]

@@ChrisandDanya Gotta get back to Canada first :)

[@ellichan9518]

Thanks for the video and the gear review. I am curious about your drone usage. How did you recharge the batteries during the hike? I've been looking at which drone to buy, and one of the problems I found with the air was the inability to charge the batteries via a power bank. Also, to possibly sell the footage later on, is a remote pilot license required when shooting the footage? Cheers:)

[@ChrisandDanya]

During our Larapinta trek I had the original DJI Mavic Air drone. To charge the batteries I used one of those power banks that can jump start cars. They often have a 12v socket and I used a car charger for the Mavic Air batteries. I then strapped a solar charger on the back of my bag to charge the power bank; the power bank needed to be able to be charged via 5v USB. Overall it kind of worked, but the power bank eventually stopped working and the solar charging was not reliable and inefficient. I have since upgraded to a DJI Mavic Air 2 + DJI Mini 2 drone for hiking. The DJI Mini 2 is an amazing little drone and everything I could hope for in a hiking drone. The batteries can be recharged via USB-C with a power bank that outputs 30+ Watts. Let me know if you want to know the exact model I purchased You can apply for a commercial filming/drone permit for NT National Parks. If you go on their website, you should be able to find the form, just fill it out and email it to the addresses listed; you may need to follow up with them with an additional email, as they are slow to respond sometimes. Things may have changed since we hiked, but the permit only cost us $50. Rules and regulations for flying drones in Australia has changed a lot since we hiked the trail, so I'm not sure if you are required to be a licensed pilot. I would say you are filming recreationally with the possibility of profiting at a later date, so I don't think being licensed would be a requirement. Best check with CASA if you are unsure Any other questions or concerns, don't hesitate to ask!

[@ellichan9518]

Thanks for getting back to me. I have myself already pretty much settled on the Mini 2 for hiking due to its weight and the possibility of charging via USB. If you could let me know which powerbank is working for you that would be very helpful. Otherwise I'll test what I have and go from there.

[@ChrisandDanya]

We purchased the Xiaomi ZMI Power Bank Pro 20000mAh 65W. There are other cheaper options, but I found this to be the lightest/slimmest power bank of this capacity. There is rumours of a DJI Mini 3 getting announced soon, but I find the Mini 2 has all the features I would like at this time

[@bigalan1942]

Thanks guys. Great video

[@ChrisandDanya]

Thanks Scott, hope you found some useful information in there. Some of our gear has changed a bit since we did this hike, but most has stayed the same

[@bigalan1942]

@@ChrisandDanya We are in the are we or aren't we phase. We have all of the gear in your list and have done the Overland Track. Time for a new challenge.

[@ChrisandDanya]

Do it!! With the food drops it breaks the hike up into four shorter 4-5 day hikes, which we found really helped. There's only one section where you have to carry 2 full days worth of water, which was a difficult; but the rest of the trail is a standard hard trail with lots of ups and downs

[@bigalan1942]

@@ChrisandDanya You may have talked me into it! Did you guys make a video on your itinerary?

[@ChrisandDanya]

Unfortunately we didn't, but we might have a document lying around somewhere; I'll take a look. We've thought about making a "How to Hike the Larapinta Trail" video for quite a while, but have never gotten around to it. I suppose we weren't sure if there would be much interest/how useful it would be.

[@calebskirrow-followthefro1100]

What did you do to get the drone permit? Im thinking of bringing mine with me on my trip next year :)

[@ChrisandDanya]

Hey Caleb, we just needed to fill out a form and send to them. There is a small fee depending what you are planning to do with the footage. I got a commercial permit as I've sold some of the clips as stock footage; i believe it cost me $50. Links to the website and forms are below: NT Parks drone and permits info: nt.gov.au/leisure/parks-reserves/rules-and-permits/permits-for-parks/permits-to-use-aircraft-and-drones-in-parks Recreation permit: nt.gov.au/__data/assets/word_doc/0011/400034/operation-of-aircraft-permit-application-drone.docx Commercial permit: nt.gov.au/__data/assets/word_doc/0015/400038/operation-of-aircraft-trade-and-commerce-form.docx