Meet Dan. He flew into Chiang Mai with one bag and a plan to reach the mountains of northern Vietnam overland: down the Mekong by slow boat, through Laos, and up into the far north of Vietnam where the roads climb above the clouds.
35 days. 3 countries. 2,400 kilometres. 1 bag.
This is the trip, stop by stop, and what he wore on it. Everything below came out of the same bag, which is the whole point. A trip like this runs from 33 degrees on a temple trail to 11 degrees on a mountain pass, and you don't get to go home and change.
Day 1 · Chiang Mai, Thailand: The Monk's Trail
33°C
Up at six to beat the heat on the trail to Wat Pha Lat. It was still 33 degrees by nine. Temples here ask for covered shoulders and knees, so the sun hoodie and long trousers went on and mostly stayed on for the next five weeks.
If you go: the Monk's Trail climbs through forest on the lower slopes of Doi Suthep, and most people reach Wat Pha Lat in 30 to 60 minutes. It is an easy climb, but it gets slippery after rain. Covered shoulders and knees apply to men and women alike at nearly every temple in Thailand, and shoes come off before you step inside. Long sleeves and long trousers that you can actually walk uphill in mean you never have to think about it.
Wearing: Men's Sun Hoodie · Men's Hiking Trousers
Day 9 · Laos: The Mekong Slow Boat
29°C
Two days from the Thai border to Luang Prabang on a wooden bench, with forty other people and a lot of bananas. Spray comes over the side every time a speedboat passes. Passport, phone and camera lived in the dry bag the whole way.
If you go: the slow boat leaves from Huay Xai and stops for the night at Pakbeng, a small village roughly halfway, before the second day into Luang Prabang. The boat stops along the way to drop off and pick up villagers, so the timings drift. Book your bed in Pakbeng ahead, get to the dock early for a decent seat, and keep anything that can't get wet sealed up and within reach.
Packed: Dry Bag Set
Day 14 · Laos: Kuang Si Falls
31°C
The pools at Kuang Si are the colour of toothpaste and ankle deep at the edges. I walked straight in with the sandals on. The trousers rolled up, and were dry again before the ride back to town.
This is where one bag earns its keep. A sandal you can walk to the falls in and then straight into the water with means there's no second pair of shoes to carry. The same goes for trousers that roll up and dry on the way home.
Wearing: Men's Walking Sandals · Men's Hiking Trousers
Day 29 · Ha Giang, Vietnam: The Cold Part
11°C
Nobody mentions that northern Vietnam gets cold. At six in the morning on the Ma Pi Leng pass it was 11 degrees. The fleece was the warmest thing in the bag, and it came out every morning for the rest of the loop.
If you go: pack for the pass, not the town. Ha Giang itself can be mild while Ma Pi Leng, at more than 1,400 metres, sits in fog and wind on the same afternoon. Mornings are the coldest part of the day and the fog is heaviest before nine, so a mid-morning start is often the better ride. Carry a warm layer and gloves whatever the month.
Wearing: Quarter-Zip Fleece · Men's Hiking Trousers
The Packing List
Everything Dan wore, start to finish:
- Men's Sun Hoodie: UPF 50+, light enough for 33 degrees.
- Men's Hiking Trousers: quick-dry stretch. Covers the knees.
- Men's Walking Sandals: closed toe, fine in the water.
- Dry Bag Set: roll-top. Passport, phone, camera.
- Quarter-Zip Fleece: for the cold mornings up north.
Travelling together? The Women's Sun Hoodie and Women's Walking Sandals are here.
At TERRABOUND, we pick kit for trips where everything has to fit in one bag and work from the first hot morning to the last cold one. Long sleeves for the sun and the temples, trousers that roll up and dry on the way back, and a fleece for the mornings nobody warns you about.
One bag. Five weeks. See you out there.