AK on the GO

Let the fun begin! AK Fam gets ready for another adventure.

AK Dad, back when we were dating, needed to go on a week-long business trip to New Orleans. He left at 6 a.m. on a Friday. He began packing at 10 p.m. Thursday. I told him if we ever got married I would be the one responsible for packing, and he has never forgotten my promise. Yours truly was assigned the title of Packing Princess and has retained the monniker to this day, nearly 10 years later. So there.

Really, though there’s a method to my madness; with two kids, a dog, and a husband so laid-back that he never, ever worries about where the paperwork might be hiding, or how the kid got stuck in between the seats on an airplane, I must be the voice of reason when it comes to travel preparations, be it all day or all month. Our vacations require “stuff” specific to our activity, and sometimes forgetting an important piece of “stuff” could lead to miserable consequences. But we won’t point fingers….

In case you missed our last appearance on the Alaska Travelgram show with KUDO AM 1080  on Tuesday, here are three of our most valuable tips for organizing, packing, and stowing the mountains of gear that accumulate with frightening speed before a trip. You can also listen to a podcast of the show on Mindy O’Neall’s web site, This Arctic Life for the rest of the story.

Summer travel is but a few months away, so let’s get cracking:

Tip #1: Everybody gets a pile. My staging area for the time being seems to be my office floor, where each member of the family deposits their desired clothing, etc. for review before final packing. I can evaluate the appropriateness of clothing (important up here in AK), make sure the smallest child did not forget underwear, and know where items of amusement for the kids are packed, in addition to snacks and drinks (if a road trip).

Tip #2: Put outdoor gear in one place. When we travel in the winter, the sheer volume of the pants, boots, coats, and mittens can quickly become out of control. I own a very old, very durable duffle bag that retains all outdoor gear. Small items like kids’ mittens and hats go into gallon-sized zipper bags. We stuff outdoor socks into boots for easy locating. The same principle applies for non-winter travel. Rain coats, rain boots, sandals, hats; everything goes into one bag that also, by the way, is able to handle a little snow, dirt, and/or sand, depending upon your destination.

Tip #3: Give each traveler his or her own carry-on/bag. Even the baby gets one. Rummaging around in assorted backpacks does nothing to improve my mood when one child is screaming he wants his story on CD and the other is screaming for me to get out of his stuff. Smaller kids get smaller bags, but the essentials like stuffed animals, toys, etc. can easily be carried by even the toddler-iest toddler. Or let them think they can.

There you go, the basics for beginning your journey….saddle up and ride into the sunset with confidence!