Here I go again

A small part of the packing for 2 months in the UK - cat not included

Just about a year after the last packing photo, here I go again: 

• piling up stuff, wrangling gear lists; 

• trying to figure out likely weather; 

• working out how many combinations of clothing and layers can get me through an unseasonably warm UK summer into autumn, through hiking and socialising; 

• getting on and off public transport - so the bags have to be small (no lovely Indian porters and kind locals to take pity on an elderly tourist on this trip). 

My packing rules (at the risk of repeating myself)

1. Don't take jeans. They take too long to dry.
2. Try to ensure everything has at least two uses - a scarf doubles as a sarong; thermals are groovy leggings, and under long pants they turn trousers into cosy trackie daks.
3. You only need three pairs of underpants and one bra - if the worst happens (like when a sneak thief stole all Simon's underpants from his hotel room), I understand that Marks and Sparks are holding closing down sales.
4. Roll up every item and squish like items into sealable plastic bags before crushing into your bag.
5. But always wear your hiking boots on the plane - just in case your checked bags go missing (Leonie's daughter's bag spent 3 weeks in Canada instead of on the Camino del Norte with her.)

And where is all this stuff going?

Who'd have thought it all fitted into a cabin bag and a 30L pack?

My bags and I are zig-zagging the Old Dart and the Netherlands, with a mix of tourist destinations (Liverpool, London, York, Marlborough, Dordrecht, Amsterdam), using planes/trains/buses and cabs, while fulfilling long-held hiking dreams:

• The Coast to Coast from St Bees to Robin Hoods Bay - thanks to Wendy and Graham Potts who made all this happen from scratch thus saving a lot on the cost of an organised trip
• Away days on the Pennine Way - the UK's first modern long distance walk 
• Offa's Dyke - four days on the southern part of the path in a part of the country I don't know at all, on a walk I've organised myself and on which I'm navigating, with my dear sister who's never done a multi-day hike; could be a triumph or a recipe for disaster. 

I'll keep you posted.