View Full Version : Checked and carry-on airline items
DownEaster
03-23-2017, 07:04
Flying to Atlanta next year, due to TSA regulations I'll have a mix of gear that I'll want to carry on with me (my pack with most of my stuff) and items which are only permitted in checked baggage (trekking poles, pocket knife, olive oil, lighter, & c.). What sort of checked bag should I get? I'm thinking the cheapest nylon duffel I can find, which I would leave in the first hiker box I come to. Is there some reason to opt for sturdier luggage?
bigcranky
03-23-2017, 07:21
I don't think there is any reason to get sturdier luggage. Wrap the trekking poles in cardboard to protect them from the baggage destroyers, er, handlers. Do not under any circumstances put stove fuel in your luggage. Double wrap the olive oil in Ziplocs :)
A $5 duffle from Goodwill is plenty, you can give it to a homeless guy at the Marta station.
MuddyWaters
03-23-2017, 07:28
A $5 duffle from Goodwill is plenty, you can give it to a homeless guy at the Marta station.
Because the homeless like to travel?
Its not even worth the gas to drive around to goodwills looking.
Order cheapest chinese crap you can find online
fastfoxengineering
03-23-2017, 07:51
I think I'd rather skip the checked baggage and ship it. Anything you can't ship you can grab in town right before you hike.
Any reason not to do this?
I guess its cause I dislike flying. And dislike checked baggage even more
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4eyedbuzzard
03-23-2017, 08:45
I'd check as baggage whatever can't go as carry-on rather than ship it, especially via USPS. If you do mail it or ship it, DO NOT use USPS parcel select, as it is the lowest priority and can take weeks sometimes to get delivered.
Francis Sawyer
03-23-2017, 08:54
I'd check as baggage whatever can't go as carry-on rather than ship it, especially via USPS. If you do mail it or ship it, DO NOT use USPS parcel select, as it is the lowest priority and can take weeks sometimes to get delivered.
I would think that a sturdier bag would be more likely to successfully contain all of your items during transit while a less sturdy bag .
What sort of checked bag should I get? I'm thinking the cheapest nylon duffel I can find, which I would leave in the first hiker box I come to. Is there some reason to opt for sturdier luggage?
I wrote up my thoughts about this in an article just last month:
https://thetrek.co/flying-with-backpacking-gear/
Puddlefish
03-23-2017, 09:00
Check your airline, but the thing I found odd was that I had to carry my mini Bic butane lighter on, as it wasn't permitted in checked baggage.
Can you carry on tent stakes?
fastfoxengineering
03-23-2017, 09:55
I don't believe so. Zpacks sells carbon stakes and they state theyve never had a problem bringing them on planes. Other stakes, not so much
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bigcranky
03-23-2017, 10:26
Because the homeless like to travel?
Because they can use it to carry their stuff? Trade it for something more useful? Because it's better than throwing it in the trash?
The sturdiest/cheapest option I've found to pack checked gear in is a hockey gear bag. You can find them for $20-25-ish online. Often I've just thrown my whole packed backpack in there with a few loose items I'd need at my destination. If you end up checking something anyway, might as well go light on the plane and not drag your pack around.
One Half
03-23-2017, 10:40
Flying to Atlanta next year, due to TSA regulations I'll have a mix of gear that I'll want to carry on with me (my pack with most of my stuff) and items which are only permitted in checked baggage (trekking poles, pocket knife, olive oil, lighter, & c.). What sort of checked bag should I get? I'm thinking the cheapest nylon duffel I can find, which I would leave in the first hiker box I come to. Is there some reason to opt for sturdier luggage?
you could also mail the duffel home and then have someone mail it back to you at the end of the hike.
DownEaster
03-23-2017, 15:48
Thanks for all the helpful responses, folks.
Based on everything said here I'm leaning toward a hybrid approach. I'll pack things the airline would require me to check and instead ship that box to the hostel. (I'll be availing myself of one of the hostel services with a package deal to pick me up at the MARTA stop, host me for a night, and drive me to Amicalola Falls State Park.) And since I've got to get around Atlanta anyway, I'll get a MARTA day pass and visit their biggest Walmart near a station where I'll buy consumables. I'll need stove fuel anyway, and I can also buy most of my food while I'm there. This way I'll keep my pack light and more easily stowable in the plane's overhead bin. And my Fritos won't be a bag of crumbs. :)
I'm gonna buy a big hockey bag :)
Flying to Atlanta next year, due to TSA regulations I'll have a mix of gear that I'll want to carry on with me (my pack with most of my stuff) and items which are only permitted in checked baggage (trekking poles, pocket knife, olive oil, lighter, & c.). What sort of checked bag should I get? I'm thinking the cheapest nylon duffel I can find, which I would leave in the first hiker box I come to. Is there some reason to opt for sturdier luggage?
That's fine if you have a light wt kit. However, toting around a bulky duffel bag in your hands that weighs 50+ lbs is no fun. Look for a cheapo disposable duffel as Big Cranky says that can be put on over your shoulders or remove the back pack from the duffel ASAP so you can wear it as was meant to be.
Consider buying your general food items once in GA to save on bulk and wt you have to haul on flights or public transportation.
Tie up all loose pack straps or shrink wrap the pack before putting into duffel to avoid baggage destroyers grabbing them inside the duffel.
Thanks for all the helpful responses, folks.
Based on everything said here I'm leaning toward a hybrid approach. I'll pack things the airline would require me to check and instead ship that box to the hostel. (I'll be availing myself of one of the hostel services with a package deal to pick me up at the MARTA stop, host me for a night, and drive me to Amicalola Falls State Park.) And since I've got to get around Atlanta anyway, I'll get a MARTA day pass and visit their biggest Walmart near a station where I'll buy consumables. I'll need stove fuel anyway, and I can also buy most of my food while I'm there. This way I'll keep my pack light and more easily stowable in the plane's overhead bin. And my Fritos won't be a bag of crumbs. :)
Check ahead as it might be a hit or miss but some of the GA Hostels like the Hiker Hostel in Dahlonega usually have various stove fuels. Mail them your food too all WELL AHEAD of being there.
Can you carry on tent stakes?
Always have with never a problem. Ti skewer, Al groundhogs, Al or Ti nail, TI V, carbon never even asked a question about carrying them on in a domestic flight with a 25 -sub lb small package kit
Thanks for all the helpful responses, folks.
Based on everything said here I'm leaning toward a hybrid approach. I'll pack things the airline would require me to check and instead ship that box to the hostel. (I'll be availing myself of one of the hostel services with a package deal to pick me up at the MARTA stop, host me for a night, and drive me to Amicalola Falls State Park.) And since I've got to get around Atlanta anyway, I'll get a MARTA day pass and visit their biggest Walmart near a station where I'll buy consumables. I'll need stove fuel anyway, and I can also buy most of my food while I'm there. This way I'll keep my pack light and more easily stowable in the plane's overhead bin. And my Fritos won't be a bag of crumbs. :)
There's a Super walmart in Dahlonega the Saints usually make a nearby trip to for hikers. Contact the Saints to ascertain their recs on what their Wally World carries. They might not have small canisters for example.
DownEaster
03-23-2017, 23:04
However, toting around a bulky duffel bag in your hands that weighs 50+ lbs is no fun. Look for a cheapo disposable duffel as Big Cranky says that can be put on over your shoulders or remove the back pack from the duffel ASAP so you can wear it as was meant to be.
I think you might have read my post a bit too fast. I never intended to put my pack in the duffel; the pack was always going to be my carry-on bag. Only the TSA restricted items like trekking poles would have been in a cheap carry-on duffel bag, which would thus be just a few pounds. Now (revised plan) there won't be any duffel. And my pack will be even lighter because I plan to buy most consumables, including food and fuel, in Atlanta.
DownEaster
03-23-2017, 23:07
Ooops! (Wish I could Edit my posts.)
would have been in a cheap carry-on duffel bag
should be
would have been in a cheap checked duffel bag
I think you might have read my post a bit too fast. I never intended to put my pack in the duffel; the pack was always going to be my carry-on bag. Only the TSA restricted items like trekking poles would have been in a cheap carry-on duffel bag, which would thus be just a few pounds. Now (revised plan) there won't be any duffel. And my pack will be even lighter because I plan to buy most consumables, including food and fuel, in Atlanta.
;).........