I always keep a pad of paper and a pen or two available in my bag, as a writer there are times that an idea hits me in a rush, and you need a slower, traditional means of writing – there are times a computer will just not do. Besides my MacBook Air laptop, I keep a Monster battery charger for my mobile devices. Several books travel with me, of course – currently I am reading 'Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking Book' by Malcolm Gladwell, and 'True Hallucinations: Being an Account of the Author's Extraordinary Adventures in the Devil's Paradise' by Terence McKenna. Other items that I never travel without tend to be toiletries, headphones, business cards, and my favorite cannabis lotion (amazing stuff – truly takes away muscle aches and pains), as well as any recent writings that I'm toying with.

Recently, my travels have brought me out to Colorado, where exploring the wilderness beyond the front range and camping have become a sort of normal way of life. I've spoke recently upon some of my favorite travel gear and how I've come to choose what's best for my situation as a travel writer/photographer, who typically travels alone, carrying everything I need on my back in a rucksack. While my rucksack is packed full of clothes, toiletries, computer and camera gear, I also have camping gear with me.
Choosing the right tent was actually easier than I had originally expected. I reached out to MSR (Mountain Safety Research) by Cascade Designs inquiring about which tent would be best and they suggested the Elixir 3 person lightweight backpacking tent. According to MSR, they designed this tent with backpackers in mind. They focused on a solid concept design which offers users flexibility, lightweight carry, and a quality build for long time value, whether its used for occasional camping trips, or warm-weather nomadic living outdoors.
As soon the sun was beginning to set on my first hiking day in the Rockies, I found a spot atop a hill with a great outlook, and I unpacked the tent. The Elixir 3 is stored in a fabric bag with a drawstring, which allows for enough space for packing of even the worst tent teardown and rolling. The setup was quite simple, setting up in only a few minutes. Most tents, from my experience, require a bit of a learning experience for the first time of use, but the Elixir was lovely to work with.