About The Packable Life
Hello again, world.
I’m Noel Krasomil, the guy behind The Packable Life.
I’m a trail-seeking, street food-devouring, gear-obsessed minimalist from Colorado, U.S.A.
In 2018, I saved up some money, quit my restaurant job, started this blog, and hit the road in my camper van.
I spent the next several years traveling full-time and writing about a lot of it.
Tokyo, Da Nang, Mexico City, months of nights in the van, and many more above treeline with everything I needed on my back.
Then I had a daughter.
She’s two now, and she is the best thing I’ve ever done.
She is also the reason this website sat quiet for the better part of two years.
I’d love to tell you I had a strategy.
I had a newborn.
Where things stand today
I live in Colorado.
I have a home base for the first time since 2018, and there’s a crib in it.
I don’t get out on the trail like I used to.
A free weekend used to mean 40 miles and a resupply.
These days it usually means a trip to the in-laws, crumbs everywhere, and trying to keep up with a tiny human with a mind of her own.
I’m telling you this because the last version of this page said I lived out of a 25-liter bag with no fixed address, and that stopped being true a while ago.
Ten-plus years of hiking, backpacking, and shoestring travel are still the thing I know best.
I still weigh my stakes.
I still read packing lists for fun.
I still think about my next backpacking trip while I’m loading the dishwasher.
I’ve also kept writing for a living, but now I do so for software companies.
It’s been good work that I’m grateful for, and it kept my writing skills intact.
But writing about someone else’s product all day has a way of reminding you what you’d rather be writing about.
So I’m bringing The Packable Life back.
New posts, updated gear reviews, and a fresh look at the older articles that have been sitting here collecting dust.
And I’m getting back out there.
Here’s a bit more about me
I’m a minimalist
I own very little, and I’m careful about what I let into my life.
A two-year-old tests this daily, but I’m staying strong where I can.
I travel light
I take budget trips with a 25-liter personal-item bag, the kind that fits under the seat in front of me on the plane.
I’m a “personal-item-only traveler.”
Doing this with a toddler is a different sport entirely, and I’m looking forward to writing about what actually works.
I love ultralight backpacking
My base weight for multi-day trips is 7.8 pounds.
That means my tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, extra layers, and everything else besides food and water weighs less than my little girl when she was born.
A light, versatile pack full of the right hiking and backpacking gear lets me cover ground efficiently and hurt less when I reach camp.
I’m a gear nerd
I obsess over the things I bring along.
Because I bring so little, every item has to earn its spot through a lot of research and trail time.
Minimalists love gear, too.
We just own less of it.
I used to cruise around in a camper van
I once owned a converted Chevy Astro, and I’ve spent months of my life living under its roof.
It’s God-knows-where now. I sold it.
I was never a full-time van lifer, and if I tried to become one, my wife would leave me.
I’m figuring out how to do all of this as a dad
Shorter and more expensive trips.
Earlier bedtimes.
A pack that suddenly needs room for diapers.
I’m learning this in real time, and I’ll write it up honestly as I go, including the parts that don’t work.
Ready to read some of my best stuff?
Start with my most popular articles.
If you have a question or just want to say hello, contact me or leave a comment on a post.
I read all of them.
What’s coming next
I’m gearing up to travel again, and the calendar is filling in.
The Wind River Range
My first real backpacking trip in two years, and the one I’m most nervous and most excited about.
New Orleans
Food, walking, music, coffee, beignets, and culture.
(I’m so excited for this one.)
Costa Rica
Warm water, dense green, and a chance to find out whether a 25-liter bag still works when you’re not traveling alone.
Alongside the new trips, I’m going back through the archives to refresh the gear reviews and guides that need it.
Prices change, products get discontinued, and some of my old advice is definitely stale.
How you can support The Packable Life
Subscribe to my newsletter
Once or twice a month, I’ll email you with new posts, gear reviews, trip reports, and updates on how the comeback is going.
Spend time on my website
By reading and clicking around, you’re supporting me and this site directly.
It’s that simple.
You keep exploring, and I’ll keep adding things worth exploring.
Deal?
Comment on posts you enjoy
I love hearing from you, and your questions often turn into the next article.
Comments also help other readers who showed up wondering the same thing.
Use my affiliate links
When I recommend gear, products, or services I actually use, I often attach an affiliate link.
If you click through and buy something, I get a small commission at no extra cost to you.
That’s what keeps this humble little blog alive.
Share The Packable Life with the world
If you find something here useful, entertaining, or worth arguing with, pass it along to someone who’d appreciate it.
Thank you for reading
I stepped away for two years, and people kept showing up here anyway.
That’s the only reason there’s anything left to come back to.
Thank you.
– Noel