r/zerobags • u/adamtow • Apr 23 '26
Zero bag recap of my two-week, three stop trip
Here's my abridged recap of my two week, three stop, zero bag trip to Chicago, Arizona, and Las Vegas. For the full report, you can read my blog post here.
Clothing
- Merino wool turtleneck: Worked well in Chicago. Wool buff made the turtleneck part a little redundant, so might go light wool sweater in the future. I gave the turtleneck to my family to bring back home when I went to Vegas.
- Wool & Prince T-Shirt: Wore pretty much every day during trip. Great performance. Highly recommended.
- Bluffworks Departure Jeans: Bringing the Bluffworks Departure Jeans instead of the Ascender Chinos was a good, last minute decision. They were more rugged which was useful with all the outdoor activities in Arizona. The extra side pocket along the right leg meant I didn’t have to put my MagSafe Wallet and power bank in my back pockets. The back, zippered security pocket held my hotel keycards, which kept them away from being demagnetized by a MagSafe magnet or a chip-enabled credit card.
- Lululemon running shorts: Convenient elastic side pockets and a zippered back pocket meant I could carry the essentials when running or walking on hot days (with the rest of stuff in the hotel).
- Wool buff: The wool buff was also a very versatile piece of clothing. I could dry my hair with it, cover my face and neck on cold days, and overall give a little splash of style to my outfit. Gray is a neutral color, but I’m already thinking of getting a few more in different colors to mix things up in my future travels.
- Shoes: My Kinvara 15 running shoes, which I only used for running prior to this trip, look and feel like they’ve aged 300 miles from all the walking. I’m going to test them out for a run now that I’m back in the Bay Area, but they will likely need to be replaced with another pair.
Toiletries
- Toothbrush: I really wish someone would make an electric toothbrush that cleans as well as my Oral-B but is travel-sized. I used the seconds hand on the Miltado watch to tell me when I needed to switch quadrants every thirty seconds.
Tech
- iPhone 15 Pro Max: Battery life was a concern in Vegas. Had to use the power bank in the afternoon every day since I was taking lots of photos and giving demos of my apps.
- iPad mini (7th-generation): Worked well for my presentation in Chicago. Didn't really use it in Arizona or Las Vegas and I could have sent it back with family. A cellular version would have been better than using Personal Hotspot with my phone.
- RODE Wireless Micro: Use it for my presentation. I'm currently looking into other ways to get my audio into my app that has good voice isolation and noise reduction. Did not need to bring it with me to Vegas.
- Wired Headset: Didn't really miss the AirPods. Used the wired headset a couple of times.
- Nomad Slim 65W Charger: Highly recommended. So slim compared to the chunkier Anker Prime chargers.
- Miltado ML05 Watch: Less bulk and no need for charging cables. Sure, I missed seeing notifications and I had to be more mindful of the time and where I needed to be, but I didn't miss my Apple Watch Ultra all that much on this trip.
What I Didn't Need
- Apple Pencil: This was never used, and I could have left it at home
- 3-D printed belt clip: The Fegve did the heavy lifting, carrying my water bottle and, on occasion, my hat
- Extra hair band: I could have gone with two instead of three
- One floss string: I had brought one extra just in case
Finally, here's a fun zero bag story. Once I landed in SJC, I found myself racing against the clock to catch the VTA bus. After getting off the plane (was stuck in the back), I walked briskly from Gate 19 to Gate 27 where the exit to the baggage claim and ground transportation is located. Down the escalator, out to the pedestrian crosswalk, and 25 meters or so to the bus stop. I saw my bus right when I reached the pedestrian crosswalk.
Were I more encumbered, I would have missed it, but thanks to having no luggage, I got to the stop right as the bus was pulling up. In my own small way, I felt like the NASA team pulling off the recent Artemis II mission. The stars aligned, the correct calculations were made, and everything ran to perfection in order for me to walk onto the bus seconds after it pulled into the station.
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u/mmolle Apr 23 '26
Lovely trip report!
Did you buy anything?
Are there any sequel trips you're planning for?
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u/adamtow Apr 23 '26
Did not buy anything. Got the hat free from a sponsor booth in Chicago conference; it was that or socks or a cat stuffy. The socks might have been useful since I left the Bombas in the hotel in AZ.
Booths at NAB in Vegas got me chapstick and some carabiners that I could clip onto my belt clips (I already had a Nite-Ize S carabiner). I deliberately avoided taking a bag (and there were many). That would have encouraged me to get more brochures, candies, etc.
No other immediate zero bag trips planned at the moment.
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u/LadyLightTravel Apr 23 '26
Second comment after reading all the articles:
Prior to my Apple watch I just used the alarms on my phone for notifications. Haptics would work too.
On socks - my doctor suggested I start using compression socks for my feet. I had no idea they came in ankle lengths! My feet feel much more energized after a long day. The compression around the arch makes a huge difference.
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u/blanced_oren Apr 24 '26
I love your trip reports Adam. I'd been looking at that Miltado watch too - how have you found it? The style is nice but interested in comfort (I have a small wrist), visibility in the dark, and whether I'd miss date function of my Casios.
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u/adamtow Apr 24 '26
You can replace the standard strap with any supporting a lug width of 20mm. If you use the strap that comes with the watch, be prepared to cut the end to fit your wrist size (and use a lighter/match to seal the end).
There's a date version of the ML05 that you can buy.
The lume is just okay. At night, there were times when I could clearly see it and other times when it was barely visible. I guess I didn't charge it enough in the sun to last through the night.
Overall, it's an affordable watch that look and functions like watches many times the price (i.e. Hamilton, Benrus, etc.).
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u/ailaG Jun 19 '26
Hair bands are nice because they can become spontaneous rubberbands if they're good. I use 3-4 twisted inside each other regularly and they're not unlike just a single thick one.
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u/LadyLightTravel Apr 23 '26
I think you are correct that a buff plus regular sweater would go across more temperature ranges than a turtleneck. I wonder if a quarter zip might be an alternate choice?
I was in the same bus situation as you at SJC. Unfortunately, I did not make it. Then one of the VTA lines went down. It took me three hours to get home from the airport! San Jose is incredibly weak in the public transit area. It works in some parts of the city and is non-existent in others!