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One Piece of Gear No Traveler Should Ever Forget

by mox on 21/12/08 at 7:33 am

Avid backpacker? Extended traveler? Luxury traveler? No matter which, this one piece of gear comes in handy. It’s small, lightweight, cost under $15 and you’ll use it daily. Once you have one, you’ll never travel without it. You’ll even begin using it at home because it’s so practical, so easy to use, and takes up so little space.

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What is it already? A Travel Towel. Travel towels are for all types of traveler, from the luxury hotel traveler to the long term backpacker. They’re super small. They fold up into the size of a wallet and come with a bag, plus they cost under $15 at any outdoor store.

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They’re great when space matters. You can even ditch the bag and cram it at the bottom of your pack. Unlike cotton, travel towels dry extremely fast. After using, you can wring out any remaining water and the rest will usually dry in an hour. If you put the towel to hang in sunlight it will be dry in about 30 minutes, depending on the size you get.

Travel towels are like microfiber lens cloths. Most are made out of polyester mixed with a synthetic fabric. These fabrics are easy to wring out, hold lots of water and are great at removing water. The fabrics are also antibacterial in a sense that they won’t harbor moisture like cotton, which allows mold and mildew to grow.

Cotton is bulky. Cotton takes forever to dry. Cotton wrinkles. Cotton smells bad if you don’t wash it regularly. Microfiber travel towels can be used over and over, they will never harbor mildew or moisture where viruses and odor grow.

Use your travel towel to wash or dry off with. If you’re on the move, just zip it up in its provided bag and it’ll be dry by the time you need it again. Most travel towels come with a two sided bag, one with netting for air flow to damp towels, and one side that is fully sealable, allowing for wet, damp or dry towels.

Before you go on your next camping adventure, long term travel or stay at a buddies, don’t forget your travel towel. It will soon become your number one piece of travel gear.

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One Comment

Jasin

Dec 21st, 2008

Great article, thanks for the advice.

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