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Flickr Photo Credit: LizJones112

These things come in handy more often than  you might think. Here are some of the ways we’ve been using thus far:

• Locking the zipper ends of a particularly sensitive area of your day pack.
• Gym or storage locker / containers  at a hostel, train station or backpacker’s campground.
• As a duffel lock if you are stuffing backpacks and other luggage with loose straps into something a bit more protective for storage under a bus or on a plane.
• Locking your own hostel or dorm room if locks are not provided. This is also true if there is a closet (check for false backs or bottoms first) in your room and you want to have things doubly secured while you are out for the day.
• Locking the zippered ends of your tent flaps. Not fool-proof, but if your tent camp provides locked storage additionally, it’s at least an added deterrent.

An added tip? Make sure that for the u-shaped feed-through section of your lock, you purchase one that is thin enough to fit through various sizes of holes, and long enough to accommodate other deeper attachments. David and I each have a basic one of these that we carry as a rule for the gym and other things. But he also brought a couple of extra mini locks on the trip, and I’m glad he did. We can already see times when we’ll need more than 1-2, but don’t want to carry more than a couple of the larger ones. Bottom line? Choose the number and size that fits your own travel style, but strongly consider buying at least one.

Posted on January 24th, 2007 by Myscha Theriault
Filed under: Tips and Hacks