Oh the madness - lights for backpacking Europe...?

[NoFair]

Hey man - great questions...

-CR123s do it for me and even in africa I could always find them (no offense to any afrikaners reading ) - with that said, I want to bring one AAA or AA just in case... Even though I know I can find CR123s in most places in Europe and I'm already planning to have my better half bring me a fresh SC2 when we meet up in Greece - which is about midway through the trip.

-yes yes yes - this always happens and thanks for bringing it up! I can guarantee SOMEONE will need a light. I'm meeting up w different people throughout the trek and I can pretty much guarantee they'll ask for a light. This is where I'm thinking a maratac AA or AAA comes in handy - dont want them f'in up a surefire

A loaner/gift light or 2 is a must

Beyond that I'd just bring the Ra, Quark MiNi 123 Warm (battery carrier/back up light), ARC (maybe) and the Minimus

You can get cr123s everywhere and a few cr123s will last a long time. In an emergency a cr123 will set you back about $7-12 in most European stores.

Enjoy your trip!

Sverre

 

[tygger]

Whenever I've traveled through Europe backpacking, semi-backpacking, etc. I've hardly ever used my lights. Only on some of the islands was a pocket light really necessary as it can get pretty dark. Headlamp is always good to have but you'll probably never use it. Standardizing batteries is a good idea. I'd say go with AA or AAA lithiums. Its going to be hot and humid and carrying a bag everywhere, even a small backpack, can be a pain. If it doesn't fit in your pocket you probably won't carry it. On my last trip the only light I routinely carried (and seldom used) was a Martac AAA and a fauxton. My entire loadout was a Zebralight H501, 2 Maratac AAA's, a LF2XT, and a Petzl e+Lite. Keep it light and fast and you'll be glad you did. Oh, one little tip. Bring along one of those cheap, reusable grocery store tote bags. You'll inevitably wind up carrying fruits, cheese, bread/crackers around to snack on while you're waiting at a station or in transit (boat, bus, train) and plastic bags always break. Oh, and have an amazing trip. :thumbsup:

 

[RepProdigious]

Don't just depend on using CR123a's. Yes they are readily available here in Europe but they are also mighty expensive, especially in tourist locations because they basically are camera batteries and tourists will pay anything to keep their camera working! Go AA, they are a dime a dozen here!

 

[Squidboy]

Speaking as someone in Europe.

Stick to 2 lights, both AA. Keep em small and light and no crenelated bezels. Also keep em cheap.

Reasoning.

2 lights - Main and backup
AA - You can get em anywhere and saves you carrying a big stock
Small etc - Weight
Bezels - There is a good chance that you would not be allowed on a plane with a crenelated bezel, as the over efficient security folk want to take it off you.

And finally keep em cheap because in some areas mainland europe some folk would steal your shirt off your back. Just dont take expensive gear that you cant afford to loose.

 

[Egsise]

I'd bring two small lights that use AA and have low/high settings and that's it.

When I'm camping I make fires and then go to bed. In the cities it's always light. One light with lower settings could last you for your whole trip. Two is just for redundancy.

If I was carrying everything for 3 months less is more regarding lights.

+1

Buy a ZebraLight H50, small lightweight headlamp that is a great lantern too.

 

[Narcosynthesis]

I would contemplate a few points:
Firstly, what do you actually *need* to carry? Sure an array of Surefires are cool to play with, but when weight is an issue they become somewhat excessive. So minimal is best.
Alongside that, what do you expect to be needing them for? in built up areas huge throwers are not really that necessary, and even camping you can make do with smaller lights, so the TK40 is probably a bit excessive when all you really need is an LD10... My other thought would be to look into a headlight of some form - I have always found mine hugely helpful when camping and similar so I have both hands free to rake through bags and set up tents and so on in the dark.

The other big one would be batteries - as you are carrying everything, chargers for special battery types are pretty much out, so you are restricted to primaries, rather than carrying a huge stash with you I would also look to carrying a few spares and replenishing as you go, which makes 123's more awkward - they are not as common in a lot of places, and will cost you. AA's or AAA's on the other hand can be bought cheaply pretty much anywhere in the world. If you have other gear using batteries like GPS and so on then sticking to the more common types means you can share between items too.

If it was me, I would probably look to carrying something along the lines of:
Headlight - I use a Petzl one designed for camping which has so far served me well.
AA torch of some form as a main light - options like the Fenix LD10, L1T, Nitecore EZAA or Quarks are all small, use AA batteries and should serve you well
Backup/loaner light: perhaps something like a second EZAA, LD01 or even a couple of e01's in your pack.

 

[tucolino]

like most ppl here told you,travel light!!
main light and a backup,both aa.
about pamplona.i did run in front of the bulls not many years ago.
remember this.never,ever do it drunk!!i know it sound obvious,but belive me,in san fermines there is alcohol everywhere.just follow instructions from the pamplonicas.those are pro,ppl who´s been running for many years,and got experience.
the day before just walk the street of the encierro,and take a good look at it.
then just sleep well the night before,be calm,and try following the older ones.
after that,and with a great feeling for just being alive and uninjured,PARTY!!
lovely town,and really great,great ppl at pamplona.

just my 2 cents

 

[McAllan]

CR123A you can get reasonable prices. But not at every street corner and you have to know the few places (I only know the places in my neighborhood). Asking people on the street probably isn't helping anything. Those who now what a CR123A is will point you to a photo store which certainly is the most expensive place to buy it. Go ahead if you want to pay at least $15-20 for one.

A bit the same for alkaline. In every store they have Duracell, Energizer or Varta. But they're expensive. Go to the few (few as in not many different stores but they are just about everywhere) discount markets and hardware stores who have their own brand. Avoid "heavy duty" dry batteries. Go for alkaline they're fine for the most and though they might not last quite as long as Duracell but they're still way cheaper pr. run time.

If you're planning bringing rechargeables then really no issue. All you need is a charger that can take 220-240 VAC and either some adapter or you bring an extension cord and small multi knife and buy a loose mains connector where you need it and put it on your extension cord. They cost almost like nothing. Have done that in the past since adapters apparently where very expensive and I didn't have the time to order a cheap one online.

 

[jamesmtl514]

Firstly you'll want to reconsider your overly ambitious travel plans.

bouncing from West to East and back you'll be wasting a ridiculous amount of time. Europe is smaller than N.A. however traveling takes much longer than you think. Plan your trip so that you are as efficient as possible.

Also, as everyone else pointed out, travel light. No pun intended. Less is A LOT more when you have to lug everything on your back.

As for lights, you'll rarely get to use them. In 2005 I went to France, Spain, Italy. I brought a mini mag with a 3 head LED. The batteries lasted the trip. I turned it on once in the D-Day bunkers in Normandy. It also helped read a map or two.

Last winter I went to Germany, Austria, Poland. I brought my E2DL. Batts again lasted the whole trip. I used the low setting for reading.

Next time I go I'll take my E1B with the F04 diffuser and it will be more than enough. A couple spare batteries and you'll have more than enough light for 3 months.
Also, why would you want to carry extra lights to hand out to people? You'll be stuck carrying the weight and they will reap the benefits. Tell them to bring their own lights.

Europe is more advanced than N.A. in a lot of respects. It's not a land of perpetual darkness...

 

[Batou00159]

I would concider not carying anyithing cr123 ish as the batteries in the uk and europe are really expencive

2 batts for somthing like£7.95 on avrage.and hard to come buy.

Also realy expencive lights through the smaller border checkpoints is a NoNo several mates who went backpacking through europe and asia lost there very nice surefires within the first month to border gards.(Rember there word's against yours)

AA would be the best choice because they are readily avaliable anywhere

and as jesmtl514 said travel is much slower and unpredictable than you might think anyhoo hopee you enjoy best of luck

somthing like a nightcore d10 or d20 for long runtimes so you can adjust the amount of light you need.

 

[soli]

Before you go, load up your AA lights with L91 lithium primary cells, and take an 8-pack of L91 lithium primaries as spares.

I'd agree with the L91's, but I'd not bother taking too many, they are readily available over here. And I'd also recommend, as other have, sticking with AA or AAA lights as replacements will be easier to find. If you want to bring batteries I'd go with 3 per flashlight (1 loaded and two spare) and then buy as needed.

My self I'd only bother with two. One to carry on person and one for bag carry. A low low is a good idea for navigating hostels if you come in late and don't want to disturb everyone.

backpack Europe from June to August

Europe is more advanced than N.A. in a lot of respects. It's not a land of perpetual darkness...

That's for sure, give the time of year you can expect day light for the most part from ~5am to ~10pm. Of the itinerary, the (smaller) Greek Islands are the only ones I'd think of that you might experience power issues, it gets HOT over there so the power grid gets put to the test.

 

[Kiessling]

Europe is, contrary to some beliefs, rather civilized

We do not have blackouts, and we have streetlights. Also, the moon shines here, too.

So, as already pointed out, you won't need your lights that often, and carrying a ton of spare batteries is useless weight.

I personally would bring one light and a backup or a headlamp, not more. Bring good lights that won't fail you, and I'd use lithium batteries to avoid leakage and weight as well as bulk.

I would favour the right gear over a lot of stuff that might fail or is just not perfectly suited for your mission.

bernie

 

[etc]

As for lights, you'll rarely get to use them. In 2005 I went to France, Spain, Italy. I brought a mini mag with a 3 head LED. The batteries lasted the trip. I turned it on once in the D-Day bunkers in Normandy. It also helped read a map or two.

That is true, but we are talking about a 'what if' situation, an emergency, or something odd or maybe even a TSHTF situation. You never know.
You just carry your insurance, that's all it is.

I would pick something based on runtime and low weight.

consider Gerber Infinity 1xAA, the newest type. It's very bright in total darkness. Ideal for camping situations. It's invisible until you need it.

My 2nd choice would be a Surefire 6P (or clone) with Malkoff M60LL. You get some 18 hours out of it. Probably never change the cell unless you really get in trouble. That thing is about as indestructible as the Gerber Infinity.

I cannot wait for Surefire to come up with that 2xAA lite, that too sounds promising.

don't forget a GPS, I use Garmin on 2xAA (Another reason to think about AA lite)

 

[travelinman]

One thing to remember, and it's not related to emergency situations that might or might not happen, is searching through your backpack for that elusive Tee shirt on a dull cloudy day.

Most backpacks are black inside, and your stuff usually gets sorted according to the "gravity" principle. When searching around inside mine, I've found a simple little 2023 powered keychain light clipped to the top inside (somewhere) lets you have a few seconds of usefull light to find whatever it is you are looking for. I've had one in my pack for 2 years now and it is not showing any signs of wearing out the 2023s (I think there are 2 of them in there) and I got it from Deal extreme for around $5 for 10 of them. Cheap, handy, light weight, valuable.

 

[John_Galt]

I'd say take the Maratc AA, and Ra 170 tactical.

Use the Maratac as your primary light, as it won't be a huge loss if it gets lost or stolen, and the Clicky will be a bomb proof backup. Take 2 or 3 backup primaries.

Maybe you'll need a headlamp, probably you won't.

 

[jankj]

I'd bring two small lights that use AA and have low/high settings and that's it.

When I'm camping I make fires and then go to bed. In the cities it's always light. One light with lower settings could last you for your whole trip. Two is just for redundancy.

If I was carrying everything for 3 months less is more regarding lights.

Agree 100%.

To pick specific lights: Quark mini or regular quark AA + zebralight AA headlamp of your choice. Small and light. Will last forever on the low setting, which is all you need anyway.

But honestly, it really won't matter much which light you pick, so go small. Even if you experience power outages on the Greek islands you will be on your first set of batteries when you get home. The lights are just for not tripping on your way to the loo, finding stuff in your bag and such.

Oh, tying one of those coin sized LED's to the inside of your bag is good advice. I do that myself on my back pack.

 

[soli]

Here is a list of the arsenal I'm considering:

So, what lights did you decide on?