Really, I should be doing better than this. With a background in Agile Methodologies and Waterfall Project Management, using lists is positively Neanderthal in comparison. Yet, here I am. To get things done, and to remember what needs to be planned and done , I’m writing lists.

About a month ago I asked a good friend whether he’d be interested to join me in the bush for a while, since it had become obvious the only other interested co-traveller was our family dog. His response was, “Would I like to have a copy of a mutual friend’s 23 camping lists?” To which I just laughed. I mean 23 lists… come on. How many lists to you need to leave the house for a few weeks?

I didn’t think about lists for a while. But then after consuming another 20 hours of YouTube suggestions and recommendations for overlanding or international expeditions, I could no longer hold all of the thoughts and ideas in my head. And then I realised that this mutual friend has the right idea. Put it on a list and then it is managed. Putting it on a list doesn’t get it done, but it does get it reviewed every time the list is examined.

One month into this, I’ve established 11 lists for going bush. At this stage I’ve written no lists of destinations or activities, but rather focussed entirely on what I’ll need to make sure that being out bush won’t be life threating, and will be mainly enjoyable.

So here’s my “TOP 11” List of Lists for going bush.

• Vehicle – accessories and upgrades
• Recovery – how to recover from vehicular stupidity
• Tools – fixing things that fail
• Spares – consumable items for vehicles
• Camp Equipment – portable lifestyle
• Cooking Utensils – to eat healthily
• Camp Consumables- not quite food, but related
• IT / Photography – toys related to bush activities
• First Aid – fixing human / canine damage
• Clothes / Linen – staying warm, and staying cool
• Paperwork – licences, registrations, insurances, certificates

There we are. 11 lists to manage. I’m sure that by the time I’ve gone bush there’ll be a few more to join these.