**It’s time to retire my lovely forest green backpack!!**

“Days that found you; grace that bound you” – Teenage Fanclub.

101 Countries And Out: Retiring My Beloved Forest Green Mindshift Gear ThinkTank Backpack

113 Countries And Out: Retiring My Beloved Forest Green Mindshift Gear ThinkTank Backpack

General wear and tear, two snapped zips, one broken zip cord, a torn sleeve and more stains than a brothel’s bed, but this exact green backpack has successfully backpacked through 101 countries with me in just 7 years!! It’s a great backpack from THINK TANK PHOTO Mind Shift GEAR Japan which I got back in 2018 and wrote a great review about it!! If you can fall in love with a backpack, this was the one – the colour, the size, the shape, the pockets, the handiness, the feel. It had everything!

101 Countries And Out: Retiring My Beloved Forest Green Mindshift Gear ThinkTank Backpack

113 Countries And Out: Retiring My Beloved Forest Green Mindshift Gear ThinkTank Backpack

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear at Lagoa Verde and Lagoa Azul

The green elcectus parrot at Port Moresby Nature Park, Papua New Guinea on my Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear at Liane Bridge Over Mbali River, Boali, Central African Republic, 2025

Backpacking In Central African Republic🇨🇫: Charmigation At The Beautiful Boali Falls In The Heart Of Africa

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear At The Beautiful Boali Falls In The Heart Of Africa

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear backpacking through Niamey, Niger

Backpacking In Malawi: My Stay At Mufasa Eco Lodge in Monkey Bay

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear Backpacking In Monkey Bay, Malawi

Hopefully I’ll upgrade to their latest backpack next. The first trip with my BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear was Northern Ireland to Turkmenistan via Azerbaijan. The latest and the final curtain was Central African Republic to Poland via Ethiopia and Austria! The backpack has been stolen, lost and found. The backpack has been to beaches, tunnels, prisons, football stadiums, art galleries, peeler stations, bars, restaurants, airports and film sets. The backpack has been to Hitler’s town, Mussolini’s hung square and the genocide museum in Rwanda. #backpack #backpacker #backpacking #mybackpack #longevity #backpackingloyal #thinktank #mindshiftgear #101countries #dontstopliving

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear in Pakistan at Minar in Lahore

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear at Pirates Of The Caribbean, SAINT VINCENT

I originally counted 101 countries that this exact Forest Green backpack has backpacked in, but actually it is more – I’ve included everywhere it has been here including train, bus and airport stops as a full guide to the life of this epic backpack!

2018

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear was sent from USA – Northern Ireland.

1.USA
2.Northern Ireland
3.Republic of Ireland
4.Turkey
5.Azerbaijan
6.Turkmenistan
7.Belarus
8.Poland
9.Kaliningrad
10.England
11.Russia
12.Sweden
13.Lebanon

2019

14.Cyprus
15.Germany
16.Belgium
17.Uganda
18.Rwanda
19.DR Congo
20.Burundi
21.Kenya
22.Tanzania
23.United Arab Emirates
24.Australia
25.Fiji
26.Kiribati
27.Nauru
28.Marshall Islands
29.Solomon Islands
30.Papua New Guinea
31.Singapore
32.Austria
33.Kugel Mugel
34.Czechia
35.Wallachia
36.Greece
37.Morocco
38.Egypt

2020

39.The Netherlands
40.Angola
41.Namibia
42.Zimbabwe
43.Zambia
44.South Africa
45.Lesotho

2021

46.Lithuania
47.Uzupis
48.Albania
49.Seychelles
50.Qatar
51.Barbados
52.Grenada
53.Saint Vincent And The Grenadines
54.Saint Lucia
55.Dominica
56.Saint Martin
57.Sint Maarteen
58.Guadeloupe
59.Antigua And Barbuda
60.Tortola

2022

61.Portugal
62.The Azores
63.Cape Verde Islands
64.Guernsey
65.Alderney
66.Isle Of Man
67.Spain / Canary Islands
68.Mauritania
69.Scotland
70.Cuba
71.Dominican Republic
72.Turks And Caicos Islands *
73.Jamaica
74.Curacao
75.Haiti
76.The Bahamas

2023

77.Ethiopia
78.Madagascar
79.Malawi
80.Mozambique
81.Mauritius
82.Reunion Island
83.France
84.Hungary
85.Saudi Arabia
86.Pakistan
87.Nepal
88.Kazakhstan
89.Italy
90.Tunisia
91.Guinea
92.Guinea-Bissau
93.Senegal
94.The Gambia
95.Sierra Leone

2024

96.Romania
97.Moldova
98.Gagauzia
99.Cameroon
100.Gabon
101.Sao Tome i Principe
102.Monaco
103.Seborga
104.Wales (I forgot the backpack was there in February 2019!)
105.Sovereign Military Order Of Malta
106.Western Sahara/Spanish Sahara
107.Mali *
108.Burkina Faso
109.Togo
110.Benin
111.Ivory Coast
112.Niger

2025

113.Central African Republic

So there you go it was actually in 113 countries, though Turks And Caicos Islands* and Mali* were just at the airport!

What a journey for My Forest Green Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear!!!! Thanks for the memories and good riddance!

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear at Cap Blanc, White Cape – the most werterly point of Saharan AfricaSimultaneously in Mauritania, Western Sahara, Morocco And Spanish Sahara 🇪🇭: Visiting The Most Western Point Of Saharan Africa

My Backpack – The BackLight®18L From Mindshift Gear at Slemish Mountain, Northern Ireland

113 Countries And Out: Retiring My Beloved Forest Green🌳☘️Mindshift Gear ThinkTank Backpack🎒🍀💚