Camping 101: What to pack for your first camping experience?

Heading over to the wilderness for the weekend? Camping is a liberating activity that takes you away from the comforts of your four walled heaven, right into the wilderness. First timers usually over-pack or under-pack for their first camping trip. I know because I did.

I've learnt how to pack for a camping trip on a trial and error basis. Over the years, I've realised the absolute essentials that I use and the luxury EDC's that are optional. This blog post lists down the items that I believe are the absolute essentials based on my experiences in the wild.

Rope - Paracord

Do not go into the wild without a rope! They can be used to hang your wet clothes. as a rescue device, to set up your tent or to tie something up etc. You may ponder upon the size to choose from; for most of my Camping Trips I have carried about 10 metres of a thick cotton rope that I found at a Hardware store in Mumbai and a few metres of paracord. Paracords are said to be heavy Duty and lightweight ropes that is very strong as compared to their weight. A few metres of paracord is a must for any hikes/camps. You can find them here:

Gipsel Sarpa 12mm low stretch rope (recommended)
Vibes 50ft 550 Cord Paracord Parachute Survival Cord

Tent

This has to be the most obvious addition to the list. You ain't no Bear Grylls to make your own shelter out in the wild. You have to buy your own tent or rent out one! Tents protect you from wind, rain, insects and the wilderness. While sleeping out in the wild under the stars may sound like a thought right out of a Hollywood movie, it is not a very good idea in real life. You may fall sick because of the moisture that accumulates on your body in the early hours of the morning the next day. Choosing the right tent is a bit tricky, however there are a few factors you should consider when buying one.

You need to know the weather you're buying the tent for. For the Sahydaris, where the monsoons are heavy and the summers are really hot, you should opt for a two layered tent. For the Himalayas where the weather is really cold, you should opt for a tent specially designed for the cold weather. Cold weather tents have thick vestibules and a thick waterproof cover along with a wind resistance of more that 40km/hr winds.

Quechua Arpenaz 2 Tent (2 Person) - Recommended
Coleman Sundome Tents (3 Person)

First Aid Kit

Important! This is not an option, it is a must. Carry a basic first aid box which includes common medicines, band-aids, bandages, antiseptic lotion, sanitiser, cotton etc. You never know when things go wrong on a camping trip and being stuck in an emergency without basic medical supplies is not a good idea. You don't need the cliched metal box with a plus sign on it to store your medical supplies. You can buy a first aid kit off the counter or just buy all the supplies independently and store them in a small waterproof pouch. Be sure to carry some creams for bug bites, antiseptics, pain killers and some antacids.

Top Gear Pre-built Medical Kit

Matches

Important again! How else do you light your fire? We've had this one time when we actually forgot to carry something that seems so insignificant. Long story short, the experience wasn't pleasant. While you may think of all the primal methods of lighting a fire with stones and twigs, nothing beats the ease of using a matchstick or even better, a lighter. They are really cheap, though the expensive fancy ones like the stormproof ones are the ones that I generally use. Don't get me wrong, I do like lighters and they are much better in terms of durability and storability but I really like the primal feel that a matches gives. Tuck one of these in your backpack for all your camping trips. You can additionally add a few newspapers in your backpack as a hack to start a fire really quick. P.S. A little Kerosense/Alcohol/Gasoline carried does help too.

Stormproof matches - recommended
Swiss Military Lighter (Best seller on Amazon)
Windproof Jet Flame Lighter (Can melt metal too!)

Tarpaulin Sheet
A tarpaulin sheet can be mainly used for mainly three purposes on a camping trip; as a ground sheet, as an extra rain cover or as a sheet to lie on. Most of the times the rain cover that is provided with the tent doe not suffice. The Tarpaulin sheet can be used along with the tent anchors to build an extra layer of protection on the tent. Incase if it's not the monsoons, you can use it to build an extra layer of comfort beneath your tent. This helps increase the life span of the tent's floor.

Flashlight

You don't want to be stuck in the wild in the dark without a good torch and it is always advised to keep one in your survival pack. You will definitely need this on a camping trip unless you're camping in your apartment. You may want to take a torch which is bright enough to illuminate upto 10 metres with adjustable focus. Waterproof torches are a bonus! There are some camping specific torches available. I'd recommend to invest in a headlight as this keeps your hands free while you're doing a task. I'll list the ones that I have here and where you can buy it from:

Pop-Up Camping Torch/Lantern (Highly Recommended)
Rechargeable 3 Mode Torch 
Rechargeable Head light - Recommended to buy but you can get a better and cheaper one from Decathalon

Army Knife

The cool quotient, this one also features on my other article about hiking essesntials! Multifunctional knives are awesome. While they may or may not be used during a usual trek, they do give you a sense of being well equipped for any hike. One should pray that they may not find the need to use one in a hike, having them in your daypack will keep you at peace. I purchased one made by "Grand Harvest" locally on the streets of Lamington Road in Mumbai. The same product is available online on Amazon. I bought mine for Rs 300/- off the streets and I think 320 for an online reseller is a good deal. Buy it here:

Multifunctional Knife

Duct Tape

Duct tapes are underrated. Period.
Nothing can be as handy as duct tapes when it comes to tears, rips and blisters. Duct tapes can fix broken soles, tears in the bag, waterproofing bags and open ventilated shoes etc. A long piece of duct tape can also be twisted into a strong rope/string if you want to tie something. You can also make loops out of duct tapes to stick other essentials to your backpack. They also help in fixing holes on your tent. Carry one!

48x50mm Duct Tape

Coal

While finding dry wood and twigs is not difficult during the summers in India, carrying coal always helps! Wood burns really fast whereas coal burns slow. Adding coal to a fire means you have a sustainable heat for some time. Wood is great for campfires whereas coal is great for cooking. We always carry about a kilogram of coal whenever we go camping. Yes, it's a pain to get them started but once they are ignited, they last for a really long time.

Wet Wipes / Toilet Paper Roll / Tissue Paper

Wiping the dust and grime of your face or completing business after the nature's call, wet wipes have you covered. Wet Wipes work better than tissues as the dust that settles in after a hike, or the soot that your face gathers after sitting next to a campfire is best taken care by a wet towel rather than a dry tissue paper. Wet wipes come in different packaging and quantity. I usually buy a small pack of 10 wipes for a 2 day camping trip. I accompany this with a roll of toilet paper.

Johnson Wet Wipes
Face Tissue (Pack of 10s)

Bug Spray

Another item that is common to my article about hiking essesntials. The wild is full of creepy crawlies and one must make sure that they are protected against them. You need to apply a good layer of an insect repellent before you do any activity at the campsite and especially before you sleep. An over the counter insect repellent should work but consider your doctor's opinion before using any product. I prefer using anything that comes in a spray bottle rather than a tube reason being the ease of use and applicability. The one's that you could take a look at are:

Budget option
Expensive but a fancy one

Full Clothing

This seems like a no brainer but is not usually followed. Depending on the season you are camping in, you may either choose to go for a full length bottoms or short ones. Full length bottoms are generally preferred throughout all seasons as they protect you against bug bites. Half length bottoms can be worm during the monsoons and summer nights.
I usually prefer to camp in my sleeveless t-shirt during the summers, however I switch to full length uppers during monsoons and winters to shield myself from the cold. One drawback of wearing sleeveless T-shirts is the amount of skin you expose to the happy to feast insects.
In terms of the fabric, I prefer wearing quick dry fabrics dry-fits.

Quechua Women's Pant - Convertible (Highly Recommended)
Quechua Forclaz Men's Pant - Convertible (Highly Recommended)

One day treks have gained popularity in the last few years with many institutions organising treks in Maharashtra. While it may not be as taxing as a  day long Himalayan Trek it is still quite tiring especially for a first timer.

In all the excitement of the impending adventure, one can not underestimate mother nature. Hiking takes you away from your comfort zone, right into the wilderness of nature. While many love this experience, one needs to be well prepared for their first hike.

Eatables is one of the essential stuff you need to pack for your day hike. After all not everyone is Bear Grylss or Ed Stafford to eat anything that you get in the wild. Packing for a day trek needs is an easy task. Eatables to be packed should not be easily perishable and light in weight. This article is written especially for the first time trekkers.

Dates

Dates are highly nutritious and one of my favourite items on the list for two reason because it is light weight and because it actually fills you up. It is a wonder food as it's low in cholesterol, high in proteins and rich in vitamins. The only downside to eating too many dates is that it makes you feel thirsty.

Fruits

Fresh fruits are a favourite amongst many trekkers and rightly so. Trekking can be exhaustive and dehydrating. Fresh fruits have vitamins and a lot of water content that replenishes your body. My personal favourites are Apples, Oranges and Bananas. You can carry them in your backpack or in a separate bag altogether. Be careful when packing fruits like Bananas and Oranges, keep them in a place where they will be in minimal contact with other things and there's no chance that they can get squashed.

Dry Fruits/Trail Mix

Carrying dry fruits is a brilliant way of saving on space and weight in your back and not compromising on the nutritional value. Dry fruits are power packed with energy, proteins and good fats. A trail mix is usually a mix of different dry fruits with some optional chocolates and fruits. It can easily be carried in a zip lock back and can be very handy to eat on a trek.

Dry Cake

Dry cakes are not only a popular snack for most occasions, it's quite a convenient snack to carry on a trek. While it may not boast nutritional values like the other items on this list, it certainly helps lift up your mood during a trek. A bar of ready made dry cake can be easily packed in your day pack. It is very light in weight and does not occupy much space in your bag.

Granola Bars

Granola Bars is the best item on this list in terms of weight to nutritional value ratio. I personally carry Granola bars to all my treks. I consider them as my backup for the food supply. Granola Bars can be home made or can be purchased online or at any general store. They come in different flavors and I prefer the ones by Nature Valley especially Apple cinnamon variant. They are high in energy and will keep you going for long. The only downside to them I feel is that they are very dry and make you feel very thirsty.

Boiled Eggs

If you are a non vegetarian or an eggitarian, boiled eggs are a great source of protein and exactly what you need after you climb the elevation and your muscles are sore. They can be easily carried in a ziplock or a small tiffin. One whole egg packs about 5gms of proteins and is a brilliant food item to replenish your tired body. They can be taken as it is or in sandwiches. That's one food item that can never go wrong!

Sandwiches

Who doesn't like sandwiches? They can be consumed as full meal on a trek and is easy to prepare. Vegetarians can opt for sandwiches with a filling of cucumber, lettuce, boiled potatoes or a combination of all. Non-vegetarians can opt for egg or salami sandwiches. I like to carry sandwiches on a trek because they make you feel that you're actually eating something (They are my comfort zone in the wild). The downside of carrying sandwiches is that the shelf life is low and it has to be carried in a tiffin which takes up some space.

Ghangad is a 300 year old fort located about 30 kms from Lonavala in Maharashtra. The fort is famous for a slab of rock that has fallen form one side of the mountain and it still rests against the mountain, creating a cave like structure. The fort was recently renovated in 2011.

[table color="theme1"]
[row] [col]Location[/col] [col]Lonavala, Maharashtra[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Base Village[/col] [col]Ekole[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Height[/col] [col]3000 ft[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Difficulty Level[/col] [col]3/5[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Duration[/col] [col]2 Hrs[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Season[/col] [col]Summer / Winter[/col] [/row]
[/table]

[accordion]
[item title="History"]
There's very less documentation of the history of this fort. The fort was used for keeping prisoners. It was also used as a watchtower to keep a watch on the trade route from Pune to Konkan. The Marathas ruled this fort till 1818. The fort was surrendered to the British forces after the fall of Korigad on 17-March-1818.
[/item]

[item title="How to Reach"]
By Train: Reach Lonavala station on the Central Railway Line. Take a Bus to Bhaburde village. The base village is called Ekole which is 20 mins away from Bhaburde. You will have to walk this distance on a mud track.
By Car: Reach Lonavala and proceed towards Aamby Valley. Take a right at the Y junction, the straight leads you to Aamby Valley. Continue on this path till you cross the Salter lake. You should reach Ekole village in about an hour. The road between Salter Lake and Ekole village is in poor condition.[/item]

[item title="The Trek"]
The Trek starts from the Ekole village. There is a trail running parallel to a fenced property which takes you to the fort. The start of the trail is right at the start of the village and perpendicular to the road that brings you to the Ekole. The initial 10 minutes are a gradual climb. You reach a temple halfway from the village to the fort. There is a board which mentions the history of the ghangad fort here. 

There is a trail next to the temple that takes you to a gate which is in ruins. This is the entrance to the fort and it takes about half an hour to reach here from the temple. The gate leads you to a cave which can house upto 40 people. Towards the right side of the cave you have a flat surface which is a good spot for camping. To the extreme right of the fort is huge slab of stone resting against the mountain. 

There is a ladder towards the left side of the cave which takes you to a trail that in turn takes you to the top of the fort. The ladder has been installed recently, the only way up otherwise was to climb with the help of a rope. The last part of the ladder is tricky, as there is a narrow foothold with space only to keep the front part of your foot. 

An exposed trail continues from here that takes you to the top. You will find several water cisterns here. There are steel ropes attached to the side of the wall of the mountains which aid you in climbing up. One has to be very careful on this part.
[/item]

[item title="View from the top"]
View from the top
The Ghangad summit offers amazing panoramic views of the raw and rugged terrain of the Sahyadris. You can easily see twin walls of Teil-Baila, Sudhagad and Sarasgad. The Mulshi lake can be seen too along with a some deep valleys around. 

[/item]

Nakhind ridge is medium grade scenic trek just 2 hours away from Mumbai. There is no fortification on the top but the "Nedhe" or a hole in the mountain makes this trek rather interesting. The trek offers brilliant views from the top and will definitely interest a lot of shutter bugs.

[table color="theme1"]
[row] [col]Location[/col] [col]Vangani, Maharashtra[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Base Village[/col] [col]Bedis[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Height[/col] [col]2300 ft[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Difficulty Level[/col] [col]2/5[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Duration[/col] [col]2 1/2 Hrs[/col] [/row]
[row] [col]Season[/col] [col]Post-monsoon/Winter[/col] [/row]
[/table]

[accordion]
[item title="History"]
As there is no fortification on this trek, there's little or no history associated.
[/item]


[item title="How to Reach"]
By Train: Reach Vangani station on the Central Railway Line. Reach the highway, cross it and take the small path to reach the Bedis village. It is approximately 5 kms from the station and taking a rickshaw is an option as well.
By Car: Bedisgaon is approximately 80kms from Mumbai and can be reached via the Badlapur - Katai road or the Neral - Badlapur Road. The latter has good roads albeit about 8 kms longer. You can park the car at Bedisgaon and continue your trek from there.
[/item]

[item title="The Trek"]
The Trek starts from the Bedis Gaon. There is an intermittent village between Bedisgaon and Nakhind ridge called the "Vaghinichi Wadi". Anyone at Bedisgaon will be able to direct you to this village. It is only accessible by foot and the way is a mud track which gains elevation quite quickly. Enroute you can also find a waterfall which is a regular spot for one day picnics. After about an hour on this trail you will reach the village on a plateau which is similar to Irshalgad's Irshalwadi. Vaghinichi Wadi is a very simple village with a school, a few brick houses and farms. The village does not have electricity. You may be able to find a guide to take you on the Nakhind Ridge top here for anywhere about 200-300 INR.

The way from here is a steep uphill climb of an hour on a trail of mud track till the point that you reach the ridge. This way is full of dense vegetation, thorny shrubs and sharp leaves. It is advisable to wear full sleeves and long pants for this trek. Once you reach the ridge, you have to continue walking towards the Nedhe on your left. There are deep valleys on either side. One has to be cautious on this part. It takes about 10 minutes to reach the "Nedhe" (hole in the mountain) from this point, which can be accessed from a trail on the left side of the mountain.

The Nakhind ridge top can be reached by continuing this trail further for 10 minutes and then taking a sharp left that brings you to a rock patch. This rock path can be climbed without the use of ropes. The climb is risky and exposed with little or no hand holds. The Nakhing ridge top is pretty narrow and small but offers good panoramic views of the Neral and Panvel regions. There are a few more holes in the mountain which can be reached from the right side of the Nedhe, but the route is very tricky, exposed and risky.

[item title="View from the top"]The Nakhind ridge offers splendid views of the mountains on the Panvel and Neral region. You can easily spot Matheran towards the south, Irshalgad, Prabalgad and Kalavantin Durg towards the South-West and Chanderi, Mhasmal, Haji-Malang, Navra-Navri pinnacles and Tahuli towards the North. The view of Chanderi and Mhasmal from the Nedhe as well as the top is mesmerising.
[/item]

[item title="Things to note"]
As there's no potable water at the top, it is advisable to carry atleast 3-4 litres of water, if you are attempting this trek in the summers. One needs to wear full track pants (preferably synthetic) as the trail is full of thorny shrubs. The ridge is enticing yet lethal, one has to be very careful when walking through the ridge as both the sides are exposed. This trek is not recommended during the monsoons.
[/item]



[/accordion]

I look across the table and Nihal looks back with the same question in his eyes, "Where the fuck do we go tomorrow?!"

Take 3 hours from the question, we're sitting down in the newly made Mumbai Football Arena inside the Andheri Sports Complex. It's India v/s Puerto Rica in the first football friendly in Mumbai after 61 years! The match was a whitewash with India outplaying Puerto Rica, a team considerably higher in the FIFA rankings by 4-1! All in all it called for a celebration and I, Nihal, Zubin and Harsh headed to our favourite hideout, Bottles in Versova with Shawty planning to join us later.

A couple of drinks down, we start discussing the places we can go to for a trek the next day. The first one to cross our minds was the stunningly risky Harihar fort. It had been on our agenda since ages. As fate would have it, Zubin asked us not to go for that trek as he wanted to be a part of it and he had prior commitments for the next day. The next best option was straightaway rejected by Zubin again, the Harishchandragad trek! With options running out, Nihal did a timely miracle by pulling out a list of treks we prepared last year. Chanderi was the lucky one.

I woke up early the next morning, with the clock saying 6:30 AM, I called up Nihal and Harsh and was really glad to know that none of them had backed out after yesterday's drinking scenes! Nihal reached my building by 7:40 and we were joined by Shawty 5 minutes later. A quick google search told us that our base village was going to be Chinchavali near Badlapur. We set out for Badlapur by 8:00 AM. The journey took us about 2 hours by the Airoli bridge and the Thane- Badlapur road. The last patch of the road to to Chinchavali is more of a martian terrain.

We asked the locals for directions and they guided us to a small school. We parked our car here and on enquiring further with the locals they asked us to take a left from a small house and then take a right from a big tree to go up through the forest. We somehow missed this right and kept going straight till we could see a quarry on the left side and a small hillock covered with vegetation on the right. This took a sizeable half an hour of our time in the hot sun. We had to head back to the small house to find our way again and we found it to be a small trail leading upwards on the hillock. The trail seemed to be very rarely used as there was a dense growth of vegetation on either sides.

After about 45 minutes on this uphill trail we reached a small plateau from where we could see the two peaks clearly. The Gigantic Chanderi on the left and the Mhasmal fort on the right. As soon as we saw it, we knew it well that the way to the fort had to be from the col between the two forts and then a ridge walk to either of them.
We took a halt at the plateau even though it was very sunny. We couldnt help but look up in awe at the two amazing mountains in front of us while sipping on water. It was a perfect opportunity to capture a time lapse video of the clouds moving in from the peaks and I did manage to get a good one. We moved from there after 15 minutes and continued our trek upwards. The initial trail was a simple walk through the forest till we reached a small stream. We were sort of momentarily lost. We could see the fort in front of us but the path was taking us away from it, or atleast that's how it looked from there. Fortunately for us, someone had marked the trail by piling a few stones. The first marker was right through the small stream and these markers led us to a small waterfall which we had to climb. The path was very slippery and Shawty had a few falls here but he made the most of it by getting a quick dip!


Once over the waterfall we had to walk through the stream a bit further till we saw a marker on the left side of the stream that would take us above it. We followed it for about half an hour till we reached a point where we couldn't see the trail anymore. Fortunately (and unfortunately) we saw a hint of plastic on the trail indicating that it had been used recently. We kept onwards and upwards for an hour till we reached a crossroad. The left takes you to Chanderi, the right takes you to Mhasmal and the straight downhill path takes you through a descent to Panvel.
We took a left from the crossroad for the Chanderi fort. It was pretty windy here which was a relief from the sun. The path from here onwards while being wide, is exposed on either sides to valleys and has to be crossed carefully. From here it takes about 20 minutes to reach the base of the foothill and the caves.
To reach the caves, one has to carefully traverse the mountain from the right side. This side is exposed but has a protective railing around. The caves are pretty big and can easily house upto 50 people or more. There's a temple inside the caves and some utensils and a stove. The caves were some what unnaturally calm and one can see the peaks of Panvel from here. One can easily make out the twin peaks of Kalavantin Durg and Prabalgad and the massive Irshalgad. I and Nihal spent some time at the caves, clicking pictures and basking in the glory it offered while Shawty decided to wait for us at the base of the peak. We saw the coolest toilet we've seen till date right outside the caves.

Coolest toilet ever!

The way to the top lies a bit further from the caves. We did not try it out as the trail that went ahead was a risky traverse with full exposure on the right side and the mountain on the left. There are no railings beyond the caves. The way up is mostly full of scree and might need rock climbing equipment or ropes to say the least. As we were not equipped with any, we decided to turn back and to join Shawty for a quick snack.

Peaks on the Panvel side. One can clearly see the twin peaks of Prabalgad and Kalavantin Durg and the massive Irshalgad.

We met him right where we left him. While we were away, Shawty had made a good shelter for himself under the natural shade that the hill offered to him. He had brought some home made sandwiches which were delicious! After helping ourselves to the sandwiches, we clicked a few pictures of the neighbouring peaks and a few selfies. We decided to go live on Facebook a feature that we had not tried out till date. With a few goof ups and after searching for a good spot with network, we were able to go live with a video check in on Facebook.

Taken at the base of the towering Chanderi pinnacle.

About 20 minutes later we started descending at 3:00 PM. The sun was still too strong to let this be an easy downhill descent. We stopped occasionally for water breaks. The patch from the base of the peak to the crossroad was pretty slippery because of the mud. Once we reached that, it was a 1 hour descent to the plateau that we halted at while ascending. We halted for 5 minutes here to take in the view and rehydrate ourselves. Another hour ahead, we were nearing the base village when we caught the sun going down behind these beautiful peaks in the same mountain ranges. We couldnt help but speculate which peaks were these and that became a topic of our discussion on the rest of our walk till the base village.

The peaks in question lit by the setting sun.

We were all smiles when we saw Shawty's car and we quickly changed our footwear and hopped right in. We stopped for a couple of beers near Kalyan and had a wholesome meal of butter chicken and Tandoori Roti. All of us were pretty tired and we spent most of our journey back in power naps. We reached Andheri at 10:00 PM. We parted our ways by thanking and wishing each other well on completing another successful trek. I can say for myself and I'm sure for the others too, we had probably the best sleep in ages after that.

So you have decided to head to the mountains for your first trek? In all the excitement of the impending adventure, one can not underestimate mother nature. Hiking is not complicated, it is an activity that gives you a sense of freedom from your urban life by bringing you closer to the nature in motion. Hiking takes you away from your luxurious life, right into the wilderness of nature. While many would love this experience, one needs to be well prepared for their first hike.

Most of us have learnt packing for a day hike on a trial and error basis. One simply can't predict the nature and hence you need to be as prepared as possible to make sure that you have a smooth and a comfortable trek. Here's a list of 12 must have items in your day pack:

Water

This is the most vital item on our list and why not?! One can not afford to make any error of judgement while deciding the amount of water to carry for a hike. One may or may not find potable water on the hiking trail. You are bound to feel thirsty when you combine the sun, humidity, elevation and the length of the trail. Carry a minimum of 4 litres of water for any hike. Water should easily make about 60% of your daypack's weight.

Comfortable Backpack

Most of us are accustomed to college or office bags which are pretty light on content as compared to a hiking bag. Since you're are going to put a considerable distance under your feet, a comfortable backpack is the second most important item on our list. Make sure you carry a backpack that is easy on your shoulder's. Backpacks with a hip/waist belt and sternum straps are a blessing for hikers. The waist belt takes a considerable amount of weight from your shoulders and distributes them onto your waist. It's a no brainer that the bag needs to be waterproof or offers at least some resistance against rains. You need a lightweight backpack for a day hike as most of your backpack contents will be food and water and probably an extra pair of clothes. I prefer using this the ones by Quechua and you can find them in Decathalon. Here's the one that I have used for many of my day treks:

Quechua 20 Ltr Trekking Backpack

First Aid Box

Important! This is not an option, it is a must. Carry a basic first aid box which includes common medicines, band-aids, bandages, antiseptic lotion, sanitizer, cotton etc. You never know when things go wrong on a trek and being stuck in an emergency without basic medical supplies is not a good idea. You don't need the cliched metal box with a plus sign on it to store your medical supplies. You can buy a first aid kit off the counter or just buy all the supplies independently and store them in a small waterproof pouch.

Sunscreen

Whether you are hiking during monsoons, summers or the winters, you need to have a layer of sunscreen on your skin when you are outdoors. Even when it's not sunny outdoors, your skin needs constant protection from the UV rays. Apply sunscreen at least 15 minutes before you step out of your home and reapply the same at noon. Always use sunscreens with an SPF higher than 15. Make sure that your sunscreen is waterproof if you are going to be hiking in the monsoons. Sunscreens come in various types to compliment different types of skins. Consult a dermatologist for the right type of cream for your skin type. I don't like the shiny sheen that the sunscreen leaves on the skin after application, hence I prefer the Matte ones. The best and the most economical ones are these two here:

Gel Based 50 SPF (Matte)
Cream Based 50 SPF (Matte)

Portable Power Charger

Portable Power Banks are important for most of the smartphone power users in the city, just imagine how paramount it is to carry one for a trek! Most of the treks are located at remote places where your phone may find it difficult to get a good network reception. In such a case, your phone works extra hard to find and lock onto a network signal, resulting in faster depletion of your battery. If you use your smartphones camera as a primary shooter, you are bound to run out of battery on your trek. It is advisable to carry a fully charged power bank for your trek, after all nobody wants to be stuck in the wilderness no matter how beautiful it is! Even though I'm not a big fan of Mi Smartphones anymore, I really love their powerbanks for two reasons; the features they offer and the price they are available at. I have the 20000 mAH Mi powerbank which has the fast charging capability and dual ports. Here's what I'd reccomend:

Mi 10000 mAH Power Bank
Mi 20000 mAH Power Bank

Insect Repellent

This one is a must for entomophobics like me! The wild is full of creepy crawlies and one must make sure that they are protected against them. Apply a good layer of an insect repellent before you enter the wild. An over the counter insect repellent should work but consider your doctor's opinion before using any product. I prefer using anything that comes in a spray bottle rather than a tube. Reason being the ease of use and applicability. The one's that you could take a look at are:

Budget option
Expensive but a fancy one

Munchies

This one is a personal favorite. Walking miles can seriously deplete you of energy and there's nothing better than biting on some munchies at times like these. Energy bars are a great option if saving space is a concern. Fruits like bananas, apples, pears make really good options too. Dry fruits like cashews, almonds, dates are natural options which can save space as well as provide some much needed calories. Avoid oily and foodstuff containing a high percentage of fats. Always keep a few sweets handy.

Ziplock bags

Not the most important thing on the list but pretty handy nonetheless, zip lock bags can be used for a plethora of purposes. Carry ziplock bags of different sizes. They can be used to collect leaves, flowers and stones if you are into them. They can be used to insure your phone and wallet against rains.  If not for ziplock bags, carry polythene bags but remember to not litter the trail. You can buy these off local shops, here is a link if you want to get them online:

Slide-Rite Multi-Purpose storage bag

Duct Tape

Duct tapes are underrated. Period.
Nothing can be as handy as duct tapes when it comes to tears, rips and blisters. Duct tapes can fix broken soles, tears in the bag, waterproofing bags and open ventilated shoes etc. A long piece of duct tape can also be twisted into a strong rope/string if you want to tie something. You can also make loops out of duct tapes to stick other essentials to your backpack.

48x50mm Duct Tape

Rain Gear

While many enjoy getting wet in the rains while hiking, I am of a different opinion. While I would occasionally like to get wet in a drizzle, I am totally against getting soaked in heavy rains while hiking for miles. It's not the rains that makes it uncomfortable, rather it's the aftermath of the rains that is annoying. Wear a Windcheater or a rain cover that covers the maximum of your body. There are special hiking windcheaters and rain covers available. Over the years I have tried a lot of Quechua Rain protection gears and I swear by them. The best place to by them is your nearest Decathalon shop. Here are the ones that I have tried:

Budget Windcheater for hikes (This is good for Light to Medium rainfall)
Heavy Duty Windcheater (A bit on the expensive side but I have used this for my Himalayan Treks as well)

Torch

Highly unlikely that you may need a torch for a day's hike but an important emergency accessory to keep handy nonetheless. You don't want to be stuck in the wild in the dark without a good torch and it is always advised to keep one in your survival pack. You may want to take a torch which is bright enough to illuminate upto 10 metres with adjustable focus. Waterproof torches are a bonus!

Multifunctional knife

The cool quotient! Multifunctional knives are awesome. While they may or may not be used during a usual trek, they do give you a sense of being well equipped for any hike. One should pray that they may not find the need to use one in a hike, having them in your daypack will keep you at peace. I purchased one made by "Grand Harvest" locally on the streets of Lamington Road in Mumbai. The same product is available online on Amazon. I bought mine for Rs 300/- off the streets and I think 320 for an online reseller is a good deal.

Multifunctional Knife