Lightweight cutlery and other equipment

The excitement that can be generated by the smallest things ... :)

For my birthday I got the GSI Cutlery Set Halulite. I had been dreading researching and picking from among the various sets. And now it just appeared - and it's perfect! Thank you, Jan.

Other upcoming purchases that require a bit of research still:

• hiking/backpacking backpack. I have quite a number of backpacks - some large, some small and some in between. None are designed for backpacking - and they just won't work for the 3 months duration we are planning for. 
• a pair of sturdy and comfortable hiking boots. Finally, there are women's hiking boots on the Canadian market in my size (depending on the make I take a 41.5 to 42.5). I got 2 pairs of hikers last fall that work great and fit, but neither are designed for mountains and really rugged terrain. 
• camping stove and pots. We want  multi-fuel since we need to be able to get fuel wherever we are.
• water purification system. We really liked the one used by the Four Seasons Guides on our Grand Canyon trip: it was so easy and all chemical. Need to do some research on this for sure.

We've got our tent already. We went with the MEC Twin Peaks tent - a 3-season tent. We wanted to balance weight (3.1. kg packed), ruggedness, versatility, size - and cost. This one had the best combination for our needs and the reviews were spot on, too. 

All of our other gear is well in hand from first aid kits to rain gear.