What do you carry?: Birding equipment in the field

Greg Neise asks a question of all birders at North American Birding Blog, what do you carry in the field?  Optics, field guides, notepads, all have to be hauled out somehow or prioritized due to space concerns, and we all have preferences that are as individual as every individual birder.  We've mentioned birding equipment here at the ABA Blog in the past, whether it's Don Freiday's clothing suggestions or Laura Kammermeier and Bill Schmocker's favorite apps, but Greg breaks down his field-worthy paraphernalia at his blog:

The pack that I own is no longer made, but Timbuk2 has a newer version with a couple of improvements. The “Q” pack has a fully padded laptop/iPad compartment, which if you travel old-school, perfectly holds a Delorme Gazetteer. A roomy main compartment holds stuff that we’ll get to in a moment. The front packet is well organized to hold pens, notebook, wallet and gadgets. This pack also has a separate “brick pocket” for your laptop’s power supply. It’s all put together made of ballistic nylon with fully-taped seams (very important…they don’t come apart).

When I'm in the field I try to keep it light (which becomes less and less possible with every passing year it seems), with just my bins, a camera with a 400mm lens, a notebook and an iPhone (which serves as field guide, recorder, and communication device all in one).  Occasionally I need a scope too, and don't get me started on the accouterments when I bring my toddler son in the field with me...

Head over to North American Birding Blog and join the coversation, or start one in the comments here!