That seems like a very good list and you have put a lot of good though into your needs and the demands of your route. My suggestions would be:
1) Adding ibuprofen if it's not already included in your pain killers category. It can be great for sore muscles and other minor joint pain on a long multi-day walk.
I have a combination of ibuprofen and acetaminophen. I have ibuprofen actually in my socks as a reminder to take them before I even head out. That seems to help keep me feeling better longer.
2) Would you consider adding a small can of dog-repellent or pepper-spray?
This is an excellent suggestion. I'll see about adding that.
3) A large Ziploc or two to keep your maps dry.
Actually almost everything is already in ziplock bags. I did this for organizational reasons, but had the side benefit of helping keep things dry if my pack leaked or accidentally got dunked.
As to the maps specifically, I actually took the relevant parts of a couple of street maps and had them laminated. This way I can look at them in the rain without having to worry about them getting ruined. The results were good, but kind of big. This is something I may have redone. Maybe into a series of 8 1/2 by 11 individual sheets.
4) If you are actually considering swimming a (wide) canal, you will want a dry bag to keep your goodies dry.
This is another excellent suggestion that I have run across elsewhere. I will look into this. My original idea had been to use my garbage bags for this purpose. However, somebody elsewhere pointed out the reason I would be swimming in the first place is the bridges are down. If the bridges are down, than that means the canal is probably full of debris and my garbage bags would probably quickly get punctured. I dry bag would be far tougher and water proof.
Another good suggestion. I originally had a Adventure Medical PSK in my pack, but removed it as redundant. However that had my backup compass that I did not replace.
6) I would add something more palatable than datrex bars -- but I wouldn't have to carry them as far.
This was mentioned by somebody someplace else as well. They recommended Tiger's Milk bars. Any other suggestions? Personally I have found the Datrex bars to be reasonably good, though certainly not candy bars.
7) I don't believe the Aquamira Frontier is very good at filtering out pathogens and would consider better water purification options besides the Porta-Aqua tablets (such as Micropur). Have you scouted out water sources for your route (beyond the obvious canal)?
Hmmm. I don't have any personal experience with filter straws and picked the Aquamira Frontier based on some reviews and price. Can you recommend something you would think is better? The same thing for the purification tablets. You recommend the Micropur's?
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