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The art of Bikepacking

The ultimate guide with advice from one enthusiastic weekend warrior to another

By TheBikepack

February 17^th, 2019

Hi,

If you find yourself reading this article, then chances are that you like us have the “tingles in your legs” and spend every night dreaming about the returning spring and smooth roads taking you on adventures fare and wide! We are the @TheBikepack, a “pro-everything cycling” Instagram community with but one goal.. to get more people in the saddle! So do us a favour and make sure to introduce new friends to join your bikepacking trip and share the wonders of self powered travels and the thrill of cycling!

We are very happy that you found your way here and hope that you will enjoy the read, have some laughs, good pointers and an absolutely amazing season of cycling coming your way!

Here is some advice from one enthusiastic weekend warrior to another!

Step 1 - Building an adventure

Planning a trip comes in lots of different “shapes”, there is the meticulously planned perfect cycle trip all the way to the spontaneous whim taking you on the road and onward.

One thing is for sure, when talking about such an awesome thing as riding a bike there is a very small chance that you will end up disappointed. There are of course different degrees of awesome and here are some pointers to take your trip all the way to the heavens.

When planning on going on any kind of bikepacking trip, the first thing you want to think about (in our opinion) is to make sure to bring great people! Friends who can lighten your mood through the toughest hills, share their last snack bar, cheer you on when push comes to shove and has your back through the great times coming your way. Traveling on a bike has a funny way of bringing people closer together as you pretty much have to spend a whole lot of time together. You will experience the good times and the tough miles, long nights, rainy days and steep climbs together and that gives a deeper connection then sharing a beer on a Friday night, or even better.. sharing a beer on a Friday night while on a bike pack together. Summarising, bring good friends or people you wanna become good friends with :).

A fun route does not make it any worse either, you can plan your own or get inspiration from other riders through apps such as “KOMOT” , a great tool for any ride - PRO tip nr:1 ;). Keep in mind to leave room for unexpected events, taking a backroad that looks like an extra adventure, joining a couple of locals for a detour or not finding any place to set up camp. We adapt a certain measure of “YOLO” to our planning, meaning that we usually have a frame and a general understanding of how and where we want to go and then let our bikes take us. This has been great fun more times then it’s failed us hence here by proven by statistics to be a pretty good way of doing things.

step 2 - Carbs and h20

Food and hydration is another key component in the equation of a successful venture. Food is our fuel and when riding along for an entire day you will need a lot of this to stay on top of you game and remain cheerful AF. Ride hard and eat + drink bunches, always make sure to have some extra snackbars and a spare bottle of waters for the times when you end up in the middle of a forest and don’t know when you will see civilisation again (turns out that it is surprisingly easy to end up in this situation).

Stopping by a local restaurant, tavern or pub for lunch is a super way to load up on carbs and also to get a chat with locals about the surroundings plus of course getting the latest scoop on the town gossip. The nice thing about spending your days in the saddle is that you don’t really have to worry so much about what you eat, the rule is rather to make sure to eat a lot and as much as possible.

As for breaky, dinner and all the snacks in-between, the best way we have found is too really stock up when you have the opportunity. Hit any grocery store or seven eleven you pass and fill them bags with peanut butter, steaming local bread, canned tuna, candy and any other deliciousness you can think of.

Step 3 - The art of packing

Packing for a bikepacking trip is a true art form, perfecting the skill of leaving pretty much everything behind. A good advice, talking from experience here, is to make sure that your cycle bags are waterproof, because let’s face it... even if we really like to stay optimistic, you will sooner or later encounter some bad weather and when you do, waterproof will be king! There are also all kinds of cool travel adapted gear, like “microfiber towels” who are super small, dry in an instance and cost next to nothing, great investment for any trip. But when it comes down to it, packing is all about realising that you don’t really need all your sh*t for it to be a great trip! That is also one of the best things about it, realising that all it really takes is you, your bike, a hammock, a sleeping bag and some grit.

There are however, in our opinion, some “must have” items that you should bring along to secure a successful venture.

GPS/Cycle computer - To keep track of where you are and where you are headed.
Cash (Local currency) - Cash is king in a lot of rural towns and communities.
Knife - Opening cans, fixing a fire, cutting up food or whatever :)
Extra water bottle - Always have some extra water.
Spare tire kit - For when you get a flat, because you will get a flat at some point.

Step 4 - Surviving the wilderness

All right, looks like we got our gear together found the perfect route and hopefully got on our way. So let’s talk about accommodations. There is a wide range of different options, all on different levels of the “badassness” scale. We usually sleep in hammocks or tent with the occasional hotel/hostel/motel night to get that fresh shower and some tasty breakfast in the morning.

But no hotel in the world beats a night under the stars, if you ask us. This is a truly mesmerising experience, taking in the Milky Way and the nature all around you with all its impressions and sounds. Another great thing about sleeping in the wilderness is that you can be sure of becoming an early riser, as you will wake with the sunrise and get ready for another day in the saddle nice and early - PRO tip nr:2 ;).

Contemplations about gear... Tent’s can cost a fortune and yes, they will be lighter and way easier to carry with you, but if you are new to this and want to cut some costs then this is a good place to start. We once cycled a 1000km ride from London to Edinburgh with a “festival tent” costing us around 20 euros, the store klerk told us it wouldn’t last through the first night but we had no problems at all, and “Fort Knox” as we named it stood up against both storms, bad rain and all other hell nature could throw at us. It is not so much about the stuff as it is about getting out there and getting some mud under your tires.

"Quote about sleeping under the stars"

Step 5 - The wrap up!

Bikepacking is an absolutely brilliant way of traveling and if you haven't experienced it already go pack your bike bags right now and get going! If you do know what I’m talking about, then you're probably already packing your bags anyways! The travel experience from a saddle is an all you can eat buffet of impressions, views, smells, sounds, tastes, meetings and interactions. It is such a genuine way of getting closer to the people around you and the landscape that you travel. Experiencing culture and getting to know yourself and your friends that you ride with. You end up with an aching feeling of wanting more once you reach your destination and have to unclip your pedals.

This is probably a great moment to mention that a bike pack don’t have to be weeks long and in foreign countries, it can just as well be a weekend in your backyard exploring roads you’venever been down. So why not start off easy and take a weekend starting from your door and see where your bike can take you! Trust me when I say that it will be amazing!