Let's Go Bikepacking

What is bikepacking?

A lightweight form of bicycle touring, that includes camping, typically riding gravel roads or other form of mixed-terrain routes are included (gravel roads, singletrack, doubletrack, minimal maintenance roads). Camping gear and food is carried on your bike via light weight bags or rack and panniers.

What is a s24O?

Grant Petersen popularized the idea of a Sub 24 hour overnight (S24O) bike camping trip in the 90s as way to have a quick adventure that doesn't require lots of planning. Minimal planning is involved, as opposed to longer tours that require coordination.

Ride out to camp after work on a Friday night, camp, and return home the next day around noon. You'll have plenty of time for the rest of the weekend.

Your first few S24Os are great practice for longer rides, more days and nights. Get good at riding with gear and you'll be ready to start dreaming about multiple day bikepacking trips.

Why go bikepacking?

Palisades State Park

Bikepacking and S24Os are a great way to experience a microadventure close to home without having to take vacation time, leave your friends or family.

Escaping the grind for a day can reinvigorate the soul, ignite a passion, and unplug from the 24-7 interwebz data cycle.

Adventure is just around the corner. Adventure by bike is a great way to see the world, go camping, explore a new road, and eat at a local cafe.

What do I need for a bikepacking S240 trip?

1. Bike that can handle the route -- burly-fat tires for gravel, skinny-fat for pavement, medium-fat for both
2. Bike repair kit -- tube, patch, pump, tire levers, chain breaker, 4-5-6 hex wrenches, bike multi-tool/pocket knife
3. Camping gear -- tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, knife, tooth brush, toiletries kit, head light, book, deck of cards, extra set of clothing for camp, camp stove(s) for hot food and drinks
4. Food for dinner/lunch/2nd breakfast/1st lunch
5. Plenty of water (3 to 5 bottles) water bottles are needed for long rides

Lastly, you need a sense of humor and adventure. One night in the cold/heat/a rowdy camp site won't kill you, and will give you a great story to tell your Momma. You'll be home in a few hours ready for your comfortable bed or sofa.

What kind of bike do I need for bikepacking?

The best bikepacking bike is the bike you already have. A sturdy hardtail mountain bike will work, so will a bike path hybrid, or drop-bar road bike with big tires -- 32mm. As your riding progresses, your needs may change. If they do, then here's five considerations for a "bikepacking" bike:

1. What kind of handle bars do you like -- drop or flat?
2. Do you want to travel fast and light or do you want to roll over anything?
3. Do you want an all-rounder that's good at lots of things, but not perfect for some types of riding or bike perfect for some types of riding?
4. How long do you want to ride -- miles, hours, days?
5. How much weight do you need to carry?

Here's a few bikes I like for bikepacking

2018 Salsa Fargo 27.5+

1. Salsa Fargo - drop bar adventure
2. Salsa Cutthroat - lighter & nimble Fargo
3. Salsa Marrakesh - traditional pavement touring bike
4. Soma Juice -- hardtail mountain bike
5. Soma Saga - pavement-centric touring bike

How do I carry my camping gear on my bike?

Options are as diverse as a bikes. Here's a few options that work well:

• speciality velcro dry bags strapped to handlebars and seatposts aka Bikepacking bags
• Racks and panniers
• backpacks
• trailers

Work with what you have, maybe that will work for a few trips, before you decide to go bikepacking again as your riding changes.

Bikepacking bags

Salsa EXP Series Seatpack

Bikepacking bags are designed to fit to various points on the bike and not affect the bike's handling. This is useful when riding on challenging terrain or when it's spirited ride.
Frame bags, seat bags, and handle bar bags are the core setup for bikepacking.

Seatbags work great for storing clothing, sleeping bags, and soft items.

Heavy items like camp stove(s) should go in the frame bag, lighter items in the handlebar and seat bags.

Accessory bags are great for carrying snacks, tools, and random items that may need access while riding. Top tube, seat tube, and stem sacks are all great additions to any bike travel kit.

Racks and Panniers

Racks and panniers work because you may already have a rack installed on your bike. Panniers can work for bike commuting, touring, shopping; however, racks may become loose on gravel roads. Applying blue locktite to the threads should keep the bolts from coming loose. Bringing a spare bolt or two is good insurance if a bolt shakes loose and your rack needs another bolt on the ride.

Salsa Wanderlust Rack

Panniers offer a lot of storage capacity, which allows you to pack everything in a few bags. Panniers are also great for riders with small frames, because they don't interfere with the rear tire. Pack the heavy items first in the bottom and then put lighter items like clothing towards the top of the panniers.
Some racks work better than others due to bicycle standards.

Salsa Touring Panniers

Check your bike and see what will offer the balance between load, fit, and capacity. Racks that attach at the wheels are very stout and are a great option for gravel riding. Plus, racks work great for carrying large bulky items -- like firewood, beer/cider, cast iron skillets. Racks that attach at the hub are the strongest and work great for single track.

Truck bags are a lot lighter option than panniers, but you may not have enough storage space to carry all of your gear. One solution is to use a trunk bag and panniers to carry everything you need maybe some gear you don't need.

Baskets are the newest trend in bikepacking with racks. Baskets on your bike work the same as your basket at HyVee. Dump everything in and sort it out when you get to camp.

Backpacks

Riding with a backpack is great way to get started bike adventures. Put your gear on your back and get riding. One drawback you might encounter is a sore back after a day of riding with weight on your back; personal fit, comfort, and fitness will tell you if you like weight on your back while riding.

Trailers

Using a bike trailer is a great option, because it doesn't require adding a rack on your bike to go camping. Attach your trailer to your bike and put your gear in the bin. While I don't have personal trailer experience, the general consensus is that a trailer does affect the bike's stopping and handling capabilities.

What don't I need for a bikepacking trip?

You don't need the following items, but I like to be comfortable after a day of riding. Here's a few luxuries:

1. Camp chair
2. Two sleeping pads (foam and air)
3. Camp sandals
4. Multiple camp stoves for different types of cooking
5. Speaker for music
6. Hot dog & S'more skewers
7. Multiple cooking pots and a titanium plate
8. Journal
9. Frisbee/flying disc
10. Fishing pole

Where should I go bikepacking?

S240 bikepacking adventures are close quick adventures that can be planned Wednesday over your lunch break and you'll be ready to ride Saturday morning.
Here's a few options:

1. Check local state parks for camp sites
2. Check local city parks for camp sites
3. Check local public nature areas for wild camping
4. Check rails to trails for routes away from traffic
5. Check the next town over for any bed and breakfasts or hotels to travel light

Use Google Maps to plan a route, web apps like Ride with GPS can help you share your route. Planning stops for water, food, and sightseeing is apart of the process. See what you want to see, if you can't fit it all in, plan another trip with a slightly different route.

Another option is to get a camp site and just go. Plan the route as you're riding. Stop when you need to stop, ride when you want to ride.

Try to see something new and not get too lost.

What every bikepacker really needs!

A burnt up sock is the most versatile camp gear you never knew you needed... until now. Behold, the best camp stove potholder known on the Big Sioux River.

The Legend, The Myth, the Burnt up Sock!!!

How do I get such an important camp accessory? 

Easy! Follow these 10 steps and you'll have your own legend ready for adventures.

1. Go bikepacking
2. Go bikepacking in the rain
3. Start a camp fire
4. Dry off your socks, wool cycling cap, goat leather gloves, etc over the fire
5. Leave items on the fire too long
6. Wait until items are smoking (visual conformation required if items are not on fire)
7. Extinguish any fires
8. Remove any ashes
9. Remove loose threads
10. Put in your outside coffee kit, camp cooking kit, camp stove

Repeat steps 3-9 as needed until sock is rendered useless as a sock, but perfect as a potholder.