A 10,000+ mile self-contained bicycle journey of the U.S.A., Canada, and Mexico Raising funds and awareness for the forgotten children of Ghana, West Africa and the dreaded Malaria that constantly threatens their lives.
Self-contained Bicycle Touring Equipment/Packing List (extended length tour)
(See also, Bike touring tips, suggestions, and opinions for enjoying the long haul)
This packing list is for extended touring that will include a portion of dirt and fire roads, very diverse terrain, and of course, an assortment of weather conditions. Yes, the weather can vary tremendously on tour, especially in the western U.S.—from scorching deserts and plains to 12,000' mountain passes—so extra clothing can be required. Some cold-weather items can be mailed home after the threat has passed. In the desert regions which might have expansive distances without water or services, I use a Camelbak, in addition to three water bottles and another two liters in the panniers.
Preferences for clothing, on and off the bike, are very subjective. My personal guidelines are: 1) If I'm going to be spending most of a given day on the bike, then I'll wear cycling-specific clothes (they are extremely functional for the activity of cycling, provide comfort, wick away persperation, and are brightly colored for added visibility, and clipless cycling shoes add efficiency to every stroke of the pedals, thereby, reducing unnecessary pedaling effort); 2) If I will be spending more time hiking or site-seeing on a given day, then I'll wear "street clothes", which includes ultra light-weight running shoes (I enjoy quite a bit of hiking when bike touring, so this option is especially good for all day hikes), and light-weight pants/shorts with zip-off legs. Other bicycle tourists prefer not to use cycling-specific attire for various reasons. Others will wear just one pair of shoes or sandals. There is no right or wrong as to what you choose to bring on tour. This is the list that I've refined over the years, and it works very well for my particular needs. You'll want to customize it for your own style and circumstances.
Weight:
A word about the weight of the load. The four biggest factors regarding weight, include 1) tent, 2) sleeping bag, 3) cooking kit, 4) tools. Keeping these four in check can go a long way toward keeping an overall leaner touring kit.
Tent: Consider a good quality two-person backpacking tent that weighs as close to 4 lbs. (or less) as possible. The packed weight of my Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight tent is 3 lbs. 12 oz.
Sleeping bag: Sleeping comfort is essential. Goes without saying. My preference is a down filled sleeping bag, but others prefer synthetic. Down is lighter and I think it's more comfortable, but it will not keep you warm if it becomes wet. Extra care is necessary to keep a down bag dry (such as a dry sack or just a plastic rubbish/trash bag). 2 lbs. is a good target weight for a sleeping bag.
Cooking kit: Backpacking stoves are generally very light weignt. It's actually the fuel that adds the weight. I generally carry 22 oz. white gas/Coleman fuel, plus a small 11 oz. bottle of the same that I keep connected to the fuel pump and use on a daily basis. I prefer a white gas stove (such as the MSR WhisperLite Internationale for its cooking qualities, over an alcohol stove. Just my preference. Alcohol stoves are probably a tad lighter, however. I don't like to cook with aluminum cookware, so the choice is stainless steel or titanium. Titanium is more expensive, but the weight savings is appreciable. I use one 1.1 liter pot to cook in. That's it. I used to bring two pots, but have learned that one works just fine.
Tools: I used to bring enough tools that I could fully field strip and rebuild the bike on the side of the road in the middle of the desert. I don't bring nearly as many tools now. Yes, anything can happen while touring, and we should pretty much be prepared for worst case scenarios. With that thought in mind, I now bring a few proprietary tools and spare nuts & bolts, a multi-tool, a brake and shifter cable, links of chain, fiber fix spokes, tire levers, tire pump, presta valve adapter, small amount of duct tape, some zip ties, and not too much more. Of course, bring chain lube, a patch kit, tire boot, and spare tubes. Most of these items are pretty light weight and with this abbreviated kit you can make all but the most major repairs and adjustments. (For travel in extremely remote areas or in third-world countries, I'd bring a more comprehensive tool kit.)
The rest of your touring kit: 1) Electronics: You can bring as much or as little as you feel you need. You can actually get by with bring no electronic devices at all, but I think a better alternative is to at least bring a mobile/cell phone (with a smartphone being an even better choice). Other tech devices that are often contained in the touring cyclist's kit, includes GPS, laptop/netbook computer, tablet pc/iPad, music player, radio. They all add weight to the load, so bring if you must. 2) Clothes: Lightweight, fast drying cycling and street clothes offer the best functionality. I only bring one street outfit that can be worn hiking or at a restaurant in the evening. Hiking pants with zip-off legs are very versatile. Cycling clothes are worn for many hours every day and are meant to provide optimal comfort while pedalling away. I don't care to wash clothes every day, so I bring three sets of bike shorts and jerseys. Face it, these items aren't contributing very much to the overal weight of the load and they take up very little space. So, why not? I also bring four pair of socks, because I like to keep my feet happy. Anyway, that's just me. You might only want to bring two pair of bike shorts and socks. It's up to you. Like I said, they don't weigh all that much, so I go for comfort and convenience.
There you have it, in a nutshell. A fairly comprehensive packing list follows below.
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1990 Bridgestone CB-Zip equipped as a road or fire trail touring bike - unloaded |
Having the right gear for the job is important in bike touring. |
The CB-Zip, loaded for the long haul. |
• Bicycle touring tips, suggestions, and opinions for enjoying the long haul
• 2006 Cross-country Photo Journal
• 2008 Recovery Tour
• Bicycle pages
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The Bike:
- Bridgestone CB-Zip (CB-0)—(circa. 1990) - Triple-butted Tange MTB chromoly frameset, fork and stays
- Suntour XC Pro cantilever brakeset (front and rear)
- Cane Creek SCR-5 brake levers
- Nitto "Noodle" drop handlebar
- Brooks leather bar wrap (Antique Brown)
- Profile Design H2O alloy stem
- Tange Levin headset
- TruVativ Stylo GXP triple crankset (44x34x22)
- SRAM Giga-X-Pipe bottom bracket
- SRAM cassette (12-32)
- Shimano LX front derailleur
- Shimano XT rear derailleur
- Shimano Dura Ace Bar-end shifters
- Braze-ons: (3) water bottles (34 oz. ea.); rear rack mounts; double dropout eyelets (fr. and rear), chain rest
- wheels: Hand built Sun Rhyno Lite 26 inch alloy rims, (36 holes front and rear) double-butted DT 14/15/14 ga. stainless steel spokes, Shimano 700CX hubs.
- Tires: Maxxis Overdrive—26" x 1.75" (559 x 47mm)
- CLB alloy seat post
- Brooks B-17 Narrow (laced) saddle—Antique Brown
- Ritchey clipless pedals (SPD) or Suntour XC Pro w/mini-toeclip
- VDO MC1.0 cycle computer
- Planet Bike fenders
- Surly chromoly "Nice Racks" front and rear
- Busch & Muller tail light
- NiteRider Ultra Fazer Max headlight
The Panniers:
Right Rear Pannier: Lone Peak Mount Superior P-500
External Pockets
- first aid ditty (band-aids/4x4's/first aid items/tape, moleskin)
- mosquito repellant
- pannier rain covers
- MSR fuel bottle (Coleman/white fuel/unleaded gasoline) - 22 oz.
- 50' thin clothesline rope w/carabiner (anti-bear food line)
Left Rear Pannier: Lone Peak Mount Superior - P-500
External Pockets
- Katadyn Exstream Water Purifier
- (2) spare tubes (in ziplock bag with talcum powder)
- Arkel bike cover
- dry food items: (pasta, brown rice, oats, lentils, salt, etc.)
- LifeForce Energy & Immune Support powder (in ziplock bag)
Rear Rack Trunk: Lone Peak RP-700 Deluxe Rack Trunk: (mostly cold/wet weather items for handy access)
- Camelbak 105-oz. (strapped to rack when not in use)
- extra pair cycling gloves
- (1) pair arm warmers
- (1) pair tights (or leg warmers)
- (1) pair marino wool crew-top cycling socks
- Performance commuter/rain jacket
- fleece cycling vest (optional - cold weather - doubles as pillow!)
- Performance ultra light wind shell
- (1) pair fingered mtb gloves (cold weather)
- toilet paper
- "OnGuard" cable combination lock
- extra energy foods/trail mix
- trunk bag is expandable for carrying extra purchased food items
- Jannd Mini pouch (under the saddle): quick-fix flat tire kit—(tire levers, Park patch kit, (1) new tube)
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Right Front Pannier: Lone Peak Parley's Summit - P-100
(Cycling clothes)
- cycle touring shoes—Shimano SH RT-51, with recessed SPD cleat (usually wearing these)
- (4) pairs coolmax socks (wearing one pr., 3 pr. inside trail hiking shoe)
- (1) long sleeve jersey w/hood (optional cold weather)
- (2) short sleeve synthetic jerseys (wearing one)
- (1) Marino wool jersey
- (3) Performance sleeveless synthetic base layer tee-shirts
- (3) cycling shorts (wearing one)
- mobile phone charger
- LED head-strap lamp
- maps
- keys (on caribiner)
- tool kit (external pocket
- Topeak Alien II Multi-tool
- Schraeder/presta adapter
- spoke wrench
- extra chain links
- (2) FiberFix spokes
- (1) Stein's Hypercracker (cassette tool)
- spare nuts, screws, bolts
- extra seatpost clamp bolt
- (1) brake cable
- (1) derailleur cable
- tire boot
- tire pressure gauge
- duct tape (partial roll - flattened)
- electrical tape
- extra zip-tie straps (2 sizes)
- ProLink chain lubricant - 4 oz.
- Phil Wood waterless grease (partial tube)
Left Front Pannier: Lone Peak Parley's Summit - P-100
(Street clothes)
- (1) lightweight convertible zip-off pants/shorts
- (1) lightweight all-purpose travel/camp/hiking shirt
- (1) pair underwear
- (1) fast-drying tee-shirt
- ultra light-weight nylon shorts
- (1) lightweight polypropylene long sleeve crew shirt (for sleeping or layering)
- (1) lightweight polypropylene long underwear (for sleeping or layering)
- REI MultiTowel Lite towel (medium)
- (1) baseball cap
- (1) pair Columbia ultra light-weight trail shoes for hiking (one shoe in each fr. pannier)
- small Bible
- shower sandals
- maps
- small fuel bottle w/pump (inside trail/running shoe)
- emergency cash
- minerals/electrolyte supplements
- toiletries ditty
- Dr. Bronner's liquid castile soap - 4 oz.
- toothpaste
- toothbrush
- dental floss
- nail clippers
- comb/brush
- razor/blades
Front Rack Bag: Lone Peak RP-350 medium rack trunk (easy access items)
- digital camera—Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28—w/ 3 x 4 GB Ultra II SDHC memory cards, Hoya lens filters, 1 spare rechargable battery pack), camera battery charger, mini tripod, card reader, Sandisk Cruzer U3 Flashdrive (8 GB)—all in camera bag.
- Swiss Army knife
- wallet, traveler's checks, passport/ID, birth certificate, emergency contacts, phone card, insurance info (in ziplock bag)
- mobile smartphone (in mesh side pocket)
- current maps
- compass (Brunton Classic)
- suntan lotion (waterproof spf 30)
- wet washcloth (in ziplock bag in other mesh side pocket)
- chapstick (spf 30)
- energy food (trail mix, dates, raisins, Cliff bars, Emergen-C packets)
- chamois butter (baby "butt paste" works great)
- pen/pencil (1 ea.)
- notepad
- extra sweat pad for helmet
- prescription eye-wear
- Bolle Vigilante Rx Sunglasses
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