Question for the bivvies on the forum.

Is a multi-day trip off road feasible using only a backpack? If so what setup do you use?

My concern is that your back would die under the extra load.

DavidB – Member

Question for the bivvies on the forum.

Is a multi-day trip off road feasible using only a backpack? If so what setup do you use?

My concern is that your back would die under the extra load.

I guess if you’re not used to the weight bent over your bike then yes?

Ask on here
http://www.bikeandbivi.co.uk/php/index.php

or
http://bearbonesbikepacking.co.uk/phpBB3/index.php

or
http://www.bikepacking.net/forum/index.php?PHPSESSID=1860ca2dc92245e5b1096a6cc8717489;www

depends upon how much kit you are planning to carry?? It is possible but as you said may not be the most comfortable.

A single night in summer shouldn’t be much of a problem. If it was multi-day and you had to carry food then you’d be needing a pretty big pack which really wouldn’t be much fun.

Don’t underestimate how much harder carrying stuff on your back will be compared to carrying it on the bike.

give it a try and see – just go for a ride with a 10kg pack on.

Personally I hate riding with a rucksac – unbalances you and wastes energy. It is better for tricky singletrack tho.

I tried it, got a sore back. Wouldn’t try it again.

Why just a rucksac? You can using straps to get the sleeping bag mounted on the bars, tools and weighty stuff under the saddle. Framebags are ace.

Problem with rucksac only is it’s weight pushing your arse into the saddle.

It’s all more feasible in the summer when you need less kit.

It is better for tricky singletrack tho.

How?

I can’t think of any tricky singletrack I would prefer to ride with a heavy pack compared to a frame-bag/bar-roll combo.

Food weight is your biggest problem on multiday trips. If you’re relying on picking stuff up as you go then you’ll probably be fine.

The reason for rucksack only is that the route will include a couple of massive carries and I will be riding a CX bike not mtb. Thanks for the forum links, some good info there. I think it might be feasible if I can strip gear down to absolute minimum and do as much eating as possible near civilisation (which can happen on this route).

Anthony – Member

“It is better for tricky singletrack tho.”

How?

You can move the bike around under you more easily and the weight is more central if higher

the weight is more central if higher

? 🙂 What, more central than when actually central?

Are you refering more to panniers vs rucksack?

“It is better for tricky singletrack tho.”

How?

You can move the bike around under you more easily and the weight is more central if higher

Makes no sense – weight distributed across saddle bag/frame bag/handlebars is much more preferable to a huge rucksack on your back.

Thats been the way I have done most trips. I use either a 22 or 33 l talon. I minimise the amount of food being carried and often visit a pub for dinner before sloping off to find a suitable bivi spot.

I am however getting a seat post bag as the weight on my back is particularly noticeable when climbing or on super steep descents.

I’ve done plenty of long distance multi-day stuff with a rucsac, specifically a WingNut MPS which I seem to remember has a capacity of approx 40/50 litres.

I still strapped my sleeping bag under the bars, and used a saddle bag, but most of my kit (including food for 3-4 days) was in the RucSac.

If you don’t have a wingnut you might have problems with the rucsac hitting your helmet, plus the ergonomics of the WingNut (i.e. very low) seem to improve comfort.

Would agree with TJ on this one, from a comfort point of view it might make sense to have weight on the bike, but from a handling point of view on tricky rocky stuff I much preferred taking weight off the bike, even if it meant placing it higher on me. Think somebody explained to me that your body moves in a pretty smooth line, no matter how tricky the trail, but the bike moves loads, which is why it makes sense to keep the bike light.

If you have some lengthy massive carries maybe go for a frame bag etc etc and a incredibley light rucksac, transfer the bags into the rucksac.

Rucksac + rear rack. On the bike when rolling. On your back when portaging (canoe term for hiking your boat)

I’m with 13fm on this. An unladen bike is easier to manoeuvre on the track. It’s also easier to carry/lift over obstacles and through rivers etc.

Being canny with packing, there’s no reason a rucksack needs to be ludicrously heavy and I’ve cycled like this for 2/3 day trips with no discomfort whatsoever.

2006-10-14 17-04-26 by druidh_dubh, on Flickr

Does the Talon bang on the helmet?

I have to dissagree, for my style of riding at least.

What springs to mind is I have ridden the same Cutgate Peak district rocky descent plenty of times this year fully loaded, both rucksack or framebag. With the framebag, the bike just handles like a heavier bike, whereas the rucksack had me lolloping out of balance on the steeper sections to the point I had to slow to regain control.

On steeper rocky decents a heavy rucksac is also be far more prone to having me over the bars, and on steep inclines it lifts the front wheel. I’ll admit the wingnut helps in overcoming this a little.

I certainly prefer in general the weight on the bike but it does spoil the handling IMO.

to some extent it depends perhpas on your riding style as well – how much you move the bike around underneath you.

…trying not to sound like an advert for Wingnut here… I never noticed any issues when descending, other than the bag being a bit ‘lively’ which I cured with the addition of an extra chest strap. If you have the bag low enough it shouldn’t be pushing you over the bars unless you’re riding REALLY steep stuff! 😯

Got a talon 22 and 33 which don’t get used anymore due to helmet nudging, got a wingnut enduro which was loads better for comfort and no helmet nudge.
I now have a full compliment of framebag, handlebar harness and seat pack but I rarely use the enduro and the seat pack and now have the small 2.5 wingnut with the framebag and handlebar harness which is infinitely more comfortable and plenty big enough for my needs.
It’s a slightly heavier bike to ride but its not had me worried on any descents that I wouldn’t attempt, unloaded.