The interest has been there for along time . I’m now ready to dive in and have a dabble at it ...I’m going to use my 29er MTB for now so the bike is sorted it’s just everything else I need advice on
1..The tent.. this seems to be a major sticking point at the moment , the budget is £250ish as always spending less greatly helps but if necessary then around £250 I’d be comfortable with ..
2 ..Bags..any advice on size make etc would be appreciated
3...Sleeping kit as above
I’ve a real interest in this so don’t mind spending the cash for stuff thatS worth the investment
Also ..any websites or forums/ YouTube channels that are worth checking out please let me know
Thanks in advance for any advice given
There are far more knowledgeable people on here than me, but start looking at bear bones bikepacking site. I've also found bikepacking.com good, US orientated but some decent UK routes and some gear reviews, which may be US specific but can find UK based options.
In terms of bags, I just went with Alpkit, mostly as it was easier to ask for Alpkit vouchers for my birthday and Christmas from family! They are decent bags though, seem really well made and tough. I didn't go for a tent, just a Raab siltarp 1, alpkit cloud base, hunka divvy bag.
A collection of vids;
UK version, along with a .com site;
https://bikepacking.com/tag/bikepacking-uk/
Alpkit will sort you out for most things. Competitive quality/price ratio and I've never had an issue with any of their items except clothing (odd sizing/fit for me in some things - can't have everything..)..
There are just so many brands out there to choose from, and if money were no object for me, id want to support smaller hand made in UK brands like wizard works, but as it is, I have an alpkit custom frame bag, a big seat pack, tent, tarp, sleep mat, handlebar bag and harness, pouches etc.. all completely functional and sturdy, if a little bland and boring for my preference for fun multicolour vibrancy...
Oh and in terms of a tent, really think about the details... Size wise, if you need to spend a whole day in the rain in it or if you get sick and need to rest.. can you sit up in it, do you need to? Do you want it big enough for all your gear to stay inside, is it easy to get out if you need a midnight wee, is it large enough for a visitor, or will you never share a tent with anyone. Can it pitch without the flysheet for those amazing warm nights where you want to look at the stars and not get bitten by bugs? Can it pitch on hard ground with no/minimal pegs? For me these are all important questions... Not just weight...
Great advice so far thanks
Anybody got any thoughts/experiences with Vango banshee ?
I use a Terra Nova Laser Comp. Ridiculous light and packs away to nothing. a whisker about your budget but cant recommend it highly enough. First trip out in it was solid stairods rain all night with zero issues. Rooms to store your stuff in too.
I have just dipped my toes in the bike packing pool also. I erred on the side of comfort (thick sleeping mat and my old heavy-but-warm sleeping bag) and space (2-man tent / needs to accommodate kid sometimes also). So I'm hauling a lot more weight than I might. However I had a great first night using this stuff - slept soundly and escaped the midgies for a pleasant evening before that. So zero regrets about these decisions despite some pretty grim hike-a-bike sneaking in to my route. I like the idea of a bare bones ultralight/compact bivvy set-up, but doubt in reality there would be many occasions when and where the weather and pitch would perfectly suit such a set-up.
Anybody got any thoughts/experiences with Vango banshee ?
That type of small tunnel tent *can* be a bit more sensitive to the quality of your camping pitch. Not a deal breaker by any means, but worth thinking about if you think you might be chucking the tent up where ever you can. The tent relies on tension so decent ground is needed. I've used Vango's precursor to the banshee and the fly/inner were quite close together meaning the tent could leak if not well pitched - I'd hope that vango will have designed this out but worth checking before you buy.
As for your other kit, you need to have a think about what your priorities are. Bikepacking can mean lots of different things with a wide variety of comfort levels. Broadly speaking more comfort means more weight - the sweetspot of this compromise will depend on you and your goals.
It's a wonderful way to spend time outdoors though!
Tent? Bikepacked for a few years now, bivvy in winter, hammock in summer. I have Apidura bags, they are amazing but spendy! Biggest investment for me were sleeping bag (£200) and airmat (thermarest) for bivvy. Ex army stuff on ebay is a great source of stuff on a budget.
Water is your biggest challenge, heavy, takes up lots of room and if going any distance you need quite a bit of it. Buy a good Water filter to make use of natural sources. Also a good cooking set up, i have both jetboil and alpkit brukit.
Old saying about bikepacking, spend a fortune to sleep like a homeless person...
As @mrwhyte says, have a look over on the Bearbones forums https://bearbonesbikepacking.co.uk/phpBB3/index.php and also the "reviews" section which is really a blog - https://bearbonesbikepacking.blogspot.com/ There's a few of us who post on both here and BB.
Kit ...
light, compact, cheap - pick any two!
Generally your two "enemies" on the bike are weight and bulk so it's a constant battle against them 😊
Part of the, errm, enjoyment of bikepacking is being as comfortable as possible with as little as possible.
Bags: Not used them but folk who have say the Pod series from PlanetX are decent. Also look at Lomo for the cheaper end. Alpkit do a good range. Wildcat currently aren't making bags though should have started just as lockdown came into force. Also at the top end are Revelate.
Tent wise have a look at the SMD Lunar Solo, you'll need to add a pole to the weight and cost but you get a lot of room for your money.
Slightly less conventional. I've an SMD Gatewood Cape (it can dual use as a tarp and a cape) which is a "shaped tarp", basically it's like the Lunar Solo but without the liner and made from slightly lighter fabric, add a lightweight bivy bag and you are still under 500g for the whole lot.
Then there are plain tarps. Not your army surplus store but lightweight and enough coverage for one or two people. They do take a bit of skill to get set up but offer a surprising amount of protection. We've several from an Alpkit Rig7 to a Trekkertent Cuben Fibre. The shot below shows the Gatewood and the Trekkertent on a bivy above Swaledale.
Sleeping bags. Actually think of a sleeping "system". Down is generally weight for weight warmer than synthetic and compresses better for packing. While it doesn't like being sodden it does not mysteriously lose all of its insulation properties at the slightest hint of moisture as some would have you believe. Synthetic bags can be good but even with care they have limited lifespan as the fibres break with use though it's too early to say about the very latest materials. With reasonable care down can last decades.
To go even lighter consider quilts, basically a sleeping bag with no hood or back. The latter is because you compress the insulation under you rendering it all but useless. For quality quilts look at Cumulus. However with a quilt you do need a good mat to compensate. Current top of the pile here are Exped Synmats and Downmats and Thermarest NeoAir models.
Here's my bike set up with kit for two nights in the Dales. There's my share of a two man tent behind the red bag up front.
And here's my FS with "racing" kit. Actually there's a stove and breakfast in there as well.(There's a small bag, 3L, under the bars)
I would have suggested entering the BB Welsh Ride Thing which is a low key bikepacking weekend in Wales. Big meet up and chat about gear, etc. then head out into the Mid-Wales countryside for a couple of days before heading back for cake. There's a "Lonely Hearts Club" ride so if you don't know anyone you can tag along and visit lots of cafes and pubs! Usually it's held in May but it's at the end of August this year and a different format to avoid hassle.
More information than you will ever need is over here using the search function
> https://bearbonesbikepacking.co.uk/phpBB3/index.php <
What sort of hammock do you use?
I love hammocks, but I've only used them at home, never for camping.
DD frontline with either the DD tarp if wet/cold or ex army basha if ok weather expected.
Wet summer set up.
Full scottish winter set up. Just water on my back.
Wow ..as always guys great info backed up by genuine experience.
Lot’s to think about
I’m genuinely excited to give this a go
Please keep the advice coming
I love gathering opinions based on experience.
There’s always something someone will mention that you never thought of or looked at in a particular way
Frame bags from https://www.bike-bag.co.uk/ cheaper than the competition, strong and well made.
A couple of phrases/sayings:
"Don't pack your fears"
"Better weight than wisdom a traveller cannot take."
When starting out we all took too much kit because we didn't know what we'd need or experience. Basically we packed our fears: "What if it ...?". "What about ...?", etc. There's no quick way round this as you need to figure out what works best for you. A good method is to use the three piles technique when you get home.
Take the kit from your bike and form three piles:
Pile one is stuff you would take on every trip: First Aid Kit, tools, spares.
Pile two is stuff you used.
Pile three is stuff you didn't use.
On your next trip don't take any items from pile three. After a couple of trips and doing the above you'll have trimmed your kit without actually spending any money!
Obviously if the forecast on the trip was for showers but it never actually rained so you didn't use your waterproofs then they'll be in the third pile but there's an argument that they should be in pile one. Be careful with this as it's too easy to drop back into the "What if?" scenario.
Sometimes you just get it wrong and you have a cold miserable night because it was 5C colder than forecast or whatever. Just part of the experience really!
Something else about sleeping bags/quilts is that so much depends on you as an individual that explicit recommendations are hard to do. Generally I'd say that if you are cold sleeper go with the "Comfort" rating and if you are a warm sleeper go with the "limit" rating. Note that these values assume you are wearing a thin thermal layer and not naked.
@stevemuzzy how is the apidura bag with the dropper post. Do you just not use it when the bag's attached?
@stevemuzzy - on the hammock front, the postman has just dropped off a Cumulus Selva 250 underquilt 😊 just waiting for the showers to pass to head out into the garden to set it up. I've a homemade 11ft hammock for it to go under.
Re dropper, only drop it a few cm to help on anything steep but the bike is heavy so you wont be doing much gnarr lol.
The underblanket changed my set up completely, now on warmish nights I only use a sleeping bag liner and even on colder ones a 1 season sleeping bag which scrunches up to about a big beer can in size.
I also do a lot of luxury, so change of clothing, thermal underwear, posh cooking stuff etc. If i was proper light/roughing it I think i could get away with just the handlebar roll...