Bikepacking Tips

nocellajoe
3 days ago
3 min read

This isn't a "Top 5" list, or a lest of the "Best Tips of 202x", it's just some tips that are rattling around my head that I'd like to share after leading over 175 group bikepacking trips. I will add to this list as new tips come to mind.

In no particular order...

Get Squared Away:

As soon as I hit camp, I like to get my tent and sleeping situation squared away. This protects against weather that may subsequently roll in, and cause you to scramble to setup in crappy conditions. Also, this alleviates setting up in the dark.

Avoid the Mileage Countdown:

On longer riders, obsessing about the mileage remaining can sned you in a mental tailspin on a long day, which doesn't help the situation. What I do is (about 10 miles from camp) just switch my GPS device to a screen that doesn't countdown mileage renaming. Its going to be the same distance and time no matter what you do, so I find it best not to get hung up on that mileage countdown.

Have a Plan:

As much as bikepacking trips are about getting away from civilization and technology, having a digital map (along with a paper backup) is really a good idea. Having a plan of "just following the group", or "going with my friend" is not a good idea, as it doesn't take much to get separated out on the trail.

Check Your Tires as Soon as you Wake Up:

Oftentimes, tires that develop slow leaks during the day remain unnoticeable while riding, but proceed to go flat overnight. In this case, the rider doesn't realize this until the group is about to break camp, leading to delays. Just check those tires first thing.

Get Used to Your Bike Before the Trip:

Unless you do this for a living, you will most likely be unfamiliar with you bike as a loaded beast. Best practice to to get your bike loaded up a week before you trips, so that you can get used to the bike's handling, as well as ensuring you packing job is secure.

Always Take a Shower at Camp if Available:

On a multi-day Tour, some campsites have showers and some do not. I always take the opportunity to hit the showers when available, as the one that is at the next site might be out of order, etc. Keeping clean goes a long way on a multi-day Tour.

It's Not Gonna Dry:

Leaving clothing hanging on a line overnight usually results in the items getting even more damp in the morning. If it's not dry before you go to bed, there is a 95% chance (not scientific, just observational) it wont get dry overnight. Best practice is to lay things out as soon as you get to camp, or intermittently during the day at group stops.

Lay that Tent Out as Soon as You Can When You Wake Up:

Often in the morning, tents will have dew on them from overnight moisture in the air. Getting your tent broken down and spread out in the morning sun before departure can alleviate packing up a wet tent.

Replace a Flat With a New Tube, Patch the Old Tube at Camp:

When you get a flat (and you hopefully have a new tube with you) swap in that new tube and wait to patch the old tube at camp. The 4 reasons I suggest this are

It's a more controlled environment to diagnose the puncture and patch the tube in camp as opposed to the side of the road
It can be slightly therapeutic to sit and patch a tube at camp. It can be nervewracking on the side of the road.
Someone in the group may be great at patching, and may even volunteer to do it at camp!
In a group environment, throwing that new tube in just gets through the group's down time quicker out on the road.

Note: For better or worse, I do not use AI to create my posts. This is all me, with my misspelling, poor grammar and tangential thoughts. I didn't get into this line of work to hand over my thoughts, expertise and experience to AI to spit out blog posts.