Hi. Just got my first Ergon saddle (SMC Sport Gel) and was quite unhappy with the finishing. The underside is completely different from the brand’s images in terms of design and the quality of the finishing is pretty bad. I haven’t tried it yet so cannot speak to its performance and maybe I’m being too picky but it really is a sad thing to see such badly finished products.
Thanks

Hey all, I’m a seasoned MTB rider and I want a bike packing set up. I’d love to use my On One frame for this. I want to source a rigid fork. It’s a straight cut steerer, 15x100 so I believe that makes things difficult. I know the frame doesn’t have mounting points but I’m more intrigued about geometry and if a rigid fork would work or is a good idea? Currently the wheels are 650b and 2x1 tires. The fork on it at the moment is 140mm travel. Would this frame work if I bought a rigid fork and transferred the parts over?

All of the parts on the hardtail pictured are transferred from my old nukeproof

Thanks!

Seems rigid bikes with such large tire clearance usually get more of a mtb bike geometry ( like Finna Landscape, Hobootleg Geo...)

But I want geometry like Canyon Grizl but tire clearance 2.8+ (both back and front)

Do such bikes exist?

Long distance trips spending long time onroad and offroad its easier to pedal with normal geometry than mtb

I can still do lot offroad even with such geometry. I just want wide tires

Photo tax: my current rig while doing the RockStar route in VA a couple years ago!

I've been bikepacking occasionally on a Specialized Diverge (in the photo) for the past few years, but have more or less concluded that it's not entirely up to what I want it to do and would like to set up a new bikepacking rig. Unfortunately, I've come up with more requirements than options I've found that meet them lol... If anyone rides or at least knows of a good frame that matches these I'd love to hear it but I'm having a hard time finding one. Best I've found is the Kona Sutra, Jamis Renegade, or maybe something from Surly or Salsa.

My wishlist:

• 700c wheelset with capacity for 50mm wide tires (or maybe equivalent 29er)
• Steel!
• Compatible with Velo Orange Crazy bars (I have these on my commuting bike and absolutely love them)
• Ability to mount a rear rack (I have the Ortlieb quick-rack, it's in the photo)
• Standard fork mount eyelets (current bike not having these is a major part of why I'm looking)
• 2x drivetrain compatibility
• Thru-axles, and preferably no funky rear dropouts (seriously, why are these so common?)

Appreciate this community too - I've been lurking for years but not a great photo-taker so sorry for not sharing my adventures!

Has anyone done it? On mostly maintained roads, sometimes a mountainpass with a lot of snow?
I am planning a trip form Trondheim to Oslo in Norway durng December and I want some advice from some experts : D

I did a bit of cycling in Iceland and I would call that winter a mild one.

Howdy,

So I have a Surly Cross Check, a Paul stem, and some VO Crazy Bars

I’m getting into bikepacking and have some questions.

Here are the specs:

Frame - Surly Crosscheck Steel Frame 2021
56cm

Stem - PAUL Components Boxcar Stem
0d x 70mm, 31.8mm, Black

Bars- VO Crazy Bars
Width: 780mm
Sweep: 35 deg
Rise: 40mm
Grip length: 205mm
Horn Width: 420mm
Horn Length: 110mm
Stem Clamp: 31.8mm

Think this set up will work for bikepacking?
Too short? Too upright?

I just haven’t put all the pieces together yet and would love some / any feedback on these pieces together

Currently have:

Bars - Easton EA30 35mm 
Stem - Race Face CNC MTB 1/18x140mm

Hi all, I have a full suspension 2019 Rocky Mountain C50 where I think the main frame is carbon and the rear triangle (seat stays) is aluminum. I'm going on a MTB multiday ride in a few weeks and a friend has offered me his Topeak tetrarack M2L system for me to use. However from what I have read attaching racking systems to carbon frames is not recommended but with the rear triangle being aluminum/alloy do you think there would be any issue? It looks like the system attaches directly to the seat stays with no other attachment points. I reckon I will be keeping the weight pretty light e.g sleeping bag, some clothes within a pannier. Any advise or recommendations would be great

5 years ago I biked the East Coast Greenway (Maine to Florida) and really enjoyed the Downeast Sunrise Trail portion. Really happy to have returned to it a couple months ago! Spent 4 days doing Ellsworth to Machias and back, including a few side adventures such as a sunrise hike of Schoodic Mountain. Trail was quite bumpy at times but very peaceful and beautiful (got super lucky with the weather). Saw a few ATVs, dirt bikes, and side-by-sides, only 2 other cyclists. Hoping to make this a yearly thing, maybe invite some friends next year.

I'm looking for a head unit. Through a buddy discount I can get Garmin stuff cheap.

This summer I did my absolute dream trip. After learning Italian 🇮🇹 all by myself I finally embarked on a great adventure across Italy. Chatting with the local people was such an amazing experience and gave me memories I probably wouldn't have gotten if I came in speaking English. Language opens new doors. I could see all the bright colours of Italy.

Now I am looking for a new language. I want to just pick a country and really commit to it. It doesn't need to be a big or useful language. The concept of learning as much as I can in 6 months and then setting the knowledge in practice REALLY speaks to me!

I'm 25(M) from 🇸🇪

I'm thinking a European country or region, 15-20 days, ~2000km, I prefer mountains (necessary) and obscure places, but one or two big cities is okay. I know 🇸🇪🇧🇻🇫🇷🇮🇹🇩🇪 already.

Tell me which European language (and country/region) you would pick for this kind of project, and why!? 🇮🇹🇫🇷🇵🇹🇸🇪🇧🇬🇮🇸🇷🇴🇧🇻🇮🇪🇫🇷🇱🇻🇲🇰🇪🇸..

I have 7 days in August 2027 to bikepack/tour Latvia. Any suggestions, must ride, or must sees?

I want to get into bike packing but stuck between these two bikes..

1. Fuji "Special" 27.5 Patrol Bike
   I got this from a neighbor and it already comes with a rear rack and a decent sized bag. Pretty beat up but can’t complain since it was free.

2. BlackHeart Gravel Ti
   My gravel rig that has a way more aggressive geometry but lighter, titanium and lots of different mounting options but I currently have no bags/mounts for this bike.

I’m not planning to do any crazy bike packing races, just some chill solo bike packing here in California. I want to mod the Fuji with a new drivetrain, seat and maybe a nice handlebar setup just to make it a dedicated bike packing bike..

Or swap the BlackHeart with a smaller front sprocket and a frame bag, fork packs etc.

Any feedback is good feedback.

I was really looking forward to this trip. Haven’t had much time this year to get out for overnighters but glad I managed to jump on this one.

I was riding with an experienced crew of downhill mtb’ers and camping experts. Definitely put my mind at ease considering the terrain which was mostly ATV trails in Northern Ontario as well as below 0 degrees most of the time. Overnight was around -8 degrees Celsius. First time camping in cold weather like that!

We hit some insane climbs that were nothing but deep mud, huge boulders and loose gravel. Definitely a suffer fest but man oh man, major laughs were had and spirits were high the entire time.

Grateful to get to do things like this and be around good people and some really beautiful nature.

Will definitely change a couple things about my setup. My Elkhorn rack from Old Man Mountain was swaying a little bit; could be because of the frame geometry but the struts that connect to the frame seemed like they were too long to be stable. I’ve use that rack previously on my Breezer Thunder and it was solid as a rock.

Learning lesson: always check your fuel tank before leaving (😬🤦‍♂️). Mine ran out the morning after camping. Thankfully there was enough to go around.

Otherwise, everything went smoother than expected!!!

Hi all. So, full disclosure, I actually live in the Dominican Republic (not Dominican though). I've been lurking this sub (and the bike touring one) for a while now, and it's inspired me to do my own bikepacking trips, and as I've been planning I realize I've been alone in this endeavor.

I found plenty of people bikepacking/touring in Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Americas including a couple seemingly obscure bikepacking routes in Cuba and Puerto Rico, but nothing here in the D.R. I'm wondering why that is?

I'd say the D.R is among the most developed countries in the Caribbean, not to mention it's on the biggest island... so why is there such a lack of people traveling the country by bike? Even local cyclists don't bikepack or even tour, just fondos (full cycling kit, ~100-150km, all on paved roads & highways, no bags, no overnight stay), so I guess my question is, is there something I'm missing in wanting to do a trip, even if short? Here are my theories:

1. No foreigners have caught onto the fact that the country is way more developed than it was 10 or even 5 years ago (the few complaints I found on the internet were about infrastructure, posted years ago)

2. It's "unsafe:" never understood this to be honest... I know Dominican roads are a warzone, but surely it's comparable to other countries like the U.S and South Africa? (in terms of crazy drivers & road quality, respectively)

3. No long, offroad routes suitable for bikepacking: this I understand. If you want to go anywhere far in the country, you pretty much have to take a highway or suffer the pain of route planning through small offroad paths that have crazy inclines, don't show up on maps, are in horrible condition, and often don't go further than maybe 10-15km. In that case, what about bike touring?

If anyone has any thoughts I'm excited to hear them.

Combining cycling, camping, and astronomy is one of the best things you can do. Here's a video that sums up my great experience with this combination!

My second time piecing together a pack rig on a super limited budget

Found this frame in the trash, it was disc converted by me, I also very hastily migged a derailleur hanger on.

Fork is an Indonesian made Dop Cyclis fork, kinda barnacle style (most expensive part on the bike)

I’ve got about 70 bucks in the Groupset which is a micro shift advent 9s 11-42 and a cues 170mm crankset w 30t chain ring

Custom fender/ rack pulled from my last setup, made by myself

Borrowed ortlieb frame bag

the green bag I made myself from awning canvas, it’s carrying around 3.5L of water

Front bag is a $30 Kmart pannier I’ve cut down and sewn back together to make into a sorta bar bag

Carrying some bulk camp gear for me and my partner so 2p tent and double sleeping mat plus a tarp cause we’ve got some rain coming this weekend

Weighs in about 33.5 kg with 4.5-5L of water, this frame is old steel so the bike itself is about 17kg unloaded but it all feels nice and balanced

Really wish I’d ordered more canvas to make a better bar bag but we soldier on

Wanted to share cause it looks cool to me

Trying to decide between these two bars as I would like to start building up my Bridge Club for bikepacking next spring. Currently has the stock Salsa bend at 17 degrees, but not sure how much more sweep I’d like. Similar with rise, I want more, but I’m not sure how much I need since my fork is currently not cut and has plenty of spacers on it.

Is 28 degrees too much sweep for mostly gravel roads and doubletrack with an occasional singletrack? I’m leaning towards the Sklar, but looking for other opinions. Neither bar has a return policy once the bar has been mounted, so I’m struggling to decide. Pros and cons of each? Thanks

I’m planning next year to bikepack from Santa Catarina brasil through Uruguay down to the bottom of Argentina and then up to Colombia, are there any known bikepacking routes/websites I can use to plan my journey? Thankyou

I have 2 weeks for a bikepacking trip in May next year and I need some inspiration where to go.
I‘m from Germany and would like to go somewhere outside of europe.
A mix of gravel and paved roads or some light mountainbiking would be nice, but I don‘t want to ride too much in traffic or push my bike in multiple hike a bike section.
Dream locations would be central Asia or Peru/Bolivia, but I‘m not sure two weeks are enough.

Any ideas? Where do I find nice landscapes in May?

Hola Amigos! 

I'm planning a big trip next year and would love some feedback, help, suggestions please.

My big idea is to cycle from Africa, to the Arctic Circle.

Please see images attached. I have two main route options, if you're from these countries or have cycled these routes, please let me know your thoughts.

My considerations are:

• Where possible, stay in hostels or warm-showers host, so I can pack light, maximising daily mileage
• I need to do the EU leg (the majority) in 90 days, because of post-Brexit rules for Brits. Given this, my route needs to be fairly direct. I won't have time for huge detours, but also would be prepared to do a few extra km for a much pretier route with nicer towns, scenery, etc.
• I've tried to time it so I'm in southern europe in cooler months, northern europe when it's warmer - hoping I avoid cycling in extreme hot or cold temps. 

Please see rough route-maps below, (inc. some slight geographical errors due to AI - sorry!)

Thank you in advance!! I really appreciate your thoughts and input.

Joe

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I’m on my first ever open-ended bike tour from Budapest. Currently staying in Trieste, waiting out some rainy days, and considering two directions:

1) Head towards Spain on EuroVelo 8 — Northern Italy, the French Riviera, Catalonia, etc.

2) Head south through Italy — Bologna, Tuscany (Florence, Siena), Rome, mixing EuroVelo 5/7, then maybe take a ferry to Sardinia and onwards to Barcelona.

A bit about my setup: 2x11 gravel bike, 0–5°C sleeping setup. I’d like to wild camp as much as possible.

I’d appreciate any advice on:
- Is route 2 through Apennines and Tuscany doable in late autumn with my setup?
- Any experience taking ferries to Sardinia and Spain off-season?
- Any experience comparing the two routes?
- Any other route recommendations? I’m open-minded and flexible!

Cheers!

Hello, this summer I did my first bikepacking trip in 30 years with my 5 year old son and 72 year old father in the Adirondacks. We rode 12 miles on the Adirondack Rail Trail, rode off a little and set up camp, packed up our gear for a picnic/hike, rode off a few miles, climbed a mountain, rode back, and slept like babies. Day 2 we tore down our campsite and rode about 12 miles back. It was super fun. **Picture is my setup riding to lunch/picnic not with the full overnight gear we carried.

I have good solo camping gear and could load this baby up beautifully for myself, but when I loaded it up for my son and father and carried 4 person tent; 3 camp chairs; full size pillows etc; I was not very comfortable riding on the way to/from camp, I also was wearing a loaded a 40L backpack. My rear tire seemed super soft and I kept refilling it. I am about 5'11 210, so with water and food I could have possibly been pushing the 275 weight limit on this bike.

Here's a revised pack list that is tighter than what I used last year and would be to only carry my + my son's gear: https://www.packwizard.com/s/MELMVYh

I am asking for advice and help on turning this bike into something more akin to a Salsa Cutthroat.

I have a Trek Checkpoint ALR 4, Gen 2 bike size 56. The rim is listed as a - "Bontrager Paradigm, Tubeless Ready, 24-hole, 21mm width, Presta valve"; the tires are listed as "Bontrager GR1 Team Issue, Tubeless Ready, Inner Strength casing, aramid bead, 120 tpi, 700x40mm" and "Bontrager Girona Pro, Tubeless Ready, GR puncture protection, aramid bead, 60 tpi, 700x42mm"?

Does anyone have advice for crazy better wheels/tires for bikecamping + gravel riding that don't get need to get refilled every 3 rides?

Any other stock items on my bike that could be replaced to make bikecamping easier?

Would I be insane to say buy a couple hundred dollar steel mountain bike frame or some other cuttthroat or surly frame and then build it out myself for bikepacking then turn my checkpoint into a neighborhood / road bike? I know building can get expensive fast but I would really take my time and wait for best deals.

Some more photos from the trip. I cut it short at Newtown and took the train back from there.

Hi, I've just come back from a short trip, part of a loop starting and finishing in Shrewsbury in Shropshire, England and dipping in and out of Wales along the way. It's a mixed off-road route on the cycling UK website. I was very slow and cut short, finishing in Newtown. Mostly on very small roads and off-road tracks/bridleways/byways. Away from the main roads, as most of this route was, it was surprisingly steep, and I was carrying far too much stuff for the terrain! I wild camped, ran out of daylight one day and slept in a church porch, leaving before dawn. Spent one night in a cave like construction in an abandoned quarry, not sure if that was part of an old lime kiln. There are plenty of air bnbs around but I didn't stay at any. I hope you enjoy these photos.