Hey there Bike packers. Not a whole lot of experience here; but i'm wanting to go on a longer trip after going on my first two weekend trips this year. New to bike packing, and the longest i've done is 150 miles on paved roads over two days, I really wanna go further for longer!
Anyways, Here is the bike i ride (Trek FX 2) and the back rack i have set up for it, the Ortlieb Bike Packer plus panniers. in between that i have a tent in a dry bag and the polls underneath.
Im looking at doing the Great Allegheny Passage + the C&O canal towpath trail that goes from Pittsburgh to DC over 333 miles.
My question is, can i do that on this bike with this setup in the middle of july? I feel like i definitely have the legs for it, the question is do I have the tires? i'm told this is the largest i can put on the bike, 40mm.
I already requested time off work for this!
by Jrewby
3 Comments
Yes. You can totally do the GAP/C&O with what you’ve got. You might consider shifting some of your gear to the front if you have the time and budget… The weight distribution looks pretty back heavy. The C&O gets bumpy and has some mud patches, but I did just fine with a $50 Facebook marketplace trek on 38mm’s.(I did the ride last fall and it was awesome, hammock camped the whole way).
40s are fine. The roughest part is the last bit somewhere between Great Falls and DC, but everything before that is easy enough. I would try to put a little weight up front. At the very least a handlebar bag. You’ve got some mid-blade fork mounts so you could also go with a small front rack or lowrider pannier rack.
Front rack w a basket up front and you’ll have somewhere to put your coldies on the last few miles before your campsite
🤘🗑️🤘🍻