Alright guys, I am having a hard time deciding what to do here!
I am used to bikepack while staying at airbnbs and cheap rooms. I would also bring a very light minimalist tent set up when I found a good spot and couldn't find affordable places to stay nearby.
I was planning a short route of 260k and 3700 meters of elevation (160M / 12k FT) around a mountain nearby that will soon ne annihilated to save the world (lithium mining). Essentially I was thinking in 4 short days enjoying the natural setting and waterfals / rivers.
Because of the relatively short route, and as I do not have an ultra light set up anymore (neither the budget as of now) I bought a cheap tent, sleeping bag and matrass.
I figured that for 4 short days I could take more weight and experience a better camping experience. In this case I will be exclusively camping because of budget issues.
I equipped a commuter bike and got to the final weight, at max load (water included) of 100kg.
Bike, bags, racks and bottles: 13.90kg
My weight (after dinner and no WC trip yet 🤪): 70kg
Everything else (2.5L of water included): 16kg
Now, I went for a short ride of 3k and 200m elevation (14% max gradient) and as expected It felt very heavy. Climbed it on the lower geat but anything over 6% starts to demand slow pacing and lightest gears.
Checking the weather for the next few days it turned towards warmer. Minimum of 15c and max of 34c during the enrire trip.
As the camping gear makes 7kg itself and the basic cooking gear and small amount of food I was planning to bring with me, around 1.5kg, I started to wonder if I should drop the sleeping bag and inflatable matrass, as well as the entire cooking gear and food.
I would save around 5kg.
I can manage eating at shops and buying juice and sandwiches as snacks. There will be small towns at short distance of each other.
My issue is the sleeping experience with no matrass nor sleeping bag. 1 used to manage a short night years ago with my old set up but I am not sure if multiple longer nights would be a problem.
I am sure many of you guys have experience in sleeping with no matrass. Is it manageable on softer grass? I could also bring an extra light jacket and sweat pants if I get cold.
Is the trade off worth it?
Another issue that worries me as much than the weight os actually the handling. Cheap camping gear is voluminous and handling with this setup seemed problematic while going down at 50kph.
Comments?
by GallaeciCastrejo
5 Comments
Another novice to bikepacking here, but it looks heavy at the back light at the front. Also from what I’ve been reading, I’d swap out the bungees for straps. And strap one of the bags to the handlebars.
Lithium mining . . . North Portugal?
You forgot to pack the kitchen sink
What is that, are you doing a world tour? 😀 Get framebag, a front rack to alter the center of mass. Forget bottles, you only need a hydration bladder.
What on earth are you bringing with you?
Camping without a bag or pad for 3 nights sounds like hell on earth, I would honestly review everything else and see what can go while prioritizing the sleep setup.
Start strapping stuff to your handlebars, look into getting a front rack or borrowing someone else’s bike.
Consider a front rack and bags; if it has a platform, better still. Load would be better distributed and you’d have room for a sleeping bag. And sleeping without a bag or pad is PAINFUL and uncomfortable.