Bikepacking Gear Guide: Our Equipment for Long-Distance Rides

Bikepacking
Written By Ryan Brown
Bikepacking Gear List

Our Bikepacking Gear List…

… has turned out to be, well… a little special. We were fully prepared for our cycling adventure through the Americas, when a rather unfortunate turn of events (as in, the airline lost our luggage) changed our gear setup forever.

While we’re still using a lot of the original gear we set out with, we had to make some major changes due to the lost luggage. Amongst other things, we were forced to replace our beloved tent (Big Agnes , we miss you!), Ryan’s wide sleeping pad (ThermaRest NeoAir size L), one of Ryan’s Ortlieb panniers plus handlebar bag.

And replacing that gear (in Ushuaia of all places) wasn’t easy. Ushuaia is quite remote, with only a handful of outdoor stores that mostly stock old-school, heavy and massively expensive equipment. Even though our choice was limited, we made it work, and are now rocking the road with whatever we could find!

P.S. : You’ll notice that a lot of our gear overlaps with the backpacking and thru-hiking world. That’s because we already had our kit dialed in for hiking, and, well—turns out, a lot of that gear works surprisingly well for bikepacking. Who would’ve thought? ;-)

Bikepacking Gear List

  1. The Bikes

Surly Ogre Bikepacking

2. Sleeping System

3. Cooking System

Bikepacking Gear List Cooking Wildcamping

—Trangia is not the lightest option but, for real cooking and inclimate weather, there is nothing better. We have a set with a kettle and a mix of nonstick (sm. pot & frypan) and Duossal (1.7L pot). Initially, we started with the dual option for both gas and alcohol burners, but during our airline problem, we lost the spirit burner. Here’s hoping that we can either replace it, or find fuel for the entire way….

— Fun fact: At a border crossing in Chile when the officer found the spoon — while searching for fruits & veggies — she asked Ilse if she sometimes beats Ryan with that spoon. Ilse said, “all the time”!

4. Clothing System

Bikepacking Camping

  • Wind jacket: Rab Borealis (Ryan) — Jack Wolfskin Morobbia (Ilse)

  • Puffy: Decathlon (Ryan) — Mountain Hardwear Ghost Whisperer (Ilse)

  • Hoody + base layers : Zorali Air Grid Fleece — gifted!

    — Thank you, Zorali! They’re proving to be very worthy, warm and lightweight. No bad smells after days of wear and tear. Loving them so far.

  • Pants: Decathlon (Ryan) — Mountain Hardwear (Ilse)

  • Rain gear: Columbia (Ryan) Lost Gear: Outdoor Research Helium 2 (same as Ilse) - Outdoor Research Helium 2 (Ilse)

  • Shirt: Columbia Silver Ridge

  • Socks: Injinji — gifted! Ryan also had Injinji but they, to were lost. RIP

    — Thank you, Injinji! It’s been working really well for us and our feet. They got a little torn up with all the spiky plants here, but nothing that our sowing kit can’t fix!

  • Sandals: Generic Tevas (Ryan) — Decathlon (Ilse)

  • Hiking shoes: Merrell (Ryan) — Decathlon (Ilse)

5. Electronics:

6. Miscellaneous

  • First Aid Kit: Including bandages, antiseptic wipes, painkillers, anti-insect spray, tape, sterile gauze, tweezers, emergency blanket, water purification tabs, antihistamines and blister treatment.

  • Toiletries: Including toothbrush + paste, nail clippers, soap, conditioner, tampons, sunscreen and wet wipes.

  • Trowel: TheTentLab - Deuce of Spades.

  • Kula Cloth: If you don’t know what it is, look it up and buy yourself one. Or for your sister or girlfriend. Very cool, honest and down-to-earth company. (No ad, we just really love this company)

  • Extra stakes, guy lines and rope

  • Helinox zero chairs (Yes, we’re old)

  • Notebooks with pencils and pens — we love to write and journal :-)

 

7. Filmmaking Gear:

Cameras:

Lenses:

Microphones:

  • Shotgun: Rode VideoMic NTG w/Deadcat

  • Lav System: Rode Wireless Pro

  • Recorder: Zoom H1n Handy Recorder (2018 Model) w/ deadcat (for recording ambient sounds)

  • Omni Field Mic: Immersive Soundscapes Earsight Standard V2 (for recording quiet ambient sounds)

Accessories:

Editing:

Tools of the Trade:

It’s probably the main reason why we travel so heavy and slow, but it is the burden of passion!

We’re equipped with a full editing suite to create monthly Youtube episodes of Pat’Alaska. Each video requires roughly 60 hours between the two of us, and that doesn’t include any filming!

 

8. Our Favorite Apps

  • iOverlander: This app probably doesn’t need any introduction! A classic amongst vanlifers, backpackers and cyclists, this app is a true life hack for people living on the road. It shows you where you can camp, find water, fill up on groceries and gas, or even go to the bathroom! Solid — and sometimes less solid — advice from fellow travelers. Free to use, works off-line use as well.

  • Gaia GPS: Ryan’s second big love — after Ilse, of course :)

  • Ride with GPS: Used for route planning in advanced; to create detailed routes to send to our Garmins. Gaia GPS mostly used for en-route navigation

  • Cyberghost: A VPN-service that we mostly use in hostels, libraries or other public spaces. Encrypts our traffic and hides IP-addresses. Can come in handy when you’re using banking apps and sharing sensitive information over the web.

  • Komoot: Another classic navigation app that connects with our Garmins. Easy to use for routes and mapping, but we don’t use it very often. It can be overwhelming sometimes, as it almost resembles social media at times… Nevertheless, it can come in handy. We opted for the World-Pack (single purchase of $30), but there are other options.

  • MapOut: Thanks to the tip of a fellow bikepacker, Ilse has been using this app mostly for navigation, routeplanning and keeping a general overview of our camping spots. The app is a one-time purchase of $5 — after that, you download the region you are in and it will show you everything you need (water sources, camp spots,…). We’re still learning the ropes of how everything works, but are liking it so far.

  • WesternUnion: Bank notes can be scarce in South-America, and the fees in Argentina are extremely high — trust us, we learned this the hard way. For every transaction of, let’s say, 50 dollars, we had to pay nearly 25 dollars extra. On top of that, many ATMs let us only take out 50 dollars or 50.000 pesos at a time. So early on, we learned from other travellers to use WesternUnion and transfer ourselves money. The app lets you do exactly that and most towns have at least one WesternUnion office where you can pick up your money for an acceptable fee.

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Gracias, amigos!

Ryan Brown
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Pat’Alaska, Part 2: Punta Arenas - Torres del Paine - El Calafate