Russ Roth

Wife and I are looking at a route in June without the kids, that involves a mix of road, jeep trail and singletrack with some stream crossing and such. There will be times when the bikes will have to be carried. Although I'm big enough that isn't much of an issue it is much more of a problem for her, though honestly I don't want to carry too much for too long either. Leaves me wondering what people's decked out rigs weight.

We both have Poseidon Redwoods though the weight is down a lot from the stock 30+lbs, I'm hopeful with the carbon posts the wife's bike will be sub 24lbs and mine sub 25. Those weights are with 29x2.1 tires, pedals and empty seat bags. We plan to run seat bags, frame bags and a pair of fork cages on each fork.

Is a sub 40lb rig possible?

Previously we've done panniers and were well over 40 but we also dragged about more then we needed.
Wife's bike will carry the air mattress, her sleeping bag and some of the cook wear. We've previously used Ti utensils and have 2 Ti pots. We have a gas burner and a folding small wood burner. That should all fit in her frame bag.
I'll be carrying the tent and my bag, hope to order the tarptent double rainbow in the next week for something lighter, basic repair kit, some freezedried meals due to dietary issues though we hope to buy food as we go. Same with water but we will be looking for a water purification since we don't plan on actual campgrounds for most of the stops of this trip.

Anyone weighted their full setup for comparisons or ideas of feasibility?

staehpj1

Possible? Sure, but it depends on some factors that I am not clear on your needs.
I personally count my tool wedge and few spares in the bike weight so I'll round up your bikes to 25#. That leaves you with 15# to play with and remain under 40#. I did the Southern Tier from San Diego to Pensacola with 14# of gear. That didn't include fuel, food or water though. It did include some heavier gear pieces than I am now using though (my lightest packing list was something like 8 pounds of gear). With two people you can share some items.

On the other hand if you are including water in your tally and will be in dry country with long distances between resupply then there is no way you will stay under 40# with much gear at all. If you are where there is reliable surface water a little two ounce filter saves a lot of weight in water carried.

If you are counting them in your total, how much food fuel and water you carry will probably determine whether it is feasible. In any case it will require a good bit of care and planning to minimize packing weight.

djb

when I look at my touring stuff weights, the tent is a big item, so having a very light Tarptent will help a lot in the total weight. Its fairly easy to smartly choose layers and whatnot for minimal clothing, but this will totally depend on when you go, where you are, what temps are in the works, and how much you are willing to be uncomfortable / put up with cold etc.
The food and water, especially water, is the real kicker for weight here. I liter of water=1kg, 2.2 lbs for its pretty darn easy to get heavier fast, and food too.
Another big recommendation for a filter, you may not think its an issue, but filtering water is a pretty basic precaution against Giardia etc, which aint fun. Filters have a wide range of prices and weights, but the sawyer ones are pretty light, although you can't let them freeze---but this is a whole big topic for you to look into (filters I mean).

re tools and stuff, I'd highly recommend that you ride your bikes a lot before the trip, and get the spoke tensions checked out well before the trip too, just to eliminate technical stuff --basically make sure the bikes are in great shape but ride them a reasonable amount after any work, to be sure all is good.

if you want to get all detailed about weight, go ahead and start listing what you think you'll be bringing, get a kitchen scale, and weigh all your stuff individually and start tallying up total weight, and especially seeing the actual volume it takes up. Thats the one thing that is tricky without panniers is the room for extra food and water.

good luck planning and figuring what stuff and how it will actually fit in and on your bike. Not having enough water sucks big time, so to me this will be the main issue.

andrewclaus

I'm not a bikepacker, but I am a UL hiker and bike tourist. My UL hiking pack weight is under 8 pounds in three-season conditions, but a bike tour essentially doubles that. That's because of the tools and spares, the heavier more durable packs, and a bit more clothing to deal with long high speed mountain descents.

It took a lot of experience over many seasons to safely get my pack weight to the 15 pound level for bike touring. That included getting comfortable with a single-wall shelter and a down quilt. Those have learning curves. Reducing clothing to the minimum was also difficult. A large part of it is learning how to manage your consumables. Not carrying too much food, water, and fuel, and knowing where it's safe to cut out the extras, is tough. Going stoveless works for me, not for others.

djb

didnt ask before, how many days out, what sort of temps involved, weather, actual access to towns for food etc etc?

if you have small front panniers, you could use them on the rear and at least have more room for consumables of food and water, but still packing the same reduced amount of stuff planned anyway. The diff would really only be teh weight of a aluminum rack and panniers, a few pounds, but could great simplify life for carrying stuff.
There are lightweight small panniers out there that would be even better than regular panniers, strap on/velcro/bungee and hook type systems made for offroadish stuff.

fishboat

Is a sub 40lb rig possible?

15# of gear each? Pretty slim. Only you can answer this and much depends on how uncomfortable you're willing to be or how much money you're willing to spend, or both.

Since you appear to be camping & eating in camp, that locks in a relatively large block of gear-weight. As djb says, lay out everything you think you'll need and weigh it accurately. Weigh the bags it'll be stored in. It'll all be over 15#/ea. Then start paring things down and see where you end up.

Russ Roth

Thanks for the replies. We'll be touring the adirondacks region for 6 days but won't have set goals for each day. We have a list of campgrounds but will stay wherever we feel done for the day. We will carried some freeze dried food since my wife has issues with wheat, dairy and rice. We plan to buy fruit, veggies and water at the various towns we pass through and would like to eat out from time to time but won't count on it for every meal, particularly breakfast.
Don't anticipate a lot of tools, bikes are new and, by that time, will have the kinks worked out I'm sure. But basic multi tool, spare tubes, CO2, and pump.
Mostly just curious if others manage to keep the weight down and if it is reasonable to do so.

imi

I look at it a bit the other way round. Rather than looking at the weight, I pack as little as possible, which varies mostly as to how much food I stock up on and how cold it gets at night.

It’ll weigh what it weighs, more important is having sufficient volume in your bags.

Sure, you can lighten the load by carrying minimal tools, no-off road clothes, no first-aid kit, eat only cold food, no electronics, buy high-tech UL gear. Miles vary

gauvins

1. To answer directly : I don't remember us weighting our bike(s) + gear. But we can fly them in a padded bag and still have room under the 23Kg limit (50 pounds). So I'd venture 45 pounds for the rig.

2. You may want to play with this bike calculator in order to get an idea of what's at stake here. Below, a few simulations for a 100kms ride (5% upgrade for 20kms; 5% downgrade for 20kms and 60kms flat). Default values are for a rider weighing 70kg and pushing 100W, on a nice day without measurable wind. The "best case" would be a 7kg road bike. There for reference. Upshot is that (1) it is going uphill that kills and not much you can do as the rider's weight is the dominant factor -- your wife has a measurable advantage; (2) the rider position makes quite a difference -- unfortunately touring is perhaps more interesting when you ride on your tops; (3) the difference between a 18 vs 20 kg is about 5 minutes over 100kms.

staehpj1

I don't know about most folks, but I have been able to for road and mixed on/off road tours. Where it gets iffy is if you go where you need to carry food and or water for longer stretches, Then the weight goes up quickly. I always figure 2.2 - 2.5 pounds of food per person per day if packing VERY carefully and water gets heavy even faster. Gear on the other hand is fairly easy to keep under 15 pounds per person if you work at it.

Oh and if you are somewhere you need a bear canister that is another fairly big hit, but I have never toured with one only backpacked with one and only where required.

BTW, I'd skip the co2. I always found that with the light tubes I prefer they need topping off really often with co2. Take a decent pump and trust it. Heck I'd take two pumps before I'd take co2.

imi

Bear canisters are great as a camp chair if the ground is wet or cold, washing bucket, and keeping creepy-crawleys out of your food, but they are heavy.
I take mine on ”bad weather” tours.

blacknbluebikes 

I'd be more concerned with the gearing than the weight.

Pratt

My first question would be, 'how will you deal with bugs at night?'
My gear, with food for a couple of days, is in the 35-40lb range. That is for a week or more. That is just the gear, the bike is additional.

djb

I suspect that for most of us, this range of total gear weight is pretty common.
Tarptents do have a mesh inner, so no different than other tents for bugs.

Pratt

Ah so. I'm, obviously, unfamiliar with Tarp Tents. I was just thinking "tarp."

staehpj1

I didn't mention that I use a tarp bivy combo and deal with bugs fine. I use a variety of combos ranging from about 14 ounces to about 20 ounces or a little more depending on a variety of factors. The various parts are:

• Borah Side zipper ultralight bivy - 7 ounces
• Ti Goat Ptramigan Bug Bivy - 5.3 ounces
• Sea2Summit Escapist M 6'6" x 8'6" - 12.3 ounces
• Integral Designs Siltarp 1 - 7 ounces
• MLD Dog Tarp (half tarp) - 4.9 ounces
• 2 ounces of stakes and cords

I used to use a heavy bivy that weighed over a pound and used the half tarp to only cover the upper half. I pretty much gave up on both the half tarp and the heavy bivy.

I was pretty happy with the Siltarp 1 and either the Borah Side zip or the Bug Bivy depending on the expected weather, but since decided that the larger tarp was a nice splurge and worth it especially in bad weather. It means that I don't have to pitch the tarp so low in bad weather in order to have good shelter.

When it isn't buggy and the weather is nice I like to sleep on top of the bivy and sleeping bag and climb in as needed. I often don't pitch the tarp if the weather is good, but keep it handy and pull it loosely over me and my gear if an unexpected shower pops up.

robow

staehpj1 is the exception and not the norm. Almost all will be unable to get their entire bike, bags, and necessary gear under 40 lbs if talking 3 season, camp outside and cook for yourself touring. If you can meet that mark, you will likely be doing without creature comforts that I find a necessity.

staehpj1

I agree that I am in a fairly small minority, but there are others doing the same or similar. It is doable and can provide reasonable comfort with practice. I really don't find I am giving up much and am gaining the comfort of an unladen ride and a simple lifestyle on the road. It works for me, it may not for a lot of folks.

There are a lot of places where you can draw the line. I think most people could benefit from streamlining their packing list a bit. Most won't want to go as light as I do, a few may go lighter.

Russ Roth

My topeak cargo cages arrived and I test fit, with cages, tent and mattress I'm at 31lbs. I've got to order the sleeping bags but I think the wife will carry both to keep her weight down, not worried if mine is higher, I can handle the extra. Her bike is also a half pound lighter and so is her clothes. I'll have to work at keeping mine under 50.

veganbikes

My Single Speed/Fixed Gear RandoCross FunTime Machine is about 25lbs last I remember weighing it (which might have been in this configuration so minus wider tires and Swift Industries Rando Bag). I did an overnight trip and probably had it laden up to 35lbs but I carried a hammock and bug net instead of tent (no rain planned) and carried some delicious pre-made food so no need to cook. If I had built the bike as a leaner bike I could get that weight down but honestly I love the bike (minus a few changes I might make). If I were doing longer trips on her I would probably hit the 40-45 mark and pack better (but I would be carrying a tent or possibly my full hammock set up with rain fly and such) but I carried some poorly packaged stuff because I knew I could get away with it for an overnight trip. I didn't have to carry the bike but up one flight of stairs and it wasn't so bad.

If you use lighter weight gear and pack the bikes well they will be easier to carry. Also practicing carrying the bikes in a more controlled environment will help. Do some shorter trips or just load them up at the house and practice loading and unloading all your bags, plus carrying it up some stairs or a hill nearby or something. Worst thing to do is get out to where you need to camp and have to try and unpack and repack under stress as it is raining or windy or you are tried and worn out. Plus if you load it as you would for your trip and practice carrying it you can be prepared so you will have the right hold and position and can rearrange the gear as needed.

The nice thing is going with another person is you can split certain things among each other so you don't have to duplicate some stuff as you have figured out.

reppans

I lean more toward ultracompact (90L+30L Brompton set-up) than ultralight, but they’re closely related. My gravel bike set-up would be ~40lbs before consumables (food, water, fuel) with bike @28lbs (incl. bags, rack, tube/tools, 2lb lock) and camping gear, clothing, gadgets @12lbs. Still pretty comfy with double-wall tent, chair, stove/bar, shower, fan, solar, pedestrian outfits, sandals, evening movies, etc.

djb

12lbs for tent, sleeping bag, mat, chair, stove etc, shower, fan, clothes, sandals and the 70 inch tv is pretty darn impressive. Even without the last joke, your stuff must be light as heck

reppans

Minimalist and multi-tasking are the big factors. Here’s 5lb/10L of the core camping gear, and shown in use. Add 7 lbs for clothing and gadgets is plenty.

djb

Ah yes, now I remember your photos. Very impressive compact stuff.
very cool. Will one day make an actual attempt to minimize more.
I did finally get a titanium mug slash pot to replace my one small pot and coffee mug.
thanks again for showing