Welcome to my attempt to explain some of my thinking about what bikepacking kit list you need. Warning this topic is subjective and much depends on your route and what luxuries and hobbies you have. People have travelled with surfboards and skis before! I’ve written a blog about the difficulties in packing for a big trip here.
A further note this is the kit I am travelling with at the moment and this might change in the future, I will attempt to update this page as it does explaining the change. I have not covered my bike, The Lord Baldrick, its build or what I would change with my knowledge now.
The pictures don’t necessarily have all items listed, they are more for aesthetics! If you have any questions or would like advice please don’t hesitate to drop me a message. There are two sections to this page. First, is the kit lists (below in the tabs). The second is where to put items.
Bikepacking kit list
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Camping
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Cooking
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Clothing
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Clothing (Cold & Wet)
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Tools
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Spares
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First Aid Kit
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Documents
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Electronics
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Luxuries
- Tent:
- MSR Hubba Hubba NX
- Custom Footprint (QuintCraft)
- Sleep System:
- Thermarest NeoAir XLite
- Thermarest Vesper Quilt -6C
- Liner (adds about another season)
- Down inflatable pillow
- If cold I can add another sleeping bag under the quilt
- Other:
- Spade
- SOTO Stormbreaker Stove
- Indestructible, I have not looked after mine and it still works
- Windshield
- Not always necessary but greatly improves efficiency
- Titanium spork
- I break the plastic ones
- A knife of some kind
- Had a penknife, lost it bought a knife from Decathlon
- MSR Alpine dish scraper
- Strike lighter
- Great in wet conditions and works every time
- Lightweight metal mug
- Expandable bowl
- Great if you are creating food as a group
- SAWYER water mini-filter
- 3x Merino wool t-shirts (decathlon)
- 2x Zip off trousers/shorts
- 3x Merino wool underwear
- 3x Merino wool socks
- Cycling gloves
- Baseball cap with neck cover
- Sun UV protection arm covers
- 1x Shirt (a little smarter, not Merino but would be on the next trip)
- 1x Clip-in cycle shoes with inlaid cleats
- 1x Sandals (for hiking and in hot countries)
- Washing
- Micro-fibre towel
- Flannel
- Arc’teryx Alpha jacket
- Montane Goretex over-trousers
- Synthetic wool down jacket
- Will keep you warm when soaked
- Over-shoes
- Merino wool base layer
- Karrimor beanie-style hat
- This version you won’t find anymore but stops all wind-chill
- Warm hiking socks – no one likes cold toes
- Buff
- Fleece gloves
- Over-mitts
- For when it gets really cold or off the bike
- Multi-tool: Topeak Hexus X
- Check it fits the spokes
- Adjustable spanner
- Needed for Rohloff
- Topeak Power Lever X
- Tyre and chain tool
- Topeak bike pump (mini-track day)
- Capable of 5 bar
- 2x Allan keys
- These are included within the multi-tool but the nuts are difficult to reach so I included these to make life easier
- Rohloff Sprocket Rool
- This is only needed if you need to remove the whole unit, they can post it out with a new unit if necessary
- Rag
- Always useful around oil and grease
- Nail brush
- Optional, this is for cleaning your hands after the oil penetrates
- Spares:
- 2x Inner tubes
- I was carrying one but if your tyre has completely failed you will need more
- Rohloff oil
- Silicon grease
- 1x Brake cable, 1x gear cable
- 2x Brake pads
- As soon as I replaced I started looking for new spares (SRAM is not common in Central Asia)
- Inner tube patches with glue and adhesive patches
- Spare quick links
- Easy repair of chain
- Gorilla glue
- Threadlocker
- Rohloff sprocket
- This is only needed in areas where there are no Rohloff specialists.
- Various nuts, bolts and washers
- Duct tape
- Replace with Gorilla Tape
- Spokes 2xFront, 5xRear
- More rear because it is an unusual length (Rohloff)
- 2x Inner tubes
- Tent/sleep system/bag spares:
- Ortlieb full clip, internal screws, block and strap for the handlebar bag
- Tent Repair Tape
- Good when wet, can also fix the Thermarest mat
- Twine for guy ropes
- Beeswax for tent zips
- Keep them greased and free of dust and they don’t break
- Thermarest patch kit
- Bandages (various sizes)
- Triangular bandage
- Tape
- Plasters (including burns plasters & blisters)
- Dressing pads
- Tick tweezers
- Gloves
- Antiseptic cream
- Sting cream
- Reflective foil emergency blanket
- Alcohol gel (although this is used for more than just a kit)
- Medicine:
- Paracetamol / Ibuprofen
- Diarrhoea / Constipation tablets
- Indigestion (not used, to be honest)
- Allergy medication (if needed)
- Norfloxacin (I have an allergy to penicillin and this was the recommended alternative)
- 2x Passports
- Both are UK, one is ‘diplomatic, i.e. 80 pages’ and the other is standard
- You can apply for a second but it is a tedious process but it does give you flexibility to send one off for a visa whilst still able to travel. It is also useful for conflicting countries that don’t allow you in with a certain stamp.
- 2x Print-outs health insurance
- 2x Passport copies for both passports
- 2x Vaccine list and dates I received them
- Some countries require evidence, also useful if they ask if you are in a hospital
- I also carry some spare US dollars in different places
- Just in case of issues with cards (as happened in Tajikistan) or if you get robbed and need a whisky!
A Further Note
Try and spread all the documents around your kit. This way if you get flooded or a bag stolen you still have some documents.
- 2x 20,000mAh batteries
- I reckon I could get away with one now, this keeps me in power for approx 6-8 days, not including my laptop.
- USB-A to USB-C cable (battery to mobile)
- USB-C to USB-C cable
- MINIX NEO P1 multi-country plug (2xUSB-C, 65W and 1xUSB-A, 35W)
- Bought to supply my laptop with 60W power for charging
- Lenovo ThinkPad 13
- I would upgrade this to something smaller, MS Surface Pro or Surface Go looks interesting
- Lenovo 7-inch tablet
- Reading/movies/TV, mainly reading
- 1x USB C to USB micro converter
- For charging Lenovo Tablet and Speaker
- USB-C charger for Canon 6D batteries
- Speaker – who doesn’t like a little music in the evening.
- Philips One Blade Shaver – USB-A charger (unfortunately)
- Google Pixel 5
- Headphones (always plug-in version, uses less power)
- Headtorch – USB-C rechargeable batter
- Front and rear bike lights.
Who doesn’t like a bit of luxury, these are the items I don’t need but allow me to have a more relaxing evening or enjoy a hobby.
- Canon 6D camera with 24-70mm L series lens
- A hefty bit of kit at 2kg but worth it for the images – I would go mirrorless next time but I would probably carry a 70-200mm lens as well!
- I’ve added to this a fixed prime lens of 50mm – light enough for me to ride with over my shoulder
- Helinox Chair Zero
- Compact, lightweight and great for watching sunrises whilst drinking the morning coffee
- Rucksack
- So I can go hiking or backpacking for bits of time when I need to get off the bike
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Bikepacking kit list – which bag and where on the bike?
There are two aspects you need to think about when loading a bike. First, is the balance between the left and right sides. It can become very annoying if you find yourself being pulled either to the right or left whilst you are cycling all day. The second is ease of access for certain items, for example, tools.
Regarding balance, I have written about this in my blog here. However, the method I used was to weigh each item and then move them around in a spreadsheet to balance both the right and left sides. This allows you to experiment without the need to move every item and weigh the bags each time!
However, what might dictate which items go where will be how often you need them or how they are used. For example, I always get off the left side of my bike. This means I want quick access items for my bike and me on the left side and easy to get to. My left fork bag contains my wet weather gear, tool kit and spare inner tubes. The remaining space is made up of my cold weather base layer. Below is a picture with highlights of where my kit is. I have tried to explain my reasoning below!
Click a bag for a quick overview.
Fork bags from Restrap in Yorkshire. See here for more.
Handlebar bags from ORTLIEB and BeerBabe. Click here for more.
Frame bag from Restrap in Yorkshire. Click here for more.
Panniers from ORTLIEB. Click here for more.
Tent, MSR Hubba Hubba NX
Rucksack is from Decathlon. Click here for more.
Fork Bags
I went with the Fork bags from Restrap in Yorkshire. They are sturdy and have stayed waterproof.
My left bag is my quick access to bulky items I might need. Wet weather gear, tools and inner tube spares with remaining space taken up by cold weather gloves and socks.
The right bag has anything else I might or won’t need often. For example the rest of my spares, first aid kit, water filter, cold weather base layer.
Handlebar Bags
Large is an ORTLIEB Handlebar-Pack bag (15L). The large holds my down jacket (once again it is fairly quick to access) and my sleep system. Ideally, I would like to have this to easily remove it and throw it in the tent when wet. A different design of handlebar bag might be better. The tripod is also attached.
There is also a small bag from BeerBabe which holds a battery for the day, suncream and bike lights as needed.
Panniers
ORTLIEB Gravel Packs were my choice, not too big so I just filled them up but they were large enough to hold everything.
The Left holds all my cooking gear and food. Unfortunately, this does mean sometimes the weight is a bit off. It is fairly quick access when I stop for lunch and dinner.
Right holds my laptop in a protective case, clothes and other electronics (chargers, cables, 2nd battery etc).
Frame Bag
I went down the choice of frame bag because I had a lot of spare space in the middle and it seemed silly not to use it. It holds my chain oil, spade, bike pump, tent poles, headtorch and alcohol gel (one again quick access items). I went for the Restrap frame bag, unfortunately, it isn’t waterproof, but the items which go in don’t need to be waterproof.
Rucksack
The tent is below the rucksack in a waterproof bag. This holds the luxury items seat, camera, tablet and journal.
And finally…
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