Originally Posted by mtnroads
As mentioned, the Trek 520 is just about perfect, but comes with a "road" crankset (Shimano 105) with gearing that is a bit high for loaded touring. It is fine for credit card touring or commuting use, though. I have talked to two dealers who said they would swap the crankset to a mountain (22-32-44) or trekking (26-36-46) setup for minimal cost, since they can sell the 105 setup which is a popular upgrade for low-end roadbikes. Obviously this is on a new bike purchase only.
Note that the 105 crank and deraileur can handle a 24 tooth ring pretty easy, so they don't even need to swap out much.