Touring - Touring Soon. How do you carry your tent?

Hello. I'm still figuring out the gear I want to take on my touring trip (2k miles). In shopping for panniers, I'd like to have something that would fit an ultralight tent and thermarest.

Does anyone have experience with traveling long distances with a tent? How do you pack it? Any advice is appreciated.

Also, here is the current list of hardware I'm considering:

My bike was build from custom parts, but it's essentially kinda like this one:
http://capitolhillbikes.com/itemdetails.cfm?LibId=38620

Panniers:
http://www.rei.com/product/710472#ReviewHeader

Tent:
http://www.rei.com/product/761891

Handlebar Bag:
http://www.rei.com/product/735854 OR
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_detail.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302693353&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442617987&bmUID=1240763153245

Seat Bag:
http://www.rei.com/product/751363

Any one have experience with any of this gear? Or pitfalls? General comments? thanks very much.

I think most people strap their tent to the top of the rear rack, although there are certainly many other options. The panniers you've chosen, however, seem to preclude putting the tent on top of the rear rack. Also, it seem to me that those panniers are more commuting panniers than touring panniers. It looks to me like they carry the weight too high for my taste. They wouldn't be my first choice, although the do have an attractive price.

I'm not sure you'll be able to fit that saddle bag in with those panniers, but you'll soon find out.

I'm not sure any of that gear is sufficiently waterproof for my tastes.

Ah, I see. I was thinking of finding a tent I might be able to roll up and stuff in a pannier. I was hoping to reserve the top of the rack for a trunk of some sort, though this might not work?

I'm planning my first "real" tour, and I just purchased a Big Agnes Seedhouse SL1 tent. When rolled up, it's small enough to fit in a front or rear pannier. I don't think there's any way you're going to fit a sleeping pad inside a pannier however.

As previously mentioned, the Topeak MTX bags are excellent for commuting / day rides, but they aren't great for loaded touring. Since the fold-out panniers are mostly supported by the trunk bag, not the rack, it doesn't seem like the best solution for touring. I have that same bag, and I love it for everything else however. On my bike, there is no room for a seatpost/saddle bag when the MTX trunk bag is in place.

If you really want to use a trunk bag, maybe look into a front rack with a shelf (Surly Nice or Jandd Extreme) and strap the sleeping pad on top? This will leave the shelf on the rear rack open.

edit: typos

The tent I'm considering: http://www.mountainhardwear.com/en-EU/Product.aspx?top=1759&prod=3409&cat=1779&viewAll=False

It's probably a bit heavier than I'd originally planned, but it's made for cycle touring and has a 'garage' vestibule which would account for the heavier weight.

Whether from rain or dew, my tent is usually wet when I pack up in the morning. Often it's muddy too. Strapping it to the top of my rear rack and not putting it in a pannier keeps everything else drier and cleaner. Also as I'm riding and the sun comes out, my tent is readily accessible so I can easily spread it out to dry during a meal break.

Your pannier system's capacity is 17 liters without those hanging things they call panniers. Now I pack for comfort, not for ultralite, so my capacity without exterior pockets is 84 liters. You should gather the gear you're planning to bring to see if 17 liters (plus the hanging things) is enough. I doubt it.

The tent you picked out is fine, but remember that you'll be spending lots of time in it if it's raining. I prefer a two man tent - but to each his own. Everybody has different comfort needs.

Your bike is a nice one, but bear in mind that the front fork will not fit a rack. I think from the picture that there are fittings for a rear rack, but I can't tell for sure. It has a Sugino triple and what appears to be a wide road cassete (road derailleur) so if you keep your gear weight down you won't have to walk up many hills - maybe none. Lots of spokes, but wheels are always a concern when loaded touring.

i think you may have difficulty carrying the amount of gear you'll need for a 2k tour while camping on that bike without front panniers. if you are able to get everything into rear panniers, handling is going to be spotty with all the weight in the rear. as mentioned above, carbon forks are not suitable for use with racks.

since you've already got the bike but haven't sunk the cash into panniers yet, have you thought of using a trailer instead of panniers? i've never ridden with a trailer myself, but from others' experiences that i've heard or read, you may be better off hooking up a trailer rather than trying to turn your sportyish bike into a tourer. it allows you to carry a lot of stuff while avoiding many of the handling issues of putting all your weight in panniers on the rear.

either way, people have done much farther on equipment that couldn't possibly compare in quality to what you've got, so it's definitely doable.

The tent looks fine -- certainly in the weight range I would consider -- much like the one I use.

The "panniers" you're considering aren't panniers; they're a rack trunk w/ drop-down side pockets. Too small in my estimation.

Get proper panniers and, if you want a rack bag also, get a separate one. I use a small rack trunk for camera gear. The tent is split into three sacks: one for the tent, one for fly, and a pole sack for the poles. The latter is attached via straps to the top of rear pannier, while tent and fly go inside panniers in waterproof stuff sacks.

Here's my luggage page (http://www.veloweb.ca/tourpages/bikebags.html).

I've never been on a tour and haven't used most of the things you're looking at, but...

I have the topeak DXP trunk bag (the bigger version of what you want). Like the others have said it will probably not work well for your tour. The bag is much smaller in person then it seems in the pictures. I put a full sized bath towel in one of the panniers today on the way to the pool and it took up almost the entire thing. Also, I wouldn't trust the bag for 2k miles of being loaded down with gear since I've already had the grab handle on top rip from the seams twice.

check out axiom bags, champain or lasalle, there at the same price point but offer a couple advantages.
1. they will leave your top rack available for a tent and or sleeping pad
2. they will offer much more space
3. they come with a rain shield, which is not as water proof as some other bags but should be enough under most conditions

they are also designed for touring where these bags don't seem to be. I should note that I don't own lasalle or champian bags but am planning to buy them for my next tour, I do own a set of monsoons which are smaller and totally water proof, axoim stuff seems to be made well but its (relativity) inexpensive.

the tent you picked seems it would work well for solo trips. I don't own any REI stuff but people seem to like it.


The bike is Aluminum which some people seem to dislike, I've never ridden an aluminum bike on tour, but i'm sure it be fine if you put some wide tires on it (700x32). though it seems this bike isn't designed specifically for touring it would work. can you mount a front rack? what's your gear ratio?

I put my tent cross wise on my front rack. I've used 2 front racks -one being the really cheap Nashbar front rack that attaches to the brake mounts -so far so good! I think it has a 15lb weight limit (might be wrong here) but I think it's easily capable of the weight of a tent (e.g. 4-6 lbs).

Keep in mind though I don't have front panniers so putting the tent up front as well as a handlebar bag balances the bike well.

Hi.... When I've toured I carry my sleeping bag, tent and sleeping pad on a rack i built in place of the regular bike rack. The trike is an excellent touring platform in my experiance, a little slower, but its not speed i'm after on a tour.

check out axiom bags, champain or lasalle, there at the same price point but offer a couple advantages.
1. they will leave your top rack available for a tent and or sleeping pad
2. they will offer much more space
3. they come with a rain shield, which is not as water proof as some other bags but should be enough under most conditionsI agree. I own the LaSalle bags and the 1/4 dome REI tent. The tent does fit inside the panniers. I prefer to have everything in the panniers if I can. I have short legs and if I have anything over the rear rack, that means the gear is above my saddle. I find it better to not have to raise my legs over the gear to get on and off the bike. If you have tall (normal :)) size legs and the saddle is well above the rear rack, you will not probably care if things are on the top of the rack.

If I don't have room in my panniers, I prefer to put the tent on top of the front rack, so I can easily get my legs over the bike.

Take a look at the sticky thread Pictures of your loaded rig (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=69234) in this forum.

Like others here, I also bungee my tent on top of my rear rack. Your pannier choice takes that option away. You never know what you might want to bungee on your rear rack (like a watermelon or something). It also looks like the center of gravity is kind of high on the ones your looking at. I'll put my vote in for Lone Peak panniers. Good deals on them at the Touring Store:

http://www.thetouringstore.com/LONE%20PEAK/LP%20HOME/TTS%20Lone%20Peak%20Home.htm

I've got the P400/P099 combo and they work well.

Firstly you have the most important thing necessary for touring and that's desire and enthusiasm. Next you have to decide how you are going to go about it. Some people like to pack heavy some more lightly, but you will need the big 4 to do unsupported touring: a tent, a sleeping bag, a sleeping pad and probably some cooking equipment. If you chose these items wisely you can save a lot of weight. As an example I tour with a 1.5lb tent that I strap beneath my saddle. Don't be confined to stuff at REI, while good it tends to be a lit heavy and volumous. Google "ultralight backpacking" and you'll see that your big 4 can be kept below 5 lbs and need not take up much room.

When you pack, no matter what the weight, its still good to distribute the weight both front and back.
Here are some sites that will show you a range of touring styles and look at the pictures sticky her too.

http://www2.arnes.si/~ikovse/weight.htm

http://milly.org/rambouillet/index.htm

This site shows more conventional, and heavier, approaches.

http://www.pbase.com/canyonlands/fullyloaded

I usually just use rear panniers and a handlebar bag. One of the rear panniers has the tent and most of my clothes and the other one has the sleeping bag, pad, cooking stuff, etc. That leaves the top of the rack free for temporary carrying of purchases along the way. I do sometimes move the tent to the top of the rack if I need to add some things in the panniers. Having the rack top free can have some disadvantages when touring with others since it'll be seen as conveniently available for carrying any additional loads.

I haven't used REI gear, so I don't have anything explictily against them, however I think you can do better for a tent. There is an ebay vendor selling the Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 (http://cgi.ebay.com/BIG-AGNES-SEEDHOUSE-2-SL-2-PERSON-TENT-NEW_W0QQitemZ190301922729QQihZ009QQcategoryZ36118QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262) for 229.99 + 17.20 shipping, so it comes to 248.19. That's a bit more expensive than the REI tent posted, but I think you will be getting a much nicer tent for the price (and approximately the same weight). They also have the Seedhouse 1, which is what I have for 135. But in retrospect, I probably would have ordered the Seedhouse SL2 if I had found this vendor first. I think it would make a better free standing tent because of the pole design, and I wouldn't mind a be more room in my Seedhouse 1 tbh.

I have ordered from this vendor before, and had no problems. But YMMV. If you aren't comfortable with ordering from ebay for whatever reason, also try the REI outlet. You can find some really good deals there as well.

Ditch the tent and get a hammock. You'll never regret it. Mine wads up about the size of a baseball and can't weigh more than pound, if that. If you thinks it gonna rain, a bit of tarp is all you need. Include a pad for the few nights that you can't tie up.

I carry our tent in my panniers. They only part I can't get inside them are the poles.
(even though I'm using Arkels (EX-R's), there's not enough space in the 'roll' for sleeping mat and poles). I carry my poles on the backrack. Secured tightly they don't rattle or fall off (not even a sound from them on the Patagonian ripio).

Enjoy your holiday.

I always carry my tent, poles and sleeping bag on top of my racks, mainly because of the size. Sleeping bag gets stuffed into a waterproof kayak bag, and the tent has to tough it out in whatever bag it comes with (roll it with the fly on the outside and rain won't affect it when packed). Lately, I have been towing the tent on the front rack, as it has the effect of damping frame wobble a little.

I got a tent (http://www.gelert.com/Products/Solo.aspx) and mattress that are small enough to fit inside std touring panneirs (carradice super C).

The Sequoia is quite a sporty light-touring bike but it should be capable of lightweight camping. It has a fairly short rear triangle and if you overload the rear it will be very light in the front. I suggest that you fit a front rack of the platform style and strap your bag/tent whatever to that. A little nitto rack with the stays extended to the dropouts might work. You can either fix to the fender eyelets using some ironmongery or to the skewer in the style of OMM racks. Dont use clamps on the carbon.
I 2nd the notion that your pannier bags are too small for long distance camping. You should be able to fit some standard bags (with a decent heel cutout) that will lower the centre of gravity of the load and improve handling as well as free up the rack top. If you need to carry more water you can lash a 2.5l coke bottle full of water.

Here's a piccy -this is a cheap mtb based tourer with the $10 Nashbar front rack that attaches to the brake mounts.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3587/3481229679_d9fb63263e_b.jpg

For me it isn't a matter of whether it fits. I generally would only pack a tent in a pannier if it was dry. In many places the tent is never dry when packed away. Getting the tent wet during the day is not a problem if it is rolled with the floor on the outside. It can rain on it all day and the inside is as dry as when it was packed away.

Because of all that I am inclined to carry my tent on the top of the rear rack. In a climate were the tent was dry when packed I would maybe carry it in a pannier.

Hello. I'm still figuring out the gear I want to take on my touring trip (2k miles). In shopping for panniers, I'd like to have something that would fit an ultralight tent and thermarest.

Does anyone have experience with traveling long distances with a tent? How do you pack it? Any advice is appreciated.

I can fit a Tarptent double rainbow(2-person), a light down bag, thermarest prolite 3R and some cooking gear in 1 pannier. I use the other for clothes etc. I find I still like a rack top bag and top tube bag for food and raingear. It would not be enough room for remote travelling (carrying food for several days) but works for a weekend to a week.

The advantage of putting the tent on the rack is that the pannier will stay drier. Not an issue for me (the sleeping bag is in a drybag and the tent's stuffsac is waterproof) but it's something to consider.

I agree with the others. Get a rack large enough to carry your tent and ground pad on top of it. Get panniers that fit on the sides, but not top of rack. Get the lightest tent you can find that is large enough to fit you and your gear.

Get a two-man tent unless you are very small. Buy one with a vestabule and be sure to get the footprint made for it.
As you pack you will tend to load more than you really need. As you ride and figure out what you don't need, box it up at the USPS and mail it home.

My tent goes on the front rack. I have a full rack on the front of both of my touring bikes. The tent is lightweight enough not to affect steering, if it is wet it doesn't affect anything else and it is easy to get to in a hurry if the weather is crappy.

Aaron:)

You might like this.

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/502%20Mi%20Tour/IMG_3131.jpg

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/502%20Mi%20Tour/FeltF-80502mitour.jpg

You might like this.

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/502%20Mi%20Tour/IMG_3131.jpg

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/502%20Mi%20Tour/FeltF-80502mitour.jpg


Wow. I do like that. What is it. Did you have to make it?

Made the holder from a laundry detergent bottle.

>I think most people strap their tent to the top of the rear rack

IMHO this is a bad option. Tents are fairly dense, so for handling better to keep them low. Also, you definitely don't need it during the day, whereas the top of the rack is one of the most accessible places.

So...mine is 1.8 kgs, and it goes at the very bottom of one pannier. Sleeping bag goes at the bottom of the other, mat and clothes go on top. Then I close the panniers and know that I don't need anything from them until I arrive at the next campsite. Sometimes I strap the tent poles to the downtube, I probably won't bother in future though.

(Fwiw, I have a rackbag and fill it with stuff I want during the day, like food, jacket, gloves, maps, tools etc)

Steve

Oh yes, like everyone says. I have the Topeak DXP rack bag, and while it's great for commuting etc, the panniers wouldn't stand up to any real abuse.

On the B.O.B. trailer along with other non-urgent items in the big-A dry bag. More frequently needed gear is stowed in a trunk bag.

From a tandem couple:

Our setup is one rear pannier for each of us. The trunk bag for the bike (spares, food, etc). And the front panniers for the camping gear.

Re the tent, we use a home made version of the Black Diamond Betamid Light. It's small and light and fits down low in the pannier. The only drawback is it requires trekking poles. So far, we've strapped them onto the frame. Although I'm considering a couple lightweight custom tent poles as an option.

Worked great for the GAP/C&O last fall.

Agree that the most important option is desire!