Touring - ADK Overnight

~238 miles, pave, dirt, gravel, a bit of trail from Burlington, VT to the Utica, NY area.
Was a through trip, as I had a schedule to visit family. And work took longer than expected Wednesday and Thursday.
Salsa Fargo, liteweight kit, exploring the Moose River Plains from Indian Lake, NY to Inlet, NY.
~130(ish) miles day one, lots of hot, paved climbing to the heart of the ADKs.
~100(ish) miles day two, slow, traffic, until the weather turned, temps dropped, and rain started on last 20 miles.

Some pics:

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-X0jp5jJ6A7Q/TkGH1XkY-ZI/AAAAAAAAQuU/Vje1A23FS64/s800/IMG_1754.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2Jy_yYbOtmY/TkGH3blYn0I/AAAAAAAAQuo/IvgXU1IOU1U/s800/IMG_1771.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-B8aEbBbow6w/TkGIL_YqL5I/AAAAAAAAQxc/Pg1BjBh_crs/s800/IMG_1813.JPG


https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Kd2D1o2lBQo/TkGIOOGSGvI/AAAAAAAAQx0/uLSYrqEXsUk/s800/IMG_1819.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1ohYcFzYunY/TkGIQyLWJyI/AAAAAAAAQyU/FhYSIE5J6TI/s800/IMG_1826.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Q3S_wgXhdt0/TkGIVb0gMzI/AAAAAAAAQy8/CV3cHipCbqc/s800/IMG_1836.JPG

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SwP69lFMD08/TkGIXuNvGzI/AAAAAAAAQzM/sXUOzKpor1g/s800/IMG_1839.JPG

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-OSr2ELYpLt8/TkGIcXLLDLI/AAAAAAAAQzw/XhShJvhW1Bc/s800/IMG_1847.JPG

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6138/6015757987_aecfa4e736_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/6015757987/)
Middle, of Moose River Plains (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/6015757987/) by mbeganyi (http://www.flickr.com/people/31827372@N00/), on Flickr



Full post here: http://littlecirclesvt.com/2011/08/adk-bikepacking/

Breakfast:
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6128/6015790139_105063bc41_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/6015790139/)
Drake's, Inlet, NY (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/6015790139/) by mbeganyi (http://www.flickr.com/people/31827372@N00/), on Flickr

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-455wi4jJnqw/Tj9HqKurxrI/AAAAAAAAQsg/dK1lP8QmvP0/s800/IMAG3796.jpg

Looking familiar:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4151/5395750995_9b1f7f8db5_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/5395750995/)
IMAG1476 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/5395750995/) by mbeganyi (http://www.flickr.com/people/31827372@N00/), on Flickr


Other end of the river, miles from where I had camped:
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6028/6016337938_8fcd6006f9_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/6016337938/)
IMAG3808 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/6016337938/) by mbeganyi (http://www.flickr.com/people/31827372@N00/), on Flickr

Wow! That's some trip! Great concept.

It would have taken me three or four days to do the same trip and enjoy it.

Speedo

Awesome pictures.... Very cool. Is your bike a 29'er?

Awesome pictures.... Very cool. Is your bike a 29'er?

salsa fargo, so i guess yes, when running larger tires. ;)

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6137/6023856390_83e2165e43_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/6023856390/)
Salsa Fargo (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/6023856390/) by mbeganyi (http://www.flickr.com/people/31827372@N00/), on Flickr

Very cool, I have traveled these roads in cars very often, Bravo.

PS: you did take the right map ......NG high peaks is the best.

thats not the HP map, but the w. canada creek, moose river plains map... i do love those maps.
i also found this:

http://www.dec.ny.gov/geodata/ptk

download what you want to open in googleearth, way cool, and you can transfer to a gps (which i don't have...)

Impressive mileage and minimal gear to boot. Did you keep dry and warm enough with the rain?

Like the lightweight stove set up. Which stove are you using?

thanks, this was last weekend, so i missed the rain, until about 20 miles from the finish, when i rode into a downpour.
i grabbed the tarp from my hennessy hammock (left the hammock at home), thinking i could rig it to work as a tarp... if i had a downpour overnight i would have likely been wet - and i would have tucked into my emergency bivy or my poncho (or if early enough, packed up and started riding!)

that said, i have a new shelter on the way that will be suitable to foul weather, and bugs, and weigh less than my hammock, or a new tarp and bivy combined. will be testing it next month. with the new shelter, i should be able to add clothes / food / water as needed for a longer tour. base kit weighs in at 16 pounds on the bike, with 3 on my back, no food, no water. likely with the new shelter, and getting my water on the bike and making a homemade frame bag, i'll see kit of >18 pounds (+ water) on the bike, with my wingnut pack only carrying phone, wallet, spot tracker, and a layer / arm warmers, and on the bike food.

stove - its one of my homemade alcohol burners, similar to the 'whitebox' stove. i have 3 homemade designs i'll use, and i also use a trangia with homemade spoke stand and windscreen if i'm going to try and cook a meal that requires more than boiling water.

One word: coolness!

Very Cool! I'm impressed and motivated!



thanks, this was last weekend, so i missed the rain, until about 20 miles from the finish, when i rode into a downpour.
i grabbed the tarp from my hennessy hammock (left the hammock at home), thinking i could rig it to work as a tarp... if i had a downpour overnight i would have likely been wet - and i would have tucked into my emergency bivy or my poncho (or if early enough, packed up and started riding!)

that said, i have a new shelter on the way that will be suitable to foul weather, and bugs, and weigh less than my hammock, or a new tarp and bivy combined. will be testing it next month. with the new shelter, i should be able to add clothes / food / water as needed for a longer tour. base kit weighs in at 16 pounds on the bike, with 3 on my back, no food, no water. likely with the new shelter, and getting my water on the bike and making a homemade frame bag, i'll see kit of >18 pounds (+ water) on the bike, with my wingnut pack only carrying phone, wallet, spot tracker, and a layer / arm warmers, and on the bike food.

stove - its one of my homemade alcohol burners, similar to the 'whitebox' stove. i have 3 homemade designs i'll use, and i also use a trangia with homemade spoke stand and windscreen if i'm going to try and cook a meal that requires more than boiling water.

Amazing ride ! and a good read (I read the whole blog). I do love the Dak's having hiked thru the Moose River area when I did the Northville - LP Trail a few decades ago, as well as having driven the Cedar - Moose road.

Had to wonder though about whether you bit off more then you could chew on this trip, what with the first day mileage, the hills, getting in late and getting settled in the campground. All it takes is a bit of crappy weather that night and the minimalist concept suddenly comes into question.

It's a tough call, as adding a tent maybe means a rear rack and panniers, with attending weight penalty, slower on the climbs, which means less distance covered, etc..... yet maybe doing 80 a day for 3 days allows a tad more comforts of home as well as more time to relax at the end of the day, eat better, re-hydrate. Can't say for sure and you certainly have more experience at this then me.

Curious about why no rear rack and pannier though, as I always found the bike handled better then with the load up high.

Also love the dirt road concept and the Dak's have some great options. You would LOVE living out west, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Montana, etc... lot's fewer Stewarts is the only problem !. Or northern Maine, for that matter, logging roads all over the top half of the state. Nothing but Moose and logging trucks.

steveb,

thanks for the comments.
i was fully expecting to be rained on. had rain gear with me, as well as emergency bivy and a poncho.
i had a tarp (ill suited to its purpose, i admit) and a waterproof rei bivy with me. i opted to stay out of the bivy when i had moon and stars to look at.
i did have the full hennesy hammock packed, but really wanted to try a tarp / bivy setup, so at the last moment i pulled it from the bag.
it all fits, as the rear bag opens a bit more - had the hammock in there before grabbing the bivy.

i could have packed my old backpacking tent for 4 more pounds, but its bulky.

that said, i've simplified a bit more, have a tarptent contrail enroute to me, and will be testing this fall. packs smaller than my hammock or tarp + bivy, and knocks another pound out of my kit.



part of 'biting off more than i could chew' was on purpose. aside from the remote 30-40 miles of dirt, this was a pretty 'safe' route. lots of resupply options, and it was end to end, with family at the inlaws at the finish.
i took on the mileage to push myself, and to test out how the body and mind work doing back to back centuries+. agreed that 80 miles a day over 3 days would have been nice, but i'm not one to like to sit around in camp. (and i don't bring anything to sit on!) i don't bring many creature comforts, and am spefically seeking out primitive camp options.

next trip through will likely be a 200k+, 120k, and 200k+ days, with the 120k day including single and double track on an old truck trail.

as to my luggage:
no panniers and rack needed. no noticeable bob with the seatbag.
bike handles wonderfully as is.
for more information on this type of setup, check out what some of the tour divide racers are doing.

or visit the guy who made my bags:
http://www.revelatedesigns.com/

Thanks for the detailed reply and I now understand the concept better. I had heard of the Great Divide race, never looked closely enough to examine the details. I do love the off-road/truck/fire road concept, but wondering if you're going to run out of places to explore in the Daks at the rate your going. Are you by any chance training for a certain race out west ?

Not something I'm going to try anytime soon, as there's no way the wife will allow bike 6. I do have a nice Miyata tourer that will take cross tires though. Plus an attic full of camping gear, Hmmm......

Thanks for the detailed reply and I now understand the concept better. I had heard of the Great Divide race, never looked closely enough to examine the details. I do love the off-road/truck/fire road concept, but wondering if you're going to run out of places to explore in the Daks at the rate your going. Are you by any chance training for a certain race out west ?

Not something I'm going to try anytime soon, as there's no way the wife will allow bike 6. I do have a nice Miyata tourer that will take cross tires though. Plus an attic full of camping gear, Hmmm......

If you have some camping gear, give it a go. For me, I'd rather be moving, unless there are compelling reasons not to - a great place to camp, a nice stop in town, etc... but I'm not a fan of lazing around a campsite...

Would love to get a packraft - then I could do all sorts of stuff in the ADKs when roads typically end in water.

And, I'm planning on getting over to Maine from VT. Yes, I likely will run out of territory, but probably not out of roads. Just less public land here in the east to stop, enjoy, and set up camp. Lots of small towns to roll through though - good for food, water, coffee... ;)

And, yes, I'm working up a 2013 Tour Divide.

I started with 7 when I met my wife, and paired it down from there, recently selling my Soma SS (really miss it!), down to 3 bikes now, a stable that covers (most) of my riding. Need to pick up an old 3spd or SS for a townie...

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6031/5897058205_d8766a243c_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/5897058205/)
The stable (http://www.flickr.com/photos/31827372@N00/5897058205/) by mbeganyi (http://www.flickr.com/people/31827372@N00/), on Flickr

Looks like a fun and challenging trip. One question though: Do you not have mosquitoes where you are? If so how do you deal with them with your sleeping setup?

Looks like a fun and challenging trip. One question though: Do you not have mosquitoes where you are? If so how do you deal with them with your sleeping setup?

We have em. No trouble that night. Slept under the tarp, head out of bag. Batted a few away, but no issues. The deer flies on the way in were far worse. I had a bivy sack with me - full face screen on it, but didn't use it with clear skies.

I'm awaiting one of these: http://www.tarptent.com/contrail.html - will solve my tarp / bivy / bug net problem and be lighter than what I currently have.