I agree regarding Maps.me and I too have had little use of it. However, I have downloaded the provincial map so it is easy to see where I am without needing cell data (especially if I'm out of cell range).

Arrive in town mid-afternoon. Find a church, put on a big smile, and ask for a floor and a ceiling. Or try the fire department.

In especially small towns, go to the only mini-mart in town and ask if there's a church/school/fire station where you can sleep on the floor, or pitch a tent out back. They'll know everyone in town, and someone can help out.

When all else fails, ask a policeman where's a safe place to set up a tent. Don't say "Camp," say "Set up a tent." Cops in small towns are usually bored, and will be glad to escort you to a city park, and even check on you later and make sure you're doing OK. They also might know a friendly church.

Bonus: You'll often get fed!

I like this! Really good advice here. Normally I'm kinda the person that would avoid the cops. I guess making sure you give the impression you're just rolling through town helps. Small towns don't really have the facilities for travelers so they would want to help you out as much as possible.

Thanks!

Be nice to them, and most of the time, they'll be nice to you. Kinda like everyone else. Small towns especially, where their job is less "Bust heroin addicts" and more "Serve my community."

People are twice as likely to help out if your tour is raising money for charity. One of the easiest ways to do that is PackJournal.com (see signature). You can choose from four charities (they're trying to add more), keep a small amount for yourself if you need to, and post journals and photos all along the way so people can follow you. And it's all free to use.

* Be aware of the shape of your trunk bag vs the shape of your rack. Otherwise you may find yourself adapting to fit unnecessarily.

For extra security of saddlebags to the bike; or for securing a tent or sleeping bag to a bike or for many other things, I really like Coghlans Arno straps. They look very much like a super-long toestrap and can be had in lengths up to 60 inches.

Arno Straps - 48" | Ropes & Straps | Coghlan's

Cheers

This thing has made me want a handlebar bag:
Thomson/Ortlieb Decaleur

It is super creative and looks really sleek and modern so you aren't just wedded to old school looks.

Chain brush
 

Here’s a low cost, low weight “tool” I take on tour to help keep my chain, cogs and the like a bit cleaner while on the road. When my travel toothbrush starts getting a bit too frazzled for my dental care, it gets transferred to my tool kit. Costs about $2 and the handle keeps gunk out of my tool roll. It hits the magic mark of having dual use, albeit sequential dual use. I’ve yet to mix up the old for the new, but I’m thinking I should put some red tape around the one I’m using as a toothbrush so I don’t make a mistake in the dark at camp.

Things i've learned over the years:

- If you broke your last picket, use some metal saté-sticks, spare spoke or screwdriver.
- Wet clothes dry faster when you wear them because of your body temperature. Watch out that you don't get ill.
- Keep musquitos away with an union or a lemon instead of expensive products.
- Replace all your your torx, plus and minus screws with inbus so you have to take less tools.
- For wild camping, make sure to fasten your luggage to your foot with a chord. You really don't want to wake up left nothing. Been there....
- Powder coating made my bike scratch-free and solid af.
- Always be friendly to everybody in any circumstances. People can be very generous to friendly people :)

I hope it's worth something to you guys.

What is a picket as you reference?

Great tip and just to add to that tip carry a couple of round toothpicks,not flat to put right into the offending hole this will help center your patch as well as not loose were the hole is to begin with wind to back always.:thumb:

This could possibly save someone one day... I was touring last summer and snapped my rear derailleur cable 35 very hilly miles from the nearest town. Derailleur was stuck in the highest gear... not good. After a minute of yelling some four letter words at whatever squirrels or birds happened to be around, I finally managed to jam some small bits of gravel from the roadside into my RD to keep it from moving down onto the smaller cogs without any cable tension. so I could at least make it up the hills without walking the bike.

I had this happen with my front cable once and was stuck in low range. I found a stick of the right thickness and wedged to between the front derailleur cage and frame to hold it out in the middle ring. I could pop it out again when I needed the low range and the inner stop held it in place.

Or you could do it the civilized way :p

Ask a Mechanic: Broken Derailleur Cable Field Repair

Hmm, never thought of the knot in the cable trick. Is the knot really strong enough to prevent the cable from pulling through? Rocks just seem so much more solid :p

Honestly I never had to do this before - I just think it's a neat trick. The only time I ever had a cable bust I was just a few miles from home on the road bike so I huffed it in the 11t. But looking at this, I'd say it's enough to hold in the gear you want, as there actually isn't very much resistance in a derailleur spring.

I always use a large cup. After my meal, I have some tea. The hot beverage does wonders on the leftovers, and the teabag makes a good scrubbiest!
Cheers!

In Colombia, they cyclists drink water and eat bocodillo, which is a guava, sugary treat wrapped in a leaf. I can buy them in NYC too and they seem to substitute for gu and other cycling energy foods

Little more info please for those, cough cough, less informed?

Recently I’ve start putting a rotation arrow on my inner tubes. I always line the tire logo up with the valve and the arrow on the tube help finding whatever caused the flat.

By 'scrubbiest' you are referring using tea bag to scrub / clean the pots? If so, excellent idea!

"Inbus"- I had to look this one up....Apparently, the registered name, in Germany, for what we Americans call "Allen" fasteners. Never knew that one until now! But more to the point, the industry has been already shifting over to Allen fittings for some time now. Converting the remaining hex head bolts makes good sense.

Thanks, nickw,
Should have been "Scrubbie". And YES, I use the teabag. Once it dries out you can save a couple grams weight ;-). Or, if you have a fire, burn it!
(And, no, I'm not really a weight weenie, but I've long ago gone to a simple silicone coated tarp in place of a tent. The kid is doing so as well.)

On all tours, long or short, I carry a patch kit and a pump.

On a long tour, I bring a replacement inner tube. On a short tour, or if I am going out for just the day, I may or may not carry one.

But going forward, I will always bring an extra inner tube. I just experienced a rare failure: the nut on the presta valve snapped off while I was inflating the tire, which rendered the valve useless. The only solution: a new inner tube!

The moral: Unless you are OK with not being able to cycle on a cycle tour, always carry one or more replacement inner tubes.