Originally Posted by
Machka
What I'm envisioning is something like what Agent9 drew up, a base on panniers to allow cyclists the option of screwing in a set of wheels when they need them, or unscrewing the wheels and popping them into a side pocket when they aren't needed.
I wouldn't want a trailer, and unless the cart/trolley folded down into practically nothing and didn't weigh very much, it would be impractical too.
I guess my thinking is that six sets of casters on six different pieces of luggage probably wouldn't weigh any less than one compact collapsable cart and you'd still have six seperate items to deal with. With a little imagination I'd think that the key components to one of those racks could be incorporated into one pannier - replacing the rear stiffner and frame assembly, and be capable of expanding to handle several stacked items in one trip.
Not exactly ultralightweight touring, but from the sounds of things, you're not travelling exclusively by bicycle anyway and if you're using any site as a base camp - you'd have the option to leave a bunch of stuff behind and just take what you need for the day.