Originally Posted by
headwind15
JUST MY OPINION: I think that you should borrow some panniers/ racks and stuff and try out a short tour to find out if you even like bike touring. It isn't for everyone. A lot of people go out, buy all the gear, go out on their first tour to discover they don't even like it. Then the turn around and try to sell off all their "like new" gear.
Very good point, I definitely am not planning to throw myself in the deep end here. I'm also not as fit as I'd like to be and will be doing many small 1-3 day excursions to build up my legs and to see how it goes before I decide whether or not to go longer. I already have a rear rack I can put on one of the bikes but I'll probably have to buy some kind of drybag to fit my stuff in. I've heard backpacks are not ideal.