Ok, so first it must be said that you can indeed go on a tour on any kind of bike, just some are better than others. My first one was in Australia and sent me from Beenleigh to Beaudesert (day 1), to Darlington (day 2), to Boonah (day 3), and ended up in Ipswich (day 4) and hopped a train back to Brisbane so I could make it back to Uni to get smarter. Stayed in a motel the first night, campsite the second, and a showgrounds the third night. I had my tent and sleeping bag strapped on to my seat post rack and everything else on my back. So back to my original comment. First don't ride with a back pack. It makes you so much more tired and puts extra stress on your bum and arms. Invest in panniers even if you think you'll only tour twice. Secondly, make sure to have a good seat. My bum actually has sores on it right now. Not too bad for to and from school but won't be doing this again on this seat or bike which brings me to my last point. Yes, you can do a tour on any kind of bike but one with gears and a freewheel is preferable. I did this tour on a track frame fixie. Unfriendly to touring in so many ways. I only had to walk about 3 times and 2 of those where just because I needed to give my bum a rest. I run 48-19 gear ratio which isn't too bad (high 60's gear inches I believe) and I managed to get where I needed to go. I must admit that throughout the whole trip I was dreaming about how much more comfortable I would be with the right stuff. None the less, this was good enough for me to know that I really do want to do a truly extended tour on the right equipment soon. Woohoo. That's it.

Dan