djb

That's what I do with my coil lock, which are handy for trees, picnic benches, fences etc also.

thumpism 

If you are using panniers with two zippers on each opening (open from either end) you can hook the zipper pulls together with a split key ring (pictured below). It would be time consuming for you to do so but would also be daunting for the casual thief.

bark_eater 

Last years planned mini tour got bumped to this years mini tour. The route will involve 2 open saltwater ferry crossings so I picked up a bike cover that can be "locked" to the bike. That and a few well placed luggage locks and zip ties for the panniers should work.

seedsbelize 

On a related note, I was just planning on carrying my wallet in my back pocket, chained to my belt loop, like I always do. The chain is so I don't lose it. I hadn't given my passport any thought. Until I read this thread.

fietsbob

My most used touring bike had Beckman made bags , for Gordon racks , they were not easy to remove,
and I had some rain covers made, to my own design ,
which added to the needing to know how they went on, to get them off..

Worked great ..

djb

figure I might as well ask, as you didn't mention--where do you live and where are you going on a tour?
pretty important factors, although frankly, one has to make a judgement call anywhere, in any country

Tourist in MSN

I do not use split rings, but on my checked airline luggage after 9/11 when you are supposed to stop using luggage locks unless they are TSA approved, I started to use those wire twisty things that are on bread loaf wrappers to tie zipper pulls together. You can undo it in 5 seconds, but my goal is to deter thieves and hopefully they will go to the next bag. Unfortunately they have not deterred TSA from making a mess of things.

Yes I am aware of TSA approved locks, I have one but rarely use it. Regarding my panniers, they have no zippers.

redbagsrambler

I had my passport stolen in a Paris railway station while waiting for a train to Amsterdam (it was in a small bag that had my passport and other travel documents in it). By the time I got that worked out through French authorities and a replacement temporary passport from the American consulate, I had lost an entire day of my European visit. (You would not believe how long the line was at the consulate of people who had been similarly inconvenienced, and this was before 9am). Interestingly, the consulate told me there was a decent chance I would get my passport back. Most stolen passports are in bags which the thief has taken for cash or items he can easily sell (i.e., cameras), then leaves the bag and the remaining contents - often including the passport - tossed in the bushes or somewhere. Someone eventually finds it and may turn it over to the police, who pass it along to the American consulate, who returns it to the original owner. I think it was about a quarter of stolen passports which were returned.

I never got mine back. To this day, I often wonder what kind of shenanigans may be going on under my name.

Tourist in MSN

When I go on a trip where I expect to spend some time in touristy destinations, I bring an old pair of pants by Ex Officio that has a zippered passport pocket at ankle height. At that height, it is virtually unnoticeable and would be nearly impossible for any pickpocket to steal from it. And I have several older shirts with zippered passport pockets too. But a lot of the newer travel clothing lacks the hard to get at passport pockets that used to be common on travel clothing. I even have one shirt (Royal Robbins, a couple decades old) that I have to unbutton two or three of the front buttons to get to the inside of the shirt where the velcro closure covers the internal passport pocket.

And when I am in one of those places where I would expect pickpockets to be, I have a wallet that is close to hand with just enough cash for lunch and nothing else of value in it, the rest of my valuables are stashed in those zippered passport pockets.

fietsbob

I had a wicking mesh singlet sewn with a tunnel pocket across the lower back,
in that tunnel I had my money belt
Ortlieb , so sweat would not dampen what's in there..

In Banks in Ireland , my stripping off rain gear to access that base layer To the money belt

where I kept my Debit Card , passport , 2nd half of RT ticket, Etc. in their lobby was not any problem.

and this was Pre Euro when one Ireland had its own currency , the North has the British Crown's pound ..






....

seedsbelize 

The one time I was pick-pocketed, in a market in Guatemala, my wallet was in a front, velcroed pocket, and had less than $20 in it. This coming tour is across boring Ohio. I will take good care of it nonetheless.

Mersweet

A simple locking system for short absences is to snap your bike helmet around the frame and a wheel. Someone looking to take advantage of you will have to investigate what is preventing the bike from moving. This can also prevent bike from rolling away on a pitch.
After 2.5 x-country rides, never a problem. In public areas (Yellowstone NP) I have left bike and gear unattended for hours. But also carry handlebar bag with valuables with me.

Cycle Tourist

I keep my valuables in a handlebar bag and take it in with me. That's about it. My tent and sleeping bag are the only things that I'd mind loseing. The stove, pans, food, and clothes are the only things left. The panniers aren't easily detached by me and I know how they're hooked up. I can't see anyone rummaging through them when their usually in public view. It probably helps that my panniers are usually faded, mismatched and weather worn and I usually have the bike in view. I'm more concerned about someone takeing off with the loaded bike after cutting my cable but not many people feel too confident pedaling off with a loaded touring bike. Heck sometimes I don't!

Duragrouch

1) My bike, moderately expensive and most importantly, customized to me, is the most valuable thing. I don't leave it outside alone, anywhere, ever. Even with a top flight, heavy lock, thieves can cut it quickly.

2) Even if you lock your panniers on, that can be cut quickly, and even if not, thieves can just slice open the pannier to look inside. Plus, where the bike goes, the panniers go.

If you happen to be touring in a country where thievery is virtually nonexistent due to kind people or draconian laws like hand amputation as penalty, you might be able to leave the bike and panniers outside, though I would still secure it, lest another tourist make off with it, and bring other valuables like passport, ID, cash, travelers checks, camera, inside. For me, some of the biggest "valuables" are my bike tools. Try to find Park tools in east Berzerkistan. Here in the USA, bike is never outside alone. I wheel it into stores. Any hassle? I find another store and let the manager know on the way out. Fortunately, my town and local businesses are increasingly bike friendly.

EDIT: I have a 20" wheel folding bike. I bought it for easier transport, and theft resistance. It gives up nothing to a normal bike except that it is heavier. I even have full panniers, I may tour with it. That also makes multimode transport easier, and if needed, the bike can be stashed in a locker or trunk that is (guessing) about 3' tall x 3' deep by 1' width(? estimates).

Doug64

My wife and I consider our bikes as tools. If you can't do what you want while bike touring because of worry about your bike, the bike becomes an anchor. We were in a campground near Nidau Switzerland, and wanted to go to Grindelwald. It would have taken us 4 days round trip round trip on our bikes, so we decided the train would work. We locked our bikes to that fence, put our computer in one of the campground's lockers, placed the rest of our gear inside the tent, and walked 4 miles to the train station in Briel. We returned to camp 12 hours and 240 km. later. Everything was just like we left it. Would we have left it at the train station in Biel. No, that was a very different situation. Situational awareness is the most important thing. This was low risk .

greatscott

All I have ever done in years of camping is put the panniers inside the tent and lock the bike to the table. Most people don't want used camping gear, that stuff won't sell well either. Heck if they were that hard up they would just take your tent. I've never heard of a camper getting their stuff stolen in my entire life of camping, maybe someone else here has?

Happy Feet

Yes I have. Theft in Provincial and Federal campgrounds is a thing. Often people looking for booze or easy to steal stuff left out at night.

There is this assumption that thieves are all one variety or use some sort of intelligent judgement as to what they take. They come in all sizes. Some thieves are looking for specific items to steal, some just look for targets of opportunity and some are drunk and looking for a joyride.

There is also a balance between being foolishly optimistic and paranoid and as others have said, situational awareness works best. Keep valuables in a removable personal bag, park in front of store windows, notify fellow campers if you are away, put stuff in the tent, put a bag or cover over your brooks saddle, don't park in sketchy areas, have a reasonable lock... pretty basic stuff. You can't stop a determined thief but those things help prevent casual thefts from developing.

I converted a small personal alarm (sometimes called a panic or (r)ape alarm) into a bike alarm by securing it to my rack and extending the pull cord around my rear tire. If someone tries to move the bike it emits a 130db peal. Takes 15 seconds to apply.

boomhauer

Great idea!!!

Happy Feet

I'll post a pic later today to show how it works.

djb

hint everyone, turn your speakers waaaaaay down when he does....

greatscott

Another vote for seeing this and how it works, thanks

Happy Feet

Here it is. The idea came from wondering how to make a low tech car alarm for a bike.

This is the personal panic alarm I bought off Amazon for about $14. It works by pulling the cord which pulls a key out of the unit activating the alarm. It can't be shut off unless you plug the key back in. To it I glued some velcro for securing around my bike and another strip to secure the cord to my tire.




For the pic I have it secured to the seat tube but on tour I fasten it under the saddle bag out of sight (there's a strap loop on the bag). When I lock the bike I just undo and refasten the velcro around the tire with no slack. If someone moves the bike it pulls the key. My bike is black and the cord blends in so it would take a bit of time to figure out where the noise was coming from or how to silence it. I also remove the chain from the chain ring so someone can't just ride away quickly.

greatscott

Very interesting. Of course your banking that someone won't realize that there is an odd strap around the tire, if a half way smart person saw that they would simply just undo the velcro on both sides and toss the thing. But it has peaked my interest; can you show the Amazon site where you got it? thanks.

greatscott

by the way Happy Feet, is that unit a pull pin or a ripcord activated alarm?

J.Higgins 

Especially @jefnvk 's underwear!