TXChick

What made you decide to take it? How far did you go? What kind of bike did you ride? What did you learn to do differently?

I think it would be awesome, but I have no idea how to begin planning for such a thing!

climbhoser

The majority of my touring has been by mountain bike. I got into mountain biking when I was about 13 or 14. Growing up in Colorado Springs, CO right on the west side I had out-my-back-door access to what I consider the country's most extensive and amazing selection of singletrack. It might not be the best freeride stuff, and Durango and Moab come in very close as being as good, but I think the amount of singletrack above C. Springs is unrivaled in quantity and quality.

Anyhoo, I used to put some serious mileage in on that singletrack on weekends and weekdays in the summers. I loved just getting lost and having 60+ miles on pure singletrack...full 12 hour days!

One day I got the bright idea that I could step it up a notch (I was 15) and do an overnighter. So, I bungeed some gear wherever I could and put the rest in a backpack and just went. Went from my backdoor to Cripple Creek, riding 30 miles of the way on singletrack. Outside of town I pitched a tarp, had a small fire, and ate half a jar of peanut butter and 4 or so packets of Ramen along with some Power Bars. No sleeping pad I had a pretty rough nights sleep, especially since the ground gets so cold at night when you're at altitude like that. Day 2 I MTB'd to the top of a 13,000' mountain called The Almagre (aka Baldy) and descended to home.

Edited to add:

RE: getting started- I think the hardest thing to figure out is how to get all your gear on your bike. My first tour had my sleeping bag bungeed to my handlebar and a large seatbag with as much stuff as I could fit in it, including my emergency tire repair kit, chain tool and links, spoke wrench, allen wrenches, etc... The rest was in my backpack, like food and tarp and extra clothing. The backpack sucked. I used it for my MTB touring, as I had a FS and no good way of doing it otherwise, but I never realized how much better it can be with racks, panniers, etc...until college.

Get that figured out, and the expenses, and you're cool. Best thing is to remain open ended about your goals at first. Plan a trip to Caprock Canyons (my sales territory is N. TX) or something, and allow four days. You might only take 2, but 4 days allows for some variables. Stop at restaurants now and again (food is heavy, as is water). Take your credit card.

Most of it comes from trial and error.

When I started I had grown up backpacking and camping, so lots of the ideas and things I took came directly from that. I had the pots and pans, the knowledge for starting a fire (stoves are better in dry country, and legal, but I was young), knowledge of weather and clothing needs, etc...Remember, it's just camping by bike!

Creature comforts like Crazy Creek chairs and coffee cookers you'll figure out later, as well as quick&dirty dinner recipes for tasty treats. Just go camping!

It was pretty sweet. I got into it and started doing a few overnighters a year just to go see some places.

I did a few week long rides on pavement in college and had lots of fun, but nothing has compared to those singletrack outings. One day I'll return to them!

I'm planning a couple of overnighters this year, on pavement, one from my house to the top of Mt. Evans-the highest paved road in N. America...if all goes well I'll do Pikes Peak next year, which has a road, but it is not paved all the way, and is MUCH further from my house. That should bring my road touring to a meetingplace with my mountain touring, and should be lots of fun!

SRS

First tour - age 14 (or 13 - a long, long time ago...). I don't remember who had the idea - friends or me - but wherever it came from it sounded like fun; a big adventure. We spent a long time planning - maybe a day - and then strapped borrowed gear to our 10 speed bikes and headed into the vast unknown. At that time in history that equated to about 40-50 miles one way over the rolling hills of CT. We learned a lot about what not to do. For one person it was no more bike touring. For me, it was just the opposite. I've loved cycling - short or long distance - for many decades. I've met wonderful folks, seen beautiful scenery and wouldn't trade a day of my tours for anything else ... even the challenging days.

How to begin? There is a wealth of information here in the touring archives. Read what you can, borrow some gear, get on a bike and head out for a short (2 or 3 day) tour. You'll learn a lot and be able to read the information provided in this forum (and elsewhere) with greater understanding and clarity. Explore. Experiment. You'll make mistakes. It's not a problem. It's all part of the big adventure. And, someday, people will be asking you, "how do you do it? I wouldn't know where to begin..."

paul2

I published comic books, and I decided I wanted to cycle from my business partner's place to the convention in san Diego.
San Francisco to San Diego.
Trek 520.
Learn to use my stove before the tour starts.

Ken in NJ

Get some bicycle maps. Even if you want to make your own route most of the way, it's good to have a map with recommended cycling routes if you find yourself on a highway with much heavier traffic than you were anticipating.

Check the ferry schedule before you leave home, if there is a ferry crossing on your route. It's no fun to find out that the ferry only runs June 15-September 15 if you arrive at the landing on June 3rd.

Speedo

My fiance (now wife) and I took a trip in the UK. Started near London and ended in Scotland. She had done a two week tour of Ireland already, and I was a history buff, so it seemed like a good idea.

We rode touring specific bikes. No problems with those.

I look back on the trip fondly, but while we were in the midst of it I was in survival mode. I was totally unprepared for the effect that day after day of rain would have on my mood. It rained 21 of the 23 days we were there. It wasn't raining constantly, but 21 of the 23 days we were riding, we got wet. The funny thing is that my wife, an experienced tourist, was okay with the rain at first. While I melted down she remained upbeat. I went into survival mode, and got to the point where I was tolerating the rain. About 14 days in she reached her limit. I was already in survival mode, so I was trying to help her spirits while she had her meltdown.

As I said, we both look back on the trip fondly. Go figure.

Speedo

TXChick

So...where do you sleep? Do you find a campground?

Machka 

Yes, usually. Or a hostel. Or sometimes, if those options are not available, just a quiet out-of-the-way spot in a location where I'm not trespassing, not likely to disturb anyone, and not likely to be disturbed.

Machka 

My first tour would have probably been a 4 day trip from Jasper to Banff in 1995, with my now-ex husband sagging for me.

I did the ride because 11 years earlier, when I was 17, my father did the same ride, with me and my family sagging for him, and I really, really wanted to do it myself. It only took me 11 years to get around to it.

Jasper to Banff is about 300 kms, I rode 3 of the 4 days.

My bicycle was a department store road bicycle, a Venture.

I had a blast on that ride ... it really motivated me to increase the distances I was riding ... I can't really think of what I would do differently, except maybe not using my now-ex husband as sag support. And I've followed through on that decision on all my subsequent tours.

Have a look at my website: www.machka.net for some of my tours. I'm working on getting them all on my site, but my European tour in 2007 is all there: https://www.machka.net/pbp2007/2007_PBP.htm and this page talks about the stuff I brought with me: https://www.machka.net/pbp2007/2007_PBPTouringGear.htm

Also have a look at the "sticky" in this forum called Our Websites, Blogs, etc. There is lots of info available.

I'd recommend getting an inexpensive pannier set, and borrowing a friend's tent and some gear, and just going out for a weekend tour to a local campground maybe 50-80 kms away. That's a decent way to start ... it gives you an idea of what you need and don't need out without spending a fortune on it.

BengeBoy 

My first bike tour was in Texas Hill Country. I'd highly recommend it as a location for a first tour, given that you're in Amarillo.

Get thee to Fredericksburg or Johnson City or Kerrville. Find a place to leave your car. Get some detailed county maps of the farm-to-market roads in the Hill Country; plan some loops from town to town or even just out into the country and back to town each night. You can go from motel to motel your first tour if you'd like, or try camping a night or two.

You can ride hundreds of miles in Hill Country and never see the same thing twice.

If you're going from motel to motel, you don't need to carry as much on your bike, so you don't necessarily need an all-out touring bike.

What did I learn on that trip? Just 'cause buzzards are circling over you while you climb a hill doesn't mean you're actually going to die.

I think a couple of commercial companies take tours through the Hill Country; if you can find their websites you can get inspiration/ideas from their schedules. Have fun!

BigBlueToe

I was in college and very poor. I had a Raleigh Gran Prix (about 1970) 10-speed that my parents bought me for riding to school and back. It had a Pletscher rack on the back (from a department store) that I used to carry my books to school, or stuff home when I went shopping. It had 27 X 1 1/4" tires that pumped up to 80 lbs. - very high pressure I thought!

I don't know exactly how I got the idea to try bike touring. When I was in junior high my high school aged brother and a friend strapped sleeping bags on their 10- speeds, rode about 70 miles to a state park, slept under a picnic table, and rode home the next day. I was impressed! When I was in high school a friend's little brother was among a group of junior high kids from Mercer Island, Washington ("The Cyclemates") who rode across the country with one of their teachers. It sounded like a wonderful adventure!

When I decided to go touring I had very limited funds. I bought some pack cloth and sewed some panniers for the rear rack. I had an old single-wall nylon pup tent and a cheap sleeping bag. I bought a blue foam sleeping pad. I bought an antique floor pump from a 2nd hand store and strapped that on. I suspended the sleeping bag between the drops on my handlebars with nylon string and put everything else on the back. I ate miscellaneous food from grocery stores - canned tuna, bananas, beef jerkey. For dinner I had canned corn and canned beef stew. I made a fire, opened the cans with my army surplus can opener, and cooked them in the fire.

I stealth camped because paying the campground fees would have put a big strain on my budget. I'd usually go to the picnic area of a state park, wait until dark, then spread my sleeping pad and sleeping bag out on a flat space and go to sleep. If I was just out in the woods - not in a park - I'd use my tent.

I remember my first two trips, but I can't remember which was first. One was up Whidbey Island from Seattle to Bellingham. The other was from Bellingham up to Lake Alouette in British Columbia. I had a wonderful time on both trips and fell in love with bicycle touring!

What did you learn to do differently?

Since then my economic situation has improved considerably. I've gone from a poor, hippie, college student to a respectable member of the middle class! When I finally had enough funds, I bought a touring bike with a triple chainring. It had 21 speeds, 36h wheels, bar end shifters, and braze-ons for front and rear racks. I bought some panniers from REI - front and rear - and a matching handlebar bag, a frame pump, a backpacking stove, pots, a new tent, new sleeping bag, and a Thermarest.

My first big tour after I bought all that stuff was a 4-week tour down the west coast. It was sure nice to have the low gears for going up hills, and the front and rear panniers were a huge improvement. Unfortunately, not all of the stuff I bought was as light as it could be, and I had a big problem with broken spokes.

On that tour I camped in campgrounds and paid every night (except for two nights in a motel in Brookings, Oregon.) But the hiker/biker sites in Oregon and California (and Washington at that time) made paying for camping no big deal - especially since you didn't need reservations at hiker/biker sites.

Since then I've continued to refine my equipment list. This fall I bought a new bike - a Surly LHT - and will be taking it on it's first tour soon. I upgraded my panniers and handlebar bag to go with the new bike (Ortlieb Classic Rollers). I've bought more than one sleeping pad to try and find the perfect combination of lightweight and comfort, and I'm on my 3rd new tent since the one I took on that west coast tour. (I'm 6'4" so it's hard to find something that's both light and long enough - and doesn't leak.) I'm always looking at new saddles, handlebars, racks, water carriers, filters, titanium cookware, etc. I buy some of it here and there to try. I've got shelves in my greenhouse for bike stuff that are filling up with things that I rejected or no longer use.

It's a lot cheaper than tinkering with old cars or boats (or airplanes!)

I always enjoyed bike touring - even in those early days. I know I'm a lot more comfortable now, I eat better, and I'm more confident that I can deal with any problems. But I wish I had those 20-year-old legs again!

climbhoser

We've always just wound our way back on some side streets until we find what looks like an out of the way place. I've never paid for camping or a hotel when bike touring, but I've never done longer than a week, either.

If you plan well you can find state parks on your route (those were always my goal) and duck in and camp out of the way of the rangers...it's no biggie.

I've also used farmland that wasn't fenced and just popped a tent in pulloffs on the side of the road, even rest stops. They aren't the best or most comfortable, not like agood campsite, but they work in a pinch.

TXChick

I actually already own a tent and sleeping bag and some basic supplies. I love camping, I've just never considered doing it with a bike. We also have a state park nearby.

cyclemanic

[/QUOTE]My first tour would have probably been a 4 day trip from Jasper to Banff in 1995, with my now-ex husband sagging for meQUOTE].

Wow, what a place to do a first tour Machka, no wonder you love touring so much, this is a stunning ride.

TXChick

Indeed, I love the hill country! We used to go camping at the state park in Kerrville every year--for about 15 years! Did you live there at the time or what? Did you drive your bike there?

I have to admit seeing buzzards has made me nervous in my car from time to time.

cyclemanic

ok just trying to figure out how to quote

BengeBoy 

I was living in Dallas. I had a friend who lived in Austin who somehow got a bunch of detailed maps of Hill Country roads. We took our bikes to Johnson City, and, as I recall, left our car at the police department for the week, and just took off. We didn't plan it bunch...we just took big loops every day on our way to where we were going -- Enchanted Rock, Fredericksburg, Kerrville, Luckenbach, Blanco, Boerne, etc. All good.