Loading the bike
 

When you're loading your bike for a tour, how do you pack your gear? What goes where and why?

i use rear panniers only /barbag .i usually put stuff in colored exped dry bags so as i know what's in what not much of a weight penalty ,in my barbag i carry radio/ paperwork/camera.snacks/money/medicine/.im going to try front pannier on my next trip i reckon i carry to much gear on the rear besides i never have any room for food stops.

Tent, sleeping bag, sleeping mat in two compression sacks on the rear rack. Cooking equipment, clothes, washing gear, two waterproof Vaude rear panniers. Maps, electronic stuff (chargers, phone, kindle etc), valuables, first aid kit and tools in one front pannier, wet weather gear, food and extra water in another. Load in front panniers varies depending on how much food/water I am carrying at any one time, always plenty of room for that bottle of wine and pound of peaches so favoured by bekologist. Rationale is merely to distribute weight about 70/30 back/front and keep the stuff that is most valuable, or to which I might need most rapid access, in the front panniers.

Different types of tours -- and tourers -- will require different gear setups. E.g. are you staying in hotels? Camping? Cooking your own food? Do you prefer to go light and take as little stuff as possible, or bring the kitchen sink?

Heavy stuff down low for handling. Stuff I won't need during the day down deep in the pannier. Rain gear and other items that I might want on short notice, on top.

Front panniers should weigh about the same, you do not want one front pannier to be significantly heavier than the other.

Tent poles do not fit in my panniers, they are strapped onto the rack. For convenience I wrap my thermarest around the pole bag.

Small multi-tool in pocket, not packed.

it goes on the bike so that it doesn't wiggle and jiggle independently of the bike.

Right pannier: Sleeping bag, stove and cookware, eating utensils, tins of food (if any) or small quantity of rice or lentils, rough weather gear. Sunscreen, soap, toothbrush and toothpaste in the rear pocket of the pannier or packed to keep them separate from the sleeping bag.

Left pannier: Clothing, netbook computer, lock, bandages, spare tubes and fuel canister for the stove in rear pocket of the pannier.

On top of rear rack: Foam mattress pad wrapped in a tarp.

On top of front rack: Tent, spare water bottles if needed.

Under seat: Small bag of tools and tire patches.

On frame: Three water bottles.

Handlebar bag: Wallet, keys, notebook, camera, snack food, matches, swiss army knife, water purification tablets, lip balm, light and rear blinkie for bike.

On handlebar: GPS unit.

The load may be adjusted slightly for better side-to-side balance. If I'm carrying fresh fruit for a snack, that will not go into the panniers. Instead, I'll have it in a small grocery bag and strapped on top of the rear load.

Front bags: Cooking gear and food. Basically if it has a high density, it goes in the front bags

Rear bags: Clothes. Rain gear and cold weather gear on one side. Riding clothes on the other. I pack all my clothes in ziplock bags to organize them (I use Ortlieb bags). Each day's riding clothes are packed individually so that I don't have to dig around to find them. Camp clothes are packed separately, as is foul weather gear.

Tent and sleeping bag/pad go on the rear rack. I use a Big Agnes bag and pad so it's one rather small package.

Camera and a few items go in the handlebar bag.

Tools, wallet, glasses and some snacks go in my Camelbak.

The key for me is doing it the same way each time I load the bike.... makes finding stuff easier. Not much fun searching for that one item and not having any idea where I'm going to start looking.

I pretty much know where everything is.... well at least what bag it's in. :)

As for balance... All my camping gear goes up front. Everything else goes out back. Small items and snacks go in the bar bag.

I don't know if I've ever seen two people pack the same. You will find what works best from much trial and error.

If you bring olive oil..... make sure it has a screw lid... :) Trust me.

As much as possible big bulky things go in the back and smaller denser things go in the front.

• The tent goes on top of the rear rack as do the Crocs.
• One rear pannier typically has the sleeping bag, sleeping pad, cloths line, and pillow.
• The other rear pannier has mostly clothing. If carrying hiking shoes (light trail runners) they go here too. The hiking shoes are only along if a lot of hiking is expected, like when we stopped for a week in Yosemite.
• Food might be in the top of either or both rear panniers.
• One front pannier has tools, spare parts, first aid kit, maps other than the ones currently in use.
• The other front pannier has stove and other cook and eating stuff, fuel, water filter, and toiletries.
• Lots of little things go in the handlebar bag including anything theft worthy and thing that I want to grab quickly.
• Things like a wind breaker or other clothing that I am likely to need during the day go under a pannier flap.
• Extra water goes under a flap in cool weather or in a pannier in hot weather. It gets extremely hot under a flap in hot weather and stays surprisingly cool in a pannier.

I find that this allows me to remember where things are and to find things that I need at the same time in mostly the same place.

Sleeping bag, tent, fly, and footprint in a compression sack on the rear rack and on top of the tent poles. Piece of blue foam on rack to prevent chafing. His in the right pannier, hers in the left. Most clothing not being worn in compressions sacks. Stove and cookkit in mine, bottom sheet and NeoAirs in hers. Tools, tubes, first aid, misc. small items in seat pack under captain's saddle and in frame bag. Taillight on rack, headlight on bars.

We are pretty loaded right now since we're on the road for so long and we have 4 people on only 3 bikes. so... I have 4 panniers and a trailer. My BOB is filled with my sleeping bag and pillows & clothes for me and the kids, along with other odds and ends. Our bag of winter clothese is strapped on my rear rack. My rear panniers are filled with food and toiletry-type stuff (shampoo, toothpaste, eyeglass cleaner, etc...) Front panniers are Kindles, fanny pack with money and credit cards, and other stuff we need easy access to throughout the day.

Suggestions for gear carrying are typically all over the map.

FWIW I suggest you just try a bunch of different arrangements, and test them on a loop that has some climbs, some descents and some turns. The weight of everyone's gear varies; different people like different fore/aft ratios; different people will use different racks with varying heights, and bags with different capacities.

The best packing algorithm is the one you can remember.

I've only been on a couple of short tours since re-taking up the touring game after a couple of decades out of the saddle, so I'm still learning my way around the packing process. But, seeing as you ask...

On rear rack - tent, sleeping bag (in compression sack), sleeping pad. Held in place by a combination of bungee cords and luggage net.


In bar bag - iPod, Camera, book, map, snacks, lunch, multi-tool, notepad and pencil.

In front panniers - spare clothes, food, cooking gear, plate etc. Split reasonably evenly.

In front pannier pockets - tool kit, pump, puncture repair stuff, spare tubes etc. Split reasonably evenly.

Water in 3 bottles on frame, and as necessary, strapped to back rack.

Here's how I reached part of my packing method.

1. If I stop somewhere and put my bike down, I'll lean it down on the left side to avoid getting grass and dirt in the drive train. Because of this, the less fragile items go in the left pannier. (The netbook is potentially fragile, but it's packed in the centre of the bag. Also, it has a solid state drive instead of a hard drive, which makes it a bit more durable than other portable computers.)

2. Because summer storms can come up in a hurry, it's a good idea to have the rough weather gear near the top of the clothing bag.

3. I like bears, but I don't want them in the tent with me. Therefore, it's a good idea to keep food and other smelly items separate. The only food I carry is either tinned or dried, but things like toothpaste are always kept in the same pannier, which will be stored outside if bears could be a problem.

4. The front-back balance doesn't mean nearly as much to me as the side to side balance. I've ridden with several front-back load splits and in the end, it doesn't make much difference to me. I know some here will speak highly of having most of the items in front, but it hasn't been a big deal for me at present.

5. Things in the handlebar bag should be things I'll either need to get at quickly or things valuable enough not to lose. If I'm going to take just one bag with me into a store, it will be my handlebar bag, so the most precious items should be in there. Also all bags should be packed so the items that will be needed fastest are easiest to reach.

My list is what has worked for me so far. It's a work in progress and it's subject to change. It's meant to be my guide, but not everyone will want to pack the same way, and that's completely fine.

I do pretty much the same as the others. Heavy, dense stuff in front; lighter, fluffier stuff in back. It's easier to access the front panniers since the tent and sleeping bag are on the back rack, so I put things in front that I will want to get to during the day without unpacking everything - my little gas bottle (I burn unleaded gas from the gas station) and a book/Kindle. I put my stove on one side in front and my cookware on the other. My stove is lighter than my cookware, so my bag of tools goes on the stove side.

I have a platform rack in front (Jandd.) My Big Agnes air mattress fits perfectly on the platform. My tour this summer took me through grizzly country, so I bought an Ursack and carried that on the platform as well.