The ultimate packing list

[WalterT]

Right, this is going to be a long post, so grab a beer and a bag of popcorn and settle down :-).

 

To start off: contrary to the title, there is no such thing as an “ultimate” packing list, for the simple reason that there are a huge amount of different types and lengths of and physical requirements for trips (a 4 week overland though eastern Siberia does have some different requirements than a long weekend through the Alps). And second: we are all very different (like snowflakes, I am told). Practically, this simply means that we think different about certain items we consider necessary or luxury, how much we want to be prepared for eventualities, and whether we buy the most expensive stuff sold to us on YouTube videos or find pride in hacking together our kit from dollar-store items.

 

The packing list below is therefore my current personal optimum for a two week camping holiday in southern Spain, planned for the end of May 2020. If my destination changes, the time of year or my plans for cooking and overnighting, the entire list (or large portions of it) may change.

 

I do as a general rule optimise in weight and volume. Weight for a relatively simple reason: too much reduces handling, puts more stress on the frame and suspension. Increased volume (bulk) causes the weight to be distributed less and less optimally. So the same weight in less volume is preferable. This means partially smaller items, but also items which allow more efficient packing.

 

As I plan to do off-pavement riding, I will opt for soft panniers for riding / crash safety. We won’t be spending time in major cities, so theft is less of a concern.

 

Tent & Sleeping gear (all the stuff you can leave at home when overnighting in hotels or similar)

• Big Agnes fly creek UL2 bike packing tent. Just under a kilo (2lb 5oz) and packs down really small due to its short poles. It gives me enough room to sleep in with my riding gear and bags.
• Cumulus Lite line 200 down sleeping bag (+6 comfort temperature). ±350 grams
• Thermarest Uberlite sleeping mat (regular). 240 grams and the size of a can of coke.
• Rab sleeping bag liner 100 gr. Keeps the bag clean an adds about 2 degrees in cold weather. When it’s hot I’ll sleep in it and use the sleeping bag as a duvet, making it a flexible combination.
• Pillow Sea to summit Aeros premium pillow 80 gr

 

Cooking system

• Soto Amicus burner
• Toaks 750 ml titanium pot
• Jetboil coffee press (30 gr)
• Gas canister stand
• 100 gr gas canister + 230 gram reserve
• Lighter, sponge (not Bob), small towel
• wooden spoon (diy, another hobby of mine) I think sporks are a neat idea, but worthless in practice
• Small knife
• Gerber dime mini multitool (not really part of the cooking system, but due to its size I carry it in the pot)
• Cup

Everything except the additional cup and extra gas canister fits inside the titanium pot. This is an ultralight and ultracompact system. It does mean however that it’s best suited for just heating water. If you want to cook pasta or rice for 2 persons, the pot is too small.

 

Clothing (non-riding gear)

• 1 pair of summer zip-off outdoor trousers (Fjallraven)
• 1 Cumulus Acomay down jacket (packs really small)
• 2 Icebreaker merino t-shirts, 1 short sleeve, 1 long sleeve
• 2 pairs of underpants (longshorts) merino, icebreaker
• 1 pair of slippers (Decathlon)
• 1 pair of ultralight shoes
• Rev’it rain trousers & rain jacket (I prefer these above the inner water resistant layers. If it rains, you’re stuck with a thoroughly wet outer shell which you don’t want inside your tent if you can avoid it. The wet rain jacked & trousers you can leave in the vestibule if necessary.

 

Toiletries

• Toothpaste & brush
• Hair shaper (yes, I an slightly vain - baldies have an advantage here, but will require a hat or more sunscreen)
• Alcohol based hand cleanser
• Contact lenses
• Toilet paper
• Wet baby wipes
• Contact lenses
• Soap leaves
• Sunscreen
• Sunglasses

While I probably take the same items as most people, I do take only amounts what I’ll need during two weeks. 15 ml of toothpaste, a small travel toothbrush (alternatively cut off half a normal brush), mini 50 ml deodorant. You can buy small fillable tubes or plastic bottles in the size you need. You’ll be amazed at the difference in weight and particularly size you can achieve by bringing just what you need.

 

First aid

We’re still in Europe, with telephone reception and shops in every town, so its just the convenient and essentials

• Plasters,
• quick-bandage,
• disinfectant,
• pincer,
• tick removal tool,
• Paracetamol and/or ibuprofen

When doing an overland in less civilised countries, this list will be significantly expanded, but that is something for an entirely different discussion thread.

 

Electronics

• Phone, mini charger and 5 cm cable
• 5500 mAh battery pack. During the day my phone is off. The power pack is charged during the day.
• 1 Gopro with, remote, 4 batteries and charger.
• Kobo e-reader to read something in the evenings.

 

Food

This is primarily meant so that we have something to eat when we run into a fantastic wild camping location, but haven’t done shopping yet, or in case we get into a fix.

• 1 expedition meal (just add water)
• 2 packets of Hardkeks (energy rich cookies. Alternatively powerbars)
• 250 grams of good Coffee (life becomes so much better when sitting at a remote campsite with a nice brew)

 

Luxury items

Only item I’m still thinking about is a chair. When I ride with hard luggage, the case acts as a chair. I’m now considering and ultralight camping chair (0,5 kg). Only downside is that it adds considerable bulk

 

Tools & supplies

I’m still getting to know the bike and what I need for service, and there is already a thread on tools developing, so I’m not going into that here.

 

All this packs down to about 40-45 liters and should weigh roughly 10-12 kilograms (I’ll put it on my scales when I’ve put everything together). Fits easily in two 27l bicycle bags which I plan to mount, with room to spare for food bought along the way.

 

That’s it! Looking forward to your comments, experiences, recommendations etc.

[Aleksandar13]

Thank you for sharing this.. Look forward to see it all packed... I'm also planing a trip next year and still haven't decided on luggage system. I will start doing my list and see how much capacity I need for 5 days of traveling through Europe. 

 

[WalterT]

I've started putting everything together as I'll be getting my belated Christmas presents this week (soft bags). Here are some pictures of the items listed in the first post: cooking set, tent/sleeping/clothes/misc., and rain gear, first aid and the packed cooking set.

[Rich TT]

1 hour ago, WalterT said:

I've started putting everything together as I'll be getting my belated Christmas presents this week (soft bags). Here are some pictures of the items listed in the first post: cooking set, tent/sleeping/clothes/misc., and rain gear, first aid and the packed cooking set.

Looks great and you obviously know your gear. Been looking up some of them including the tent. Amazingly small. Looking forward to the pics of everything on the bike

[Aleksandar13]

What soft bags are you using and what is their capacity? 

[WalterT]

52 minutes ago, Aleksandar13 said:

What soft bags are you using and what is their capacity? 

I've ordered the kriega set in the attached picture, without the saddle bag. Big bag on the right is 32l, small one 12l and then 2 X 1 gallon Rotopax tanks. This makes a very flexible setup: the water is ideal when camping wild in places where fresh water is limited, fuel only when this might be an issue (probable won't be using it for a while). I can mix and match with the hard panniers and put the 12l on the saddle if needed. So anything between 12l and about 60l in hard and soft configurations is possible.

 

Ordered the gear at allroadmoto.be. very enthusiastic guy running a garage & shop by himself. Very friendly and helpful, really recommend him (no affiliation of any kind).

 

@Rich TT I'll put up pictures when everything is in! The right mounting plate is not available yet and will be sent at the end of January. If you need any info on the items I use, just let me know. I've done a lot of lightweight hiking, so I have a bit of experience with different types of gear. Always happy to share!

 

Edited December 29, 2019 by WalterT
Typo

[nEEdLzZz]

awesome post, thanks for the breakdown.

the luggage system looks good. i'm also a fan of the kriega stuff...got a backpack and several US drybags..

 

but for the tenere i think i'd go with the enduristan saddlebags, since they seem to be really sturdy and i like the slim profile and the fact that you don't have to install a rack to be able to mount the bags (less weight und bulk).

[Aleksandar13]

3 hours ago, nEEdLzZz said:

awesome post, thanks for the breakdown.

the luggage system looks good. i'm also a fan of the kriega stuff...got a backpack and several US drybags..

 

but for the tenere i think i'd go with the enduristan saddlebags, since they seem to be really sturdy and i like the slim profile and the fact that you don't have to install a rack to be able to mount the bags (less weight und bulk).

Blizzard bags are on my list as well.... They seem to fit the bike amazingly well and are very good quality. 

[Rich TT]

2 minutes ago, Aleksandar13 said:

Blizzard bags are on my list as well.... They seem to fit the bike amazingly well and are very good quality. 

I'm thinking the same. They just look right without all the weight of aluminium boxes and associated racking and the extra width that comes with that and they look very practical and well made.

[Tvileren]

Thanks for sharing your setup.

Obviously well thought over 

 

Have you gotten around to pack it up yet?

 

On 12/30/2019 at 5:56 PM, Rich TT said:

I'm thinking the same. They just look right without all the weight of aluminium boxes and associated racking and the extra width that comes with that and they look very practical and well made.

I tried on the Blizzard XL on saturday in an attempt to make my choice more difficult, got the bike on tuesday).

I'd already made up my mind to get the Giant Loop Coyote, but got side stepped when I got on to talk with our resident Enduristan dealer in Norway. 

The XL fitted the lines of the T7 very well and didn't carry the bulk I thought it would. In addition it doesn't lie over the passenger seat and possibly hinder backwards movement like the GL might. If more space needed, it's just to get a rolltop and strap down as far back as possible.

 

Cheers Thomas

[Great Escape]

WalterT,  that's a really interesting list of gear,  I shall check out some of the items.  I'm leaning towards the Kriega OS base , as posted by James Eaton on the forum.  They leave room for a holdall,  like the Oxford Aqua,  to be strapped across the seat. The most useful thing I have found is to have lots of dry bags ...iv'e moved on from giant bin bags!! .  Got to say it's great to be discussing/planning , luggage,  trips etc as it gives us hope of better times ahead!!.   Cheers,  Steve 

[WalterT]

12 hours ago, Tvileren said:

Thanks for sharing your setup.

Obviously well thought over 

 

Have you gotten around to pack it up yet?

 

Thanks :-). I have put most of the gear into the Kriega bags a while ago (I'll attach a few pics) but with the pandemic haven't had the chance to go out and use it. Actually, a two week trip in Spain was finally cancelled last week, so we'll have to see when it'll get some use. In any case I'm ready to go at a moment's notice ;-).

 

The setup in the pics is the maximum, meant for longer trips with camping and limited fuel & water. Seems big, but it's easy to reduce based on the journey and terrain planned.

 

11 hours ago, Great Escape said:

WalterT,  that's a really interesting list of gear,  I shall check out some of the items.  I'm leaning towards the Kriega OS base , as posted by James Eaton on the forum.  They leave room for a holdall,  like the Oxford Aqua,  to be strapped across the seat. The most useful thing I have found is to have lots of dry bags ...iv'e moved on from giant bin bags!! .  Got to say it's great to be discussing/planning , luggage,  trips etc as it gives us hope of better times ahead!!.   Cheers,  Steve 

Thanks and indeed, Steve. No reason for not dreaming and it goes to show: don't make plans, but do. 

As for dry bags: I prefer one big one (like the inner bag of the Kriegas, as multiple smaller ones tend not to pack down very small/be more bulky.

 

[Noel McCutcheon]

@WalterT  ... leave some room for Coronavirus vaccine & 

 

[syntarx]

On 5/4/2020 at 9:51 PM, WalterT said:

Thanks :-). I have put most of the gear into the Kriega bags a while ago (I'll attach a few pics) but with the pandemic haven't had the chance to go out and use it. Actually, a two week trip in Spain was finally cancelled last week, so we'll have to see when it'll get some use. In any case I'm ready to go at a moment's notice ;-).

 

The setup in the pics is the maximum, meant for longer trips with camping and limited fuel & water. Seems big, but it's easy to reduce based on the journey and terrain planned.

 

Thanks and indeed, Steve. No reason for not dreaming and it goes to show: don't make plans, but do. 

As for dry bags: I prefer one big one (like the inner bag of the Kriegas, as multiple smaller ones tend not to pack down very small/be more bulky.

 

Looks awesome, especially the color matching Rotopax!