Bikepacking Trip With The Boys
Hey, Samba here writing about my first bikepacking trip experience.
I would always see our customers go on a bikepacking trip, but I actually never had the chance to do bike trips, so I’ve been waiting for this moment for so long., thanks to Swift Campout.
There was one problem, other than the fact that I’m an extreme noob for bikepacking. I didn’t have a single piece of camping equipment, so Ming, an experienced bikepacker/camper, took me to an outdoor gear shop.
I didn’t understand what I was even buying, but I decided to take most of Ming’s recommendations. I bought a sleeping bag, a stove and a foldable chair. I’ll be borrowing the tent and mattress from my coworker, so I should have everything I need now. I’m still a bit anxious though!
The bike I decided to ride for the trip is the Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross, which I ride daily. It’s got wide tire clearance and has enough rack mounts, so I think it’s a flawless bike!
And now, it’s time for my trip report.
Our captain for the trip is Ming. The crew for this trip consists of seven people, including Sub, our YouTube camera guy.
6:30 a.m.
We met up at Shinjuku station and took apart our bikes for rinkoing.
I’m use to loading bikes in cars, so I’m still awkward at rinkoing. I’ve done it a few times now, so I’m strating to get a hang of it. The Fairweather Bike Carry Bags are pretty easy to use, so that’s pretty helpful.
I’m using voile straps to fix the wheels on to the frame, in addition to the bungee cords that are included with the bike carry bag. It’s always a good idea to bring extra Voile Straps on a bikepacking trip.
Ming and Sub are rinko masters. They were quick to pack they’re bikes and I was more surprised by how small they could pack. Sub gave me a tip to remove all the bags from the bike after I packed everything up. Screw it, I’ll just carry it everything on.
We hopped on the bullet train at Shinjuku and headed to Kimitsu in the Chiba prefecture. We chose the seat on the very back, so were able to stash our bikes right behind us. It’s a really tiny space, so removing both wheels is a must.
Now, I just kickback, relax and enjoy the ride.
9:20 a.m.
We arrived to Kimitsu Station and rendezvoused with the other folks. We chatted for a bit, reassembled our bikes and talked about bikes before we started rolling.
Our friend Fu, who designs stuff for Crust, showed us a cool route to the camp site. We rode about 50km total.
The first few km were chill, but as soon as we entered the gravel path, I realized how tricky it is to control my bike with all the loads. I think I threw in too much stuff in the Swift Industries Zeigeist bag that I attached on the handlebar. I should have chosen a wider bar or should’ve had more weight distributed on the sides.
I think carrying a backpack like Ming is also a great way if you want to prioritize the handling of the bike.
The sun wasn’t out on this day, but it was still very humid and hot, so we had to cool ourselves down in this creek.
3:00 p.m.
Late lunch. Soba noodles with grated spicy Japanese radish to the side with some tempuras. Every meal tastes 10 times better after bike rides.
4:30 p.m.
We have arrived at our destination, Cappadocia Family Camp Site. Oh it feels so good! I was happy that we made it before sunset.
You can apparently see Mt. Fuji from this location on clear days.
This is the log of the route Fu showed us. 51km and 76m incline. I think it was the perfect route for people like me, who are not used to riding a crazy distance. Thanks Fu for the guide!
We set up our tents and headed to a near by grocery store for food. We didn’t bring any food with us, since we new that there will be a supermarket and a convenience store, near by.
Here’s what my bike looks, fully loaded. I was stoked that I was finally able to go bikepacking with the bike I usually ride.
Here are my camping equipments.
Tent, air mattress, sleeping bag, chari, tableware, stove, rainwear and a helmet. It turns out that I brought a perfect amount of stuff to enjoy camping.
I just love the Swift Industries Zeitgeist. I found this epic bone at the beach, so I used it as an accessory for the bag.
I’ve packed my bulkiest items with the tent and sleeping bag in the bar bag The chair fits too, but it’s a tight squeeze, so I tried wedging it between the rack and the bag.
To be honest, I totally misjudged the handlebar width (the inner width of the brackets is 400 mm), so my hands kept bumping into the bag the whole time I was riding. So embarrassing.
This is my set up for the front triangle. Frame pump, Fairweather Frame Bag SP, a Ritchey bottle and a rinko bag. Mounting the frame pump with a frame bag is tricky sometimes, but you can fit it by swapping the stock strap of the frame bag to a 6″ Voile strap.
I put mobile batteries, action camera, repair kits and tools in the frame bag. I put the ABC cage to stow the rinko bag, bag I wish I had just brought a bottle. The bag didn’t need to be here the whole time.
I stowed my cooking equipment, towels and change of clothes in my saddle bag and put my sandals in between the bag strap.
I’d like to say that the most useful thing of the trip was the Monstercross itself. It handled the 50km ride with a lot of load without a problem. I was saved by how smooth this thing rides, dozens of times throughout this trip.
This is what a beginner’s tent looks like. This type of tents are small, easy to carry and easy to set up. I don’t mind tight spaces, so this was great for me. That being said, I would like to get a larger tent because I couldn’t do anything else but to lay down when it was raining. Stay tuned for my upgrades!
Aaand here are some shots of my friends.
Sub rode his Ron’s Bike EVOO and brought his JMW tarp set up.
Fu’s Polyvalent. He’s a talented rider and knows a lot about all sorts of things.
With its low-tech bike, basket, Ultradynamico tires, and fishing rod, it’s oozing with style.
His basket actually snapped right when we were about to head home. What saved the day was the extra Voile Strap he’d brought along.
Sera’s Singular Cycles Gryphon with the Fairweather Fork Bag. He was apparently inspired by some bikepacker he saw on IG for the set up.
Vincent also rides a Singular. He shoved everything inside the Fairweather ADV. I guess you only need one bag for camping.haha
Captain Ming’s Crust Derecho. Ming packed light on the bike and wore a bag on his back to carry most of the stuff. The bag he had on his bag is his signature bag that he designed, which he will be launching soon.
Evan’s blacked out Soma. I forgot to take a photo of his tent set up. Dang it! Evan often visits the Yoyogi Park Store. He’s got his own unique style on his bike.
Everything is so dialed in! His set up reminded me of special forces gear for some reason. Evan says he doesn’t like the feeling of a big saddlebag bag swaying left and right, so he kept it simple for the rear. He put most of his stuff on the front triangle of the bike.
I love that everybody has their own style of bikepacking.
I had so much fun!
The YouTube team edited this video for us, so please! Check it out!
Thanks for reading.
– Samba
