New to cycle touring need help

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
bigal999
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Joined: 19 Jul 2018, 11:09pm

New to cycle touring need help

Post by bigal999 »

Hi after starting to ride again I have found cycling is helping me so much with my depression but I want to have a go at touring and camping.
Been looking at so many sites to decide on the gear I need.
I have already brought a Dawes horizon bike and a brooks saddle we are still getting to know each other but every day gets better.
Looking to do my first trip next June.
I do not have a great deal of cash as I have been unable to with for the last 10 years.
I am so confused by the choice of equipment available .I can not afford the best gear but could some one give me a list of affordable but good items that work for them.
I am 64 years old and only desision I have made so far is I want a one wheel trailer and rear panniers but as to which ones still not sure.
Al
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NATURAL ANKLING
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by NATURAL ANKLING »

Hi,
I started back to cycling after a long layoff, just put on some panniers and went off for a night.
If the bikes a goodun then buy a decent rack with wings so panniers don't hit the spokes at back.
Or just buy a good rack and keep it for next steed, sling something over the rack and go for a trundle.
Its still mild so you won't get cold.

viewtopic.php?f=42&t=124397#p1264597
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irc
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by irc »

I'd think about whether a trailer is needed. The vast majority of tourers use either panniers or frame bags. A trailer is more weight and expense.

There are sometimes second hand deals but for new gear Decathlon is worth a look. For example

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/trek-900-1p ... 92462.html

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/trek-500-5- ... 03640.html

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/500-waterpr ... 85330.html
Vorpal
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by Vorpal »

This thread

viewtopic.php?f=42&t=124397

May have something useful in it for you.

There are a couple of kit lists in toot good to lose.

viewtopic.php?f=42&t=85590
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=48438
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
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crazydave789
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by crazydave789 »

ebay ebay and more ebay as people shed kit over the winter months there should be some good deals to be had. even some new kit doesn't have to be expensive.

good sized rear panniers, bar bag and a dry bag, rack pack or waterproof rucsack will see you through most things. as I posted elsewhere the chris boardman panniers on ebay are a steal at under a tenner each. you will probably need the equivalent of 70l or so but in summer you can get away with less.

shoes, clothing, camping kit just hunt around and bide your time

plenty to watch on you tube about what to take and why. plus advice on here.
ANTONISH
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by ANTONISH »

Cycle jumbles can be a good source of secondhand kit.
yutkoxpo
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by yutkoxpo »

bigal999 wrote:Hi after starting to ride again I have found cycling is helping me so much with my depression but I want to have a go at touring and camping.


First of all, well done!
bigal999 wrote:Been looking at so many sites to decide on the gear I need.

I do not have a great deal of cash as I have been unable to with for the last 10 years.
I am so confused by the choice of equipment available .
I can not afford the best gear but could some one give me a list of affordable but good items that work for them.


@Vorpal gave you a good thread to read. Lots of useful information in there.
As for the gear..... what I always say is to give it a try with whatever gear you can scrounge or get cheaply - especially if you don't have any cash to waste.
What works for me, may not work for you. It really is as simple as that. The best way is to figure it out for yourself by trial and error.
There's huge amounts of information on blogs, on youtube etc., but not all of it is impartial.

A good place to do quality research is on CrazyGuyOnaBike.com. Check out the Journals - written by cycle tourers for cycle tourers. You can see journals for trips that you want to take and see what gear people are using. Often, they will include what was good, what wasn't. You can figure out yourself if it applies to you. And it can be very inspirational! :D

bigal999 wrote:I am 64 years old and only desision I have made so far is I want a one wheel trailer and rear panniers but as to which ones still not sure.
Al

Which trailer? You should think about what you want to carry, how far you want to carry it and on what kind of surfaces. You'd also want to consider if you want to bring the bike/trailer on planes or trains.

If you haven't toured before, I'd strongly suggest you take some day rides, carrying food and maybe a little stove to brew a cuppa or at least a flask of hot water. Try some overnight trips staying with friends/family or sign up to Warmshowers. You don't need to camp in the beginning, if you don't want to or are not ready - Winter is coming! Get a feel for what kind of touring you want to do. That might be relatively light, fast, long distance, or heavy and slower. It might be visiting cities, museums etc, or it might be out in the middle of nowhere. That'll help you figure out your priorities when it comes to the gear that you want or need (and there's often a big difference! :D )

My own experience, I went from a supported cycle tour (bags carried form hotel to hotel! :oops: ), to self- supported from hotel to hotel, to camping. Camping for me was a necessity - I just couldn't afford hotels or B&Bs - but I have loved it! I'm probably less of a cycle tourer now and more of a cycle camper.

It's very easy to get bogged down in the gear..... I suggest hopping on the bike and getting out there. Your gear requirements will fall into place according to what works for you.

Best of luck!
simonhill
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by simonhill »

Partly following on from Hobbes above, may I be iconoclastic and suggest NOT camping.

I know many tourers consider camping to be an integral part of cycle touring, but it isn't compulsory.

A few points. I'm not asking for answers, but giving a bit of food for thought.

Have you camped recently? Are you sure you will enjoy it?

As you don't have any gear you will need to spend a fair bit of money getting kitted out. The better quality you get, ie lightweight, the more it will cost. Poor quality gear may seem a bargain, but will be heavy and bulky and may not work very well.

At the age of 64, how much longer will you be camping. Lightweight camping is a very bum and knee based occupation and involves lots of unpacking, pitching, repacking, etc every evening and morning.

Your bike will be much lighter without camping gear and be easier to ride greater distances and suffer less wear and tear.

With the money saved you could probably afford to stay in budget hotels, b&bs or hostels. If going outside school holidays and with the use of the internet you can find reasonably priced places. This obviously depends on how long you will be touring for, but I don't get the impression you are planning on very long tours.

Lovely as it is to sit outside your tent on a balmy night watching the sun set, it is also very appealing to check into even a budget hotel on a cold, wet June evening.

Just a thought.
PH
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by PH »

I went from YHA touring to camping when it became almost impossible to string enough hostels together to make a week, so about twenty years ago.
I wasn't sure I'd like carrying all that extra weight, so restricted my budget to the cost of 10 nights hosteling with the idea of getting my monies worth by using it for 10 nights then if I didn't like it I could give it away and nothing lost.
£100 bought me - Coleman dome tent, foam mat, Argos sleeping bag, camping Gaz cooker and pan, Ebay panniers.
What a bargain, I used all of this kit for about 30 nights and it all functioned fine. I then went on a spending spree and replaced it all with top quality kit as around six times the price, that's mostly proved to be good value, though it took me a few goes to find the sleep kit that best suites me.
My advice - buy cheap and give it a go, learn what suites you and upgrade as the opportunity arises, if you find your kit limiting plan within those limits. Have fun
nirakaro
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by nirakaro »

I wouldn't disagree with any of what Simon says, but just to put the other side of the argument –
The main downside for me of this summer's tour around the Balkans, Greece and southern Italy was the general absence of campsites - most nights I was booking a room, and I got really tired of looking at four walls all evening. I'm seventy, and I still much prefer to camp, most nights.
And I think most of Simon's touring is in Asia, where accommodation may be cheaper. In Europe you'll rarely find a room for much less than thirty quid, so budget camping gear will pay for itself pretty fast.
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by Vorpal »

simonhill wrote:Partly following on from Hobbes above, may I be iconoclastic and suggest NOT camping.

I know many tourers consider camping to be an integral part of cycle touring, but it isn't compulsory.

A few points. I'm not asking for answers, but giving a bit of food for thought.

Have you camped recently? Are you sure you will enjoy it?

As you don't have any gear you will need to spend a fair bit of money getting kitted out. The better quality you get, ie lightweight, the more it will cost. Poor quality gear may seem a bargain, but will be heavy and bulky and may not work very well.

At the age of 64, how much longer will you be camping. Lightweight camping is a very bum and knee based occupation and involves lots of unpacking, pitching, repacking, etc every evening and morning.

Your bike will be much lighter without camping gear and be easier to ride greater distances and suffer less wear and tear.

With the money saved you could probably afford to stay in budget hotels, b&bs or hostels. If going outside school holidays and with the use of the internet you can find reasonably priced places. This obviously depends on how long you will be touring for, but I don't get the impression you are planning on very long tours.

Lovely as it is to sit outside your tent on a balmy night watching the sun set, it is also very appealing to check into even a budget hotel on a cold, wet June evening.

Just a thought.

The OP said they don't have much money. It's possible to get used equipment, or borrow from friends for camping, but without much money, the only realistic alternatives are warm showers, or couch surfing, or something.

As for the weight, it only saves as much as a person feels up to carrying. Camping doesn't have to be anything more than a bivvy bag.

When I was teenager, my brother and I got a used two person back-packing tent that had gotten a bit of mildew. It was free from someone who had replaced it. It was a good tent for the time, but it had lost some of it water proofing, so we got some stuff from an army surplus place and water-proofed the fly, then carried an extra ground cloth. It worked well for us for several years, at least.

I've bought most of my camping stuff used, including a tent I got off someone on this forum. Although I also have bought a new (and expensive) tent, I have been camping with stuff that altogether cost me about as much as a couple of nights in a budget hotel or rural B&B. And of course, it can be used at least for several seasons, if it is looked after well.

The other advantage of camping, if one can wild camp, or find quiet places, is not having to deal with people. Sometimes, I'd rather talk to trees than humans ;)
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
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mjr
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by mjr »

bigal999 wrote:I am so confused by the choice of equipment available .I can not afford the best gear but could some one give me a list of affordable but good items that work for them.
I am 64 years old and only desision I have made so far is I want a one wheel trailer and rear panniers but as to which ones still not sure.

Ortleib seem to be the best panniers, but IMO Basil are pretty much the definition of "affordable but good". They're mass-market enough that they're often on sale somewhere, if you're not too fussy whether you have (for example) one exact model of Mara panniers. I'd use cheap dry bags (The Range sells a pack three different sizes for £7) to organise/compress the contents and as extra defence against rain.

If price is a priority, are panniers and trailer the best way? My last two short tours (hostels and hotels - not camping), I've used a converted large Highlander haversack as a saddlebag, a no-brand military compression bag as a tail roll and a cheap triple bar bag, plus rain covers, rather than panniers.

nirakaro wrote:In Europe you'll rarely find a room for much less than thirty quid, so budget camping gear will pay for itself pretty fast.

Does it depend what part of Europe? In some places, campsites seem little cheaper than guesthouses or hostels.
MJR, mostly pedalling 3-speed roadsters. KL+West Norfolk BUG incl social easy rides http://www.klwnbug.co.uk
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crazydave789
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by crazydave789 »

to the OP, you haven't given us an idea of where you are - that might help because certainly I'd be happy lending you spare gear to get you out or try different things if you are in my area.
bigal999
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by bigal999 »

Hi everyone thanks for all the replies I live in the north east of England in Stockton on Tees.
I have a budget of around 300 to 400 pounds so I am not on that tight a budget. I already have the bike and rear panniers rack.
I intend to do short trips of 3 days several times a year with one 2 week trip in a year.
I reckon I have around 7 to 10 years left in me to do the camping.
I plan a long 4 week trip when I reach 66 to mark becoming a pensioner. I would like to try France to as far as I can go on that one.
I want the solitude of being alone camping that's when I feel my best. At-home i have a supportive family but just nice to get away for some time alone.
The reason for the trailer is I am ok on the bike and have done trips up to 30 miles in a day a few times. But I have to lean the bike over to 45 degrees to get leg over the saddle with panniers on this might get a bit hard to do.
Al
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Re: New to cycle touring need help

Post by ossie »

bigal999 wrote:I want the solitude of being alone camping that's when I feel my best. At-home i have a supportive family but just nice to get away for some time alone.


Trust me my friend I'm with you on this...lovely family, beautiful house, great family holidays but getting away from everything on a bicycle with a tent is my medicine, its almost like a drug.

If you can make it to France you will find a multitude of municipal camp sites that are so quiet and cheap you wonder how they even manage to exist. They are almost knitted into the local community and are simply a part of life. Often you will be the only camper and the solidarity you crave is second to none. That said I've also had similar UK experiences but its not a given as it is in France.

Many (if not most) are listed on here http://www.archiescampings.eu/ where you can download the site locations on your phone / garmin etc. That site as well as https://cycle.travel/ are two my absolute touring essentials.

Best of luck
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