UPDATE - went!!! Budget touring : seeking advice on equipment

[Old Blue]

Oh my goodness Bill, that is so generous. I can't believe how many lovely people there are on this forum - the community spirit is just wonderful. I don't think I would be half so eager to go if I hadn't had so much help and support from everyone.

Thank you for the link, that looks like it would work for the bar bag. I will send you a message about the tyres, etc.

[yutkoxpo]

Two failed tours to date but I'm gonna try an overnighter short trip soon to see how I get on. Good luck to you Old Blue.

Hi Vantage,
I don't mean to pry, but I wonder what constitutes a "failed" tour?
I read a lot of journals on CrazyGuy and sometimes see postings under the "disasters" categories. Sometimes they are genuine disasters such as a serious accident, but sometimes they are just, what could be called, "a challenge"

I've read of people having their bikes stolen, yet continuing. And I've read of people having an argument with their touring partner and going home. It reinforces what, in my mind, at least, is the important thing about touring - the right attitude.

For me, every tour is a preparation for the next one. If this one doesn't go well, I'll learn the lesson and the next one will be better. I think that if I described a tour as a "failure", I'd find it harder to get on the bike and go away the next time.

I've had several "failures" touring, but I'd never classify them as failures. In fact, they are often what I look back on with the strongest feelings of pleasure because I overcame the challenge. And they give me strength to plan more tours, longer tours and tours in new areas.

The best of luck in your tour!

[Vantage]

Hi HobbesOnTour

My first was started as the UK caught the tail end of Hurricane Bertha so the weather was knocking seven bells out of me soon as I was underway. I got about as far as Great Budworth on my way to Wales. By the time I got there, I was soaked and cold, the front panniers had been constantly trying to leave the crappy rack and the GPS had frozen and then lost all my planned tracks to my destination.
My anxiety got the better of me and I phoned my fiancee to pick me up at Warburton Bridge to go home. Felt like a failure for days afterwards.
My second attempt was to go to a campsite in Mytholmroyd and set off in glorious sunshine. Lots of climbing involved on a bike weighing about 90lbs loaded. Got to Todmorden and took a wrong turn up Doghouse Lane which was so steep I thought it was going to kill me. At the end of that I was back on the main road and a few miles later things started having a deja vu appearance. I'd only done a complete u turn of several steep miles.
Figured I'd had enough of climbing for the day and went home
I've since decided to start small and work my way up to bigger tours. My first cycle touring campsite being only about 5 miles from home

[yutkoxpo]

Hi HobbesOnTour

My first was started as the UK caught the tail end of Hurricane Bertha so the weather was knocking seven bells out of me soon as I was underway. I got about as far as Great Budworth on my way to Wales. By the time I got there, I was soaked and cold, the front panniers had been constantly trying to leave the crappy rack and the GPS had frozen and then lost all my planned tracks to my destination.
My anxiety got the better of me and I phoned my fiancee to pick me up at Warburton Bridge to go home. Felt like a failure for days afterwards.
My second attempt was to go to a campsite in Mytholmroyd and set off in glorious sunshine. Lots of climbing involved on a bike weighing about 90kg loaded. Got to Todmorden and took a wrong turn up Doghouse Lane which was so steep I thought it was going to kill me. At the end of that I was back on the main road and a few miles later things started having a deja vu appearance. I'd only done a complete u turn of several steep miles.
Figured I'd had enough of climbing for the day and went home
I've since decided to start small and work my way up to bigger tours. My first cycle touring campsite being only about 5 miles from home

Thanks for sharing! Where you see failures I see learning experiences! Was the GPS a Garmin by any chance? I toured lots before trying out a GPS. The Garmin touring I tried out would have driven me around the bend (literally & metaphorically) if I had let it!

I had a windy day, one time too. I was late leaving the campsite because the ground was so soft I had to help push a campervan and then a car/caravan out of the mud. So, late hitting the road, straight into a headwind with squally showers. Then a puncture! I thought I was never going to make it home! I always carry a stove (Trangia). It is genuinely amazing the restorative powers of being able to brew a cup of coffee. When something goes wrong, that's generally my first step!

I used to get lost so often that I changed my attitude. I may not know where I am. I may not know how to get to where I want to go. But I'm not lost. I'm exploring! Only if I need to be at my destination by a certain time do I feel "lost". And I try to avoid that situation as much as possible.
Handy hint; OSMand is a navigation app that can be used offline (once you have downloaded the relevant maps in advance). You can see where you are and plot a course to where you need to be, all offline. It also has very useful Points of interest so you can find alternative campsites to what you may have planned. If you do have a phone or wifi signal, you should be able to send it to your GPS device too. It can take all the stress out of getting lost - but removes a lot of the fun of exploring!

I've done the 5 mile campsite too! It's great for when I just want to get away. Here in NL, I have to give my name and address when registering - sometime I get a funny look

Fix the rack, check the weather forecast and you'll be ready for all the next trip can throw at you!
Good Luck!

[Vantage]

It was indeed a garmin. Etrex 20 that still works (ish) to this day.
It didn't occur to me at the time but several forumites here pointed out I could have used the mapping anyway...or the smart phone...or to bring a map. I'm useless with a map though. No sense of direction whatsoever. Hense the GPS

[yutkoxpo]

It was indeed a garmin. Etrex 20 that still works (ish) to this day.
It didn't occur to me at the time but several forumites here pointed out I could have used the mapping anyway...or the smart phone...or to bring a map. I'm useless with a map though. No sense of direction whatsoever. He se the GPS

You see, I'm of the opinion that having no sense of direction is an advantage in my hobby of bicycle exploring

[Vantage]

I can see how that works

[Sweep]

I have the etrex 20 vantage and find it excellent.

Very very rarely it does appear to lose things. They are usually still there but it can't see them. The answer is to connect it to a computer of pretty much any sort (i use a small chromebook), find the files on the garmin, take them off and then put them back on. Switching the garmin on and off in between steps. This forces it to reindex the files.

[bikerta]

I was on my JOGLE during Hurricane Bertha. 10 hours of cycling/walking in the heavy rain through Gretna and on to Lake District. Spent ages trying to get into a B & B in Lake District with no luck. Ended up at intended campsite to find they had camping pods. Unfortunately, the last one had been booked just 2 hours before. If I hadn't wasted time trying to get into a B & B I would have got the last pod.

Tent was still soaked from the morning pack up and with it being inner first,it got even wetter and then just let the rain in. Was sat in t shirt and shorts in puddles in the tent. Very low part of the journey. Ended up abandoning tent and sleeping in an ancient arm chair in the campers barn. Surprised to see the tent was still there the next morning. The very worst 24 hours of the trip, but also the part you remember the most. Tent soon dried in the strong winds the next morning along with my soggy waterproofs and good to go again. Mind you the climb up Kirkstone Pass and down the other side was very interesting in 70mph gusts. Spent the next night in a hostel!

[Old Blue]

Hurricane touring does not sound fun, though I admire the way you kept going!

I've just read this: https://tomsbiketrip.com/how-to-go-cycl ... ks-part-1/

and wish I had taken it to heart long ago. Until our finances tanked a few years back, I was under the completely incorrect impression that I needed only the best-reviewed,lightest "correct" gear or my tour wouldn't be at all enjoyable. Now I am far more appreciative of what I have and am enjoying finding solutions that don't involve large sums of money. This forum certainly has opened my eyes with the generous amount of information and kindness shown! I'm looking forward to the day when I can "pay it forward" to another cyclist who lacks basic equipment but wants to start a new adventure.

[random37]

Absolutely!

I've probably said this elsewhere in the thread, but the equipment is very much secondary to the trip.

95% of what you read in the cycling press is designed to make you spend more money. Special bikes, special clothes. It's nonsense, really. These things will let you travel further, or arguably be more comfortable, but if not having them makes you procrastinate they're really harmful.

I actually prefer riding a cheap bike, as it is less hassle to own. Besides, I have toured in places where a £2000 bike is more than some people earn in a year. I don't want to be the sort of person that has such conspicuous wealth. It's sort of disrespectful.

If you want a bit of inspiration, have a look at Heinz Stücke. He's been all round the world on a bike the cycling press would consider useless:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/cycl ... -50-years/

[crazydave789]

Hurricane touring does not sound fun, though I admire the way you kept going!

I've just read this: https://tomsbiketrip.com/how-to-go-cycl ... ks-part-1/

and wish I had taken it to heart long ago. Until our finances tanked a few years back, I was under the completely incorrect impression that I needed only the best-reviewed,lightest "correct" gear or my tour wouldn't be at all enjoyable. Now I am far more appreciative of what I have and am enjoying finding solutions that don't involve large sums of money. This forum certainly has opened my eyes with the generous amount of information and kindness shown! I'm looking forward to the day when I can "pay it forward" to another cyclist who lacks basic equipment but wants to start a new adventure.

sometimes you become a sedentary kit monster refusing to move until you have the right kit when for the price of the tent alone you could probably have kitted out and shot off.

weight seems less of an issue when you are younger and stronger, but much of the cheap kit can be just as good as the expensive stuff. the argos pro action one and two man tents were cheap as chips and very highly rated by cyclists and walkers. some rebranded models sold by gelert and highlander and cheap light and durable. it seems odd sometimes at spending 20 times the amount for a tent designed to last 50 days or so.

I tend to buy good quality second hand which satiisfies the kit monster because I've got a bargain. wear and tear is only what I would have put on it and I am less hesitant to alter it.

[crazydave789]

It was indeed a garmin. Etrex 20 that still works (ish) to this day.
It didn't occur to me at the time but several forumites here pointed out I could have used the mapping anyway...or the smart phone...or to bring a map. I'm useless with a map though. No sense of direction whatsoever. Hense the GPS

did you never learn or are you maplexic?

[Vantage]

It's pretty much a case of not knowing where I am on said map. Even on an os map I wouldn't think to check landmarks to determine my position.
I wouldn't even think to check the GPS to see if a road/trail goes up or down gradient.
I am literally, an idiot

[crazydave789]

It's pretty much a case of not knowing where I am on said map. Even on an os map I wouldn't think to check landmarks to determine my position.
I wouldn't even think to check the GPS to see if a road/trail goes up or down gradient.
I am literally, an idiot

so you need a decent lesson then from a good teacher.

Bolton, is that near cardiff?