How light can you go?

Specifically for cycle touring subjects & questions
Bmblbzzz
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by Bmblbzzz »

PaulaT wrote: 22 May 2021, 10:42pm
glucas wrote: 19 May 2021, 10:35am
boblo wrote: 19 May 2021, 10:25am There's a lot of water in Scotland. It's unlikely you'll need to carry a days supply. You'll know roughly where your days end which means you'll know when to fill up/replenish for your overnights.

I usually carry a foil bladder from a wine box (4l?) which is very light/compact and only used for overnight water. I get grumpy having to go and get more water before that first cup of tea in the morning...
Thanks for that. I may be able to get away with just carrying one bottle :) It depends on the hills. When I did the Peninne Way tour last year I found myself drinking 3 bottles by lunch time in the early stages because of all the hills!
These days I carry a little Sawyer water filter. They're not expensive and very light weight. As long as you've got enough water to get you over the current hill, you're almost guaranteed a stream at the bottom of the next one.
Does it filter industrial and agricultural chemical pollutants as well as bacteria?
nsew
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by nsew »

Bmblbzzz wrote: 23 May 2021, 9:52pm
PaulaT wrote: 22 May 2021, 10:42pm
glucas wrote: 19 May 2021, 10:35am

Thanks for that. I may be able to get away with just carrying one bottle :) It depends on the hills. When I did the Peninne Way tour last year I found myself drinking 3 bottles by lunch time in the early stages because of all the hills!
These days I carry a little Sawyer water filter. They're not expensive and very light weight. As long as you've got enough water to get you over the current hill, you're almost guaranteed a stream at the bottom of the next one.
Does it filter industrial and agricultural chemical pollutants as well as bacteria?
Having been struck down a few times while travelling I first used the basic Sawyer filter and boiled for a minute (3 min above 2000m). I now use this far more advanced filter system. Works out at 5p a litre if you can keep track of usage.

https://watertogo.eu/active-bottle-offers/

https://watertogo.eu/filterfacts/
iandusud
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by iandusud »

We've got back from our weekend away and thought I'd report back. Our ride out was in constant rain varying from light to heavy to torrential. Lots of flooding. I was wearing a Goretex jacket that I bought recently to replace the one I've had for over 30 years and is showing it's age. The jacket was brilliant. It isn't a cycling jacket and this was a deliberate choice to make it more versatile. However the fit is slim with long arms and long enough in the back making it good for cycling. This is a link to it https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/16036271/m ... -16036271/ I'm 6'1" and 71kg and the M is a perfect fit for me.
We also bought Trekology UL80 air mats and they are brilliant. My wife is particularly picking about her sleeping arrangement and even she gives them the thumbs up. They are not the lightest air mats but I'd happily carry a few hundred extra grams for a comfortable bed. They are so much better than our original Thermarest mats which are heavier. We also got the 30L pump sack to inflate them and again I would highly recommend.
The Spacerpacker Plus was brilliant as usual although this was helped by the footprint I made for it from a lightweight tarp. I cut it to fit the whole area of the tent including the porches. This was a really good addition as the built in groundsheet has become permeable and as it rained a lot having dry porches was a real bonus. £8 well spent.
My wife is already planning our next weekend away. So a definite success.
Bmblbzzz
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by Bmblbzzz »

I'm not keen on a hood for cycling but that jacket is a gorgeous colour. Glad you had a good trip despite the rain.
Jdsk
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by Jdsk »

Sounds good.

Did you follow the SOP when you got back... lay everything out and think again about the bits that weren't used?

Jonathan
iandusud
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by iandusud »

Bmblbzzz wrote: 24 May 2021, 5:39pm I'm not keen on a hood for cycling but that jacket is a gorgeous colour. Glad you had a good trip despite the rain.
Like you I'm not a fan of hoods on cycling jackets but I ride with it rolled down. However at one point the rain was torrential and the hood fits over my helmet and it was so good to have it.
iandusud
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by iandusud »

Jdsk wrote: 24 May 2021, 5:41pm Sounds good.

Did you follow the SOP when you got back... lay everything out and think again about the bits that weren't used?

Jonathan
Actually I think we used everything we took but we were pretty radical in our packing, or at least I was as I eliminated around half of the clothes my wife had put aside for packing! :shock:
mattheus
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by mattheus »

At the risk of making a very simplistic point:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-57216601
Twenty-one runners have died after extreme weather struck a long-distance race in northern China.

High winds and freezing rain hit participants in the 100km (60-mile) ultramarathon in the Yellow River Stone Forest, a tourist site in Gansu province, on Saturday.
...
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horizon
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by horizon »

mattheus wrote: 25 May 2021, 9:32am At the risk of making a very simplistic point:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-57216601
Twenty-one runners have died after extreme weather struck a long-distance race in northern China.

High winds and freezing rain hit participants in the 100km (60-mile) ultramarathon in the Yellow River Stone Forest, a tourist site in Gansu province, on Saturday.
...
Generally AIUI runners (and many cyclists) rely on keeping warm by keeping moving. So when people raise their eyebrows at your luggage they forget that you intend to keep on going whatever the weather, you will be out all day and you won't be getting back into a warm car at the end of the day.
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
willem jongman
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by willem jongman »

Cold and wet is a dangerous combination. I like to travel very light, but whenever there is a chance that I will experience the combination, I will take rain trousers and my light Vaude shoe covers. I have Goretex cycling shoes, but even though they keep my feet dry, when they get wet on the outside they conduct the cold so badly that I get very cold feet.
KTHSullivan
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by KTHSullivan »

There is indeed a very fine line between travelling light and safety. Experience provides one with the wherewithal to differentiate between speed and safety, it also provides the ability to delineate between adventure and folly. On more than one occasion in the British hills the desire to press on has claimed lives, some of those lives have been lost when the unfortunate soles having been carrying the requisite equipment to survive but did not have the appropriate skills to utilise such. I am not saying that the incident upthread is an indication of inexperience but perhaps something as simple as looking at a weather forecast may have been appropriate.
Just remember, when you’re over the hill, you begin to pick up speed. :lol:
willem jongman
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by willem jongman »

These mountain marathon runners push the envelope (and sometimes their luck), and for them every gram counts. For a cyclist or normal mountain walker this does not apply, of course, and unless you are walking and climbing at higher elevations it does not take much to be a lot safer. So my minimum is simply a light Goretex jacket (with separate hood for use off the bike), rain trouwers and rain covers for my shoes, a buff, and cycling gloves. And of course I have long trousers with me for use in the evening, and a down vest when I can expect a risk of the temperatures to go low. I always carry an emergency blanket. In short, none of this is very heavy, but it gives a big safety margin and a lot of comfort. For the night, I take a mattress that is sufficiently insulated for the conditions. So for Spring and Autumn that means a Neoair Allseason.
iandusud
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by iandusud »

mattheus wrote: 25 May 2021, 9:32am At the risk of making a very simplistic point:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-57216601
Twenty-one runners have died after extreme weather struck a long-distance race in northern China.

High winds and freezing rain hit participants in the 100km (60-mile) ultramarathon in the Yellow River Stone Forest, a tourist site in Gansu province, on Saturday.
...
I take your point but be assured we were prepared for all weather conditions, and just as well! Sadly on route we witnessed a rescue operation to rescue two canoeists who had got into trouble on the swollen river Ure near West Tanfield. Sadly one of them was found drowned downstream.
mattheus
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by mattheus »

iandusud wrote: 25 May 2021, 4:34pm
I take your point but be assured we were prepared for all weather conditions, and just as well!
Goodness, I wasn't criticising anyone's gear choices!

I'm just not that keen on the never taking stuff you won't use approach - I much prefer to come home with some emergency kit unused in my bag.

It's always a compromise of course, as you have to make some assumptions, and a little guesswork, so I'm very cautious with blaming victims when bad stuff happens ...
KTHSullivan
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Re: How light can you go?

Post by KTHSullivan »

so I'm very cautious with blaming victims when bad stuff happens ...
+1.

Quite a few years ago we extracted a chap from near the top of the Brecon Beacons in February. He had a tumble and a subsequent compound fracture of the fibula. The chap was quite well known throughout the climbing fraternity and had summited Everest a few years previously. So no matter how experienced one is; if it's going to hit the fan there's not a lot one can do about it. However taking steps to minimise the probability of such has must be considered de rigueur in all out door pursuits. I do however feel the promulgation of bike/back packing adventures within the popular outdoor press may lead the unwary into situations they are not prepared for or have sufficient experience to deal with; or may not even recognise until too late.

Having said that most on road cycle touring in western Europe is comparatively safe, providing a degree of caution is exercised.
Just remember, when you’re over the hill, you begin to pick up speed. :lol:
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