WHAT IS BIKEPACKING
I'm Annie, i live in the Scottish Highlands and have been bikepacking since around 2011. I love bikepacking because it gives me the freedom to move through beautiful landscapes and wild places at my own pace. I find cycling more fun than walking and it allows me to travel further and to camp in some remote and incredible places.
What is bikepacking?
Bikepacking is a form of travel by bicycle, generally offroad and carrying everything you need for a night or more out camping. When i first started, the term bikepacking was used to differentiate it from cycle touring. Bikepacking was off road, perhaps on more technical trails and using soft bags that could withstand rougher riding without snapping. Nowadays I use the terms bikepacking and touring interchangeably as the differences have become smaller with stronger racks and gravel bikes. You also don't need to camp to be bikepacking, you could stay in hostels or hotels. It's just a term to mean travelling by bike.
What bike/kit do you need?
At its most basic, a bike and a way to strap some stuff to it.
Any bike can be a bikepacking bike, it might just influence which routes will be most enjoyable for you. Then what kit you need will depend on the route/climate/ if you want to camp or stay indoors. You will need some way to carry your kit, bikepacking bags, panniers. Again, what you choose will depend on your bike and route as well as how much gear you need. If you are camping you will need some sort of shelter to sleep in, a sleeping mat and sleeping bag. You may wish to take a stove, tea drinking is an essential part of bikepacking for me so I will normally take one, but if you are somewhere near a cafe, you may decide you don't need one.
Any links to routes/clubs/community groups/race/rally series?
Routes:
https://bikepacking.com/bikepacking-routes/
https://www.komoot.com/user/komootwomensrally/collections
Community:
How can you get into it? Riding & racing
You can get into it by just trying it out. I started by heading out on my own using OS maps to plan routes. Today there is an incredible amount of information online and it's very easy to find routes with all the information you desire about terrain, camping sites, cafes and so on.
If the idea of going alone is intimidating, there are various groups across the country where you can find like minded people. Women's outdoor groups on facebook can be a good starting point if you are unsure. Asking questions in them can help you find local riders to meet with. There are also organised rally's, which are non-competitive events where you get a set route and lots of riders set off together to ride the route at their own pace, often you will make pals along the way, or might just feel more confident by knowing there are other people around.
Various company's offer intro to bikepacking courses, or organised trips. These can be a really great way to gain the skills and meet people in a relaxed and fun environment.
Racing is a whole separate thing that is not for everyone. There is no need to add time pressure or stress or rush through new environments unless you really want to. I know lots of folk feel pressure to race because there is a lot of media around them but remember you get to choose your idea of fun. Id strongly recommend getting some experience bikepacking before racing as you will need a lot of those skills to make good decisions when racing.
However you choose to bike pack, it can be an incredibly fun and transformational experience. Get out there and explore!
Words: Annie Le