In the spirit of Swift Campout, we’ve turned to Swift Ambassadors & multi-sport athletes, Tony Krupicka and Hailey Moore for some insights on bikepacking/camping. Together, these two have logged thousands of miles on bike, many of which were spent on multi-day trips of varying distances & environs. Read below to get the skinny on packing, gear and which gas station snacks to try on your next trip!
Pack Tips
We like putting our sleep systems (sleeping bag, bivy, ground cloth, mattress or pad) in our Olliepack Saddle Bags to keep everything together and tidy, while minimizing the weight on the back of the bike. With sleep equipment, we stuff it in there at the start of each day and then only need to access it at the end of each day. Simple.
The main frame triangle is a great spot for carrying heavy items because they will affect the handling of the bike the least there. Weightier items like an extra tube, repair/tool kit, electronics, and extra food all go in the Hold Fast Half Frame bag, with water bottles also sharing inner triangle space.
More storage for snacks and quick access items—sunscreen, arm sleeves, gloves, camera, etc.—go in the Moxie Top Tube Bag and Gibby Stem Bags. We love dried fruit of the natural (dried mangos!) and artificial (Peach rings!) variety.
The handlebar bag—could be just a Bandito Bicycle Bag, or going for the big dog Zeitgeist Pack if we’re carrying a stove, tent, there’s a long distance between resupplies, etc—contains everything else.
“Everything else” means: we keep it simple. We don’t generally bring extra changes of anything, except maybe two pairs of socks. Otherwise, it’s what we’re wearing plus long tights and a long sleeve shirt base layer (mostly wear these as a dry layer to change into at the end of the day, i.e. pajamas), a wind shell, a rain shell, rain pants, puffy jacket, maybe a warm hat and an extra pair of gloves.
Extra stuff
-a lightweight water filter is often very handy. We like the Katadyn Be Free flasks or the Mini-Sawyer.
-we’ve both recently become huge fans of the inflatable pillow. Weighs virtually nothing and takes up almost no space, but it greatly increases sleeping comfort and quality, in our experience.
-tents and bivies are nice for keeping bugs away, not just cold or wet weather.
-a super cheap (1mm plastic sheeting at the hardware store) groundcloth/footprint is nice even if you aren’t bringing a tent so that your inflatable air mattress has a little extra protection from punctures and also your sleeping area isn’t just in the dirt/grass.
-headlamps! Bring at least one very light headlamp for around camp—we like the Petzl Bindi—and maybe another one as a back-up light for riding. We like the Petzl Actik because it accepts both a proprietary rechargeable battery and universal Triple A’s.
– depending on the trip, sometimes we’ll bring small pocket journals and Hailey will bring her film camera in addition to the Sony rx100 we typically pack!
Top Gas Station Snacks
TK: Salted Nut Rolls, Bag of Chips, Burrito, Bon Appetit “astronaut” pastries, Peanut M&Ms mixed w/ trail mix, canned coffee!
HM: Chips! (Cheddar & Sourcream Ripple, or Salt & Pepper), chocolate milk and drinkable yogurts (less common), Fig Bars or Fig Newtons, Oatmeal Cream Pies, Sweet + Salty/Spicy trailmixes mixed together, V8 juice, icecream sandwiches.
