Packing for long distance ride

[Richard_G]

I am planning a long distance ride this summer, over 16,000 miles, and have decided against a trailer. I ride an R12RT. I will need room for 2 peoples gear, my wife will join me for a few days, and camping equipment. Any suggestions on carrying this much gear on the bike?

[Albert]

Assuming you have the 49L top case, you might think about adding a luggage rack to the lid. I've seen people use a rack from earlier BMW models with some success (check the archives here, I think it may have been a K model rack). Also, there's a number of bags that can be conveniently attached to the tops of the saddle bags which can add some extra storage. Again, you'll find examples doing a search (I know Whip had a nice set up so search his threads). Good luck (yea, I'm envious).

[Albert]

Oh, be sure to take a list of laundramats too.

[Ken H.]

We're no ones to talk about efficient packing, we seem to take everything including a kitchen sink with us, so the only think I'll offer is consider 'staging.' That is, shipping ahead of time box(s) of stuff to points you know you will be. Most hotels will hold a box for an inbound reserved guest if it is boldly marked "Hold for xxxx arriving on ###". Then when you get there use the box to ship dirty, excess, etc. stuff home.

[Albert]

Ken makes a good point on being a minimalist. One thing I've done in recent years is get gear that was multifunctional. For example, we've gone to riding gear that's waterproof (textile) which free's us not to take rain gear. I'm not an ATGATT guy so having stuff with adequate venting means you can keep the gear on when temps climb too. Also, lots of hotels have laundry facilities for use by guests. If you hoteling (rather than camping) you might check the ones along your route. You can get by on surprisingly little clothing if you can find regular laundry facilities.

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

Oh, be sure to take a list of laundramats too.

 

Yep. Limit clothes, plan on doing laundry from time to time.

Look for the smallest, lightest camping gear you can find. I took a trip to the west coast in Y2K, 2up. We camped about half the time. Had a two-person backpacking tent, not much room, but it packed up extremely small. the sleeping bags, which were not real thick, were made so that you could zip the two of them together into a single large bag, which works well for keeping each other warm. A space blanket works well as an extra layer if you happen to hit a cold night here and there.

 

We had a gigantic tankbag, A Marsee that unzipped to extend to something like 14 inches tall.

 

We had stuff stashed everywhere on the bike, including under the seat.

 

If you plan on camping but not cooking, that'll save you a significant amount of room due to not packing a stove/dishes/food.

[Crazy_Canuck]

Oh, be sure to take a list of laundramats too.

 

For those of you who have done laundry on the road, do you take laundry detergent with you? How much? How do you carry it?

 

Thanks

[SinNH]

Over the years I've found it very difficult to ride any distance two-up with camping gear, regardless of the which of the BMW's I've had. Not that we don't do it, but I limit the ride to four or five days. The worst part when loaded up, you can't cook when you want to . We are slender and pack to the utmost lightest, I always stay under the GVW of the bike, anal about loading, tire pressure, etc.

Now, when I take a month ride solo with camping gear, my woman flys out to say Billings, we store my camping gear at the airport, we motel for a week or so then she flys home.

It's most important to me to be able to go, when you want and weight is so limiting.

My last 28 day ride was just under 13,000 miles, the next day after returning I was ready to start again.

Solo travel is the best.

 

My 1.5 cents

Steve

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

Oh, be sure to take a list of laundramats too.

 

For those of you who have done laundry on the road, do you take laundry detergent with you? How much? How do you carry it?

 

Thanks

 

I was fortunate enough to be able to schedule overnight stops with friends and relatives along the way.

 

if that's not an option, I think a lot of laundromats sell one-load portions of laundry detergent; I did this at the campground in Cody in '04. No need to BYO.

[NonComp]

Powdered detergent can be carried in a ziplock freezer bag. I've read that some folks buy the biggest ziplock bags you can get and use them for everything from compressing fluffy items (remove the air) to segrating daily clothes changes (dirty from clean).

 

You can also usually buy single servings of soap in a laundramat.

[markgoodrich]

We can get everything we need for extended trips into the side cases, top box and tank bag, with the exception of camping gear. Our tent is an American Express card. We've talked about camping, and I think it would be fairly easy to add a couple of small waterproof duffles, to attach to the top of the side cases. Others have done so, and you may be able to find the posts on this or other sites.

 

I took the top box, and my wife took the two side cases; worked out fine. I used smush bags, which really helped a lot. We used microfiber clothing, and did laundry every few days at laundromats, no big deal.

 

The smush bags at Target work fine, and are much cheaper than other places.

 

Our tank bag converts to a daypack, which I found really handy for the day hiking we do; not as good as a dedicated day pack, but good enough. A 40-oz Camelbak bladder in it works for hydrating on the bike or on the trail.

 

Only reason we divided the cases the way we did was I had a laptop to carry.

[Albert]

Good point Glenn. We've used the zip lock sandwich size for detergent but as likely as not we just buy the small packets at the machines. By the way, they do make a huge zip lock bag (gallon size?) that has a heavy duty zip on it. We've been using them for a few years and they're great for packing all kinds of things. They're made of a tougher material than the regular zip lock bags so they hold up to repeated use well.

[tallman]

Keeping the saddlebags and topcase on the bike allows you to divide your contents between those bags and group them according to use.

I'd then consider adding waterproof bags that you mount on the side cases. (You can use an underseat strap to help w/this and additional loops)

In these two bags you can separate your tent/fly groundcover, poles, from your sleeping bags, pillows, microfleece blankets. Use compression bags.

Clothing should be latest tech stuff such as microfiber convertible pants (zip off legs allows pants/shorts/swimsuit use) same w/sirts(modern fiber).

Undergarments wicking, light, can rinse out.

The dilemma when camping is food and preparation.

If you cook, stove and fuel needed. A duel fuel Coleman stove works well. We carry a collapsible grill that sets above the flame for a sturdier platform to cook on.

Nesting pot(s)pan(s), can be used to cook and eat from.

Again, high tech + low weight, but costly.

A Helen 2 Wheels mesh bag is a good addition. It can be strapped to your topcase luggage rack and dry your wet stuff as you ride.

We sometimes keep rain gear in there for easy access and place to put it when rain lets up that won't get everything else wet.

Leave some room in the bags/topcase!

You will neep a place toput stuff you get, or for short term storage of food items.

Put everything in its place, everytime.

Plan, buy the right stuff, enjoy the trip.

[ESokoloff]

If you camp near any sort of vegatation & dont mind a little smoke, a SIERRA stove will eliminate the need to pack cooking fuel.

[Dick_at_Lake_Tahoe_NV]

I decided against the very expensive BMW Top Case--also I don't really like the looks when I'm just out on a day ride. So several years ago--well before my R1200RT, I bought a "Rev-Pak--Tour Pak" http://www.revpack.com/motorcycle/products/TourPack.html

 

This very large soft-sided Pak with it's Rain proof cover can carry lots and lots of stuff--I even use it if I'm going shopping at Costco! If you're traveling with a passenger, you can strap it to the R1200RT rack, and if you're by yourself you can strap it to the back seat and it becomes a backrest for those 700-1000mile days.

[tallman]

Dick,

The RevPack is a good one. We use a Mag's Bags.

But, when riding with a passenger, if you stop, unpack, set up camp, then there's no backrest for the passenger when you go exploring.

May or may not be an issue.

[finallyabeemer]

Long camping trips two up can make or break a relationship! We did our honeymoon this way. It made it!

 

Some good tips here. My input:

- Weight is a big deal. It is amazing how rapidly it adds up! Especially anything with metal or liquid content. Select items with this in mind. Start trial packing wayyyyy early. Weigh saddlebags and tailbag/trunk frequently. Bet you a cold one you'll be well over and have to get creative. Visits to mountaineering specialty stores will become common. Words like titanium and ohmygodexpensive become part of your vocabulary. The other option is overloading bags, which will lead to handling quirks, and over time, the saddlebag mounts will fail. Rather annoying problem.

- For camping, we found a big T-Bag to be superior to a solid trunk. Used a custom plate on top of rack to support, and built a custom backrest to mount it. Tent went into top barrel bag of T-Bag, other LIGHT camp gear in main body.

- Centralize weight! Put all the really dense stuff in tank bag to minimize impact to handling. Only ultra light stuff in tail bag as high and rearward is worst place for weight.

- We put sleeping bags (down, of course) in water proof bags and on top of saddlebags. We strapped to backrest to reduce load on saddlebag mounts.

- And of course, keep loading within GVWR guidelines to minimize risk of tire failure (the usual limiting factor). I am very fortunate that my wife is only 105 pounds. This lets us carry quite a bit of gear.

 

And enjoy the adventure! We loved it, but found a hotel with laundry close by every third night made it even better.

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

Start trial packing wayyyyy early.

 

Excellent advice. I spent the winter of 1999/2000 researching and buying gear for the trip I mentioned in my earlier post, which was to take place in May/June 2000. In April I loaded the bike as if for cross-country and rode from Ann Arbor to Madison, picked up my GF and carried on to Minneapolis, spending a long weekend there with my folks before returning home. I don't recall any major issues from that dry run, but I'm sure we made a few tweaks and changes.

 

You don't want to set out on a long trip with untested equipment/configurations, and you don't want to be up till 3AM the night before departure trying to figure out how to make it all fit.

[IanW]

Richard

This site may help.

http://micapeak.com/checklists/

Ian

[AZKomet]

I always pack with compression bags. Found generally at all of the box stores and online. Decreases clothes etc to less than 80%. The camping gear? WOW! Dunno....I have at times shipped stuff from point A to B to help with my dilemma. Generally once I am on the way home it is when I do it. Those are a lot of miles my friend....try to buy lightweight clothing like Zipp offs and the lighter weight shirts from Eddie B or LL Bean. No jeans etc....

[jfremder]

think it would be fairly easy to add a couple of small waterproof duffles, to attach to the top of the side cases

 

This is exactly what's we've done on 2-up camping and extended trips. A couple bungie buddies on the lids of the system cases, a couple nylon straps with D-Rings, and a couple SeaLine roll top waterproof duffles. Works great

 

[Dave39]

Haven't toured on my beemer yet but done a fair amount of loaded bicycle touring. In that case the bulky sleeping bag, although very much necessary, is pain to deal with. I finally tried a sleeping bag compression bag from REI. It compresses a sleeping bag down to at leat 1/2 its volume, and frees up a lot of room in a pannier.

[elkroeger]

For the laundry, I do my own and bring a 1/2 pint nalgene bottle full of powdered detergent. Avoid cotton clothes, in favor of faster drying synthetics, and get a little mesh bag to strap on top so it's out in the wind. You may need to rotate the wet clothes inside the mesh, but after a day's drive in the wind, most things will be dry, or very nearly so. Plan on hanging a clothes line at camp. Personally, I find waiting for stuff to dry while you're at camp can be very relaxing. Sitting in a laundromat sucks. Sitting in a laundromat while you're on vacation really sucks.

 

I also use an MSR whisperlite international stove, and I just use the same gas that I put in the bike. This also serves to have a quart or so of spare gas which you can use as backup for the bike.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

Main deal is to pack for no more than 5 days, after that, you just repeat as needed.

 

When on long rides/trips, everything I wear from the skin out is microfiber of some sort or another. I don't do the camping thing or even cheap hotels. The advantage of the micro stuff is simple. You can do laundry every night. A bottle of Woolite and wash everything in the sink/tub. Hang the stuff on the lamps in the room and it will dry in under 2 hours. Energy saving bulbs are a PITA for this as they produce no usable heat. Using this technique, you really only need two sets of everything. Good luck convincing the SO.

 

Eagle Creek makes some zipper bags with mesh tops that are also pretty darn good for getting stuff small, Packing cubes is what they call them. They are square and about 12x12x2". I can get 5 golf shirts in one, 5 days worth of socks and underwear in another. All fit easily in one of my Givi E360 side bags along with my laptop case and goodies and a small toilet kit. BMW rain suit goes into a third bag that lives in my other side case along with a small tool bag and maybe the Gerbings jacket liner and gloves.

[finallyabeemer]

Some other favorites I've found:

Smaller and lighter than carrying enough water for two:

http://products.katadyn.com/brands-and-products/produkte/Backcountry_Series_24/Katadyn_Hiker_30.html

I also carry a 3 liter Camelbak type backpack strapped to the between tank bag and handlebars. Like I said, weigh centralization!

For washing laundry, dishes, hauling water, washing scooter, soaking sore feet:

http://www.granitegear.com/products/accessories/sink/index.html

My personal choice in stoves:

http://www.msrgear.com/stoves/whisperint.asp

We normally use white gas because of the smell. Start full and then bum off car campers to get refills! Nice to be able to use unleaded in a pinch.

Gotta have coffee!

http://www.peak62.com/search/itemno/102921/

My fantasy cup (still using plastic for now):

http://www.backcountrygear.com/catalog/stovedetail.cfm/SN3310

Tip: Get a cup with an ID just a scosche bigger than stove fuel tank and nest it. Takes up very little extra space!

Organizing:

http://www.ebags.com/eagle_creek/pack_it...m?modelid=89786

and:

http://www.ebags.com/ebags/small_packing_cubes_3_pc_set/product_detail/index.cfm?modelid=93507

[finallyabeemer]

And for food... we've tried the backpacking food and usually carry some for we end up finding ideal spot way away from civilization. But GREATLY prefer stopping in afternoon and picking up real food. We stash a couple of these on the bike:

http://www.chicobag.com/

and put food and the requisite bottle of wine for the evening in them. These can be bungee netted (another must have item) on top of tail bag or carried in passenger's lap for a few miles.

[NonComp]

Good point Glenn. We've used the zip lock sandwich size for detergent but as likely as not we just buy the small packets at the machines. By the way, they do make a huge zip lock bag (gallon size?) that has a heavy duty zip on it. We've been using them for a few years and they're great for packing all kinds of things. They're made of a tougher material than the regular zip lock bags so they hold up to repeated use well.

The heavier ones are the freezer bags.

[Jerry Johnston]

Along with all the exceptionally good advice if you can make it easily identifiable that you're from a long ways out of state, people tend to want to talk and are more openly willing to help you in any way they can.

[Beemr69]

Start trial packing wayyyyy early.

 

 

 

And soon after finalizing aquiring your selections , pack up and go on a sunday cruise , and make sure its what your planning it to be before your on the road for real . Just in case your off and you find yourself over packed or in need no longer of items for your return trip home , UPS or a shipper of choice , to your home address .

[ESokoloff]

 

Unless you had control mounted mirrors, its easy to see how you did not see the LEO behind you

 

 

Note all: If you place luggage in this area you must use additional mirrors!!!!!!!

[Richard_G]

Thanks for all of the good advice. I have already put in an order for a new bag. I plan on doing what I call camping light, and not when my wife is with me. Many great links and excellent suggestions.

[eddd]

I found that one of the biggest space savers is to see if you can get by without the cooking/food preparation gear. I would camp with the tent, but not prepare any meals. A few granola bars and some water if I got really hungry before breakfast. It worked for me, but I'm admittedly a light eater.

[Paul_Burkett]

If you are going to get bag liners for your sidecases, look into Kathy's Side Case Liners, they help you to get loaded and unloaded and organized better.

http://store.bobsbmw.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=50

[JohnTena]

OK, my turn:

My wife and I spent 6 weeks two-up on our R1200RT. She got the right sidebag, I got the left. Maps, travel books and other stuff filled the topcase. We had a large stuff sack on top of the topcase that variably held raingear and pant liners. On cold, rainy days the stuff sack was empty.

 

Tena and I are experienced camper/backpackers and have all the cool backpacker's gear, but chose to stay in motels and friend's places for the whole trip. One reason for that was the bulk and weight of all that gear. The other reason is that neither of us looked forward to a Thermarest and sticky sleeping bag after sitting on a bike all day.

 

Even if I'm riding solo and have plenty of room for camp gear, I still prefer the comfort of a real bed after a day of riding.

 

We generally carried versatile clothing, and hand-washed undies in the motel room. And we took advantage of the washing machines at our friends' houses!

[Albert]

Hey John, that sounds like the stuff of "ride reports", love to hear more. I did have a question, which top case do you have and how did you fasten the stuff sack on the top? I'd really like to see a picture. Thanks.

[MrHondamatic]

The last trip we took, we camped. And yes, taking a tent meant we had some additional stuff to take along. We did however leave the sleeping bags at home. It was the middle of the summer, we were travelling the Blue Ridge, so we took two Thermarest pads and a couple of bed sheets. Those sheets took up far less space than bags would have. We like sleeping cooler, and this did the trick for that as well.

[AdventurePoser]

I’m jumping into this thread late, but here are my observations, born of many long camping trips with the Lovely Flame onboard our R1150RT, or K1200rs. Jennifer and I have camped and motored two up for probably 25,000 miles of our mutual riding life. My thoughts mirror my rambling mind, so they are in no particular order of importance….

 

MC camping and food –eat at restaurants. Carrying camp food, especially freeze dried stuff is the height of nonsense, when great, inexpensive mom and pop cafes dot the countryside. Food, fuel, and the requisite supplies take up WAY too much space, and that, my friend, is at a premium on a two up MC ride! Remember the mantra, “Weight and bulk is not your friend.” We carry a very thin, very crushable small nylon bag. Sometimes, we’ll hit a deli, buy some cheese, fruit, bread etc, put it in the bag and carry it to a nice picnic spot. You can’t beat it!

Eating out can be part of the adventure. Besides getting good regional dishes, you can talk to the locals. Some of the best moments of our long (2-5 week) trips have been the people we have met. Remind me to tell you about meeting the head of BMW AG motorcycle riders’ wear division at the café in the middle of absolutely nowhere a few months ago….

 

Gear-pack light. The best stuff is fairly expensive because it is light. Light equals expensive! We use a very nice Mountain Hardware 3 man tent which packs down to a 4” x 12” stuff sack. The other advantage I’ve found with Mt. Hardware tents is that the poles break down to very short lengths. This is important, especially if you are packing it all into a side or top case…

Ditto for sleeping bags-the better they are, the pricier they become! Watch the sales and do not buy too much bag. If you plan on camping in the summer, you probably don’t need a 10 degree bag, which is much bulkier and heavier than a 30 degree one. The modern fiberfill bags are fine, but if you really want to save space, go goose down. These are the lightest, warmest bags you can buy. Just remember you need to keep goose down bags dry…

You will also need a pad to place under your bag. Check out www.bigagnes.com for great sleeping/ground cover combinations.

 

Clothing-the biggest problem most moto camping newbies have is that they pack too much. Before you load up your bike to set out, put all your gear on the floor in neat piles, depending on where you are gonna put it. Then, take a third of it out and put it back in your closet! You will be closer to what you should actually take! For a four week trip take five days worth of clothes, but make them items you can easily wash out and dry over a thin clothesline or handlebar. Microfiber shirts and pants are the best. Avoid cotton at all costs, with the exception being boxer shorts. They are thin and wash and dry very quickly. One of the best outerwear items you can take is a long sleeve microfiber shirt and convertible long pants that unzip to being shorts. Check our www.campmore.com for great deals on this stuff! In a nutshell, think carefully about what you bring and try to bring stuff that dries easily and fills more than one purpose. Remember that when you get tired of washing your garments in the campground sink, you can visit a Laundromat. Don’t bring soap to do this…you can buy the little packets as you go. Remember, weight and bulk is NOT your friend!

 

Packing it all away-we store our stuff securely in the side cases, inside fitted bags we bought for the RT. Ours are from RKA, and they are great! We normally fill the bags to capacity, using stuff sacks to compress the gear, or the crushable clear plastic packing cubes you can buy at Target. Eagle River has some nice ones too, but why pay extra, IMHO. Normally, J and I each take one side case. She is great about not taking extraneous toiletries and/or cosmetics. The make up and curler usually stay home. Hey, this is a camping adventure-besides I already know she is beautiful….

The other gear such as SMALL camp chairs, tent, sleeping bags, and sleeping pads go into Helen Two Wheels bags strapped to the luggage rack. When full, they make a great backrest for J, and because the bags are soft, they are much more packable than the large, VERY pricy top case. The top case works just fine, but for us, the versatility of these soft, waterproof bags is best.

Smaller stuff, such as our travel diary, camera, extra gloves, eye wash etc, etc, all go into our tank bag so we can get to them quickly.

 

This system works well for us. If you have any specific packing questions, don’t hesitate to PM me. Best of luck on your new trip…just remember your mantra, “weight and bulk is not your friend….”

 

Cheers,

Steve