Dirt Roads / MTB Touring, Personal setups, Ultralight / Singletrack » COclimber’s CO Trail Setup
by COclimberThis is my setup to ride the CO Trail in 5 separate 4-day sections with my first ride later this week. I just started mountain biking this Spring, and this is my first bikepacking trip, though I have a lot of experience lightweight backpacking. I did not want to spend a lot of money on specialized gear, so the only piece of bikepacking specific gear that I have is a Revelate Designs seat bag. Depending on how this weekend goes, I may purchase a custom frame bag to help distribute some of the weight on my bike better. Everything was a tight fit to get in to my two bags, so I am sure that if I was to plan anything longer than 4 days at a time, I would need some more storage space. As I am very new to bikepacking, any recommendations on what to take for bike maintenance or spare parts is much appreciated. The only other piece of cycling gear that I feel would be good to have is a spare chain, but with only being out for 4 days at a time, this is weight I feel I can do without.
My bike is a Motobecane Fantom 29er. Everything on my bike is stock except my Ergon GS2 grips, and my rear wheel (someone stole my rear wheel, and I upgraded to a Stans Notubes ZTR Arch EX rim when I replaced it).
In the seat bag:
1 spare tube
Set of tire wrenches
patch kit
Black Diamond Mega Light Shelter w/ lightweight Nano stakes
7′ x 2.5′ piece of Tyvek ground sheet
Marmot 15 Degree Down Bag
Long underwear top and bottom
Camp Socks
Beanie
In the backpack (Osprey Talon 22):
REI inflatable sleeping pad
rain jacket
camp shorts, Patagonia hooded down sweater, and a Patagonia wind jacket in a light weight 15L dry bag
100 oz water reservoir
Mega Light carbon pole
Bike Tool
Leatherman
Sunscreen
Small First Aid Kit – bandages, ibuprofen, sewing kit, moleskin, etc.
Aquamira water treatment
Light toiletry kit
Headlamp
GSI Minimalist Cook Pot
MSR Pocket Rocket Stove w lighter
1 8oz can of Isoprol fuel
Snow Peak Titanium French Press (The one luxury I cannot live without!)
Bike pump
Map
Garmin etrex 20 (On my bike)
Food (6-8 lbs for 4 days)
Flipflops for camp
Cell phone
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I am impressed you were able to fit everything you need into just those 2 bags! If you had a frame bag you could go real light on the backpack. All the other Revelate bags are nice as well, I have a sweet Roll that I can fit my whole sleep system into. Good luck!
I’m also coming over from the backpacking side and did my first bikepacking trip a couple weeks ago. I have a small frame bag so I can still fit water bottles but after some consideration I’m going to a full frame bag. If I need the space for water I can always put the bladder inside and carry three liters on the bike vs on my back.
Regarding your mention of a spare chain. Any reason you wouldn’t carry a few master links instead? That and a chainbreak tool should be all you need for shorter trips. Oh and a derailleur hanger.
Happy riding. So fun!
Finished my first weekend of bikepacking the CO Trail, and my gear and setup worked great, though pedaling up some of the steep trails with a loaded bike was no picnic.
I ordered a custom frame bag early in the week from Fun Bags, and the owner was able to get me my frame bag in just two days so that I could have it for my first weekend out. I absolutely love the bag, and would recommend anyone in the Denver area to check in to Fun Bags for custom frame bags! Now I’m swimming in free space on my bike, making it more difficult to leave behind other luxeries.
lukemysse – I agree, there is no need to carry a spare chain. The other piece of bike gear that I was considering was some chain lube, but after a long discussion with the owner of Fun Bags, I decided I can go without that as well as long as I clean and lube the chain before each of my trips out. If I plan anything longer, I will definitly be carrying some.