Packing For Long Term Adventure and RTW trips in 70 liters

Posted byrtwpaulPosted ingear ideasTags:, , , , , , , , , , ,

As a RTW rider, there are always questions that come up – This is a question that comes up a lot….how do you pack for RTW trip?…so here we go

***Packing is an objective thing, whats good for me may not be good for you – that’s the disclaimer done :lol3

…but saying that maybe a few ideas may pop into your head if you read this. Regardless of what luggage you take, be it hard or soft whatever the volume you WILL FILL IT – fact!!!

If you do take ‘that’ larger luggage at some point you will hate the additional unnecessary weight you are carrying around

As I have been doing this for years I constantly try and reevaluate and reduce the volume I’m carrying but still be comfortable in every situation. Having been fortunate enough to be able to stop back where I store my gear (in AZ) has let me do yet another revision and this is what I will be carrying for at least the next five years – this is to cover both hemisphere’s four seasons and on and offroad riding. We may spend a little more at the outset but it pays off if you are on the road for a long time, good gear simply last, cheap gear eventually fails and then you need to rebuy and most likely have now spent more than if you’d just bought the good stuff in the first place.

A few months back one of our bikes was attacked by a bear, the luggage was basically destroyed on the exterior so we had options – keep the same or change. We decided to change. We changed up to Mosko backcountry 35-liter panniers and a 25-liter duffle which is 95 liters but we are now carrying less and the weight is lower…I’ll explain.

We went thru our kit and found we can fit everything we need in the panniers if we want to, and have zero weight on the seat.

When we got to AZ we went thru our gear that we’d ridden with for 20,000 miles in the US and Canada, which was similar to what we’d ridden with for the previous year in Europe and looked to see what we could change, it wasn’t much but it made a big difference with where we carried the weight, this is huge for us as we ride offroad a lot.

So our final packing looked like this – Egle on the left, Me on the right

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So whats in there, let’s start with Egle –

[​IMG]1.  Hydration pack

2.  clothes

3.  clothes

4. clothes

5. some toiletries

6. first aid

7. goggles

8. 10-liter bladder

9. 2-liter bladder

10. kitchen

11. MSR helmet

12. Klim gloves

13. Big Agnes sleeping pad

14. Bear safety alarm

15. boots – these were shown as we were waiting for our Gaerne SG12’s to arrive

16. Sunglasses and waterproof/ shockproof camera

17. 1/2 of tent

18. Big Agnes sleeping bag – lost ranger 15 degree

19. More toiletries and vitamins

20. Computer and case

21. Mosko Moto 25 liter duffle – empty

22.

23. Klim Altitude jacket

24. Klim Badlands pants

***not shown – bike cover, first gear heated jacket, pillow, tank bag, 2x Pacsafe, bike lock, Sena communication

Ladies, if you need to get more detail she’ll be doing a detailed breakdown on her WomenADVriders page soon

As for me –

[​IMG]1. Tools – more detail later

2. Dirty laundry bag

3. Tent Poles

4. Charger/ battery pack (not taken) – Anti-Gravity, failed the following day, third failure from this company…I’m done with them!

5. Towel

6. Big Agnes Q-Core SLX sleeping pad that packs to the size of a can of coke and Round Mountain Pillow that packs to the size of lemon

7. warm weather clothes – 3x t-shirt, 2x pants, 3x socks, 3x underwear

8. cold weather clothes – Klim gloves, Klim Socks, under armor 4.0 leggings and 4.0 shirt

9. hydration pack

10. waterproof socks – Klim COVERT GTX LINER…just in case, I hate wet feet

11. USB cables

12. Big Agnes tent – Copper Hotel HV UL2, packs very small and has a huge vestibule

13. Big Agnes sleeping bag – Lost Ranger 15 degree

14. Cooking pots – also in here is an $8 Walmart frying pan that we found is better more durable most of the camping cookware

15. Basin Range Padded jacket

16. Klim Krios Helmet

17. Klim suspenders

18. Klim Badlands pants

19. Klim Carlsbad jacket

20. Mosko Moto 25-liter duffle, empty –  doubles as a backpack

21. Klim goggles

22. Power/ charging cables/ extra batteries

23. 3x camera – DSLR, 18-135 zoom lens and prime lens, high-end P&S and waterproof/ shockproof P&S 

24. Computer and case

25. Paperwork

26. Toiletries

27. boots – these were shown as we were waiting for our Gaerne SG12’s to arrive

28. Klim DAKAR GLOVE

29. Bike cover

  1. ***not shown – another 2-liter bladder, 3 piece cooking knife, chain lube, sunglasses, 2x Pacsafe, tank bag, Sena communication, Sena cameras, bike lock, cam buckle straps for holding the bag on the back seat and they double as tie downs for ferries and tow straps…from Mosko

 

how much space does all that take up?

140 liters, 70 liters per bike not packed tightly with two empty duffles for an extra 50 liters of space for food…tools are packed separately in a tool tube

[​IMG]

Tools, as a first-time owner of a DR, tools were a little unknown EXACTLY what I’d need, so for the 20,000-mile test ride, I packed a little too much! I now had the time to reevaluate what I was carrying. Laid out in its entirety it looks like this, we have doubles of a few items, just in case we get separated and need to fix a flat or a simple mechanical fix. The doubled up stuff is on Egles bike and will rarely be touched or is for service work or preventative maintenance

[​IMG]

The main tools I carry that I find useful are these below, with these and repair kit I can fix or take apart 95% of the bike and remove wheels for flats. I keep a second pump in my tool tube, spare inner tubes are in the luggage. This is a kit I have pieced together using mostly RRR Tools and Motion Pro for compactness and lightness.

I usually end up working on other peoples bikes on the road so I may have a little more than needed for a DR

[​IMG]

Fully packed it is just this big and fits perfectly in a 4″ ABS tube with a locking cap on my bike

[​IMG]

14 thoughts on “Packing For Long Term Adventure and RTW trips in 70 liters”

  3. Pingback: Egle’s Minimalist RTW Packing List www.womenadvriders.com

    1. I use a Pelican 1070, yes it does fit in the panniers but i put it in the bottom of the Mosko Moto 25-liter duffle as its a perfect fit and have it strapped to the back seat, less chance of damage up there

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  6. Did you make your own 4″ ABS tool tube? Is the ID 4″ or OD 4″? Can you provide pics of the tube, how it locks, and how it mounts? Thank you, I see a standardized type tube at Revzilla.

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    1. 4-inch abs tube section bought from home depot, held on with T-bar clamps and a locking end cap, really nothing special. All I would say is stay away from pipe clamps as they WILL fail eventually, T-Bar clamps are much stronger

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  8. Hello, excellent articles. I’ve gotten some good ideas from your website. When you’re traveling, what is your philosophy on oil and oil changes? Do you run a common brand of oil that can be found all over the world? Or do you just use whatever oil you can find? Do you take an extra quart oil with you for topping off? Also, as far as chain maintenance, do you take a solvent with you and clean and lube the chain? I ride a KLR650 and will be embarking on a short trip this spring through the SW USA.

    PS – The thought of the $8 walmart frying pan intrigues me. I’ll be checking the shelves next grocery run!

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    1. I do oil changes in general around 5000 miles, no specific brand because each area has favored brands, synthetic if its available but if not whatever is. I don’t carry extra oil unless I have issues and I’m burning oil. Otherwise look for a garage that works on diesel motors and grab a quart. Chain maintenance, all I do is regular oiling nothing special, don’t take cleaners. If I do need to clean it for some reason then I grab one of those tiny WD40 cans and a rag and use that, if it was really bad then a toothbrush.

      That pan…maybe good for about 2 months use at best (this could be a lifetime for some riders), but for $8, it sure beats the some of the $50+ ones that only last just as long

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