[gundrted]

Well I either made an amazing or insane life choice. My friend asked me to go on a 6 day hut trip between Telluride, CO and Moab , UT .... Of course I said YES!

I have an '18 Trail Pistol (AL frame) size large.

First off, I've never bikepacked. Backpacked yes.

This is a semi-supported trip. The huts are stocked with food, bedding and cookware. We need to bring the rest ... bike, clothes, tools, spare parts, snacks, water and so on.

I started pocking (danger Will Robinson ... DANGER) around the internet and wow are there the bag options and some are very elaborate. I don't want to spend a ton of money because I this may be once in a lifetime thing. I also don't want to go super cheap and hate life in the middle of nowhere.

Right now I'm thinking some type of frame bag, one or two top tube bags, maybe a seat bag, maybe a bar bag and a small backpack. I'm also look at the TwoFish bottle mounts.

Topeak seams to have a lot of bags at a reasonable cost. I'll reframe from posting pics of each.

https://www.topeak.com/global/en/products/bikepacking

They also have some cage bags as well.https://www.topeak.com/global/en/products/bottle-cage-bag/1140-cagepack-xl

I'm thinking of putting two TwoFish mounts on the legs of my MRP Ribbon. I could then mount bottle cages low and out of the way.
Quick Cage Adapter: - Twofish Unlimited
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003RLJ8L6/

Any comments, experiences or thoughts would be very very helpful.

 

[quivvy]

I'm an amateur but learned alot on my first trip. Go simple on your first trip. You can get by with what you've got. My learnings:

Seat bag + top tube bags + front roll and a backpack and you should be good. Use some water bottle mounts on the fork legs or downtube for water. I wouldn't spend the money on a frame bag unless you can find one that fits without needing custom.

Also, go on a couple of test rides loaded up. I learned a lot about how to pack the bike before I left.

Next time I do a trip, I'll be wearing a backpack again instead of a seat bag so I can use my dropper.

 

[gundrted]

I called these guys and they are not cheap. The center bag alone is around $140. Super nice guy on the phone and he loves his Trail Pistol. I won't be going this route, but heres the info if anyone else is interested.

ROGUE PANDA DESIGNS: AZT INSPIRED
https://bikepacking.com/plog/rogue-panda-designs/
https://roguepanda.com/

 

[gundrted]

I'm an amateur but learned alot on my first trip. Go simple on your first trip. You can get by with what you've got. My learnings:

Seat bag + top tube bags + front roll and a backpack and you should be good. Use some water bottle mounts on the fork legs or downtube for water. I wouldn't spend the money on a frame bag unless you can find one that fits without needing custom.

Also, go on a couple of test rides loaded up. I learned a lot about how to pack the bike before I left.

Next time I do a trip, I'll be wearing a backpack again instead of a seat bag so I can use my dropper.

Thanks for the info. I going to keep it simple. I could use a small day pack and this is perfect reason to get one.

 

[vikb]

Different bike, but here is my Enduropacking setup. The keys are being ruthless about limiting what you bring then getting very creative with where to put stuff.

A lighter more compact setup is light years more fun when things get fast and rowdy anyways.

Have a great time. Sounds like an awesome trip. :thumbsup:

 

[She&I]

Well I either made an amazing or insane life choice. My friend asked me to go on a 6 day hut trip between Telluride, CO and Moab , UT .... Of course I said YES!

I have an '18 Trail Pistol (AL frame) size large.

First off, I've never bikepacked. Backpacked yes.

This is a semi-supported trip. The huts are stocked with food, bedding and cookware. We need to bring the rest ... bike, clothes, tools, spare parts, snacks, water and so on.

I started pocking (danger Will Robinson ... DANGER) around the internet and wow are there the bag options and some are very elaborate. I don't want to spend a ton of money because I this may be once in a lifetime thing. I also don't want to go super cheap and hate life in the middle of nowhere.

Right now I'm thinking some type of frame bag, one or two top tube bags, maybe a seat bag, maybe a bar bag and a small backpack. I'm also look at the TwoFish bottle mounts.

Topeak seams to have a lot of bags at a reasonable cost. I'll reframe from posting pics of each.

https://www.topeak.com/global/en/products/bikepacking

They also have some cage bags as well.https://www.topeak.com/global/en/products/bottle-cage-bag/1140-cagepack-xl

I'm thinking of putting two TwoFish mounts on the legs of my MRP Ribbon. I could then mount bottle cages low and out of the way.
Quick Cage Adapter: - Twofish Unlimited
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003RLJ8L6/

Any comments, experiences or thoughts would be very very helpful.

Approaching this like a bikepacking outing is a mistake. It's a supported multi-day ride that enables a rider to pedal with the normal day kit and little more.

If you have more than what Vic shows, you're doing it wrong. Don't waste a bunch of money and have less fun weighing your bike down because you can.

This is what a short unsupported ride can look like:

Take out my sleeping bag, stove, dinner, breakfast, nightly utility items, and there is not much left. Basically just what I ride with any day.

 

[Wayndar]

FWIW, I'm getting ready for a bikepacking trip with a different bike, but my gear, except the frame bag, will fit the TP too. My next trip will be on the TP with some faster rolling tires. While I'm new at it, I'm following the same mantra as the others- keep it simple and do a few test rides with weight and distance.
Don't buy a custom framebag yet. Mine carries 1/2 of a 2-person tent, waterfilter, and tools. You won't need the tent, and the tools should fit in a camelbak. My seatbag is the Topeak one and it cinches down nice and tight. Keep the load light in the seatbag.
Handlebar bag is just a drybag with long Voile straps with spacers. I've added a waterbottle mount to the downtube using the electrical tape method from bikepacking.com and it seems to work so far.

 

[She&I]

I'm an amateur but learned alot on my first trip. Go simple on your first trip. You can get by with what you've got. My learnings:

Seat bag + top tube bags + front roll and a backpack and you should be good. Use some water bottle mounts on the fork legs or downtube for water. I wouldn't spend the money on a frame bag unless you can find one that fits without needing custom.

Also, go on a couple of test rides loaded up. I learned a lot about how to pack the bike before I left.

Next time I do a trip, I'll be wearing a backpack again instead of a seat bag so I can use my dropper.

One last thought: If opting for a seat bag, don't use a large one so you can still use your dropper and get behind your seat. Just a tiny one is all you need, if that.

 

[vikb]

If you want to use a dropper and seat bag a Wolf Tooth Valais can be used to set a maximum drop so you don't have to think about how low you can go with the saddle every time you want to use the dropper.

It can also be used to keep your dropper up if you lose pressure and your saddle won't stay in the up position.

It will also allow a saddle bag strap to ride on it and avoid wearing away at the anodizing on the dropper stanchion.

https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/products/valais-25

 

[azfishman]

You made the right choice. I did the Telluride to Gateway in 2017 on my Trail Pistol and it was fine. You missed out, I think you have a large. I sized up to an XL and gave my Rogue Panda frame bag to another GG owner on the TP thread.....
Due to inability to upload pics, I can't show you my rig, but I had the defiant pack and the frame bag in the main triangle, a Rogue Panda seat bag and the two top tube bags along with a small hydration pack. If you follow the recommendations from SJH, you'd need a BOB trailer for all your crap. Like some of the other posters said, less is more. I brought a lot of stuff I never used, mostly cold/rain gear since I am a desert dweller, I just assumed it would snow/blizzard on us everyday. I'd bring something to stay warm for sure, just use something compressible, like a nano puff. If I did it again, I would've brought half as much stuff. Also, even out your gear with your friends, no need to bring three multi tools, three pumps, three spare tubes. The huts are well stocked and easy to find. There's a thread on here about a few idiots who tried got lost and had to get picked up and blamed it all on the SJH folks, but they left their directions/maps etc. SJHuts were awesome to work with and is a first class operation. Bring some foam earplugs for the cabins if in case of snoring people. It is an amazing trip. Try to do as many of the "recommended routes" as they are usually worth it./Users/michaeljplunkett/Desktop/IMG_9174.jpeg

 

[Nurse Ben]

I just bought a bar bag, frame bag (custom), and seat bag for my XC bike. The frame bag was custom, $250 alone, doesn't hold as much as you'd think due to shock placement. The seat bag and bar bag are more important in my mind, esp if you can get a couple water bottle on your fork and at least one in your frame.

My goal for bike packing is to keep the load off my back, but I wear a waist pack for quick access to a liter of water while riding and a place to keep mid day snacks, phone, and multi tool.

Let your bags dictate what you can bring. If you don't wear it or use it daily, you don't need it.

 

[She&I]

Let your bags dictate what you can bring.

This approach is partly why many get turned off to bikepacking - buying and filling up packs because you can, leading to needless cargo and less fun. I reco not following that advice. Get your gear whittled down then figure out how best to carry it.

If you don't wear it or use it daily, you don't need it.

Contingency gear - like a fist aid kit, PLB, AquaMira tabs, light shell jacket - has its place in even the most minimal kit. As mentioned, every person on the team need not carry every item.

 

[vikb]

, esp if you can get a couple water bottle on your fork and at least one in your frame.

If you are doing fireroad touring it's not a big deal, but if you plan to ride singletrack putting water on the forks will really mess up your steering and add a lot of unsprung weight to the bike.

It's pretty easy to mount a larger bottle under the DT where the weight is not an issue.

 

[AmericanTemplar]

I did one of the San Juan Huts trips six years ago (Durango to Moab) and it was a blast! Everyone in our group had lots of bags on their bike with the exception of me and my setup ended up working the best. One guy who had way too many bags crashed out in the middle of nowhere and dislocated his shoulder and had to cut the trip short. To be fair, he was from Nebraska where there aren't any real mountains, so inexperience was part of the problem, but his bike handling was also compromised with big bags on both ends. Another guy ended up leaving behind a couple of bags at one of the huts. My setup was a small frame bag and a bigger backpack. If you divide all of the recommended extras between everyone in your group, you don't really need to pack that much. You're gonna have a great time! That was probably the best thing that I've ever done. We did the Full Enchilada on the final day and it was a pretty special way to wrap up the trip.