What We Learned on the Bikepacking Adventure of a Lifetime
The guys at ‘Yonder Journal’ spent a year navigating the mountain passes of the world by bike. Here are their 101 necessary and sometimes frivolous insights for taking your bike off the grid.
In 2015, we traveled to New Zealand, Bolivia, California, British Columbia, and Australia. We took bikes, cameras, and curiosity. The theme: mountain passes. Our goal: Find the cleanest, most interesting, most stylish line from one side of a mountain to the other—like skateboarding or surfing, only with loaded bikes. We called this project Dead Reckoning.
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We rode on fat bikes, road bikes, and 29er gravel bikes. We were self-supported or at the very least self-reliant, except when we weren’t, wondering the whole time if the route would be possible, and if it was possible, how bad it would hurt, and if it did hurt, how much fun it would be to hurt that bad.
The point is that bikes are an amazing form of sport and transportation. But they’re also an ideal tool for exploration and casual anthropology. As it turns out, 15 mph is exactly the right speed at which to observe the world.
And for what it’s worth, in addition to riding them, you can put bikes in a bush plane, strap them to a helicopter, lash them to your back, and tie them to a raft. Basically they go where you go. And if worse comes to worse, you can always just ride them on the downhills. Probably.
What follows is a collection of metaphors, anecdotes, and tips from our bikepacking adventures, which when taken as a whole, might, with some luck, amount to something approximating 101 insights into getting way the hell off the grid with your bike, a backpack, maybe some strangers, and plenty of good friends. (Start recording your own adventures in Bicycling's Ride Journal!)
1. Try before you ride.
If you embark with a bike you haven’t ridden in final adventure mode (i.e.: fully loaded), the bikepacking adventure will be over before it even starts.
2. Pack extra gloves.
You can’t have too many. The weather will always be worse than you expect. The ounces you saved by ditching an extra pair of cycling gloves will come back to haunt you.
3. Embrace tubeless tires.
Remember 56K dial-up internet? It was great. You’d punch in a URL, go make coffee, and by the time you returned there’d be a cute polar bear on your screen. But you’d never choose it today. Let tubes go the way of 56K and say farewell to pinch flats forever.
4. Bring a book.
Books aren’t light and they get wet. But without electricity it’s amazing how quickly it gets dark, and in the middle of the wilderness when no one else is around, you will feel less alone.
5. Deploy the cinnamon roll.
Wrap wet clothes in newspaper, and roll (the paper is the dough; the clothes, the cinnamon). Useful in high-mountain hamlets where rain never stops and there are no trees to burn.
6. Practice optimistic skepticism (OS).
A cousin of Irrational Exuberance, OS encourages the wild and ambitious. Unlike its headstrong relation, it demands a wary eye. How it works: Your plan was to attain a vista camping spot. But there’s a blizzard, so you camp below snowline instead. Next day, your party does not need to resort to eating each other.
1. When deployed correctly, each will get you home safely.
2. The only time you’ll be comfortable wearing one is while you’re blissfully floating in the air.
3. Walking with either of them on your back is debilitating.
4. If you have to use either, you’ve made some really poor decisions.
5. For a while, if you can forget how you got there and what you have to do next, the view can be fantastic.
6. The sensation of imminent and simultaneous physical and psychological danger.
7. The pride in knowing that a representation of the proletariat is hanging from your shoulders.
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1. In Australia if your pal falls off his bike on a 14-percent climb because his legs seize with cramps, you might say he “kooked” it.
2. In Bolivia it’s okay to poop anywhere. In fact it’s encouraged. One might even describe it as necessary.
3. Wikipedia’s explanation as to why Graveyard Valley in British Columbia’s Chilcotin Range is called Graveyard Valley differs considerably from how Elders of the local First Nations understand it.
4. If you disassemble a car into thousands of parts and carry it over the Sierras using pack mules, which are legal, is that the same as driving through a Wilderness Area?
1. Bucket Chicken
Looks like chicken, must be chicken. Found in every pueblo square in a plastic bucket under a tarp marinating in something orange.
2. Kettle Chips
Poke a hole in the bag to let the air out, then smash ’em, crunch ’em, and compress ’em for a lightweight and savory snack.
3. Locoto
Tongue-melting powder that’s great on almost anything.
4. Regia
Congealed salt and oil; the “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!” of Bolivia.
5. Aji-No-Men Beef Flavor Ramen
Noodles and powdered beef. ¡Qué sabor!
6. Mayonesa
This is kinda mayonnaise, in the same way that apple Jolly Ranchers are kinda apples.
7. Tuna
Labeled as tuna; pungent and gross; a Trojan horse of dietary vengeance: Do not eat!
8. Coca-Cola
Move over Michael Jackson! Everyone knows Coca-Cola is the King of Pop.
9. Eggs
They can’t even help but be organic and cage free.
10. Pepsi
Fake, knockoff, wannabe Coca-Cola; bought in haste; whatever you do, do not make this mistake.
11. “That Leaf”
Bolivian wizards, shamans, and adventurers have used the leaf of the coca plant for eons (it is said to aid in altitude sickness, digestion, circulation, headaches, and “regularity”). True that when this leaf is put through a chemical process it becomes cocaine, but that’s not how most Bolivians use it. Like them, we stuffed the raw leaf in our cheeks and chewed on it all day. Important: Don’t “eat” eat it.
1. Meet a man and a woman leading a horse-pack train over Windy Pass. Share some conversation, then pay attention when they say…
2. “Watch out for the grizzly up the trail. Make some noise. And work it. You’ll be fine.”
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3. Pretend, collectively, that you know what it means to “work” a bear.
4. Tie your shoelaces, have a snack, stay together, and continue up the trail because what else are you going to do?
5. Just when you thought the horse packers were—like you’d said all along—ghosts from the 1800s haunting the Chilcotins, see the bear, spook the bear, watch it run off the trail about 30 feet before it stands up and turns around.
6. Hold your ground, make eye contact, unholster your bear spray, whistle, shout at it, and most important, back away slowly and deliberately. Make eye contact. Be chill.
7. Think about stopping to take a photograph, agonize over it, decide against it, and continue walking deliberately backward.
8. You’ll know if it’s gonna succeed in less than a minute. Good luck!
LIKE...
1. an accordion on the last day of Oktoberfest
2. that balloon bus on the cover of Led Zeppelin’s first album
3. a premature soufflé
4. a rolled-up, empty tube of toothpaste
5. a boa constrictor’s sparring partner
6. an empty treasure chest
7. a haunted submarine, or maybe it’s a hunted submarine... same dif
8. a banana peel: brown, empty, and without purpose (unless you decide to eat the banana peel)
When traveling through the High Andes of Bolivia, you’ll probably encounter at least one vigilante tollbooth: a guy or gal demanding tribute for using the road that travels by his or her land. After rigorous testing, we recommend the following strategies:
The colorful-paper technique
Bolivian vigilante tollbooth operators are attracted to colorful paper with numbers and portraits of famous dead people on them. If you have some of this paper to spare, spare some, but stick to the low, single numbers.
The “Look, a condor!” technique
Bolivian vigilante tollbooth operators have a fascination with these titanic Andean carrion birds. Point with gusto to a space in the sky and shout, “CONDOR!” Once the operator has turned to look, make your break.
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The blissfully ignorant technique
Bolivian vigilante tollbooth operators crave attention, then feed on your reaction. Ignoring them can be effective. But be warned, these are tollbooth vigilantes. You will want to ogle. And once you interact… well, just don’t.
The last resort
If you’re traveling to Bolivian vigilante tollbooth territory, bring someone you can sacrifice: your party’s weak link, the one who sleeps in, never makes food, and always flats. This person might be great at Sudoku, they might even be your husband or wife, but when you’re facing a vigilante tollbooth situation, you do what you gotta do.
1. Tubes
Because sometimes even tubeless fails
2. Patch kit
Because sometimes backup tubes fail
3. Tire boots
Never trifle with slashes and cuts
4. Bailing wire
Before there was duct tape there was bailing wire
5. Zip ties
These plastic cinches are surprisingly resolute and dependable
6. Gorilla Tape
Duct tape on steroids; wrap a yard or so around your seatpost for easy access
7. Dependable multi-tool
With a functional chain breaker and all other niceties
8. Solid Leatherman-type tool
Should include knife and pliers
9. Assorted common bicycle-friendly nuts and bolts
10. Derailleur hanger
If Achilles’s mother were to dip your bike in the River Styx she would hold it by the derailleur hanger
11. Pump
Make sure it works with your tire's valves
12. Lighter
Because you never know
In Australia… too easy
no problem, done, of course, got it
In Spanish-Speaking Countries… tipo
like, same as, similar; especially when paired with pantomime and wild gesticulation
In Canada… eh
universal punctuation; works as a period, question mark, and exclamation point
In New Zealand… sweet as
right on, OK; an inherently positive confirmation
When English Is Spoken Through a Swedish Filter… Bruce Lee
a grizzly; critical in countries where the alpha predator is the size of a VW bug and bristling with teeth and claw. If you hear “Bruce Lee, Bruce Lee, BRUCE LEE!” you might want to go for your ghost-pepper-infused bear spray instead of prepping your duckface for a selfie.
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DO...
- Ride your bike. That’s what it’s for.
- Stay on the uphill side of the bike. Trust us.¹
- Let it roll. Remember, this thing has wheels.²
- Have a snack or maybe take a photo. Make a joke, something about Sisyphus or a Sherpa is always a crowd pleaser.
- If possible, lean on the bike, like an off-road walker. You’re doing this because it’s too hard (or you’re too tired) to ride. Either way you’ll want to save that energy.³
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DON’T...
- Defend your bike if attacked by a wild animal. It can fend for itself.
- Drag. It’s called bike-pushing for a reason. Dragging is barbaric.
- Ghost ride your bike, it won’t balance itself. Unless for therapeutic reasons you need a little time alone, some quality “me” time, then sure, send ’er. But remember to never…
- Abandon your bike. You’ll need it later.
¹ Your bike will be loaded with excess weight in the form of tents, water, food, clothes, toothpaste. ² With all this weight, grades you’d normally be able to ride up will be unrideable. ³ Especially after five previous days of riding, sleeping on the ground, nearly freezing each night, and being harassed by real (or the idea of) wild animals.
1. Eskimo Pies 2. Wood recently fished out of a river 3. A bucket of snow 4. Angry words 5. Bicycle components; namely, but not limited to, handlebars, stems, seatposts, chains, pedals, cranks, spokes, brake pads, cables, bottom brackets, headsets, hubs, and quick releases 6. Hope
1. “The only reason I considered this ‘route’ even remotely possible was because I figured we could just walk up this stretch of river since the water was low. This rain might change things.”
2. “Let me get this straight, the fastest way across this bridge is backwards?”
3. “Wow, three hours later and it’s up to my nipples.”
4. “First of all, you realize he can’t hear us, right? Second of all, he’s pinned to a rock. And c) This is why people carry rope. I mean, right?”
5. “I think we, like, NEED to make a few really good decisions immediately. So let’s not panic but also let’s not get hypothermia and whatever comes after hypothermia.”
6. “I can’t hear anything in this hood.”
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