This gear list will be updated regularly during our cycle trips (sorry, we’re not that organised to have pretty photos to include in the post – but we’re working on it). Michael is also working on some gear reviews to add to this section. Watch this space!
USA and Latin America: 2017
The Bikes
- We stuck with our Brodie Circuits (2016 & 2015) that we cycled across Canada with. They got a bit of a tune up over our break, but that’s about it (Gear Review).
Bike Gear:
- Brooks Saddles B67 S Bicycle Saddle & B67S saddles (Amazon)
- Topeak uni super tourist DX rear racks
- SCHWALBE Marathon Tyres. Made it across Canada with these tyres – Kelly didn’t get a flat for the entire 7000km. Michael got about 4 flats in total. (Amazon)
- MEC panniers aquanot roll top 20l pannier.
- Soma front pannier rack (on Kelly’s bike).
- Blackburn FL1 low rider rack (on Kelly’s bike).
- Homemade dry bag front panniers
- Topeak compact handlebar bag (on Michael’s bike).
- Blackburn Outpost Top Tube Bag (on Michael’s bike). (Amazon)
- Blackburn Outpost Cargo Bottle Cage (x3) (Michael’s bike) – Michael uses these to hold his growlers. (Amazon)
- Cateye volt 400 front light (on Michael’s bike).
- Knog Blinder mob the face rear light (on Michael’s bike) (Amazon)
- GOAL ZERO Rock Out 2 Portable Speakers . usb chargeable Portable speakers that can be attached to the front of the bike. (Amazon/ Gear Review)
- Cateye Padrone bike computer (Amazon)
Camping Gear:
- MSR WhisperLite International Stove, plus the Service Kit and 1L fuel bottle. (Amazon)
- Mountain Hardwear Bozeman Flame 20 Sleeping Bag (Amazon)
- MSR Elixir 2 tent & footprint, with MSR compression tent bag (Amazon)
- Therm-a-Rest Prolite Plus and Silk sleeping bag liners. (Amazon)
- GSI halulite 1.8L boiler (Amazon)
- Light My Fire: Titanium Sporks (Amazon)
- Platypus Gravity Works 2L Water Filter (Amazon)
- Bear Spray (Amazon)
Other Gear:
- Yamaha Guitalele. A new edition to the bikes – Michael’s baby, the guitalele! (Amazon)
- Klean Kanteen 1.2L Stainless Steel Growler (x2) (Amazon/Gear Review)
- LifeStraw Go Water Bottle with Integrated 1000-Liter LifeStraw Filter. These straws are amazeballs! Much easier and quicker than using purification tablets or a steripen. (Amazon/ Gear Review)
- Nalgene Wide Mouth Water Bottle. We picked the wide mouth water bottle purely because we have a coffee plunger that fits into it (we do like our coffee). (Amazon)
- Kindle E-reader 6″. These are great for travelling and cycle touring. Super light, great battery life and you can store hundreds of books on it. (Amazon)
- Travel Towel. (Amazon)
- GoPro Hero2 Camera. Who doesn’t want to record their trip? GoPro is perfect for filming while cycling. (Amazon)
- Mooncup. A ‘must have’ for any female cyclist, especially those cycling in remote areas. (Amazon)
- Duct Tape – don’t leave home without it! (Amazon)
- First aid kit
- Toiletries (plus multi-sink plug and biodegradable soap flakes).
- Clothes in Compression Bags, plus several dry bags.
Canada: 2016
The Bikes:
Norco Search S3 (2015) chromoly frame cyclocross/touring bike. Kelly’s new bike! This bike is a total beast and should handle awesomely well on and off road with disc brakes and 30 speeds to choose from when climbing gigantic mountains!Brodie Circuit (2016). Kelly’s second bike of the trip (after day 2 she decided the Norco wasn’t up for cycle touring and exchanged it for a Brodie).- Brodie Circuit (2015). 4120 Chromoly frame touring bike. Michael’s new baby! Classic style touring bike with bar end shifters and disc brakes. We are both yet to ride these bikes as they are waiting patiently for us to pick them up in Canada and ride them around the world!
Bike Gear:
- Origin8 Classique Cargo HD Front Rack. I’ve been using this monster on my commuter bike and it’s a bomb proof solid piece of gear. Opting to store the tent, sleeping bag, sleeping matt and tarp in a large dry bag on this bad boy. This is so I can load all of the sleeping things on the front rack last making it easier to pack the rear panniers and backpack in the morning before taking the tent down. That’s the theory anyway. (Amazon / Gear Review)
- Brooks Saddles B67 S Bicycle Saddle & B67S saddles (Amazon)
- Filzer PR-2 rear pannier rack for the 2015 Brodie, the 2016 Brodie came with a fitted rear pannier rack.
- SCHWALBE Marathon Tyres. We’ve heard rumours of cyclists travelling for thousands and thousands of kilometres on these tyres, without experiencing any punctures. We’re willing to find out for ourselves, whether this is true. (Amazon)
- Cateye volt 400 front light.
- MEC panniers aquanot roll top 20l pannier.
- EVO Low Rider Fork Mounted Front Rack (Amazon / Gear Review)
Camping Accessories:
- MSR WhisperLite International Stove, plus the Service Kit. (Amazon)
- MSR Hubba Hubba Tent (2 person). I love this tent! It’s super light, it’s super strong and it’s quite spacious. It’s probably my favourite piece of gear we own. (Amazon/ Gear Review)
- MSR Hubba Hubba NX Footprint. Not only does it protect our tent, it also doubles up as a picnic mat and shade cloth. (Amazon)
- LifeStraw Go Water Bottle with Integrated 1000-Liter LifeStraw Filter. These straws look amazeballs! Much easier and quicker than using purification tablets or a steripen (though we’ll be taking our SteriPen as well). (Amazon/ Gear Review)
- Mountain Hardwear Bozeman Flame 20 Sleeping Bag (Amazon)
- Therm-a-Rest EvoLite Regular. We recently upgraded to these more comfortable sleeping mats. They weigh slightly more, but it’s a trade off we’re willing to take. (Amazon)
- Silk sleeping bag liner.
Other gear:
- GOAL ZERO Rock Out 2 Portable Speakers . Portal speakers that can be attached to the front of the bike. (Amazon/ Gear Review)
- Kindle E-reader 6″. These are great for travelling and cycle touring. Super light, great battery life and you can store hundreds of books on it. (Amazon)
- Travel Towel. (Amazon)
- GoPro Hero2 Camera. Who doesn’t want to record their trip? GoPro is perfect for filming while cycling. (Amazon)
- Solar charger and power banks (Panasonic power bank).
- Mooncup. A ‘must have’ for any female cyclist, especially those cycling in remote areas. (Amazon)
- Nalgene Wide Mouth Water Bottle. We picked the wide mouth water bottle purly because we have a coffee plunger that fits into it (we do like our coffee). (Amazon)
- Steripen Classic UV Water Purifierr. Beats iodine tablets or drops. (Amazon)
- Duct Tape – don’t leave home without it! (Amazon)
- First aid kit and a lot of drugs.
- Toiletries (plus, multi-sink plug,
washing line, soap flakes).
France to China: 2014
As you can probably tell from this gear list, we were on quite a strict budget at the time. Since then we’ve upgraded a lot of this gear.
The Bikes:
- Trek T30 Navigator bicycles (bought second hand): Cheap, second-hand, sturdy, but we loved them, and we had absolutely minimal problems with them. The worst thing that happened was a couple of punctures, a couple of blown tyres and a broken screw in the back rack. These bikes are solid! Unfortunately, we decided to sell them in Urumqi, China for $50, and I think we’re both regretting that decision now.
Bike Gear:
- ‘ebay specials’ panniers and tube bags: My panniers were held together solely by duct tape, by the time we reached China. (Amazon)
- Home made handle bar bag: Made out of a 6-pack cooler bag.
- The bikes came with racks and fenders.
Camping Gear and Everything Else:
- Coleman Bedrock 2 tent.
- Quechua sleeping bags and 3/4 sleeping mats
- Steripen Classic UV Water Purifier. Beats iodine tablets or drops. (Amazon)
- MSR PocketRocket Stove and cups, bowls and plates made from old Nutella and coffee containers. (Amazon)
- Duct Tape – don’t leave home without it! (Amazon)
- First aid kit and a lot of drugs.
- Toiletries (plus, multi-sink plug, washing line, soap flakes).
- GoPro Hero2 Camera. Who doesn’t want to record their trip? GoPro is perfect for filming while cycling. (Amazon)
- Solar charger and power banks (Panasonic power bank).
Our Wish List
- Surly Ogre, awesome mountain bike style touring bike or Trek 520 classic touring bike.
- Garmin Edge 810 Cycling Computer GPS to stop us getting lost and stuff! (Amazon)
Sounds like you got all the supplies you’ll need – best of luck on your upcoming journey!
Thanks Brittany!