What is Bikepacking?
Simply put, bikepacking is a single or multi-day trip where you carry all necessary gear on your bike but it’s not only that, because if it was only that, I could not have become passionate about it. Let me explain you, what bikepacking is and why you might also become passionate about it.
For me, riding a bike has always been a thing. I was able to ride on two wheels ever since I was 5, however, growing up in Istanbul, Turkey made it difficult to ride a bike, but ever since 2011, I’ve been living in Dresden, Germany, and unlike Istanbul, this city is a heaven for bikes! Therefore, ever since day 1 in here, I’ve been commuting with my bike.
But, meeting and knowing about bikepacking happened only a few years ago. I was introduced to this idea of, simply packing your gear and riding off and I did my first ever bikepacking trip with my trustworthy fixed gear bike! Yes, a fixed gear bike! It was in total of 60KM, along the Elbe River, from Dresden to Děčín and after that short ride, I was hooked! So, be careful as you read this article, because I’m warning you, if you try it for the first time, you might get hooked, it’s that fast!
But What is Bikepacking, Really?
Well, as in the beginning of the article, it can be simplified into a trip, where you carry all your gear on your bike and technically, there are differences between bike touring and bikepacking but the biggest difference is, when bikepacking is mentioned, it really boils down to having a specific packing system where your bike carries your gear for you, with bikepacking-specific bags. These are, as most known; saddle bags, frame bags and handlebar bags but of course, there are other types of bags, such as fork bags, plattform or baskets etc. but the biggest difference is, when bike touring, you usually talk about panniers, and bags attached to those panniers in rear or front. There are other differences, but I’ll get to those in another article!
Is There More to Bikepacking?
Of course, not really. It’s not just a trip with a bike. I believe, is more than just a trip. I will be cheesy, but it really is an adventure! Because bikepacking is usually done in mixed-terrain. So, you ride on a bike path, gravel, trail and mud if you’re that much adventurous! Therefore, these variables, make bikepacking a real adventure! Depending on what you pack, how long you ride, where you ride! All of these different things, make bikepacking a wonderful experience for variety of different people, it’s flexibel, it’s fun, it’s healthy and it’s very interesting to see who has what kind of a packing system and what they’re taking with them! I can go on about a lot more things, as I’m so passionate about it, but I’ll spare my energy and resources for other articles that are upcoming!
Speaking of Passion
So, coming back to that little journey I had with my fixed gear bike. That made me realize, I really, really, really love bikepacking and in fact also bike touring, everything to do with bikes, in fact! However, as I learned more about bikepacking, touring and bikes in general, I realized that I need something rather specific to deal with some aspects of my trips, packlists and planning of them in general, and that’s why you’re reading this article on a website called Velopacker!
Everything About Bikepacking and Bike Touring
Velopacker, born as a passion side-project, is a web application that I’m currently building (as I’m writing this article). It’s first version will be published as soon as possible, to allow you make your bikepacking and Bike Touring experience a breeze! Collaborative Trips & Packlists, Todos, Daily Planner, GPX Viewer, Bike Builder and much more! I have so many ideas, and I really cannot wait to implement all of these, and get better with your feedback!
Check velopacker.com for roadmap, latest updates and features and sign up to waitlist, to be one of the first to get the info, once it’s live!
