Bike Camping Gear | GTAMotorcycle.com

Bike Camping Gear

J_F

J_F

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thinking I might try some bike camping
usually have have done hotels/air bnb's on my trips

gonna take off for a bit here in a week or so
see how the Caponord is on long days

main question: is about camping mats/bedrolls
after 10-11 hours on the bike
ground sleeping has never held much appeal

have one of those self inflating mats that packs up small
but it is less than adequate for hard ground after a long day
nothing worse than getting on the bike in the morning already sore

anyone have a mat that packs small and works well?
 
You can buy a hammock that folds up to about the size of your fist. Add a tarp and a sleeping bag and you are good to go in all kinds of weather.
 
I have this one.... Klymit Static V2 Review
Love it. Packs into a little stuff sac. Got it on sale at atmosphere. Sign up for their newsletter emails....they'll send you some great offers....to the point where you want to unsuscribe.
 
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My brother was doing the literal outdoor camping sleeping on the ground thing out west, woke up with a marmot sleeping on his chest. :sleep:
 
Get a cot. Thermarest ultralight. Packs up small. My rig is the cot, an insulated pad (big Agnes) and a hybrid ultralight quilt (attaches to the pad). I sleep as well as I do at home with that.

I have the single version of this Tango Duo Slim 30F/-1C Sleeping Bag

The insulated pad ensures your underside doesn’t get cold. Sleeping bags do a terrible job of insulating your underside as the padding gets compressed and doesn’t insulate. Hence the backless bag. I have a light top sheet on top of the pad.

I’m off to Algonquin midweek maybe next week. If you want to share the site let me know.
 
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I use a Eureka self inflator, it's pretty thin and packs up nicely. I find it hard to sleep on the thicker inflatables because they are small, I end up rolling off then climbing back on several times a night. I guess is you can sleep motionless they would be really comfortable.

I keep a tiny rake and camp shovel. I find spending a few minutes preparing the ground before setting up my tent gives me more comfort than a thick mat. First I level the ground, then I rake up and spread a pile of dry leaves or needles. I set down a good footprint, then my tent, then my mat.
 
You forgot to dig the rain trench.

with a hammock you could set up over a river.
Just don't set up in the middle of a Bear or Moose run, that would really suck.
 
Motorcycle camping is not high on my list nor is pulling a trailer but the Idaho bedroll could change my mind, especially if travelling in the USA. Canadian camp ground prices are stupid high. www.idahobedroll.com

At about $5K (Landed Canadian estimate) it isn't cheap but if you don't like sleeping on the ground or paying for motels and meals it could work.

The original video showed a decent kitchen in the back with a cooler and butane stove.


Raising and putting away a tent can be time consuming as well.

Click on the video link below for a look at the production model.

Video
 
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I like the cot idea
good strategy to avoid the ground is to not be on it

hammock does that too
but for some reason I don't hang well in those things
don't figure I'd get much sleep

appreciate the offer JC
but I'm thinking of that Michigan west coast trip
would be good to shoot the sh*t some day

yeah, no
bike trailer is out
I have a 38 footer located at a seasonal park
it works great to scratch the trailer trash itch
 
The cot is great. No pressure points, off the cold ground when it’s cold, and when it’s warm the air moves underneath. The pad I have that goes on top is an air pad and I have an inflator bag that kind of works like bellows to inflate it easily. If you have an air pad you should never inflate it with your mouth as it will eventually grow mould inside. The camp quilt is great as I hate the restriction in a mummy bag. It feels like a high end duvet but it also has a hood for when it gets really cold. As it has no back it also packs up smaller than a normal sleeping bag too.

Camping rates at the provincial campsites are nuts. It’s about $50 a night with just a campsite, nothing fancy. Good news is that you can have up to 3 tents plus a tarp on a site (if there’s enough space), bad news is that extra vehicles cost $17.50 per vehicle. I haven’t managed to find out how strict they are on bikes though.

I bought a new tent a year or so ago, a Big Agnes ultralight dome called a big house. It’s luxury, can stand up inside, space for a cot and lots of other floor space, it has an accessory vestibule that I think I can get the bike into as well if necessary. It packs up really well. Itching to use it hence the offer for next week or so.
 
Remember that if all else fails an air mattress floats.
 
It does look comfy, but setting it up with skeeters and blackflies eating you would be a nightmare. Thermarest is much simpler.
 
These cots are new to me, I just checked out a McKinley cot -- amazing -- I'm getting one. It weighs about 3lbs and packs to 15"long and 6" diameter which is about the same as my inflatable Eureka mat.

I always thought of cots as big and heavy, not anymore.
 
Mad Mike said:
These cots are new to me, I just checked out a McKinley cot -- amazing -- I'm getting one. It weighs about 3lbs and packs to 15"long and 6" diameter which is about the same as my inflatable Eureka mat.

I always thought of cots as big and heavy, not anymore.
Click to expand...

No. I thought the same too until I checked the specs. My thermarest cot packs down to about the size of my old thermarest pad and weighs very little. Putting a pad on the cot is still worthwhile though as it’s like adding a mattress. All this new fangled engineered aluminum stuff is really very good. I also have an ultralightweight table and chair that I take with me on the bike. The chair fits lengthwise in one of my panniers, the table folds right down to a small roll about 3ft long, the actual tabletop is tensioned fabric. Sounds weird but it works. Got both of these on amazon/Ali express as they are copies of higher end stuff but much cheaper. A little luxury goes a long way.
 
For bike camping, I stick with the blue foam roll. It lives rolled in the tarp outside of the bags. Given enough rain, it gets wet but it is easy to dry with a quick wipe. I understand why you would be chasing something more comfortable though.
 
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