We thought it might be useful to make a list of the things we are taking on our cycle tour in case any pending cycle tourists are interested. We looked at other cycling blogs quite a bit as we planned and found them really useful (see our links). They listed things we didn't know of and suggested cheaper or free versions for things that we assumed we needed. Most updated how useful and resilient they found different gear on the road as they went.
We want to list the stuff we are taking because we mostly avoided buying the top range gear and tried to make do where we could with second hand or salvaged stuff. Our updates of how the gear is faring will indicate where this did not pay off! It seems that with some gear you can't get away with scrimping. Nevertheless, we hope our list with associated costs helps to disprove the idea that you need a lot of expensive/super high tech gear to embark on a long cycle trip.
For stuff we bought online we have including shipping costs.
bikes and bike gear:
bike j: £184 (Carrera Subway 1 - on sale at Halfords)
bike m: £184 (Carrera Subway 1 - on sale at Halfords)
rear pannier rack m: £20
rear pannier rack j: £20 (ebay)
front pannier racks: 2 x £15, halfords
front pannier pair large: £17.50* replaced with Ortlieb Front Roller City pannier pair: €69
front pannier pair small: £12 (ebay)
rear pannier waterproof pair: £53
rear pannier canvas #1: £5 (matthew found in a charity shop!)
rear pannier canvas #2: jenny's from melbourne (old)
cooking and camping:
tent 2 -Vango Omega 250, £110** replaced with McKinley Brenta 3: €180
sleeping bag - Vango Breakout double sleeping bag: £35
sleeping mats -Mountainlife Ultimate self-inflating mat: 2 x £30*** replaced with Thermarest Prolite Plus (small): 2 x €89
gas cooker (Campingaz Bleuet Micro Plus): £12
matthew camping pillow: £7
jenny wee pillow (just a tiny one from a cushion and i stitched a little cover)
Victorinox paring knife: £5
camping cooking pots: £8
collapsible bucket: £2.50
LED head lamps: 2 x £5
jenny swiss army knife (gift from matthew in melbourne)
Small solar light from Obi: £10 (charges on the bike during the day and can be clipped from the tent roof for decent light at night)
toiletries etc:
sunscreen (spf 50): £3
insect repellent
apricot oil (moisturiser)
jenny microfibre towel - from nz
matthew microfibre towel: £10
clothing:
jenny Finisterre merino leggings (finisterre): £35
jenny cotton dress: £15 (etsy)
matthew Icebreaker merino t shirt: £16
jenny Icebreaker merino undies: 4 x £10
matthew Icebreaker merino undies: 2 x £20
jenny waterproof Royal Robbins jacket: £18
matthew waterproof Goretex jacket
matthew wool pants: £26 (etsy)
jenny sneakers
matthew sneakers
jenny sandals
matthew flipflops
matthew woolen retro cycling jersey: £14 (ebay)
matthew tartan wool shirt
jenny woolen hat (she knitted)
matthew beanie (found on side of road in scotland)
jenny scarf (thin wool summer scarf): £6
matthew scarf (thin wool summer scarf): £10
various other clothes we already own
entertainment:
little wooden russian chess set: £1.50
northern sky astronomy book: £4
book of maths puzzles: £2.50
crossword book: £2
card game - briscola (gift from andrew!)
We want to list the stuff we are taking because we mostly avoided buying the top range gear and tried to make do where we could with second hand or salvaged stuff. Our updates of how the gear is faring will indicate where this did not pay off! It seems that with some gear you can't get away with scrimping. Nevertheless, we hope our list with associated costs helps to disprove the idea that you need a lot of expensive/super high tech gear to embark on a long cycle trip.
For stuff we bought online we have including shipping costs.
key
second hand = red
old (already owned) = blue
free / salvaged = green
replaced or ditched =Strike through
replaced or ditched =
bikes and bike gear:
bike j: £184 (Carrera Subway 1 - on sale at Halfords)
bike m: £184 (Carrera Subway 1 - on sale at Halfords)
rear pannier rack m: £20
rear pannier rack j: £20 (ebay)
front pannier racks: 2 x £15, halfords
front pannier pair small: £12 (ebay)
rear pannier waterproof pair: £53
rear pannier canvas #1: £5 (matthew found in a charity shop!)
rear pannier canvas #2: jenny's from melbourne (old)
cooking and camping:
tent 2 -
sleeping bag - Vango Breakout double sleeping bag: £35
sleeping mats -
gas cooker (Campingaz Bleuet Micro Plus): £12
matthew camping pillow: £7
jenny wee pillow (just a tiny one from a cushion and i stitched a little cover)
Victorinox paring knife: £5
camping cooking pots: £8
collapsible bucket: £2.50
LED head lamps: 2 x £5
jenny swiss army knife (gift from matthew in melbourne)
Small solar light from Obi: £10 (charges on the bike during the day and can be clipped from the tent roof for decent light at night)
toiletries etc:
sunscreen (spf 50): £3
insect repellent
apricot oil (moisturiser)
jenny microfibre towel - from nz
matthew microfibre towel: £10
clothing:
jenny Finisterre merino leggings (finisterre): £35
jenny cotton dress: £15 (etsy)
matthew Icebreaker merino t shirt: £16
jenny Icebreaker merino undies: 4 x £10
matthew Icebreaker merino undies: 2 x £20
jenny waterproof Royal Robbins jacket: £18
matthew waterproof Goretex jacket
matthew wool pants: £26 (etsy)
jenny sneakers
matthew sneakers
jenny sandals
matthew flipflops
matthew woolen retro cycling jersey: £14 (ebay)
matthew tartan wool shirt
jenny woolen hat (she knitted)
matthew beanie (found on side of road in scotland)
jenny scarf (thin wool summer scarf): £6
matthew scarf (thin wool summer scarf): £10
various other clothes we already own
entertainment:
little wooden russian chess set: £1.50
northern sky astronomy book: £4
book of maths puzzles: £2.50
crossword book: £2
card game - briscola (gift from andrew!)
ordinary playing cards (gift from ben!)
camera - canon ixus 95 is (very tiny): £97
matthew's mini disc player + microphone
jenny mp3 player
one novel each
Tools and spares:
------Bike related------
2 spare inner tubes
* Original front bags where not rigid enough to sit snug and started interfering with the front spokes
** Our Vango tent lasted about seven weeks before it started to deteriorate. The poles (aluminium) began to crack and snap one by one in the same way at the point where the poles join. It was during the hottest weeks of summer it started but the tent was never left erect during the day and the poles never received shocks. The rest of the tent was in great condition still, so it was a shame to have to buy a whole new tent but it seems replacement poles for a tent are nigh on impossible to get on the road since all tents have slightly different poles. A spare pole or two would have been no help since all the poles were gradually succumbing to the same problem.
*** Our original sleeping mats, the Mountainlife Ultimate sleeping mats, were a huge failure - one of them never stayed inflated from the first use and it wasn't long before the other was a pancake by morning too. They also had very little spongyness when deflated so we slept badly for the first few weeks of the trip. Finally in Paris we splashed out on a pair of Thermarests and have not looked back, they are remarkably soft & comfy, and so far (two months of continual use) we haven't had any problems.
camera - canon ixus 95 is (very tiny): £97
matthew's mini disc player + microphone
jenny mp3 player
one novel each
Tools and spares:
------Bike related------
2 spare inner tubes
5 spare spokes
bike multi-tool that includes allen keys, screw drivers and wrenches.
tyre levers (we found the brand Pedros good and strong)
lubricating oil - chain
lubricating oil - cables
WD-40
old cloth for cleaning (useful for cleaning thick mud off brakes)
old tooth brush (useful for cleaning grit off chain)
spare screws and bolts of various sizes
hand pump
spoke tightener
compact pliers
puncture patches
spare set of brake pads
------General--------
heavy duty tape (very handy when things go wrong with a tent)
tiny hacksaw (probably not essential but bought it when we needed a quick fix tent pole repair and have carted it along since)
cable ties
electrical tape
------General--------
heavy duty tape (very handy when things go wrong with a tent)
tiny hacksaw (probably not essential but bought it when we needed a quick fix tent pole repair and have carted it along since)
sewing kit
nylon rope (good for a clothes line)cable ties
electrical tape
bungee cords (we found the ones with an extra hook in the middle of the other two hooks the best for securing awkward loads onto the bikes)
* Original front bags where not rigid enough to sit snug and started interfering with the front spokes
** Our Vango tent lasted about seven weeks before it started to deteriorate. The poles (aluminium) began to crack and snap one by one in the same way at the point where the poles join. It was during the hottest weeks of summer it started but the tent was never left erect during the day and the poles never received shocks. The rest of the tent was in great condition still, so it was a shame to have to buy a whole new tent but it seems replacement poles for a tent are nigh on impossible to get on the road since all tents have slightly different poles. A spare pole or two would have been no help since all the poles were gradually succumbing to the same problem.
*** Our original sleeping mats, the Mountainlife Ultimate sleeping mats, were a huge failure - one of them never stayed inflated from the first use and it wasn't long before the other was a pancake by morning too. They also had very little spongyness when deflated so we slept badly for the first few weeks of the trip. Finally in Paris we splashed out on a pair of Thermarests and have not looked back, they are remarkably soft & comfy, and so far (two months of continual use) we haven't had any problems.
