Do you remember your first time?

[Verena]

Whilst sorting out boxes of old photos, I came across these two. Summer 1988, aged 16, my first cycling tour, youth hostelling it round Lake Constance with my friend (I'm the one on the right in both photos).

Have any of you got any photos or stories to share of your first cycling tours/ bikepacking trips?

IMG_20230119_191208 by Verena Zimmer, on Flickr

[Bearbonesnorm]

We always camped out as kids - summer holidays would be spent high up in the fields that overlooked the village. Most folk had obtained ex-German army sleeping bags which were waterproof, so tents were generally lacking. However, I think the first time I did something that could be deemed as 'bikepacking' was done aboard an 8" travel downhill bike with a big rucksack ... quite amazed that I ever wanted to do it again.

[Shewie]

First "bikepacking" trip was around 1988, me and a mate rode from Keighley to Burnsall on our Raleigh Techniums, complete with DIY rear racks holding our monster Lichfield tents, I'm pretty sure I used my external frame Karrimor pack too as I couldn't fit my german army sleeping bag on the bike.

[Shewie]

We always camped out as kids - summer holidays would be spent high up in the fields that overlooked the village. Most folk had obtained ex-German army sleeping bags which were waterproof, so tents were generally lacking. However, I think the first time I did something that could be deemed as 'bikepacking' was done aboard an 8" travel downhill bike with a big rucksack ... quite amazed that I ever wanted to do it again.

Did you have the fancy snipers bag with the arms and waxed base? Great bag but a pack filler

[Verena]

We always camped out as kids - summer holidays would be spent high up in the fields that overlooked the village. Most folk had obtained ex-German army sleeping bags which were waterproof, so tents were generally lacking. However, I think the first time I did something that could be deemed as 'bikepacking' was done aboard an 8" travel downhill bike with a big rucksack ... quite amazed that I ever wanted to do it again.

Did you have the fancy snipers bag with the arms and waxed base? Great bag but a pack filler

I was just going to ask that, were they the ones with the arms? I never had one but a friend did, huge things but clever... tent, bivvy bag, sleeping bag and warm coat all in one!

[Bearbonesnorm]

That's the one - always looked warmer than they were

[Moder-dye]

I did loads of camping as a kid from around the age of 8 with cubs and in the back field. Single skin crappy tent, crisp packet sleeping bag and no mat at all then just stuffed bracken and stuff under the tent. Progressed to more suitable camping gear as a teenager and backpacking and climbing trips. I'd have to dig out any photos and photo them to upload, but I don't have many because I could never afford to develop them

For all I always cycled I didn't actually bikepack until about 2013, largely because my knee was too bad by then to backpack any distance. First trip was a ferry down to Aberdeen from Shetland and then a loop along the Deesside way to Ballater, then over to Tomintoul via Loch Built, then joining the Speyside way down to Spey Bay, Buckie, and then Keith for the train back to Aberdeen and ferry back to Shetland. I did have a YouTube channel and blog of trips from then, but took it all down last year

[Zippy]

Here you go, have a laugh. First time I tried it.... Learnt TLS very quickly...I mean so much so that it was a while before I ever did something similar again. Bikepacking type kit wasn't really a thing or certainly not something I was aware of at the time. Didn't go far, bike was a terrible riding experience coz of the weight - how to get everything wrong!


EDIT: Forgot a date! I think this was end of 2008

And this is from my first proper trip that would probably count as "bikepacking". Tailpacks and the like still wasn't really particulalry available (still wasn't aware of despite looking) - it was still really niche. So I strapped a drybag to my bike with minimal sleeping kit (drybag, sleeping bag, rollmat), small camelbak with a few bits of food and a handful of riding clothes and did the West Highland Way.


June 2012

[psling]

I don't really remember my first time and it would not have been bikepacking as we know it.
As kids (single digit years) a gang of us would ride out and camp in the woods on a few occasions. No tents, just bed rolls like our heroes in the Saturday morning cinema cowboy films. Our mums & dads must have been terrified but obviously felt we were quite safe! We'd sometimes make wooden dens but mostly just dossed down in a clearing. The joys of growing up in a forest in the 60s
As teenagers we had progressed to racing bikes, rucksacks and tents but my memories are vague

[ton]

1979 as a 13 year old with the local ctc section. we rode to kettlewell and camped for 2 nights. i was riding a old carlton corsair with a rack p clipped on by one of the blokes in the cycling club.
and he lent me a karrimor pannier.
after that we went most bank holidays until leaving school in 82. in 1983 we went to spain in a coach with the ctc to andalucia. it was amazing.
year after i bought my first mtb, a muddy fox explorer. and a german army kip bag. weekends up hebden bridge, camping up hardcastle craggs.
slept anywhere after a few beers. school fields, doorways, church doorways, in a workmans hut, on the village green in a few places.
then started polaris events, with good lightweight kit.
and nowadays it is very rare that i sleep out. last time was Jennride 2 years ago. i hate sleeping out now, much prefer a good hostel bed. must be getting old and soft.

[fatbikephil]

1987 for me on a Raleigh Maverick. I lashed on a crap old rack I'd nicked from my brothers bike and borrowed a set of Oxford 'over the top' panniers to carry stuff. Three days and two nights planned in the Yorkshire Dales starting from Hawes in Wensleydale. With me I had an Optimus stove, a sigg bottle of paraffin, tinned food, a foam sleeping matt, a 4 season sleeping bag and a borrowed phoenix phazor dome (much patched) plus various bits of spare clothing. Combined weight around 80lbs I think....

The trip was a disaster - I'd forgotten one of the maps so did most of the first day on road, had a good bivvy above Dent but then a horrible first morning fighting my way long the trail above Dentdale into Deepdale. Abandoned this for the road, got to Ingleton, it started slashing down so had a sense of humour failure and cut the trip short. As I still had food left, a couple of days later I did an over-nighter further down Wensleydale, camping alongside the river wharfe in Langstrothdale. This was much better and encouraged me on further touring jaunts, but staying in YH's, not camping. In fact I didn't camp off the back of a bike again until 2010.

[Zippy]

1987 for me on a Raleigh Maverick.

I wasn't even born!

[ScotRoutes]

Firsts? Let me take you on a trip down memory lane.... (swooshy visuals).

First camping trip; too young to remember. As a family, camping was our regular holiday. Sometimes on official sites, sometimes at the roadside, sometimes in what I would later discover were tinkers (travellers) regular stops.

Late 1960s and into the 1970s I was camping with the Scouts, then Air Cadets.

First non-led backpacking trip; 1972. A mate and I got the train to Inverness and backpacked around the Loch Achilty/Strathpeffer area.

First motorbike camping trip; 1977. I'd just bought a Honda CG125. Within a month I'd loaded it up and headed up the A9 (pre-dualling) at its top speed of 58mph. I found that I could hold that speed and get around 130mpg if I tucked in behind HGVs.

From about 2004 onwards I was doing regular backpacking trips in order to bag some remote Munros.

I wasn't in any way into cycling until 2004/5.

First "bikepacking" trip; Maol Buidhe bothy, October 2006. Mate and I were discussing "what's the furthest point from a main road on the UK mainland". We headed to a bothy with the only bikes we owned and overloaded rucksacks.



(I'm still using that rucksack in the Winter - a Karrimor Alpiniste)

First non-bothy bikepacking trip; September 2009. A loop from Invergarry to upper Glen Affric including the (now collapsed) sunken bridge at Loch Loin. My wee Ti hardtail (which I still have), rack and panniers and tent strapped to the bars.





First trip with actual bikepacking bags; October 2012. Glen Feshie on the fatbike.

[Pickers]

This was probably 1977, somewhere just near Llangollen on my first proper trip. We used hostels and B&Bs (sorry) on a tour around Wales.

This pic taken by my Dad during my 1st bike tour, I think 1977 or 78, near Llangollen by Richard Picton, on Flickr

I remember having a great time but didn't actually go out and tour again until 1998 - no pics that I can find but a pair of us rode to Dublin (well, to Holyhead for the ferry) for the TdF Grand Depart.

Continuing the occasional tour theme the next trip was 2008 in the Lake District with some hastily assembled kit loaded into a Talon 33 sack. Which was not big enough.

IMG_1313 by Richard Picton, on Flickr

It took me a while before I returned to touring and then bikepacking but I clearly come from a touring background..... I make no apologies for putting this pic up again - this was taken by my Dad at the top of Bwlch-Y_Groes in 1951. As I think I said before, the more things change the more they stay the same!

1950s Bikepacking with obligatory mug! by Richard Picton, on Flickr

[ton]

Rich, that picture is fantastic. just brilliant.

[Pickers]

Thanks Tony!

He carried on racing and touring into his 70s (and took the top pic of me). He rode Lands to John O’Groats both ways to celebrate his 70th birthday (yes, really!)

He said that he and his mate in the pic tried to make a makeshift tent /tarp contraption from parachute silk - plenty available in the early 50s. It was good when it was dry…. in the rain the droplets would hit the silk and burst into a fine spray. They didn’t take it to Wales.

[Cheeky Monkey]

Kielder c.2010 and after several pints riding to the mast / art shelter thing and kipping with a bunch of mates. Ot was it 2015. Fucknose

[JohnClimber]

May 2010 on the second WRT



Great memories

[Dave Barter]

1980 for me. A mate and I rode from Lyneham to Felton and back with a tent aged 14. Parents didn’t bat an eyelid about it. Those were the days

[Bearbonesnorm]

with a tent aged 14

Probably reaching retirement was it?

[Dave Barter]

Where’s the snare drum emoji

[HUX]

In 1986 aged 14 me and a mate loaded up our racers, pre booked some youth hostels and headed off from the Midlands into Wales. We stayed at Bridges, Corris, 2 nights at Bryn Gwynant, Llangollen then across to the Peaks to Dimmingsdale then back home. We survived mainly on Mr Kiplings pies and I remember vividly our last night when we only had a packet of Smash between us. Happy days
After that I think it was the 2011 WRT.

[slarge]

I think I got the sleeping outdoors bug in the cubs, then aged about 13 or 14 a few mates rode from Warwick to Malvern youth hostel and stayed overnight - I remember pouring over OS maps sorting a route out, and loading panniers with gear. A while later we did a 4 or 5 night youth hostel tour ending up in Welsh Bicknor down by the Forest of Dean. Fond memories of being self sufficient and having fun. A really good mate found a photo of the 5 of us when clearing out his parents house, and sent me a copy. Cycling in jeans, full panniers, no lid and just whatever clothes we knocked around in is a far cry from the specific kit we have today.
Fast forward quite a few years and Polaris events gave the opportunity for biking, route finding and sleeping out. Then this group started, and I remember my first winter event with drybags strapped to my bike, making my way to one of the grid refs expecting to find people, only to be on my own in a cold damp valley. I loved it, and it kind of grew from there.

[The Cumbrian]

Loads of camping trips as a kid in the local woods, my mates and I had our first "proper" backpacking trip to The Lakes when I was 14 in 1986. Crap sleeping bags, plastic bivvy bags, Cobmaster external framed rucsacs, building site waterproofs, Baked beans, tinned hotdogs and Beanfeast to eat. We camped in Ennerdale Forest and got soaked, and stayed soaked for most of the rest of the trip. We walked over Great Gable in the cloud, only to discover during the only time the cloud cleared that day that we were actually on the top of Kirk Fell.
We crossed over to Buttermere to be collected by my mate's dad, and as we dried out by the lake a middle class family passed us in their Goretex finery and the child pointed at us and said "Look mummy, nomads".
My first bikepacking trip (but I didn't know that it was at the time) was in 1989 when my mate and I put a sleeping bag and some food in a pack and cycled out to Cogra Moss to camp out. The bed of pine boughs that we laid down on pretty much prevented any sleep.

[Kumquat]

My first bikepacking trip was with a buddy in 1988 maybe 89. We spent a week or so riding rigid MTBs on the Cornish coast path from Bude to Falmouth, carrying very little and overnighting in youth hostels.
We survived on chips, coke, bananas and tracker bars.