The Self Sufficient Bike Camping Thread.
- Thread starter Dreggsy
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SummitFever
Eats Squid
Thanks for the kind words. I've had the pleasure of many summit nights in the high country in every imaginable condition. Camping on or around the peaks typically gives you plenty of options for a sheltered spot depending on wind location. There are no big trees to fall on you and if the weather were to dramatically change you can always move around to the sheltered side. Some people when cycle touring get a little deterred by the fact that to reach almost every summit will involve a hike and more often than not some sort of bush bash to the top, but that just adds to the fun of kicking back with a summit widget can of Guiness and enjoying what you've achieved. In 15 odd years of cycle touring the Brindies and Alps I've only twice not camped on some sort of summit. We pretty much plan our rides to go from peak to peak each day. Some days are pretty long but the aim is always to hit the top by sunset (not always achieved).
SummitFever
Eats Squid
I'm not Wozza but I am surprised we've never run into him out bush. It's pretty hard to take a bad picture in those places. This is getting me pretty fired up to get another trip underway...
I'd suggest you're not the only one you're getting fired up!
It's cool ... and closer to heaven
I'm always up for a ride out there .. I've put a few day rides up on The Berm [our local Cnba MTB hub] a while back and never had a single response. I've ridden most of the trails out there over the past few years and never seen a soul, beats me, it's as near as I can get to heaven!
Wozza will be out there somewhere!
I'm always up for a ride out there .. I've put a few day rides up on The Berm [our local Cnba MTB hub] a while back and never had a single response. I've ridden most of the trails out there over the past few years and never seen a soul, beats me, it's as near as I can get to heaven!
Comic Book Guy
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I think only admins can create sub-forums.
sally xcountry
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Just start another thread
All I've done is the pilot wilderness from thredbo through dead horse gap, and it is great. At the time it was one of the only wilderness tracks you could do the national park, though they have opened up more since then. I'm sure you still can't ride up to Kosciuszko from thredbo (or down), but I'm sure there are way's around it. Looks like a great track, I'd be interesting in hearing other local replies....
russell1600
Likes Bikes
great pics - what camera?
What ever you used seems to have a reasonably wide angle which is perfect for landscapes.
Great stuff mate.
Cheers,
Russ
G'day Summit, just wondering what type of camera you take on your bike camps. I would love to take my DSLR but it is way too bulky.Thanks for the kind words. I've had the pleasure of many summit nights in the high country in every imaginable condition. Camping on or around the peaks typically gives you plenty of options for a sheltered spot depending on wind location. There are no big trees to fall on you and if the weather were to dramatically change you can always move around to the sheltered side. Some people when cycle touring get a little deterred by the fact that to reach almost every summit will involve a hike and more often than not some sort of bush bash to the top, but that just adds to the fun of kicking back with a summit widget can of Guiness and enjoying what you've achieved. In 15 odd years of cycle touring the Brindies and Alps I've only twice not camped on some sort of summit. We pretty much plan our rides to go from peak to peak each day. Some days are pretty long but the aim is always to hit the top by sunset (not always achieved).
What ever you used seems to have a reasonably wide angle which is perfect for landscapes.
Great stuff mate.
Cheers,
Russ
SummitFever
Eats Squid
Pics have been shot with a variety of cameras. I used to take a Canon IXUS 220HS which has a 24mm equiv wide angle. Some of those pics are also panos stitched together from multiple pics taken with my Nikon D3200 DSLR. I recently got a Panasonic LX-7 specifically for taking on camping/cycling trips. Its not as small as the IXUS but has the 24mm wide angle and a f1.4 lens. Full manual control helps although I used to use CHDK with the Canon.
I've been pretty happy with the LX7 so far. You can get them for around $300 which is an absolute bargain. The 60fps 1080p HD video is great too (with manual control as well).
Here's a couple of pics from last weekend. The bright lens on the LX7 makes a big difference. The following exposure is only 15sec at ISO 400 (longer than 15 sec the stars turn into lines):
Summit guinness (it's a bit of a tradition when we hit up a peak).
I've been pretty happy with the LX7 so far. You can get them for around $300 which is an absolute bargain. The 60fps 1080p HD video is great too (with manual control as well).
Here's a couple of pics from last weekend. The bright lens on the LX7 makes a big difference. The following exposure is only 15sec at ISO 400 (longer than 15 sec the stars turn into lines):
Summit guinness (it's a bit of a tradition when we hit up a peak).
Hi all - I have already posted this in the General MTB discussion area, but thought I would post here too.
taking two weeks off in november, so looking for places that are suitable for camping, hiking and biking in northern NSW and the tablelands.
We are driving down from Brisbane - so wont be bikepacking. The esky wont fit on the bike/s
Fire roads, singletrack, up, down, sideways... anything.
We did a 2 week hiking stint a few years ago round new england/dorrigo/washpool gibraltar and it was gorgeous so looking for similar places but with 2 wheel access.
Prefer national parks for camping, not interested in caravan parks or privately run campsites or the like.
Hit me with some ideas - Cheers!!
taking two weeks off in november, so looking for places that are suitable for camping, hiking and biking in northern NSW and the tablelands.
We are driving down from Brisbane - so wont be bikepacking. The esky wont fit on the bike/s
Fire roads, singletrack, up, down, sideways... anything.
We did a 2 week hiking stint a few years ago round new england/dorrigo/washpool gibraltar and it was gorgeous so looking for similar places but with 2 wheel access.
Prefer national parks for camping, not interested in caravan parks or privately run campsites or the like.
Hit me with some ideas - Cheers!!
Awesome photo, and awesome tradition. Nice work.Summit guinness (it's a bit of a tradition when we hit up a peak).
Hi, first post here!
I do regular bikepacking overnighters in the ACT (I've done standard road touring in the USA) and have established a pretty good routine. I usually head out after dinner (short on time due to uni and training) and ride for 2 hours in the ainslie/majura wilderness region (these are two 800 m peaks, my place is a 10 minute ride from the base), set up camp, have brekkie in the morning and ride home. They don't really impact my schedule at all and I'm back at uni in time for early lectures ect. I'll pop up some pics of my set up in a bit. I go pretty light as I've got some good gear from trekking in Canada, 2.3 kg in the backpack and 1 kg in the frame bag.
My current list of to-do rides involve hut based overnighters in the ACT, canberra to coast, riding the BNT (maybe to healesville if I'm adequately prepared), Mawson trail, mudda bindi trail, the HuRT and when I graduate I might try for a triple crown in the states (TD, CTR, AZTR).
I do regular bikepacking overnighters in the ACT (I've done standard road touring in the USA) and have established a pretty good routine. I usually head out after dinner (short on time due to uni and training) and ride for 2 hours in the ainslie/majura wilderness region (these are two 800 m peaks, my place is a 10 minute ride from the base), set up camp, have brekkie in the morning and ride home. They don't really impact my schedule at all and I'm back at uni in time for early lectures ect. I'll pop up some pics of my set up in a bit. I go pretty light as I've got some good gear from trekking in Canada, 2.3 kg in the backpack and 1 kg in the frame bag.
My current list of to-do rides involve hut based overnighters in the ACT, canberra to coast, riding the BNT (maybe to healesville if I'm adequately prepared), Mawson trail, mudda bindi trail, the HuRT and when I graduate I might try for a triple crown in the states (TD, CTR, AZTR).
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SummitFever
Eats Squid
Nice one Aeons. Me and the guys do a similar thing. Nothing like sneaking in an overnighter mid-week. I don't know whether I'd be keen on bivying on Majura overnight. I've done plenty of night riding there and come across some strange people running around. There are some great summit bivy spots within a few hours ride of Canberra's inner north. Plenty of good stuff on the Tidbinbilla Range like Camel's Hump (2 hours riding) or out the Brindies like Mount Coree (about 3 hours ride). The ride back is mostly downhill so takes half the time and makes for an easy return in the morning.
This is the exact info I've been searching for! I'll try and get out to one of those on the weekend. Might pm you for more info if needed. I'm pretty good at stealth camping and I wake up for the sunrise so usually don't see too many people, I binned it on the descent from majura as everything froze overnight and I hit some ice.
Because I live in an anu college (fenner) I really enjoy sneaking out for a night under the stars so I can get some space to my self.
Edit: is the camels hump the closest biggish peak that's rideable? How did you ride to the top? I'll probably wait until I get my new light before I have a crack.
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