This is an incomplete list of some of the gear that we used and carried on our bike trip from Germany to Poland. Unlike my first foray into biking in Europe, this time we decided to stay at hotels and guesthouses. This made the packing and hauling much easier. We both had generic backpacks that we slung over a rear rack. These were somewhat counter-balanced by front bags that are handy for gloves, glasses, maps, cameras, and other stuff that you might use during the day. Both of our bikes feature 20 gears or more and relatively wide tires (28-35, I believe) for those country (gravel, uphill, etc) roads. For the most part we carried our water and food on our backs in the ever-popular Camelback. Overall, it is a pretty comfy set-up for a couple weeks in the saddle.
- Trek 520
I really recommend a good touring bike with the extra gears, longer wheelbase and extra spokes. Big tires are helpful to safely carry all the weight over less-friendly terrain.
- Modified Mont Bell 70L backpack (see photo)
This bag never fails me. I suggest others consider the internal-frame backpack option. It is much easier to convert into usable luggage at the end of a trip. For daily purposes, I just left it tied to the bike and pulled-out my plastic clothes bags to take up to the room.
- Cycling shorts (3)
Washing in the sink on a rotating basis is usually pretty efficient. If you don't like wearing wet shorts in the morning, then hang them on the back of the bike and they will dry in no time!
- Socks
These are really key. Throw in extra socks if necessary. Your feet are very important!
- Cycling jerseys
These used to be great for pockets, but they are almost obsolete with the advent of the Camelback.
- CamelBack water pack (2L)
- Helmet, gloves, biking shoes, etc
- Wizard OZ-620
This entire webpage was brought to you by this amazing machine. I have used this simple word processor on countless trips now with no problems. Just needs an extra set of batterirs, or a solar charger:
- Solar AA battery charger
- Canon S100 Digitel Elph Camera, with European charger
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