How to pack up

[Dee Duble Yuh]

Sorry to go off subject but was interested by Dee Duble Yuh's bike photo. Particularly the cut down screen. Not a bad idea for warmer climates where a bit of wind helps with the cooling down.
Is it cut down or bought like that?

Story here: Screen

Bought small, cut down even smaller.

[paulc]

What the other guys said , easy meal boil in the bag hot dogs and use the water for ya tea dont forget your sachetes of tom sauce and ya bread rolls

[paulc]

OH and a tunnel tent is best for obvious reasons, well I think there obvious anyway

[africajim]

So far this sounds all a bit too expensive for me! I'd give up on camping listening to some of you on here!

Here's the real world, well, up here in NE Scotland, Luggage is good, but expensive, soft luggage is cheapest but hard luggage is best, buy what you can afford. A tank bag is good, magnetic is really handy, unless you've got a 955i Tiger, bloody plastic tank innit?
I use a cheap and cheerfull 3 person tent as plenty of room for gear, women, etc, a porch is also a good idea for cooking in the rain (does that a lot up here if you go west!) Personally I have a Gelert tornado, £29.99, bargain
Bedding, I have a 3 season mummy bag for myself, a two person bag from Tesco's for when Fiona's with me. An airbed is a must, a footpump will do until you escalate to the heady heights of power points and a 12v pump! Most of my camping stuff comes from Tesco's, cheap and if you don't like it you won't be out of pocket too much!
Cooking, forget dangerous things that burn liquids, hazardous! I use a Coleman gas burner, I also have an adapter to convert it to camping gaz as more available over in mainland Europe. A kettle will boil water far quicker than an open pan, saves gas! I agree with the suggestion of a pair of mess tins, Tesco's have them for a few quid, handy for cooking beans and use as plates!
Now all you need to do is strap this all to your bike and ensure it's waterproof as wet camping gear is a pain.
I've camped for decades and love every minute of it, like me, after a few weekends away you see what might make life better and make adjustments to suit you and your budget. I had an interesting conversation at last yrs national regarding tents, I'm sure Kyam are a fine tent, but at over £100 I don't see the sense in it. My £30 tent will do a few yrs then I'll replace it with another.
I enjoy camping, but I always use sites as I enjoy a few comforts in life, like a decent clean sh*tter, a shower and a sink to wash and SHAVE in! The best advice I can offer is enjoy yourself mate, it's supposed to be fun!

P.S.
Don't tell Fiona about the Tesco's bits, she works for Asda's!

[Boris]

I'm with Jim on this. You don't need to spend a fortune to have fun. A £20 Tesco tent (surprisingly well made) and a cheap sleeping bag will be fine for the warmer months.

In saying that (well for me at least) I'm happy to pay a bit more for my stuff. Like anything it's a law of diminishing returns but a good tent, sleeping bag and mat make all the difference both in comfort (especially in the colder months) and taking up less space on the bike.

Pop over to Camping Forums UK There's loads of good info there.

[Dee Duble Yuh]

Incidentally, if you plan to put your tent into the same bag as your sleeping bag, think about what it will be like when the tent is wet from dew or rain! Eugh... Hence I have a canvas bag for the tent and a waterproof bag for the sleeping stuff.

[Boris]

Incidentally, if you plan to put your tent into the same bag as your sleeping bag, think about what it will be like when the tent is wet from dew or rain! Eugh... Hence I have a canvas bag for the tent and a waterproof bag for the sleeping stuff.

Yes I have a wet pannier and a dry pannier in so much as things that could get wet go together.

So on one side I have the tent, hammer, Roll mat, sandals and a few other trinkets such as spare fuel etc. The other side I have sleeping bag, clothes and such like.

Other advantage is all I need to set up camp is in the one box and I can change out of my bike boots which makes pitching the tent so much easier.

At the packing up stage I can pack the dry pannier while the tent is still up and what's left doesn't really matter if it gets wet.

[winxp-master]

Hmmm i never thought of that boris, i'll keep that in mind for my next camping trip then i can pack all me dry stuff in one pannier even if it's pi$$ing down... good tip

[tramp]

best place for a wet tent is the DRY bag it came out of and tied on the back seat with some good straps, that way it dont wet everything else and dry out in the garage when home

I use a 35ltr infront the topbox, worked great on the xrv christmas "Freeze out".

Dry Sack 45L Waterproof Bag ARMY, Canoe, Scuba, Camping on eBay (end time 27-Feb-10 15:55:42 GMT)

http://www.ewetsuits.com/cgi-bin/ss0...=575&NOLOGIN=1

[piguglyshandydrinker]

Start off by keeping it cheap & simple, keep or ditch the top box - it's your choice (I like to keep it if I can, as it's somewhere dry to keep the lid when you stop.
Buy a big (90+ ltr) luggage roll from Hein Gericke for about £25 & a couple of cam buckle/Arno straps & see how you go.

Find what & how you like to pack for any particular trip & develop it over time.
Generally small & light = expensive.
Cooking equipment is not a nescessary, & quite bulky (but is nice to brew & fry up on a morning )

Keep an eye out for any (XRV) rideouts & camps or the HU meet in Ripley etc & see how others do it.

Two up for a month (bike on right);




Weekend trip with top box, tank bag & luggage roll (on pillion seat);



Some, can seemingly travel & camp with everything they need & seemingly take a miniscule amount of gear, others load the bike like a pack horse ( I certainly don't fall into the first category...)

Phil