Good morning all

OK Ellen and I have started get our total gear together to work out space etc.

We are planning to be on the road for approx 18 months plus, riding from Alaska to Ushuaia so it will be arctic - equator - arctic.

At this stage we have allowed one set of clothes to be wearing, one that may have been worn ready for washing at first available point and one clean set ready to go, so three sets in total.

We are wearing Icebreakers complete which are good for fending off smells for a bit longer as you will know.

A set to us means, the shirt, gruds, longjohns, long sleeve top and a pair of socks.

We will have 2 extra pairs of socks and gruds, a pair of non riding pants, shorts and a puffy jacket for the cold.

So our question is to those who are experience in this is our take about right, excessive or not quite enough.

We are trying hit the happy medium between traveling lite enough and being comfortable as we can as well.

Input welcomed, many thanks Andi & Ellen

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Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

I popped over to your website to see what you are planning. Nice website by the way. It looks like you are taking two bikes and everything fits. Could you take less? Of course. Will you use everything you are taking? Probably so.

There is no perfect set of gear and clothing when traveling from Deadhorse to Ushuaia that will suit every rider. Part of the fun of travel is finding the balance that works for you. Just be thankful that you have 18 months of travel time.

Things that I have learned:

Black jeans and tee shirt don't show the dirt and look presentable even after changing a tire in the dirt.

Waterproof breathable riding jacket and pants keep your black jeans and tee shirt much cleaner for much longer even when riding dusty backroads and through swarms of bugs at sunset.

All I really need are riding boots, riding jacket, riding pants, good helmet, riding gloves, black jeans, black tee shirt, down jacket, good long underwear, and two good pairs of socks. All other clothes are gravy.

The higher you ride the cooler it gets. If it's sweltering in the lowlands head into the mountains to camp.

The lower you ride the warmer it gets. If it's freezing in the mountains head for the beach.

You can buy things along the way instead of bringing everything you think you might need.

If something hasn't been used in a month it usually is time to get rid of it if it isn't essential to fixing the bike.

A positive mental attitude is the most important thing to not leave home without.


Have fun!

Kindest regards,
John Downs

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South America and back on a 250 Super Sherpa Minimalist Adventure http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=831076

Heya John

Many thanks for your reply, I have read your RR on ADV too, great report and info to be had which is cool.

We are very happy to have 18 months travel time and this maybe be more yet depending on money, we will see.

Thank you very much for your kind words on our site, this is the first time we have ever done anything like it so kinda cool just getting up off the deck to this level so far, we are propelling ourselves into the new technology age....I still find spanners easier to use.

Basically ALL items will have to serve at least two or more purposes as they are home and contents for the duration.

We can fit the clothing into compression sacks and that makes a huge difference to available space but unfortunately no weight loss.

I hear what you are saying about nothing is the prefect setup and we will have probably kit up for the high altitude colder parts of the trip.

At this stage with our clothing allocation we are not full and if we can help it don't want to be, food will expand and contract depending on how much we carry.

One thing I am not a fan off is hanging lots of crap off everything but rather neat and tidily stored and accessible, gotta try and hit that happy medium.

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Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

I'm guessing I have about as minimal a setup as is possible and still be prepared for riding all the way down to freezing.

I use only two full sets of clothes (t-shirts, pants, socks, underwear), one worn the other packed away (and washed as soon as possible in the closest sink). However I carry an extra t-shirt because I spend lots of time camping and the shirts get dirty/smelly the fastest.

I carry 2 long-sleeve shirts, one thin for mosquito protection the other a warm base layer for temperatures approaching freezing (below 45F).

I use all synthetic fabrics because they dry faster and pack smaller.

I use layers prolifically to stay comfortable.

I reuse my rain liner in the jacket as a windbreaker around town along with its warm zip-out liner if it is cold.

My pants (2) have zip-off legs so they can double as shorts or swim trunks.

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Traveling The World Since: 2011
Blog: The Seductive Life (General Travel)

I like the way you think with minimal, we have the same or similar approach.

In a compression sack I can fit one complete lot of clothing down to about 200 mm long x 180 mm wide so it packs down well.

Just trying to avoid taking stuff that won't get used however in rainy times having nice clean dry duds to climb into might be good mind food.

We too pondered about separate wet gear, we will be using Cordura gear but it is only water resistant in my view thus a separate rain jacket and leggings are on our take it list.

We talked of having a separate wet jacket to be seen in public and wear when our riding jackets are wet and probably muddy too but one has to cut the list off somewhere hence this thread to gather help from those on the ground.

Appreciate your input guys.

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Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Hi Andi,

As you know, we were travelling 2up, I took:

riding jacket, pants, gloves, boots.
1 pair of zip off lightweght hiking pants
1 pair of swim/sleep shorts
1 set long johns and long sleeved top (icebreaker)
3 underwear
3 pairs socks
3 T shirts
lighweight fleece jacket/hoody
gore tex jacket and pants - regular hiking gear.
liner gloves
wooly hat
neckover
Keen sandals with covered toes

When it was bloody cold - Bolivia/Peru altiplano and Patagonia - I would wear long johns under riding pants, icebreaker top, t shirt, fleece, riding jacket and pants and gore tex over the top.

the set of gore tex or similar is the key, keeps the wind/rain out and keeps your clothing dry, so you dont need to carry so much spare gear. In CA you might get a lot of rain, sometimes its too hot to wear waterproofs....

i used dark grey BMW 'City Jeans' - which scrubbed up ok and were nice and warm when it was cold.

good advice there from John about adjusting your elevation - very apt for SA.

What would I do differently? I woud have started with 1 or 2 T shirts and the icebreaker top - and bought some clothing en route if required.

If your schedule allows, you guys are welcome to stay with me and Lisa for a Beer or 5, some Alberta beef, an oil change for the DR's and laundry! (Ive always got a few DR oil filters!)

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Cheers
Grif

'11 KTM 450 EXC
'09 Suzuki DR650
'00 Discovery Series 2 V8
'95 Defender 90 300 Tdi Overlander
http://gipperstravels.blogspot.ca

Heya Grif

Yeah great info thanks mate, we are very lucky that Ellen is riding so we have 2 bikes to spread the load over so little more space to play with although in the interest of keeping the weight down cos neither of us are Arnold Schwarzenegger type builds so we don't want the kitchen sink.

Been building our luggage racks and looking at the photos you sent through to me which have been a huge help.

Hopefully next week I will get back onto them, just been so busy with other stuff (work).

We would love to catch up for sure, we are supposed to be going to see some people in Calgary too just around the corner from you 130 km away.

Are you planning to be home around late June early July ish?, we plan on attending the 20th anniversary of the D2D kinda 21st ish of June then we will be on our way toward your place (looked on google earth...ya lawn needs mowing )

That is 3016 km away, so if we averaged say 754km per hour we could be there just after lunch.

So ok, we will be into touch closer to the time but if you are there we will definitely stop by.

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Cheers Andi & Ellen .... https://twomotokiwis.blogspot.com/ Two Moto Kiwis Alaska - Argentina - April 2012 -> Somewhere

Some additional thoughts based on the above replies:

When riding, stopping all wind and rain from getting to your skin is more important than anything else! If even a tiny breeze gets past your gloves up your sleeves, find a way to stop it. Have something to protect your neck as well, I have a fleece thing designed for skiing which I wear in any temperature below 60F and it makes a huge difference! Layers are also your friend, the more the better!

I like rain liners for my gear instead of something that goes over because they do not get muddy. In rainy or cold locations (Canada/Alaska this year), I wore my rain gear frequently when off the bike, both to stay dry and to stay warm. Better than integrating in the riding gear because of the extra layers (always good).

All my clothing fits in approximately a 10" x 4" x 4" space without using compression sacks. Add on my rain gear, neck-gator, and heated grips, and I have never been cold all the way down to freezing. But on really cold days I will be wearing most of the clothing I am carrying. I had more clothing originally but dumped it when I realized it was never being used.

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Traveling The World Since: 2011
Blog: The Seductive Life (General Travel)

[QUOTE=othalan;352510]Some additional thoughts based on the above replies:


"I like rain liners for my gear instead of something that goes over because they do not get muddy. In rainy or cold locations (Canada/Alaska this year), I wore my rain gear frequently when off the bike, both to stay dry and to stay warm''

Im presuming though that your riding suit will then get muddy instead ?

I would have thought it would be easier to wipe clean your external rain gear rather than a suit made of cordura or similar where the mud etc is more likely to get ingrained into the material?

Also your last sentence in that paragraph-
Better than integrating in the riding gear because of the extra layers (always good).

Did you mean "better to integrate in the riding gear" rather than "better than integrating in the riding gear" Sorry Im about confused about what you meant.

Cheers,

James

My riding gear is always getting dirty for some reason, even when not raining. Oil from the bike. Dirt I ride through, especially if its slightly damp from a light rain (not always worth putting on rain gear) riding through puddles and rivers. The list goes on and on. When it rains, the worst is cleaned off. From time to time I can get it cleaned. My rain gear I use a lot when not on the bike and also pack it away frequently. Both times it is nice to not have it be dirty.

I should note that I use Kevlar riding gear (motoport brand) which dries far more quickly than cordura.

Rain gear under or over the suit ... in the end it doesn't matter much, just whatever is convenient for you. The one thing I will NOT wear is a coat/jacket where the rain protection is not removable....which leads to the below point....

I meant what I said. I always want as many layers as possible available to me. Extra layers keep you warmer than a single layer of the same thickness. As temperatures change you can remove just a single layer and stay comfortable instead of being too cold or too hot. If rain gear is integrated into the riding gear I loose a lot of flexibility and comfort.

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Traveling The World Since: 2011
Blog: The Seductive Life (General Travel)