How I pack camping gear on my Brompton, and prepare a mini, easy-peasy adventure
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- Опубліковано 25 сер 2024
- How to do an EASY cycle TOUR on a BROMPTON with a TENT…?? A lot of people have asked me about my gear etc. So this this video is my KIT LIST, and shows how I prepare for a MINI easy-peasy BIKEPACKING trip, with one NIGHT UNDER THE STARS at a campsite. The film covers ROUTE PLANNING, my BIKE & LUGGAGE set up, my CAMPING gear, COOKING stuff, TOOL KIT, and how I make perfect COFFEE on the road.
This is definitely not a film about the newest fancy kit. Although some of my stuff is relatively new (eg my gorgeous tent, which is now 5 years old), some of the things I use were bought when I was at school, which is over 30 years ago now. Wow time flies. I've just bought the best things I could afford over the years, and kept on using them.
About luggage set-ups, in the video, you can see the basic "suitcase" set-up that I had on a mini, easy-peasy, local, ride to Leicester a couple of years ago. (That video is also on my channel). The basic "suitcase" set-up worked totally fine - even if it did not look fancy - and I used it for loads of enjoyable bikepacking trips with my tent. Since then I've made various improvements, and the film shows these too, mainly how to put an Ortlieb on the back of the bike, plus a few other luggage ideas that I've tried and that have worked well.
Sometimes I go on long cycle tours over several months (not always on a Brompton as I also ride other bikes), and other times I do easy peasy, two-day trips. But whatever the distance, I don't like to rush. I really like travelling SLOWLY, and enjoying not just the destination but the journey itself, with plenty of time to stop, sit with a coffee, and look at the view.
Hope you enjoy the film!
It is so refreshing to see how easy and sensible you go about things, instead of getting drawn into the typical equipment rat race, VERY impressive! All the best on your adventures !!!
Brompton bikes are the pinnacle of equipment rat race are they not Tom 😂
Another winner! You make it look easy but I can see that considerable thought goes into each trip you do. I love that you travel slowly, taking in the countryside, and always with good coffee! You are inspiring.
Hi S W! Thank you for watching! and for the very nice comment!
This was SO helpful - it simplifies the whole process and makes it seem possible, rather than overwhelming. Thank you for all the information, and for reminding us that you don’t have to be a gear-head to enjoy bikepacking.
Hi Yvette! Thanks for the lovely comment! Glad you liked the film and thought it was helpful. I really liked your comment. Thanks for watching!! Happy cycling!
I’ve just bought 6speed brompton 2nd hand and am plotting to do a solo camping trip. This was a valuable video. Thank you!
Hi Philip! Sounds great about your bike, and the solo camping trip plan. Thanks for watching! Hope you enjoy your trip!
Wow, what an information-packed and brilliant video! You've outdone yourself. This one is bookmarked for future use.
Hi Helene! Thanks so much for the lovely comment. You always make such nice comments - I really appreciate it x
Exactly what I wanted to say
this is mind blowing that you camp all of these years, since the 80s? waw
this video is close to perfection in the" travelling by bike project ", thank you !
Wow thank you for the lovely comment 😎
Wonderful and fascinating insight Susanna. Most I've carried on my back when hiking years and years ago but I'm not up to long route marches any more. Brompton bike touring is a new prospect for me now at 69 years young. Since the pandemic I've put on weight, got older. My family think I'm mad even thinking of cycle touring on my own which of course builds up my fears(Grrr!!), but I keep watching Brompton touring videos and looking at potential routes. Lone cycling seems the only option as friends I know are no longer very active or up for adventures.
My aim: to do a few shorter ones perhaps just overnight before hopefully feeling confident enough to attempt to cycle the 'Way of the Roses' over a few days wild camping using trains to get there and back.
I'd already built up a list, most kit of which I still have, from past hiking adventures but there were a few things such as flannel as a towel, head torch/peg for light in tent, power bank which I've now added. It's an adventure in itself just planning it! Just bought myself a Garmin Edge Explorer 2 and some 1:50,000 OS Maps.
Sscchhh, don't tell my family!
Hi Rachael! OK I wont tell!! haha sounds like a great idea... I think cycle touring is much less hard than hiking with camping gear. Actually I met a lovely woman 65 years old out there touring alone recently. Such a super person. She was cycling, camping, cooking brilliant food, and some days staying two days in one place, chilling out by her tent reading, and going on walks... Super person. By the way, just a thought, I made this film before I got my brilliant Helinox Zero chair, wow that chair is great. Definitely suggest you have a look at getting a super light chair as part of your planning... Pricey but omg what a difference it makes! I just LOVE getting somewhere and flipping my chair out and sitting back with a coffee and looking at the view....
@@susannathornton I shall take a look at that chair. Thank you for the recommendation. Sitting and looking at the view sounds excellent. There seem to be more and more people interested in Bike Packing recently presumably due to UTube. One thing you haven't covered in your videos is your video recording equipment and editing kit. Just a thought!
I'm just a couple of years younger and I absolutely love lone cycling!! I had to slightly ignore what my husband said when I first wanted to go, as I 'd never have gone otherwise. He's been very complimentary about my trips since then! When you are on your own you can go where you want, stop when you want, look at what you want, eat when you want, obey the call of nature when you want...!! I too have had fears, the worst of which is probably - what if I get a puncture? I can change an inner tube but only ever at home and with my husband telling me what to do! I don't think I could do it at the roadside. One of the first bicycle touring books I read a few years ago and which at least partly inspired me to go, was by Anne Mustoe - "When ex-headmistress Anne Mustoe gave up her job, bought a bike and took to the road, she couldn't even mend a puncture." !!! I only got into long rides and little tours about 10 years ago and it's one of the best things I've ever done. I bought a Brompton in March, and also have a touring bike and general purpose bike and people like Susanna are inspiring me even more! I am currently preparing for my second camping trip (my first a few years ago was a bit of a disaster, long story...) This one's going to be wild camping. Hope it's not a disaster.....!! Not wishing to advertise myself, but in case it's of any use to you, I write a blog (occasionally) called What This Bike Needs. Happy touring!
@@lizziel4876 Brilliant! Bravo Lizzie!
Did you ever go? I'm thinking of doing the same thing. Susanna is inspiring.
I think every Brompton owner replaces the pump! Keep Safe!
Hi Sheila! Thanks for watching! Keep safe you too!
Ms Thornton, YOU are an inspiration! So many good tips and info, and I love your style!
Hi again Frankie! oh that is very nice of you. Thank you for watching my films! Happy cycling! 😎🚲
Thank you for such a helpful and interesting video, especially using many everyday items. I am about to go on a bike trip after many years (decades!) and your videos have really inspired me. I used your important tip of booking the train first before a change of plan! Best wishes and happy cycling.
Hi Charlotte! oh that is interesting that you also found the train booking thing useful. Yeh if I dont do that, then I find it's so easy to think oh the weather isnt perfect I better wait till a better time, or oh I am busy with this that and the other, better do that first and go camping another time... Anyway, thanks for watching and for writing! Hope you have a brilliant time on your trip!
@@susannathornton I can't believe someone else thinks like this as well as me! I always know I want to do a trip I've planned, and that I WILL enjoy it (love it even!) but then I find myself thinking - "Oh, can I be bothered, why don't I just go for a day ride round my own area..." I recently did my first trip with my new Brompton, going by car with my husband to our daughter's and cycling and taking the train back home a couple of days later, and once again I had those same thoughts. ("Why don't I just go back with my husband?") So silly....I did of course love it. Oh and this is a really useful video! When you brought out the umbrella you reminded me of the cyclist Josie Dew who seems to take everything bar the kitchen sink with her.
@@lizziel4876 oh that is funny, Yep I am just like that. Despite the fact that I know I will love the trip from the moment I turn the first stroke, it is so easy not to go. The whole chemo thing was weirdly a good thing for that, cos each three week round of chemo I literally only had two days when I was remotely well enough to go on a cycling trip, so there was no question of not going. Go! or I have to wait another three weeks or who knows how long...! That was quite a good push! Anyway, glad you enjoyed your first trip with your new Brompton bravo for setting off! haha
Keep doing what you are doing 🎉
Hi Bobby! Thank you, I will..!!! I love it
Great show Susanna thanks.
Hi STE'71! thanks for watching, and for the nice comment. It is so lovely of people to take the trouble to say (nice!) things. Best wishes!
Susanna, thank you so much for spending time to make this very informative video. I'm looking forward to my first overnight trip with my first Brompton which I got a few months ago. Your gear list helps a lot with planning. Regards: Pekka from Oulu, Finland
Hi Pekka! Thank you for watching, and for dropping a line too. Great that you're getting ready to do a ride too. Exciting! Actually you remind me that I rode once from Rovaniemi to Lakselv in Norway and back to Rovaniemi again along the Swedish border. I just checked the map and realise that is quite close to you in Oulu. It was so beautiful and peaceful and the landscape was like nothing I had ever seen before. I hope you can get out on a trip soon. Thanks again meanwhile! Best wishes!
What a delightful person Susanna is! I love her videos, quite apart from all the info.
Aw thanks Effyleven 🥰
Thanks Susanna; I understand the Ortlieb fixings now.
Again, Happy Travels 😀.
Hi, I'm loving your videos. Really makes me want to go out on a mini adventure too. One tip on the route planning: For me Komoot has been a discovery. It's a navigation app for your outdoor adventures. You can make your routes at home on the web app, or on the way, on the mobile phone. You can choose your mode of transportation (hiking, road cycling, mountain bike, etc.) and the app will route, trying to use the suitable roads/paths. And it's easy to customize the route. So far it didn't let me down. I also export the route to a .gpx file for the Garmin.
Thank you so much for sharing these tips Susanna, you'll never know how useful they are! I can see various ideas which I can incorporate into my own set up, or which I can tweak for my own use. I'm off now to get all my camping stuff out and have another look at things - hoping to do Lands End to John O'Groats this summer on my Brommie and you've certainly given me some new ideas. Love the face flannel idea - no need to buy a special backpacker's towel now :)
Hello Pootling along! Lovely to hear from you! And your Lands End John O'Groats plan sounds fantastic. Super exciting! Hope you are enjoying the preps. And I really really really hope the corona situation clears up for us all. Actually, after I finished making this little video, I looked at all my stuff and thought oh what a pity that now I have got all out and it is March again I can't just put it in the panniers and get on the bike and go somewhere.. Roll on the end of lockdown!!! But on the other hand, the lockdown is making me buckle down and make videos about past trips I filmed but never made into videos. I have a bit of backlog of raw material. I'll put up another film soon! Thanks for watching and for writing!
Thanks Suzanna, you have encouraged me to invest in a 2nd hand superlight Brompton. I currently use a Tern Vekrton e-bike when touring with my husband but want to be able to go off using my OAP bus pass and bike. This bromptpn is one i can lift easily. I love watching your videos whixh are some of the places I have toured. Like you I have gera from many yeras ago
Hi Brenda! aw that sounds great, hope you enjoy the new bike. Hope you have some good outings using bus and bike - turned out to be a really good combo when Dad and I tried it this summer. Opens up all sorts of possibilties.. Ah nice you have lots of much-loved faithful old gear too! Thanks for watching my channel and for writing!
Th anka for replying Suzanne. I do hope you are well. The weather here is rubbish so not getting away at present.
Dear Susanna, I really like your videos especially this one. I am having dreams of going cycle touring ! And think the Brompton makes a perfect solution for taking other forms of transport and simplicity. I also like the fact that it can fold up and stay safe inside the tent : )
Hi Richard! Glad you like the video! Hope your dreams come true! 🚲⛺😎🌞
Very informative video Susanna. My kind of cyclist. Cycling is all about finding adventures,enjoying the surroundings,not rushing and keeping things simple. Thank you.
Hi Ian! Thank you for watching - and for the lovely comment x
Just came across this. Really love the no nonsense approach to cycle touring and the down to earth advice you give. I tour on an upright and a recumbent but have just bought a dahon for some small wheel touring.
Hi James! thanks for writing. Glad you like the film! 😎
How i have missed that pot you could have made the whole video about it and I would have been happy lol but seriously love your content and your sense of adventure.
Hi Keith! Haha thanks for writing. I was pretty surprised when I looked at old photos and saw that my stove was already dinted in the late 80s. Love your comments. Thanks for writing and making me laugh too
Thanks, Susanna,
I love your shows.
Educational, enjoyable, and inspiring. Gutsy Lady, you're my hero. I hope you're keeping well.
Mike Gilmore.
Saskatchewan.
Canada.
Hi Michael! thank you for writing! glad you enjoy the films! more coming soon!!
No reply necessary.
Informative, and very enjoyable.
Thank you for the time and effort.
Take care.
Thanks! really nice of you. Take care you too
New sub here, thanks for this vid 😀
I'm old, 55, dodgy knees, I think we are on similar wavelength with regards to cycling for fun and taking it slow enough to stop and smell the roses.
I'm quite nervous, anxious, I would love to stay out over night on my bike but I just haven't had the courage or inspiration yet...
small steps...
i liked the idea of buying the tickets as a motivator, i could do that, pre-book a B&B for a specific date and then plan how to get myself there!
i bet it would be a huge boost to my self esteem, sense of self worth
You're not old at 55 though.i know guys that ride long distances with fast groups at 70.
Super comprehensive and Tony list. That’s what I like, n fuss. Thank you for sharing that.
Glad you liked it! What does Tony mean here? I wondered
Perfect! That is the most practical video you've done so far, Susanna, as it starts showing us the planning you do and the kit you need when you go on some of your wonderful biking trips you've shared with us. A lot of this many of us already have some inkling about, that is those of us who have already had experience going solo camping & hiking and/or camping & hiking with a friend, but it's great to have videos from an oldhand bicycle adventurer like you which bring together what kind of equipment you need and how to plan when you're going on one of your biking adventures, starting with a humble one-night trip. As we all know , it's so easy to overpack and/or overlook something essential.
And I'll certainly be interested in follow-up videos where you discuss about equpment needed when you're going on a longer trip: medium and longer duration.
Btw I really think you should invest in the Brompton toolkit. You'll find all the tools you need in there (except for the tyre levers as the ones provided are not suitable for the Marathon+ tyres), and it neatly fits in the frame tube - the front section. Also, you can hide the spare inner tube in the rear section of the frame tube. Together they're a neat little space- and weight-saver - as well as being just...cool!!
As for the panniers, it's great to have an engineering-minded spouse 😉! I envy you. However for plebs like myself who are pretty useless in that domain, we have to make do the best we can 🥴. Nevertheless, there are some pretty neat things around, for example this: ua-cam.com/video/DNvuMouYy-Y/v-deo.htmlm28s. Though that would mean I will have to upgrade my Brompton by adding a rear rack. I'd like to see if I can find a way of doing solo camping-touring without making that mod as (when not touring) I like the weight-saving gained by not having a rear rack. But maybe that's unfortunately just being unrealistic...
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_EDIT: And, of course, the classic backpack on rear rack thing that @k c mentions in his post below._
Hi Muddy283! Thanks for watching, and for writing! Oh that bag does look really nifty doesn't it. I saw that the wonderful Gianni did a really helpful review of it here too ua-cam.com/video/tYOh7oNiS5Y/v-deo.html
@@susannathornton Excellent review! Thanks. I've bookmarked it.
I referred above to @k c's post where he mentions the epically brilliant idea of attaching a large rucksack to the rear rack and seat tube with the help of a dowel rod (or something similar). For those who are interested, here is a very good video explaining how to do this: ua-cam.com/video/4c76T3g5wwY/v-deo.html
Great video, the Ortlieb idea was especially helpful.
Hi Edward! Thanks for the lovely comment! Best wishes!
Loving that tent, I camped in a Scarborough last year and took my geertop one man bivvy which I bought from Amazon for £100..It let me down badly and would leak everytime it rained..Enjoyed the video thanks, good little mission
Hi Rosco thanks for watching! aw Scarborough sounds nice but sorry you got wet like that on that trip. hope you get out again soon and enjoy bivvying, I never tried it...
I really enjoyed that. It's the first time that I have watched one of your vids, so I was impressed when you said "I rode from Hong Kong to London" as though it was just a casual thing to do!
I tend to pack the absolute opposite and try to take everything and a spare for it. That just makes the experience a bit of a pain rather than a pleasure.
Stay safe out there.
Great video! Very helpful and interesting. I cycled around Asia and Oz for a year almoost 30 years ago, on a mountain bike. Now I've discovered folding bikes and would love to try a trip again. Your videos are very inspiring! Thanks!!
I have just found your site Susanna and have started going through many of your trips. Absolutely wonderful and inspiring. I used to cycle camp in another life with my late twin as youngsters. I cycle a lot with my wife here in the UK and a few tours abroad. However now at 73 yrs I have a dream to get back into camping with the bike. I recently sold my beloved Akto as I couldn't sit up in the tent and my damaged spine needs that extra height. So I am looking for a new tent to try our this dream.
Your videos are helping me.
Thank you.
Hi Anthony! Thank you for watching! Glad you enjoy the films! Sounds like you have done a lot of super trips. I hope you find a great tent and head off soon on a new adventure...! Thank you for writing such a nice comment x
Hi Susanna
Congrats! Great to see your gear.
Love your trips.
Keep Safe! Keep Riding!
Hi Chris! Thanks! Glad you like the films! Best wishes and keep safe and keeping riding you too x
i love that there isn't a plastic helmet in sight! cycling is fun! 😊🚵
Just come across your channel. It is SO SO refreshing to view! Why? Because your honesty and enthusiasm shine through! No slick patter and promotion of endorsed products. Your experience has lead you (and us) to take useful, well-designed kit as well as some “home-made” practical items. Brilliant videos. Thank you
Hi John! aw that's really nice of you. Glad you enjoy the films. Happy cycling!
Great tips. Relaxing watching you riding and camping and taking everything in, a lesson to us all.
Aw thank you for the lovely comment Classic Routes, and thank you for watching my channel!
Thanks again, Lady. Pragmatic, very useful and informative.
Very enjoyable, thank you. So nice to see someone not selling their soul to product endorsement, like so many on UA-cam, but rather using whatever is available.
Hi Don! Thanks for writing! Glad you enjoyed the film! Happy cycling! 😎🚲
An excellent video Susanna and will be much help to many. Best wishes & Happy pedalling 🙏
Hi Andre! Thanks for watching! Glad you liked the video. Took a long time to make it haha but it was nice to flip back through clips from lots of different trips and think about them. Best wishes and happy pedalling to you too! 😀🚲
great production. great adventures. that's all a lot of work to put together. thank you.
Aw thanks for writing. Made that one a while ago now! Time I did an update!
This is a great resource and makes bikepacking on a folding bike seem so possible, thanks!
Hi Tokahfang! thank you for writing! I really liked your comment
So rare to see a bikepacker that is not obsessed with the latest and most expensive gear!
Hi David! Haha thanks!! Happy cycling!!
Fantastic amount of information there, ill have to watch again and take notes as so many great ideas i can see built up from years of experience.
Hi Stephen! Thanks for watching! Yep it's been quite a few years now with all these bikes and things. Glad you liked the film. Happy cycling!
What a great video, some really useful tips - thanks for sharing. I have just picked up my M6R and can't wait to have some adventures once we get out of lockdown (I am in West of Ireland) you have been a big inspiration, thank you & can't wait for more of your videos x
Hi Alistair! Thanks for watching! Glad you liked the video. Thanks so much for the lovely comment too. I can imagine the west of Ireland has loads of gorgeous roads. Actually the first time I went cycling abroad was to Eire with a schoolfriend, when we were about 15. Super exciting. We took the ferry from Liverpool with our bikes, and a rubbish tent and hopeless sleeping bags, the sort that you have for caravans. We rode the Ring of Kerry, Dingle, that sort of thing. It was fantastic. Actually I looked for photos of that trip recently, but I coulnd't find any. Maybe we didn't have a camera. Must ask my friend if she has any when we next chat. Anyway! Thanks for writing! Hope you have a great time!
Safe and happy trip. From Thailand. Land of Smiles
Is that a good place for a bicycle trip (in my case, not all hills)?
What a great film thanks. Really informative and sensible info. Thanks
Hi Alan! thanks for the great comment. Glad you liked it!
I love your attitude. Thankyou, inspiring.
Aw thanks Jill! Happy cycling!
Thanks, love your enthusiasm. And...it is all about the coffee 😜
Hi Peter! Haha! yes! I couldn't do it without the coffee. I always fade a bit about 3pm, but then totally perk up after a nice sit with a cup of hot coffee. Or two. And a bun or a sticky energy bar or maybe an apple cake or something... 😎😋
Thanks for your channel! This is good information to have. Also, always interesting to see what others bring/do.
One thing that works is to always keep tools, repair materials, and a little first aid equipment in a waterproof bag in the seat pack. Always good to have, and one less thing to pack. I make a calender appointment on my phone to note what needs to be refilled at the end of a trip.
If you're the type to go for weekend trips often, it's also helpful to have a trip panier or two always packed if possible so you just bring that and can more easily spontaneously fit in a bonus trip without as much time-consuming preparation.
Then it's just the handlebar bag that needs packing since I tend to keep things I have to unpack in it, like phone, battery, etc.
Similarly, I store my folding bike, shoes, helmet, and tire pump in the car to take advantage of opportunities to do an unplanned ride.
Oh you sound quite like me haha. You do calendar appointments, I have a spreadsheet with my gear on, and after each trip I work through it and mark up the things that broke or nearly broke or didnt quite work that need fixing, and note things that irritated me and could be improved... and then before the next adventure fix them, and work on them and try and improve them ... Yeh packing is the most tedious part of going on a trip, I think. Even when i am a lot more efficient now after years of practice, it seems to take AGES! And yeh I keep most stuff all together in one drawer, so that in theory I can just take everything out, and tick it all off my spreadsheet, and go!... but it still takes ages! Actually food is the thing that takes the longest for me to prep, calculating how much I need of everything and weighing and measuring everything out. There are no short cuts there really - just having the amounts noted down so I dont have to calculate it all again, and keeping a good collection of ziplock bags and little containers etc... Yeh, always interesting to see what others do and learn from other people! Thank you for writing!
@@susannathornton Thanks for your detailed reply, Susannah!
I use the calendar appointment to note items used/lost/broken/needed/ordered during a trip.
Like you--my long-lost sister, lol--I have a terrifying spreadsheet, hundeds of items long, with columns for sport (hike, bike, ski) and conditions (all trips, hot, wet, cold, freezing, keep in car, ready to ship to me) which I use for packing.
When I get home, I update the spreadsheet according to what I did/not use during the trip so that my gear list always shows what is used.
Then I use the appointment to refill items/order replacements/take out unnecessary items.
I also have a to-do column.
Since I can't afford duplicates to just leave everything packed, before a trip I copy the spreadsheet from the last trip, then pack according to the sport and condition column quantities.
Items not packed live in bins/are hung up--I need a walk-in closet for sports gear, lol! But it's what I do on vacation, minimizing hotels, resorts, etc.: all the gear cost less than one trip to a resort. I also have a camping mattress I can put in the car to save money if driving to another area.
Totally agree that packing food is the most tedious part with all the measuring, fending off cats and dogs "helping," and repackaging--ugh!! Wish I could afford ready-made meals but that's too expensive.
Biking is better because there are often more restaurants and grocery and convenience stores on the route, and when I earn a bit more will include more b&bs.
The origin of the spreadsheet was having a partly bad back and torn cartilage in both knees (one is now artificial) and really needing to keep weight way down by only bringing exactly what is needed. I started out with a list on paper but am now a slave to my oracle/spreadsheet. 😉
But it's worth it for the joy of being in nature much of the day (scientific studies have shown that it's great for your nervous system), eating everything that appeals (hard stopping when less active in my day job), meeting new people, and exploring new/beloved places.
Thanks for sharing the joy through your channel.
Subscribed.
P.S. Some my best friends are Thorntons in the US. Maybe you're distant relatives.
It is great to watch a vlog about equipment that is based on hard won experience and getting back to basics. Will defiantly be buying a trangear kit! Thanks
Hi Algernon! Thanks for watching and for writing. I like your "back to basics" comment, haha, nice. About stoves, I have also used a couple of MSR stoves over the years too, if I am going to be riding in places where you can't be sure to get meths. The MSR can burn petrol so you can kind of be sure you can get fuel pretty much anywhere. About the Trangia, if you are a cooking sort of person, i really recommend getting the chopping board too. It is cheap and it packs inside the stove, and has holes on one part of it, so that it can be used also as a colander. So you can easily drain pasta, and things like that. If you end up using a Trangia stove as long as I have been using mine, you'll still be cooking sausages on it in like 2060 or something like that! Haha! Happy cycling!
Merci beaucoup, Susanna.
Hi Effyleven! Thanks for watching!
I ordered a Brompton and I’m so happy. Very useful video! Thanks!
Hi ZenSascha! Great, glad you liked the video. I was going to do another one too, to cover wild camping and the extra things you need for that, but I haven't done it yet. Anyway, hope you enjoy your new bike! Happy cycling! 🚲😊
I like the way you fasten your front and rear packs on the Brompton. Thanks!!
Hi there Jason! Thanks for writing. Hope you are doing OK. Wonder how things are there? Hope you can get out and ride these days, even if only locally in SG. Hope all the corona restrictions can be lifted everywhere soon. Take care and thanks for watching!
@@susannathornton Yes, we can cycle around everywhere In Sg. A big Round of Sg is about 120km. We still have one or 2 more little islands that we can ride. Thanks for asking. Cheers!
Would love a tutorial on the DIY frame for the front clip & rear rack
Hi Mick
About the front rack, the idea was to have the bag sitting as close to the bike as possible, so that the loading on the block etc is minimised. SWL 10kg per the spec provided by Brompton. Some details re the rack from my husband:
The rack is made of stainless steel
The tubes are 10mm diameter
The curved plate that clips over the block is 1.5mm thick (ie quite thick, as it needs to be strong)
The horizontal tube is 28cm long without plastic end plugs
The rack top to bottom measures 31.5cm.
About the rear rack/fixing, that is much simpler as you can see from the video. I got the idea from this webpage by a guy called Shane. www.shanecycles.com/carrying-luggage-on-a-brompton-folding-bike/
Hope that helps a bit anyway! Thank you for watching!
Really valuable information. Thanks for sharing your insights.
Hi John! Thanks for the comment! Glad you liked it. I was going to do another film to cover wild camping, which involves slightly different planning and a few other bits of kit. But I haven't done the film yet
Just love watching your videos. Such a relaxed style and my kind of cycling. I’ve got my Brompton ready for my first adventure 😊 just need COVID to go and campsites to open. Looking forward to more of your adventures 😊😊
Hi furkuk! thanks for watching my videos! Great that you are ready for an adventure. I'll post another video soon. I have a backlog of material I filmed from previous rides but never made into videos. Actually making this film about my gear made me go back over all the stuff I filmed last summer and in the previous few years, and it almost made me cry see the sunny days and freedom, in different parts of Britain and in Holland and Germany.... So lovely. I am soooo looking forward to get out again. Roll on the end of the lockdown...! 😊🚲🏕
Love your enthusiasm!! 😀. What a great bike set up.
Hi TimKyn! Thanks for watching and for the great comment! 😎
Great sense of adventure going off the neaten track. love it
Hi Jack! Thanks for watching! Yeh I do like a nice track. When I was a girl I used to head off cross country and hoik the bike over stiles and whatnot. Loved it. I remember hearing about the Rough Stuff Fellowship and being so glad to realise there were (some) other people who did the same. Haha. Long time ago now.
Brilliant thank you,lots of sensible ideas for me to take in next time I go on a tour
Hi Colin! Thanks for watching! Hope you can get on a tour soon (and me too!) 😎🚲🏕
That was most interesting, thanks. I’m having a quiet day today, staying warm and relaxing after a rather stressful 40-hour power cut during, and following, the weekend storm. Good to see your kit. I love my Trangia 27 and ME down bag. Looking forward to watching your other journeys.
Hi Emma! Glad you liked the film. Thanks for the comment! Nice that you got some of the same gear as me. Good you are OK again after the storm. Take care x
That's a nice Trangia set you have. I have a similar one but it's a little larger. I love it. so simple and elegant and you can actually cook with it instead of just heating water. I like making pancakes on mine or frying a fresh caught trout. I also love the little teapot that comes with it.
Oh that's nice that you've got a Trangia too, yeh I love mine, Wow fresh caught trout, that sounds amazing
I'm impressed at how much you've managed to get on a Brompton! Definitely given me a few ideas 🙂
Hi Jules! Thanks for watching! Yeh at the start I found it hard to carry everything. Even for little two/three day rides I struggled to carry everything and had to use a little knapsack, which I don't like at all, but needed it cos I seemed always to have lots of food that wouldn't go into my bike bags. Since then I have streamlined things a bit better, mainly streamlined the food side of things, so that now I can pack a whole week of food on the bike, much better. Anyway, thanks for writing! happy cycling!
Thanks for this... I learnt about bike map from this video... Plus also gave me food for thought regarding approach to bike touring.. Thank you!
Hi Andy! Thanks for watching! yeh I still use Bikemaps and it seems pretty good to me, esp the route planning function really, but of course there are other apps that people like. Pretty much everyone I met last year on the road when touring was talking about Komoot. Thanks for writing!
Hi Susanna, very interesting video lots of useful information. I would perhaps add a few zip ties and a couple of metres of gaffer tape to your toolkit list. Always useful to have for fixing things like pannier clips and broken rack stays. When they happen it will always be where you can't get to a bike shop easily.
Hi Redditch Scroller! Thanks for watching! And for the ideas! Yes, sods law things always happen in the middle of nowhere. Actually you remind me that on the 6-week ride south to north through Sweden, I used black gaffer tape to hold my shoes together. The soles pulled off (they were very old). Worked very well! I do slightly tend to use things until they fall to bits. Anyway, thanks so much for writing!
Brilliant
Hi David! Thanks! Glad you like it!
Love your vids..x
Thank you for your reply you are a really nice person ,taking time out from your busy work schedule to reply to very one who places a comment. Thank you checking today for another video just love the way you explain everything .
Hi E! It is a pleasure. It's very nice to be in touch with people who enjoy the same sort of things as me. In ordinary daily life I don't meet too many people who think that going off on solo cycling and camping adventures is a sane or fun thing to do, more the opposite haha.
You are an amazing lady, and your trips on video have inspired me to buy a bike in my 70s. I'm hoping the exercise will help me with a body riddled with arthritis, and make me feel better. I'm ordering a Brompton C line with 3 gears today. Thanks Susanna for the wake up call.
Thank you for watching! And for such a lovely comment. Sounds great about the bike! Get yourself a little chainring - a local bike shop can easily fit one - cos nice low gears will be easy on the joints. And all bikes handle differently, so do a few titchy rides at first, to get used to how the Brompton handles, till it feels normal. But titchy rides themselves are a joy. Hope you love it all! Bravo you for going for it! Happy New Year!
@@susannathornton Did the chain ring thank you, what a difference, weeeee!
@@richardbarrett4104 Oh that's great news!! Yeh I love it too with the smaller gears, so nice and nifty isn't it! Woo! Go Richard!!! 😎🚲🌤
Very valuable information! You are very adventurous. Would love to take my Brompton on a tour. Will take a look again on this video. Thank you so much. Happy travelling!
Thank you! Enjoyed seeing your setup 👌. Ultra practical.
Hi Kevin! Thanks for writing. Glad you enjoyed the film!
This was brilliant!
So very cool to see your new video, such inspiration. Really loved seeing your old photos too :) hope you are well!
Hi Tina!! Aw thanks for the lovely comment! Haha yeh now you know what I looked like when I was young(er)! x
Just wondering if you're ok, and if the cancer has gotten any worse/better? Thinking of you often. and hope to hear your ok and on your travels again? Best wishes Richard.
Only just found your channel 👍 great content and useful for people wanting to try bike packing. I bought my Trangia on a scout trip to Sweden in 1983 and still use it on camping trips and also making sausage butties on the beach which has been a family tradition for years. Going to work my way through your videos now 🙂
Hi Bob! thanks for watching! And for the lovely comment! Haha, how lovely about your Trangia. Sounds like it has been going strong pretty much exactly as long as mine has! Sausage butties on the beach sounds good, what a nice family tradition. Thanks for writing!
Just the short trip gear I was interested in hearing more about. Love your channel. What did you do for a living in Hong Kong. ? Watched your journey home. It was inspirational
great video, really inspiring, i put it on my to do list, thanks.
Hi frani! thanks for writing. Glad you liked the film! Happy cycling!
Nicely done. It seems like a lot of stuff but it really isn’t, lot if people think you need a lot if things but in reality you just need the basic and just reuse it.
Hi SOULcial life! Thanks for the lovely comment!
Merci beaucoup pour vos super conseils… et que je vais appliquer avec mon Brompton…
Hi Chantal! thanks for the lovely comment! hope you enjoy some great adventures x 😎🚲
Really enjoyed this Susanna , got to love seeing other peoples gear and what they use lol . I really understand what you say about cycling through the countryside and enjoying the sounds and sights . As a train driver I am normally whizzing through and its all gone so quick. Looking forward to few camps on my gravel bike and I swear by those Schwalbe marathons .
2021 the year of the mini adventure atb Dave
Hi Dave! Thanks for writing! Glad you enjoyed the video. I am a slow filmmaker and this one took especially long to make it actually. I underestimated how long it would take. Yes about riding through the countryside, I think you're right, it is what you hear when tootling along on a bike, as well as the sights, and the things you smell too, like in Holland I knew there onions in some of the fields I was passing because I could smell them. Things like that. I was thinking the other day that I would still enjoy cycling even if I was blind. Like, on the back of a tandem. My husband is also a train driver actually. Yes, let's hope we can all get to do a whole lot of mini adventures this year. Fingers crossed for them reducing the restrictions. Best wishes!
You are an AmaZinG person 🚴♀️👌 and I just LOVE your videos 🤗
Oh that is so nice of you, thank you Tracker 100! Thanks for watching and for writing such a great comment😁
Very helpful🍀🕊🍀
A great and super informative video, it’s always good to see how other people travel with the B. Thanks for posting.
Hi Terry! Thanks for watching! I am not a huge gear person. It's interesting how the way people used to share tips about gear, by going out with clubs and groups - like for hiking when I was a teenager I was for a while in a ranger and venture scout group, and I learned sooooo much from going on camping trips and seeing what other people had eg gaiters, wow, I had never even heard of gaiters haha but oh so useful - all that has partly been replaced by social media. Actually, not replaced - complemented. It is awesome to share ideas on social media like we can now. Anyway, thanks for writing!
I couldn’t agree more👍
I'm contemplating using a Brompton for camping (mainly for the "multi-modal" travel possibilities) so thanks for sharing. I found your video very useful.
Hi coffee with Neil! thanks for watching, and for writing. Hope you enjoy some great cycle camping trips 🚲😊
I've just binged a bunch of your videos, and I must say: I admire you, you're the coolest! Like a lightning bolt in human form.
You have inspired me to buy a tent and go on my own adventures! Though I'll probably won't go on multiple day trips to begin with..
Greetings from Småland, and Thank you so much for the inspiration! ❤️
Hi there in Småland 98Zai! Thanks for watching! Haha I don't think I am really like a lightning bolt haha. But it is nice of you to say. Hope you can get out and enjoy some camping soon there. Thanks for writing! ⚡😎
Such an amazing video. Thank you for sharing!
Hi Reli! Thanks for the lovely comment! This film took me much longer to make than I thought haha. But it was nice to look back at previous trips and think about it. A nice thing to do during lockdown actually. Thank you for watching!
Great Susanna, nice tips! Thanks
Hi Alex! you're welcome, thank you for watching!
Great video uploaded my friend thanks for sharing nice bike uboxing like this color
Hi Jheng! Thanks for watching! yeh I like the colour too 😎🚲
Brilliant, thanks for sharing your knowledge, also massively impressed with your husband or indeed anyone that has a spare bit of carbon fibre rod lying around :)
Haha thanks for the lovely comment 😁 made me laugh about the carbon rod haha. Yeh my husband, and all his family, are all like that, metalwork and woodwork and mending and making of things going on all the time round here. Can't stop them. Thanks for watching!!
So good. I wish I could go with you next time!
Thanks Robin! Glad you liked it! Best wishes!
Great ideas..this is really a great share!
Hi Mauri and you! Thanks for writing! Glad you enjoyed the film!
Wonderful video, safe travels
Thanks for writing! Glad you liked the film! safe and happy travels to you too!
Thanks for sharing, Susanna! :)
Hi! Thanks for watching, Rog!
Great video, it's good to see that you don't need all the bells and whistles to have a good adventure. I hadn't thought about checking for phone connections on route. I think you're really brave wild camping on your own. I'm going on my first solo trip this sunday but I'm going to stay in a campsite. I can't wait, I've never been on a long ride on my own before.
Hi Bexington! Oh thank you for the lovely comment! Glad you liked the video. Brilliant that you are going to head off soon on a solo trip. Cool. Exciting! I did a local ride in the London area with a camp in my cousin's garden last week. I felt kind of rusty after the winter so I was glad to do a short easy trip for starters. For me the hardest thing is wheeling the bike out through the front door. As soon I have done that and am on the way, I am happy. Hope you have a fab time! Keep us posted!
I did laugh when you said you were not fit, I decided to electrify my brompton in order to use it more and for longer journeys. I imagine I will be sending out distress flares. I just want to try it , i have bought the bits for touring. I ride without the battery on and just use it for killer hills, sometimes just hills. My training rides on my own have been easier than with friends who don’t have bromptons and considerably younger. Lovely video .
Hi Peter! Oh wow distress flares, sounds dramatic! haha! Great that you are out there storming up hills and going on long rides and enjoying it. Thanks for watching!!
Brilliant as always.
Hi ascot 104! Thanks for watching! And for a lovely comment again! I really appreciate your enthusiasitc comments😊
Thank you so much for another enjoyable vidoe, I wish I was confident you and do these cycle trip and tent night with amazing views.
Love to see how you prepare your trips on this vidoe. Thank you again for sharing. xx
Hi Rose! Thanks so much for watching, and for writing again. So nice of people to write. Yeh after a day on the bike, to find a little spot to pitch and spend the evening quietly cooking a bit of dinner and watching nature is so nice. I really love it. About being confident, I am honestly not very good at any of the skills invovled, eg I am not a naturally good mechanic, not a great map reader etc. I just practised enough so that I could trust myself to manage. Maybe list out the things you need to know to go on a trip, put big TICKS on the things you are already good at, and then just find a way to practise the other things until you tick them too. Then boom you are ready! Set up a short easy peasy local ride - and (corona permitting...... fingers crossed on that arghhh) off you go on your own trip, with a tent night and a cup of coffee and a view! Thanks so much for watching meanwhile!
@@susannathornton Thank you for your encouragement Susanna, truly appreciated. 🚲😊
@@rosegordon4297 I hope you do a trip Rose, can I recommend you consider booking a night at a reputable campsite, e.g. one of the Camping & Caravanning Club sites, to get you started. You will find they are safe, comfortable (nice lavatory blocks and showers). Take a train to within a few miles of such a site, ride your bike there, enjoy the camp and back home again the next day in time for tea! Small steps :) Before you know it, you'll be arranging a mini tour of your own and the confidence and memories you'll gain you won't be able to put a price on!
@@pootlingalong8928 Thank you so much for your info. 😊
Great, I can see what you pack for a trip. Thanks for sharing. Might be able to travel in 2nd half of the year. Just had my first jab early this week.
Hi Jason! Thanks for writing! Glad you liked the film. Yeh I really really hope we can all go on trips again soon... Good you have had first vaccine, me too.
I often use my go to bike which is a very old Marin MTB with swapped out tyres for road and track. The bike you got is the bike you take. Never had a Brompton. It must be easier in awful U.K. trains thou for easier storage of the bike and Bus where needed.
Very interesting and impressed you have been camping for forty years. If you don’t already, I would advise taking a Chain Tool as it is impossible to join a snapped chain without one.
Hi Stevie! Thanks for watching! And for writing too! Yeh if I go on a longer trip, I maybe would take a chain tool... Actually though, how many times have you actually had a chain snap? Over all the years I have been riding training racing and touring, loads of technical things have happened eg even a saddle rail snapped once, now that is a nuisance I can tell you... But I have only once had a chain snap. It was right before a road race, and I was just doing a little warm up climb and bam it just snapped. Gave me a real shock. The commissaire had just given us 5 minutes notice to get to the start line. I rolled back to my car, grabbed a chain tool, fixed the chain, rode into the bunch at the start line, and boom off we went. I didn't do very well in the race as ever but the commissaire said they'd never seen anyone fix a chain like that literally on the start line haha. Anyway, that is the only time I even had a chain snap. Noone ever snapped one on club runs or chain gangs etc. So I do kind of wonder how frequently it happens. Sods law it will now happen to me again! And I won't have a chain tool with me! Actually another thing I might have on longer trips would be a spokey, as sometimes that is kind of a life saver. Thanks so much for watching and for writing! Best wishes!