The contents of my panniers

I had a couple of requests to see what I am carrying with me on this trip. So when I packed yesterday, I set it all out and took pictures. In these 3 photos you can hopefully get an idea of what lies within my on-board luggage! Minimising weight is obviously important and I try to carry only what I consider necessary for trips of 2 weeks or more. In essence that can be divided into ”day wear” (which is clothing for cycling), ”evening wear” (which is clothing for when I have finished cycling, or when I am travelling by another means) and then all the various bits and pieces I carry to get me and my bike through each day, including tools, spares, a lock, and so on. I won’t itemise everything, since a picture is worth a thousand words.

All of this has to fit into 2 rear Carradice panniers (which I first had in 2008 for my end-to-end), one small handlebar pack and a little tool bag under my seat, as well as any pockets I might have about my person. Having two panniers allows me to keep the bike pretty balanced and gives me some spare capacity. I could probably get everything in one very full pannier if I had to (as proven when Jenni left me in May and took one home with her); but that makes rooting around for objects an even trickier task, and it pulls my mudguard out of alignment. So two is better. And remember, it’s not quite as much to carry as it looks because I am generally wearing some of it whenever I am cycling! But that, in turn, means that sooner or later (depending on the weather) some clothes washing has to be done! Socks have so far presented the toughest challenge, often exacerbated by wet shoes. I can report abnormally foul odour issues (not usually a problem for me) bad enough to require the offending items to be hermetically sealed in plastic bags and – in at least one case – condemned to death. Partly in response to that very issue, I have this time added a pair of crocs to my kit to allow my other shoes a fighting chance to dry out if they need it. Otherwise, I am travelling with much the same stuff as before, since it seems to work. I have used pretty much everything I am carrying, barring a few spare parts, which feels like an endorsement to be allowed back for another ride! And that all starts again today, picking up where I left off in OS map 43, after just the 6 (six) trains it has taken me to get from Hathersage to Perth!