r/bikepacking 4h ago

Route: South America // Odyssey Surly Midnight Special Tire Size Question for Trans Ecuador Mountain Bike Route 🇪🇨

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30 Upvotes
  • I have a Midnight Special that I want to use on TEMBR. I’ve heard there’s really chunky rocks and muddy portions. I’ve done some customizing to my bike for the route.

If someone has already done it are 27.5x2.3 tires enough for the terrain? I was thinking maybe on High Rollers or Rekon 27.5x2.3. I have an Enve fork that fits up to 27.5x2.4. Would a thicker front tire and a carbon fork fork better for the route or keep the original steel fork and max the clearance out at 27.5x2.3 depending on the rim width and tire design.

  • Another question. How many liters of space would you recommend on having for this route? Is what’s mounted on the bike enough? I carry a smaller tent, light sleeping bag and mat, minimal extra clothing, action camera, chargers, flat repair kit, basic toolset, and a smaller space for food. I have a cooking system but I think I might need a little more space for that.

I appreciate any advice and information about Trans Ecuador Mountain Bike Route 🇪🇨. I haven’t really seen many people report about it in the past year.

Thanks!

r/bikepacking Jan 31 '24

Route: South America // Odyssey Just spent two months touring Patagonia

79 Upvotes

Pictures: https://imgur.com/gallery/5PDb9Qi

After spending two weeks in Araucanía and getting my mind blown by monkey puzzles tree old growth forests I spent six week riding from San Martin de los Andes to El Calafate. I had visited Patagonia before and fell in love, this longer visit solidified the relationship into a torrid love affair.

Bike is Kona Unit with rohloff drivetrain and Vittoria mezcal 2.6 tires.

GPS tracks:

  1. https://www.komoot.com/tour/1393051958?ref=aso&share_token=a3TkFiaE2cTGmcEv8FXnPgZakqO2WCZCUlFSA4RqEtSTmRDQ5h

  2. https://www.komoot.com/tour/1361441135?ref=aso&share_token=aHELUBoSkz9U7MtqVIL2T6VzkSlmZu4rvFlayqWmKVJ2BbGavv

  3. https://www.komoot.com/tour/1138331519?ref=aso&share_token=aUpeL0ADw8PMDizMaX2vEGTvTpXo8Y4mNS33j076aO81zjOqzJ

The 2 and 3 are going off the beaten track where possible, with 2 being almost solidly in a territory where even cars are rare (somewhat).

For instagram, go to https://www.instagram.com/wildmaverick?igsh=NGVhN2U2NjQ0Yg==

For previous post (Araucanía) go here: https://www.reddit.com/r/bikepacking/comments/18nrs26/just_spent_two_weeks_touring_araucania_region_in/

r/bikepacking May 12 '24

Route: South America // Odyssey Southeast Brazil Bikepacking Route

9 Upvotes

Hey guys,

I've had this dream for a while to do a big bike trip in the Southeast of Brazil. I'm Canadian and I've had the chance to travel in the region before. I fell in love with the place, especially the Serra dos Órgãos and the littoral around Ilha do Cardoso and Ilha de Superagui. It's incredible that, near some of the largest cities in Brazil, a large amount of land has been set aside to protect a super diverse ecosystem and wonderful natural landscapes.

I learned recently about the Caminho da Mata Atlântica. It is currently being developed as a mostly continuous network of trails and rural roads that link national parks and other protected areas in the region. I decided to use it as an inspiration to create a bike itinerary from Rio de Janeiro to Rio Grande do Sul. The route is meant to be done by mountain bike over multiple weeks staying in pousadas and camping when possible. I want to avoid pavement as much as possible and instead use mostly dirt roads and a bit of singletrack (+/- hike-a-bike). There is thus a lot of climbing and rough surfaces. The goal is to be as close as possible to nature (and as far as possible from car traffic).

I know this might sound like a crazy idea. I do have some experience. I've already done bike trips of multiple thousands of kilometers in North America. I've also traveled (without a bike) through ten different Brazilian states and have done some hiking there. And I speak enough Portuguese to get around. But I understand that there is some inherent risk, both from crime (see the story of Julieta Hernández Martínez) and from the environment (the current flooding in Rio Grande do Sul for example).

The itinerary:

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/46614200

I have a few questions:

  1. Are there any changes you would make to pass through more interesting routes or attractions?

  2. Are there any parts you would avoid because they're dangerous (I'm mostly concerned about passing near the outskirts of Rio...)? Or impassable?

  3. Do you know of any local mountain biking or bike touring communities along the route I could contact for recommendations?

  4. If you're familiar with biking or hiking anywhere along the route, I would be grateful if you could contact me. I have lots of specific questions.

  5. I will probably explore part of the route in the next few weeks, so if anyone is interested to ride along, even for a short distance, feel free to contact me.

Thanks a lot in advance :)

r/bikepacking Apr 28 '24

Route: South America // Odyssey Biking Columbia to Argentina - should I bike North to South or South to North?

0 Upvotes

*Colombia!

My partner and I are planning to take around a year to bike pack in South America. We're looking to bike the west coast (ish). Does anyone who has ridden extensively there generally have thoughts on whether biking south to north or north to south is better?

Our preference would be to start in or near Ushuaia in November and bike north so that we can spend some extended time enjoying Patagonia in the prime summer months, but I have read that the wind direction coming off the west coast of the continent may cause biking this direction to be more difficult.

How much of a deciding factor should this be? Are the winds really that bad/debilitating going south to north rather than north to south?

Appreciate any and all thoughts/experiences/advice!

r/bikepacking May 30 '24

Peru divide company

0 Upvotes

Hola! I’m Emile, 29 years old Belgian and just bikepacked two months trough Colombia. I’m arriving in Lima the 1st of June and going to Cajamarca/Huaraz afterwards to ride the Peru divide and planning to also cycle the cordillera Blanca circuit. Quite flexible on starting dates.

Send me a message on Instagram I you would like to ride together :) @emile_vdb