This is the bike touring gear I will be taking with me during my Hercules Bike Tour of the Peloponnese. Much of this kit has been tried and tested over numerous other long distance bike tours, but there's a few new additions.
Cycling Around the Peloponnese
I've chosen the items in my bike touring kit based on three factors. The first, is what I actually own. The second, is the region I am cycling around. The third, is knowing that I will do a mix of staying in cheap digs, camping at official sites, and wild camping.
For some people this might seems like way too much stuff. For others, it might seem far too little stuff. That's the joy of bike touring of course – One size doesn't suit all, and you can do it your own way!
Preempting Your Questions
Although I go over in the video some of the reasons why I am, or am not, taking items of specific bicycle touring gear, I thought I'd list some key points here.
- I'm not taking a camp stove on this tour. This is partly to cut down on weight, but also it's just a 25 day tour and I'm not on a super-strict budget. Taverna food is very affordable in Greece, and I'm looking forward to trying out some regional dishes in the Peloponnese. On days that I camp or wild camp, I will most likely just have cold food such as bread, cheese, and ham.
- I am taking a laptop on this tour. This is because I will need to work from the road, and there are some things I just can't do from a phone.
Bike Touring Gear Checklist
Here we go then, onto the bike tour gear itself! If I've previously reviewed this item of gear, then you will find that it links to another page, where you can find more information about it. Here's a quick video, with a complete list underneath.
Related: Cycling Across Europe
Transport
For the Herculean bike tour of the Peloponnese, I will be using a Stanforth Skyelander. This is a steel touring bike, robustly designed for long distance tours. I've used this bike previously on a one week bike tour in Greece.
Bicycle Panniers
- Ortlieb Back Roller Classic – My Ortleib panniers are still going strong, and I'll be using just the rear ones on this bike tour in the Peloponnese.
- Ortleib Rack Pack – The Ortleib Rack Pack is cunningly designed to fit and strap onto the rear panniers. I normally keep my tent and assorted camping gear in here.
- Ortleib 5 Handlebar bag – I really should upgrade this to a handlebar bag with more room. For now though, it's all I've got!
Bicycle Tool Kit
- Bike Pump – I'll be taking along my Topeak bike pump which has a pressure gauge. I've had it for a few year. Read more about it here – Topeak Mini Dual DXG Review.
- Bike lock – An essential bit of bike touring gear!
- Spare Inner Tube – I'll have a puncture repair kit, but having one inner tube is always handy so as to get going quickly again after a flat. I tend to repair punctures at night if it's possible.
- Alien 2 Multi-Tool – This general purpose multi-tool has just about everything I need to make running repairs on the bike.
- Puncture Repair Kit – Never leave home without one!
- 2 tyre levers – Don't weigh much, and makes it easier to take off the tyre.
- No spare spokes or cassette removal tool on this tour. We'll see if I regret that choice at the end!
Camping Gear
- Vango Banshee 200 (Pine) – Great value tent from the UK
- Snugpak Chrysalis 1 Sleeping Bag
- Sleeping mat (foam style)
- Karimmor DeluxeTravel Pillow – Signs of going soft when I take a camping pillow rather than sleep with my head on rolled up clothes!
- Swiss Army Knife
Clothes For Bicycle Touring
- Humvee Cycling Shorts
- 2 Padded Liners
- 1 Caps
- 1 base layer t-shirt
- 3 pairs of socks
- 1 Shirt
- 1 pair of trousers
- Sealskinz hat – Look here for the Sealskinz hat review
- 1 pair of underwear – only 1. Could be a mistake!
- 2 Cycling Tops
- 1 Fleece
- 1 Pair of bicycle touring shoes
- Gore Jacket
- 1 pair of trainers
Navigation
For this tour, I will be using a combination of Google maps on the phone, and a real map! No GPS for this trip – I've finally given up on the thing!
Personal Items
- Wet wipes
- Sunglasses
- Lipbalm
- Reading Glasses
- Money belt
- Passport
- Wallet
Tech Gear
- Acer Chromebook
- GoPro Hero 5
- GoPro Hero 3+
- Samsung Galaxy S7
- Charger for phone
- Tecknet Powerbank
- Xiaomi Powerbank
- Misc cables and leads
Related: How to charge your phone when camping
Food and Water
Generally speaking I'll be carrying enough food for the day's ride. When planning to wild camp, I'll carry more. The same will apply with water.
Toiletries / Medical Gear
One of the great things about having no hair, is that when you travel, you don't have to take as much stuff with you!
- Toothbrush
- Toothpaste
- Small bar of soap
- Random shower gel from hotel room
- Travel shaving foam
- Roll-on deodorant
- Assorted plasters, antisceptic wipes, sudocrem
- Travel towel
Final Thoughts
And that's pretty much all the gear I'll be taking with me on this tour! To find out more about the Hercules Bike Tour of the Peloponnese, check out this main page ** Hercules Bike Tour in Greece **.
From there, you'll find relevant links to other blog posts about the bike tour, including the concept, route, and day by day blogs and vlogs.
More Bike Touring Posts
You might also be interested in these bicycle touring blog posts:
Colin Little says
Hi there Dave,this article is very apt,as I am about to cycle around Norfolk for a week and this has put to bed the notion that I need all of the kit that is laid out on the spare bed,I think about half of it is going back into the wardrobe ,I will just take the stuff I need not the stuff I think I might need.
Thanks for your advice on gear and all the best
Dave Briggs says
Hi Colin,
Glad you found the gear list to be of some use, and I hope your enjoy your bike tour around Norfolk – It’s a lovely part of the UK, and I spent many summers there as a kid. Happy tailwinds for your ride!