Bikepacking - a viable alternative to racks & panniers

Yes, exactly! Have you used it on a carbon fork?

Oh, no, on a steel fork. I cannot endorse for use on carbon!

Figured as much but one can dream

Good point, I'd be interested to know more specifically the setup that led to lens death @photoben?

Then again, there's an element of I'd rather have the camera and a chance to get the shot than leave everything at home.

Feels like Jack with a padded camera bag would have a degree of give to protect the kit. Similar say to my current Carradice strapped to the bars with camera bag insert - but freeing up the tops of the bars and staying in place more easily.

Guy I rode with at the weekend was using a chest harness thing with a pouch on the chest big enough for an XT3, seemed to work but also cumbersome. There's no perfect solution it seems.

I use a very small camera (Sony w/ pancake) in a very small bag on a belt strap. It's a bit fiddly compared to the swinging chest straps that Francis Cade made popular but I'm not a youtuber so my shots are almost always 'see pretty landscape, stop, take photos, move on' rather than shooting from the bike.

What about combo: GoPro on bike, proper camera on back/chest?

I've had my fuji in a handlebar feed bag for yonks and no issue with it. Easy to get out.

Mtbing I would move it to backpack for rough stuff.

Yeah, smaller cameras fair better with vibration - they have less glass and less weighty glass.

I wouldn't put anything bigger on the bike though, unless it's road only.

I've used an old Canon Eos with a pancake lens and now a Fuji X100F. I realised with anything more complicated or bringing multiple lenses I am not really using it while out riding. I usually wear them on my body with a messenger bag style camera strap (http://lifeisaride.de/produkt/camerastrap/). Works well for me.

You'll probably laugh but I was given a pair of snapchat sunglasses a few years ago, they take surprisingly good video and photos, the software updates a year ago mean they now shoot HD too and got rid of the circular presentation. This vid was taken pre HD upgrade

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scc5AmuTres&ab_channel=MarcoMarcos

That's a lovely shot.

Cheers man

So it was a Panasonic track bike and a rack mounted to the forks & handlebar. I used it for a month before it shook the elements loose in two of my biggest lenses. Which was not cheap to repair.

With my new setup I've not had any problems with either my Nikon and now Sony kit (probably switching to Fuji soon can test that too) for six years and counting. Mind you this setup is massive overkill. I do think having the rack mounted bit elastomers makes a bike difference, as does having suspension forks (I go some basic 700c trekking ones with minimal travel).

Conclusions are much the same but here is a thorough discussion of cameras on bikes - https://bikepacking.com/plan/bikepacking-with-a-camera/

Love the look of the above, is it a custom frame as well? The search continues.

Okay, I've got 10 days off work at the end of April. I'm Bristol based and keen to stick to public transport for getting to/from wherever I'm going. What bikepacking trip would you do with this time? Current candidates:

1. Sailrail to Dublin and then down into Wicklow
   
2. Train up to the Lakes, some sort of loop up from there towards the border.
   
3. Train up to Scotland and then ?? (weather may not be great)
   
4. Some sort of route from Cardiff up to Holyhead (ditto on the weather)
   
   

I'll be taking my Surly Troll, so light MTB and wild camping are the order of the day.

train to Scotland and ride An Turas Mor

train to Manchester and ride Second City Divide + Badger Divide

train south and ride the Chalk Ways

train to Edinburgh and ride the Pennine Rally

train to Cardiff and ride one or both ways of the Welsh Divide

.

You can ride from your house and back.

Bristol > Chepstow > Wye Valley Walk> Symonds Yat East > Ross on Wye> Herefordshire trail West> Haye on Wye > Offas Dyke path south > Chepstow > Bristol.

symonds yat in particular is lush. most of the valley is beautiful. lots of camping on these trails too, although some of it will be slow going as some of the trails are steep.

Could call your trip 'Wye not?'

Or you could head west on the trails when you reach Haye on Wye, then take the coast north. Change of scenery, and you can jump on a (circuitous) train back round via north wales if need be, or ride as far as Manc/Liverpool (which is a nice ride) from Porthmadog and get the train from there. Might be a bit ambitious though.

Well shit, that's a reply... thank you!

Welsh Divide looks amazing - what's the story behind the route? One of yours?

Ooof yeah I always forget about the Wye valley even though it's so close - cheers for the reminder!

All of these weird trails are on the outdoors opencycle and openstreet maps if you want to draw up your own route. They don't get used much by the bikepacking internet nerds, so they're a bit more adventurous.

I don't have 10 days but I was planning to get Friday 29/04 off (as Monday 02/05 is BH) and do the Kings Alfred Way (anticlockwise are the suggestions) on 3days (ish). MTB and wild camping too.
Based on Brum.
Apparently, user @moocher can be of the match too :D

it came up in reconnaissance when I was planning mine.
this is my route - finally rode it this summer, it's sublime but you definitely need a proper MTB

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/37107657

here are some other of platypus' greatest hits ™
lots of info in the description section of RWGPS

Wayfarer - better version of the king alfred's way
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/33393196

Norfolk
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/33035227

Chilterns
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/33407971

This route looks bang up my street - doable on my Troll if taken slowly do you reckon or a recipe for sadness? I have knobbly tyres and minimal skill.

you could and should do it!
I will post up some pictures and updates later, it goes to some wonderful places