A few weeks ago I went for a four day bike trip in the Vulkaneifel national park, in Germany. I do shorter versions of these trips with my children, but once in a while I like to go on my own for four or five days, carry everything with me, and disconnect a bit from everything else. Food, water, tent, sleeping bag, the lot.
I’ve been doing this for several years now. This one was by far the best trip I’ve had, for many reasons.
Better equipment
Up until last year I never really bothered with gear. A normal sleeping bag, a normal mattress, nothing lightweight, nothing particularly small.
That worked because I always do these trips in Summer, and Summer is forgiving. If your sleeping bag and mattress are bulky, you get away with it. Winter is not forgiving; there you need sturdier and more specific equipment. So the equipment side of things was something I always ignored.
I was also covering between 80 and 100 kilometres a day, sometimes with an altitude difference of anywhere between 1,000 and 3,000 metres, depending on the day. At those distances I could afford to carry a bit of extra weight. What I could not afford was the space. Between the tent, the sleeping bag, and the mattress, the bicycle pannier bags were full before I even started packing the rest.
So there were things I never took with me, such as, a camping chair.
Sitting on the floor is fine, but not after a long day on the bicycle
Not having a chair is not a big deal. You arrive at a campsite, or you stop somewhere in the middle of the woods, and you sit on the floor. It’s really no big deal.
But when you are out for several days, sitting on a bike for 10 to 12 hours a day, a bit of comfort makes a huge difference. And I don’t mean luxury. But your back will be eternally grateful for being able to sit down properly at the end of a day spent sitting on a bicycle saddle.
New and shiny equiment
This year I decided to spend some money on the setup:
- A small, lightweight sleeping mattress: Exped Light EXP Ultra R2 M Basic Pad
- A very small and lightweight sleeping bag; Sea To Summit Spark Ultralight Sleeping Bag
- A lightweight chair; Helinox Chair One
I already had a one-man tent, so that part was sorted.
It is surprising how much better the trip was just because of that. I didn’t go faster or further because of lighter gear, but it gave me back some much needed space in the bags, hence why this year I was able to also carry a chair and a few other extra things which I never took with me.
The moral of the story
If you get the chance to invest in proper equipment, invest. You will enjoy the trip more than you expect, and probably more than the price tag suggests. It pays off!
But the gear was only half of it. This year was also the first time one of these trips changed how I think about them.
60 to 80 kilometres instead of 100+
Usually these trips were me cycling, nonstop, making sure I reached the next point on the plan. Somewhere along the way, that stopped being a holiday and became a challenge, a checkbox that needed to be checked.
This year I planned shorter distances, between 60 and 80 kilometres a day. On paper that is not a dramatic difference. In practice it changes the whole day. I could take my time, which means I could stop and actually look at the views and the scenery instead of cycling past them. I could also sit down for a proper lunch, and relax a bit before moving on.
It was also the first time I did not take the laptop with me. It stayed at home, so there was nothing to switch on. I checked my phone only in the evening, and that was it. The rest of the day was cycling, views, and the occasional beer and cake.
Enjoy the ride, not the checkboxes
I’m sure there are a lot of people like me who are always trying to push themselves. That is not something you unlearn quickly; I wrote about working on exactly this in my 2025 end of year post; In 2025 nothing exploded, but a lot changed for me.
So take it a bit easier once in a while. Let it sink in. Stop for a piece of cake. Stop for a beer. Enjoy the ride and the process, rather than collecting checkbox achievements.
That’s it, really. Here are some pictures from this year’s trip.
