| The Compleat
Motorcycle Camper |
| Camping on a
motorcycle is not such a big deal. Camping suppliers make more out of it than
necessary. The following
are the only 23 items you need to be a self-contained camper on a motorcycle.
(only 17 things if you are definitely never cooking). Everything else is optional, and frequently the more
"optional" you have along, the worse the experience. 35 years of camping have taught me (finally) to buy
QUALITY stuff, and keep the QUANTITY down ... go simple and good, and you'll rarely be
disappointed. Remember that your camping gear has three purposes, to keep
you dry, to keep you warm, and to enable you to take
care of hydration and hunger. Everything else is extra. Tents that
"self erect" but don't keep you dry, are cute, but not of much real use. |
The Smart Camper will keep a list
of everything he takes, and on return will put a checkmark beside the things not used.
And next time leave them at home! Lighten your load and the trip gets
better.
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Note that the following list
are the supplemental items that you need to add to your kit over and above what you
would carry for a normal motorcycle trip if you were staying in a motel. |
The 23 Essentials of the
Compleat Camper |
| 1 |
Sleeping bag (with
waterproof stuff sack or other waterproof container) See notes. |
| 2 |
Sleeping pad See notes. |
| 3 |
Tent or bivvy sac See
notes. |
| 4 |
Ground cloth (optional --
not needed for waterproofing, only for preventing excessive wear on the floor of the tent)
4 mil painters plastic will do fine |
| 5 |
Pillow case (roll your
spare clothes up inside it and you have a pillow) |
| 6 |
Moocher's individual chow kit:
fork, spoon, knife, plate, bowl (needed even if you don't cook so that you can mooch from
others) |
| 7 |
Flashlight. |
| 8 |
Water bottle. For enroute
use as well as campsite and cooking |
| 9 |
Coffee cup or mug. Best
bet is an insulated stainless steel mug of 14 or more ounces size … use for cold
drinks with ice or for hot beverages or soup. |
| 10* |
Stove kit: Backpacker
stove, fuel bottle, and matches See notes. |
| 11* |
Coffee-making apparatus and
coffee -- can be coffee press, espresso maker, or my favorite, a #2 Melita filter cone
(and paper filters) that fits over my insulated stainless steel mug. (obviously not
needed if you aren't a coffee person) |
| 12* |
Cooking pots (2 small or
one plus a boiler/tea kettle), |
| 13* |
Fry pan- small, 9" or
less, without a handle (use "pot tongs") |
| 14* |
Cooking tools -- kitchen
(or hunting style) knife, large spoon, pancake spatula, pot tongs
(from camping supply) etc. |
| 15* |
Seasonings kit (salt,
pepper, small plastic bottle of cooking oil, garlic powder, dried onions, chili powder,
oregano, etc. to your liking) |
| 16 |
Camp shoes (anything to
wear to give your feet a break from your riding boots) |
| 17 |
Cleanup kit: 1/2 roll of
paper towels, a few plastic garbage bags, a scotchbrite pad with small sponge on the back,
and a small squeeze bottle of dishsoap (regular soap will do, but you can buy
"Campsuds" from good camping supplies and the bottle is a small handy size and
you can use the soap for everything from dishes to shampooing your hair). |
| 18 |
Personal towel (and
washcloth if you must have one) (your soap comes from your cleanup kit). Camping supplies
have the "packable" towels that take much less space … sort of big chamois
that seem to work. |
| 19 |
A fleece jacket, vest, or
other garment for cool evenings, especially if you use an electric vest on the motorcycle
to keep warm. |
| 20 |
Small roll of emergency toilet
paper (campgrounds sometimes somehow run out) |
| 21 |
Rain gear …
probably same stuff you would use on a motorcycle as your riding suit, but add a
waterproof hat at least. |
| 22 |
A carry bag to get all of
this in that you can't fit in your hard bags. This can be a duffel bag or waterproof
"dry bag" as a better choice. If you use a regular duffel, then put black
plastic bags inside of the duffel and then put your stuff inside the plastic. A
plastic bag on the outside of a duffel will get ripped and beaten to death by the wind. |
| 23 |
Tie down straps or bungies
to hold it in place. |
* Items not needed if not cooking |
| THAT'S IT! Nothing more required folks. You are now camping. |
| Other possible
optional stuff: |
|
Mosquito repellant (generally not
required thank Gawd in the dry western states) |
|
Fold up chair, such as a Kermit
or Walrus chair |
|
50' Extra rope, 1/4 inch |
|
Sunscreen lotion |
|
A tarp that can be rigged as a
separate rain fly/sunscreen when needed. |
|
Fold up cooler (buy ice at last
stop and have cold drinks for the evening) |
|
Lantern (GAZ type is wonderful,
particularly if you are using a GAZ Turbo 270 type stove) |
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| Same other stuff
you would take if you were overnighting in motels |
|
Extra socks, underwear
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Toiletries kit
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Swimsuit
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Shorts
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Pants
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Shirts
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Camera
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Notes: |
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Sleeping bags. A
rectangular bag is generally more roomy and comfortable and has the advantage of being
able to be opened and unzipped as a blanket on a warm night. Generally a very compressible
bag is the best bet, and either the Wiggy bag that Aerostich sells, or the Woods bag sold
by JC Wonderlich appear the most ideal if you are going to buy a new bag. 3Lbs or under
should do it, but remember that on spring or fall campouts here in the high country we can
get temps into the upper 30's rather easily. |
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Sleeping pads. Most people
seem to prefer the Thermarest design, and us older bones are gravitating toward the LE
Camprest model ... takes up more room but is pretty comfortable on the ground. And the
other option is the old standby of the air mattress. Note that an air mattress doesn't do
anything to insulate you from the cold of the ground so you need sleeping bag above and
below you. |
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Tents: a 3 season tent is
what you want, with a rainfly. Freestanding seems to equate to more poles and bulk to deal
with and longer to erect. Many seem to be gravitating back to a simple two pole arch
design that requires being staked. If you travel solo then a 2-person tent is fine, if you
will be two-up ever or will be using your tent as a basecamp for several days at a time,
then go for a 3 or more person design. Try the tent with the rainfly on it. A common
problem of vestibule design tents is that when the vestibule is in place you have to crawl
in and out on your knees. Not so nice in the rain. Tall door openings are nice. |
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Stoves: My personal
preference is the GAZ 270 Turbo stove, which burns a propane/butane mix fuel. The only
drawback is that the fuel containers are slightly more expensive than others, and as with
any propane, you can't refill a partly empty container, so you end up starting a trip with
a partially empty (full) container. The overwhelming advantage however, is no pumping, no
stove leakage of liquid fuel (a common problem with altitude changes, and finding your
dinner in your hard bag drenched with gasoline), an "instant on" feature
without pre heating, and infinitely adjustable flame and heat (which many of the
popular liquid fuel stoves don't do, being either off or on without a simmer capability.
There are those who prefer the cost and relative fuel convenience of being able to use the
same fuel as the motorcycle. For those people, I suggest either the newest MSR variable
fuel and variable flame model, or the old and proven Coleman multi-fuel stove. Either
requires pumping, and sometimes pre-heating. |
