HOW MUCH gear?

[Piemaster]

Thanks for the help all on this thread

I've been making 2 lists of what I reckon will be needed for a couple of nights, one very minimalist on bikes, slightly longer one in car but that includes the telescope and an inflatable canoe.
Inevitably I've wandered off and found a camping forum and an attempt to avoid actually doing any work and have been aghast at this thread about the size of car (+roofbox, +trailer) some people need for their gear.
Now I had come to the conclusion that for 2 of us we will need racks/panniers on both bikes, DS will have to carry his own clothes, sleeping and wash gear but I reckon I can manage the rest, same load as his +tent and cooking gear/food.
Now I do appreciate some will be going for 1-2 weeks but on my previous couple of camping trips, even a week in France, I've always thought of camping as a minimalist type thing, a basic cheap break. Cycle camping seems to fit quite well into that, though not actually having gone yet my view may be a little rose-tinted.
Leave all the day-to-day 'luxuries' crap at home. Rough it a bit, a reminder of how little we actually do need to live on and be happy. Shelter, food, family and a bit of scenery and fresh air. Just enjoying being alive.
Is an electric hook up really that vital?

 

[rich p]

You certainly don't need an electric hook up. Take as little as you can and you'll find that's plenty to carry. You don't want to be wearing wet clothes so you have to take enough but make sure everything is lightweight and dual purpose if possible. Nobody will care what you look like in the evenings.

 

[RedBike]

To point out the obvious you wont need an electric hookup provided you don't take anything that needs to be plugged in.

I've found solar mobile chargers less than brilliant in the UK but those cheap AA battery powered charges than can be brought for 99p off ebay work well enough to top the phone up. Failing that just take a spare battery or two.

I'm new to this cycle touring lark but I've already found out that the less you can get away with the better.

 

[Piemaster]

To point out the obvious you wont need an electric hookup provided you don't take anything that needs to be plugged in.

I've found solar mobile chargers less than brilliant in the UK but those cheap AA battery powered charges than can be brought for 99p off ebay work well enough to top the phone up. Failing that just take a spare battery or two.

I'm new to this cycle touring lark but I've already found out that the less you can get away with the better.

The point I was (poorly) trying to make about a hook up was why would you need one for something that should be as basic and simple as camping? If you want to be able to plug in a eg. hairdrier surely a cheap Travel Lodge room would be better? (and quite possibly cheaper)
Only electrical device for me will be a phone. I can get out a week out of a battery if I'm selective about when its turned on. I don't need to be 24/7 contactable, especially on holiday. If I didn't need to reassure Mrs.P it would probably be left at home. Did look at a solar charger - I won't bother now. Thanks for the tip.

Very much hoping to keep everything to a minimum.

 

[Crankarm]

..... that includes the telescope and an inflatable canoe.

LoL .

If it's only a couple of nights why not BnB? You could then cut out all the camping and cooking gear.

 

[Comatosed]

I usually just charge my phone in pubs, they won't mind if you ask nicely.

'A pint of Guinness please, oh and could I charge my phone up as well'. hehe. (after coming out of the loos from a full head to toe wash, brushing teeth and rinsing a copule of tshirts through).

 

[Arch]

Did look at a solar charger - I won't bother now. Thanks for the tip.

I have a wind-up charger, perhaps worth having for an emergency, it's only small.

I think the thing about that website is that it's a camping and caravanning site - their idea of camping won't be the same as ours.

As an undergrad I spent 3 weeks in a tent on a dig a few years running. In the first year, when fieldwork was compulsory for all, one pair of girls turned up in a car, with two tents. One big family type one, to share, and a smaller one to keep their clothes in... They were the ones who took all the time in the shower each evening, washing their hair, while the rest of us just scraped the worst of the dust off with the soap...

 

[samid]

Re phones: I found that if I keep my phone turned off most of the time, turning it on briefly only to exchange text messages, and sometimes make a voice call, a single charge lasts for quite a while (12 days was my longest run so far, this year) without a recharge. So, while I did carry my charger with me this time I didn't use and might have left it at home as well.

I made sure other gadgets that I need (headlamp, GPS, camera) all use AA or AAA batteries that can be bought on the road.

 

[vernon]

Only electrical device for me will be a phone. I can get out a week out of a battery if I'm selective about when its turned on. I don't need to be 24/7 contactable, especially on holiday. If I didn't need to reassure Mrs.P it would probably be left at home.

Why not leave the phone at home and use public phones for contact?

 

[rich p]

I don't think that one mobile is going to be the straw that breaks the camel's back!

 

[willem]

I think keeping it simple (but with highquality gear) is indeed the key to enjoyable cycle camping (or any camping for that matter). Our policy has always been to avoid camping sites with electricity as much as we could. We found that people who were desperate to have electricity for their tv's fridges etc were less interesting neighbours to have.
A mobile phone and a digital camera need charging from time to time, but really not that often. If there are two of you, two phones can be handy.
Willem

 

[Arch]

Why not leave the phone at home and use public phones for contact?

Because, I think, these days you can't rely so well on finding a pay phone that works, or takes cash.

 

[Piemaster]

I'm struggling to think of any payphones in my (urban) area. Some around the town but getting to be a rare sight now.