Bushcraft by Bicycle

[peterbennett9]

Hi just wondering if any of you guys combine fitness with bushcraft? I love the great outdoors but im also a bit of a fitness fanatic, my favourite way to explore the outdoors is by bike on bike tours with all my kit in panniers on a rack.

My next trip is going to be a coast to coast cycle incorporating the Hadrians Wall cycle route.

Any fellow cyclists on this forum?

Peter

 

[forrestdweller]

i like cycling, too. a quiet way to get around, you can go further/faster then on foot and to places where you'd have no access with cars... .
my longest trip was one year around NEW ZEALAND 2007/2008 - many wonderful memories but also a few sacry moments (many new zealanders admitted that kiwis are amongst the weirdest drivers in the world) like getting overtaken by a truck with 4inches distance to a tunnelwall on my left and 4inches to the bloody truck on the other side (especially as i used a trailer with the wheel behind which makes for a VERY fragile balance!)

 

[peterbennett9]

nice one!! id love to go to N.Zealand!! After the coast to coast, lands end to john o groats is next on the list, so how do u find the trailer as opposed to panniers on a rack?

 

[forrestdweller]

i used both rear panniers and a trailer. but i would NOT recommend a "B.O.B." (it was the only one i could find!): i openly admitt that the way of attaching the trailer to the rear axle of the bike is a good idea, BUT the idea with one wheel behind is from my experience a STUPID one- it makes for an absolutely tricky balance and puts a lot of torsion stress to the joint of the trailer which finally caused a welding seam to break and getting it welded prooved tricky as the frame is made from rather thin material- without offering any advantages!

 

[peterbennett9]

ah yes iv seen those bob trailers, so you wouldnt recommend then, have you subsequently tried a two wheeled trailer then? i use a wee folding bike, a dahon speed pro with a rear rack, it gets some looks!

 

[durulz]

Yes!
I do combine my bushcraft with cycling. Not sure I'd call it 'fitness' though - I'm quite a sedentary rider, just as likely to stop for a while and push the bike up a hill.
The vast bulk of my daytime bimbling is done on bike. I don't use panniers or a big pack when on a bike - my reasoning is that I'll have to propel it all somehow. Nope. All I take is a 35L pack. At the very most.
Like I say, I don't cycle for fitness so much as it offers me the ideal mix between getting from A to (a further away) B and slow enough to still take in the countryside and the environment I'm in. Much more of a leisure cyclist than a competetive cyclist.
But the two are closely linked for me.

 

[effzedess]

Sounds like a good idea combining the two interests - I guess I'll have to spray my bike OD green

 

[forrestdweller]

ah yes iv seen those bob trailers, so you wouldnt recommend then, have you subsequently tried a two wheeled trailer then? i use a wee folding bike, a dahon speed pro with a rear rack, it gets some looks!

no, have'nt been on a biketrip long enough to need a trailer since then... but i daresay they're a lot more stable

 

[Neumo]

I happen to be buying a bike today from the online bike website that I have been doing some IT consultancy for. I plan to do some Bike Bushcrafting in the new year & it sounds like a good way of making you cut down on the amount of stuff that you carry.

 

[pastymuncher]

I happen to be buying a bike today from the online bike website that I have been doing some IT consultancy for. I plan to do some Bike Bushcrafting in the new year & it sounds like a good way of making you cut down on the amount of stuff that you carry.

Why cut down on gear? How about this- http://www.midgetcampers.com.au/bushtrekka.htm

TBH I cycle and I play around in the woods and both seem to compliment each other in many ways, I'm just starting to get into longer distance cycling and the camping aspects of "bushcraft" come in very useful and the bike allows me to carry more gear, rather than less.
One thing to avoid if your travelling any distance though is wearing a rucksack, I know people do it, myself included, but it is much much better with panniers and /or a trailer.

Off road the BOB trailers seem to be the weapon of choice, on road the 2 wheel trailers seem to be preferred, or you could just get yourself a load carrying bike like a Yuba Mondo or a Surly Big dummy.

Also for lots of info on long distance touring check out www.crazyguyonabike.com its become my second home on the internet.

 

[peterbennett9]

Wow Pastymuncher, have u got one of those bushtrekkas?! That thing weighs 25kgs unloaded! That would be a beast to mash up some of the hills in Ireland! I prefer to travel fast and light, 2 panniers with 56l of storage between them and i rarely fill them, i use a tarp and bivi or my terra nova laser photon, i use a wee folding dahon speed pro tt as it fits in a suitcase for flights but i just got a charge juicer mid yday so i may use that in the future!

 

[sasquatch]

I don't combine the two but I love flatland bmx and bmx in general...bushcraft bmx'ing would be funny though! I ride to work & back 8 miles a day when it's not winter to keep fit and save petrol, no brakes though which isn't too clever.

 

[peterbennett9]

Haha i know the feeling i ride a fixie with no brakes aswell, keeps you on your toes!

 

[georann]

Built this trailer for my GCSE tech project (currently doing my a-levels) based on a BOB yet stronger. Carried a full 70 litre rucksack of logs through the forest with ease and its still holding together strong. The picture was taken just after I finished it so not very good quality (on my phone) or heavy weight, but you get the picture.
http://img841.imageshack.us/i/p1405101601.jpg/
Can put up more pictures and even a full production plan if youre interested in making one or something similar (ive even got product research etc from the coursework folderwork).

Dan

 

[peterbennett9]

Looks great Dan how much did it cost to make?

 

[georann]

The main frame (arrow shape) cost £10 from a local steel merchant (cost price), the rear wheel, fork and the hitch (rear triangles off a childs full suspension bike) were free from a local bike shop which scraps bikes (a lot do this I think so you could be in luck), the hitch supports and net hooks were just bits of scrap steel rods our school had lying around. The net was £5 off ebay and the only real expense was I splashed out on some 4mm aluminium treadplate, for the base, which cost £35 and I have some spare. Just for you information, the hitch works similar to the BOB, without need for the special wheel nuts. I just used the rear triangles, which already have the cuts for the original wheel and ground them away slightly to fit over my rear wheel quick release bar. Anymore questions, feel free to ask.

Dan

 

[pastymuncher]

Wow Pastymuncher, have u got one of those bushtrekkas?! That thing weighs 25kgs unloaded! !

No I don't own one, nor do I want one but they do look impressive.

 

[Sniper]

Used to do that PB9 but not sure about the fitness part though, mind you my bike did have a 750 engine attached LOL. Seriously though the top box and panniers did carry all I needed for a few days in the woods. The bike also allowed me to get into the more inaccessible places where a car could'nt get to. Not so good at walking these days unfortunately.

 

[Gotte]

I've cycles more than I've camped in recent years, and love cycle touring. The speed is just right for seeing the country. I've toured mainly in Germany, where the infrastructure is so much better. I'm currently looking at setting up my stuff so o can take off for an extended camping bike tour, should I get the opportunity. It's eminently doable. Look on the touring board on www.bikeforums.com. there are loads of people who combine touring with camping, which, when self-supporting, is pretty close to the bushcraft practiced here. Lots of talk of hammocks, trangias, sleeping bags, tarps and sleeping mats. And all carried in panniers of some sort or another.

 

[peterbennett9]

Hi Gotte, i agree with you, theres no better way to see the countryside, il have look at that forum and subscribe! Peter