Motorcycle camping - kit and recommendations

[Deadpool2]

I want to try this and never have.

I do have a sleeping bag and realise I need a mat, and a tent.

So is accepted wisdom I get a two person tent for my gear and I - any recommendations?

Also do I need cooking kit - as I was thinking of heading to the nearest cafe/ pub. I am not planning on doing anything more than say 2 nights away and only when its warm and dry. Its basically an excuse to run away from home for the weekend (not from anyone I live on my own) and be somewhere different, running out of friends to see on a regular basis.

cheers

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

Cheap bell tent from Amazon (or similar), I've got a tent from Amazon that cost £12, it's the best tent I've had for taking on a bike, it's small when it's in it's bag, easy to put up, and waterproof enough, don't think I'd want to try it in the pissing rain, but if it pisses down there are hotels.

Cooking gear is handy, but it can be bulky, enough to boil some water for a cup of tea is really all you want.

[Rockburner]

depends on how much you like camping itself really. I've never been 'that' happy with camping, but the biggest thing I found to make it 'acceptable' was 'space blankets' (mylar reflective sheets).

lay one underneath your mat (between the mat and the ground) and you don't lose heat to the ground all night (I used to wake up freezing cold). (in a pinch - kitchen foil does the same thing, but it tears too easily).

They weight nothing and have lots of other uses so I always make sure I've got one in my kit.

[Count Steer]

depends on how much you like camping itself really. I've never been 'that' happy with camping, but the biggest thing I found to make it 'acceptable' was 'space blankets' (mylar reflective sheets).

lay one underneath your mat (between the mat and the ground) and you don't lose heat to the ground all night (I used to wake up freezing cold). (in a pinch - kitchen foil does the same thing, but it tears too easily).

They weight nothing and have lots of other uses so I always make sure I've got one in my kit.

I bought MacPac sleeping bags that don't have down in the underside. (It just compresses anyway and doesn't insulate). It has a big pocket that you slide an inflatable Kampamat into. So the sleeping bag rolls up much smaller. The Kampamat rolls up quite small too and makes things comfy and well insulated from the ground.

(The penalty is the weight of the mat, which matters when you're carrying everything on your back, not so much on a bike. ).

[Yorick]

Folk have been using yoga mats for donkeys years. We tried the space mats. Shit.
0.1mm of tinfoil is nowhere near as good as 1 cm of foam.

[Bigyin]

I use a set of old army mess tins for cooking and a small single gas burner that fits in its own container which goes inside the mess tins along with a spork. Small gas cylinder to power it and used that for a 2 week trip on the bike cooking every night. I used to have a roll mat but now use a small self inflating mat that packs down really small.

Tent wise i have a Coleman Phad X2 which must be getting on for 10-12 years old now and was the goto for many bike mates who all had either the X2 or X3. Still perfectly waterproof even through torrential storms and big enough for me and all my kit including panniers in the small porch area. They dont make them anymore but Coleman have similar ones which are better as they now have blackout interiors which is what i struggle with when camping using an older one

[KungFooBob]

An advert for 'lone rider' appeared on my Friendface.

You don't want to leave your pride and joy out side while you're all snuggly inside your tent!

https://www.lonerider-motorcycle.com/pr ... t-mototent



You could buy a house near me for that kind of money.

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

Does it come with a butler and gobbling tea maid?

[dern]

Consider packing a 3m by 3m camping tarp with a pole or two. Gives you somewhere else to sit in the rain and doesn't take up much room. This is my setup that fits on the back of the drz easily...

[Deadpool2]

thanks all, just got to try it now and see how it goes. Going to chicken out and use the car the first few times. Its a lot to pack on a bike

[Yorick]

thanks all, just got to try it now and see how it goes. Going to chicken out and use the car the first few times. Its a lot to pack on a bike

France22.JPG (2 MiB) Viewed 608 times

[Deadpool2]

Wow, amazing lol

[Bigyin]

thanks all, just got to try it now and see how it goes. Going to chicken out and use the car the first few times. Its a lot to pack on a bike

This was everything for 2 and a half weeks away including all food as Norway is very expensive. Tent and roll mat containing poles and 2 foot breaking bar on back seat, Topbox had all food and cooking stuff, left pannier was sleeping bag, bivvy bag, tarp and odds and sods and the half pannier on the right was all the clothing



Oh and i also had a tarp and ropes for impromptu wild camping setup when couldnt be arsed to set up the tent

[Yorick]

thanks all, just got to try it now and see how it goes. Going to chicken out and use the car the first few times. Its a lot to pack on a bike

This was everything for 2 and a half weeks away including all food as Norway is very expensive. Tent and roll mat containing poles and 2 foot breaking bar on back seat, Topbox had all food and cooking stuff, left pannier was sleeping bag, bivvy bag, tarp and odds and sods and the half pannier on the right was all the clothing



Oh and i also had a tarp and ropes for impromptu wild camping setup when couldnt be arsed to set up the tent

Triple that if you take a burd

[Bigyin]

France22.JPG

To be fair thats the most shit i have ever seen bungeed to a Sports bike

You must have had the tank bag and everything else was Pennys

[DefTrap]

Hate camping and hate motorcycling-with-clutter, so it's my worst nightmares combined.
Fortunately I'm too old and broken for anyone to suggest camping to me any more, all the surfaces of my body need to be in constant contact with goose down and bathed in cooling breezes. Tarpaulins, groundsheets and bivvy bags can get fvcked.

[Yorick]

France22.JPG

To be fair thats the most shit i have ever seen bungeed to a Sports bike

You must have had the tank bag and everything else was Pennys

4 man tent, but only 1 bedroom.
Huge airbed.
2 camping chairs.
And pillows

All pegged down with ratchet straps. Was her backrest

[Asian Boss]

My best camping advice is never go camping.

For the times I do now I have a 4m bell tent from Bell Tent Boutique, plus their premium flooring. Also a double futon cushion to sleep on with good sheets, pillows and duvet. That alone fills up much of the 5-Series but it makes the whole thing much more bearable. Bedside tables and mood lighting are good too. And bring the Dyson cordless without the long pole, to suck up all the insects that inevitably get into the tent and congregate up near the top.

Oh and a hospital type bottle to piss into at c.3-4am so you don't have to get dressed and go out of the tent and across the camp site after the inevitable evening boozing. My kids probably hate me for this but that's the TRO / TRM system for you.

My best camping advice is never go camping.

[wheelnut]

In the best tradition of recommending what you already have;

Coleman Phad x3/vango banshee 300
Thermorest sleeping mat (rolls down to the size of a small water bottle)
Berghaus 3 season sleeping bag - not down but does compress to a nice small size.
Portable BBQ and coal in those prepacked igniter bags
Nothing for heating drinks as beer is best drank cold
Vango portable chair
Lomo roll bag for tent and sleeping bag
Usb 12v adapter with battery clips for charging stuff

[ninja]

I do quite a bit of euro touring and camping.
A self inflating (which means it has foam inside) sleeping mat thing was a revelation for me. No more heat loss into the ground! And a Helinox chair (there are much cheaper alternatives but they aren't as good).

My tent choice has always been whatever will fit into my Ventura bag with the rest of my kit. You need to spend a bit of money on the tent if you want to keep dry in the rain but tents are discounted a lot, so you can usually pick a decent one up from between £100 and £150.
I've had a 3 Coleman Phad X2s but as previously mentioned, they don't make them anymore.
It's always the poles which break before the tent is buggered!