Miles and Emily’s Six-Week Australia Bikepacking Kit List

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Following a month and a half of bikepacking around Australia, Miles and Emily compiled a detailed inventory of their packing lists, including thoughts on what worked and what didn’t. Find a thorough overview of their kits paired with a selection of photos from the charming Munda Biddi Trail and Sydney to Summit route here…

compose Miles Arbour
time Aug 15, 2023
comment 9

I like to imagine myself as a detail-oriented packer. Sometimes I dream about Excel spreadsheets, weight breakdowns, and a neatly organized gear room, but that’s about as far from the truth as it gets. I usually pack last minute, rarely use lists, and my gear room is in a constant and ever-evolving state of chaos. However, in preparation for our six-week Australian bikepacking tour last winter, I figured it was worth some extra effort to make sure we didn’t fly across the world and forget anything essential.

Our final pack list was bigger than anything I’ve ridden with before. It was autumn in Australia, and we were expecting rain and cooler temperatures at night and also needed to be prepared for hot days and arid terrain. This meant proper rain gear, warm layers, lightweight riding gear, and casual clothing for days off. Thankfully, the Curve GMX+ Titanium bikes we rode (and reviewed here) for the six-week voyage carried our bulky setups naturally and confidently. They ended up being the perfect bikes for the trip, which mixed in a wide range of terrain, trails, and dirt roads.

Find a complete list of everything we carried below, broken down into categories and split up between our two rigs. If you’re curious about our GMX+ build kits, you can find that in review linked above and at the bottom of this page.

durston x-mid pro 2 review, bikepacking tent

Miles’ Packlist

I ended up outfitting the GMX+ Ti I rode with front and rear Old Man Mountain racks, which provided most of the packing space we needed for this trip. On the back, I had the Divide rack with the new Revelate Designs Nano Panniers. Up front, I had an Elkhorn rack with Framework Designs Travellers panniers bolted onto the the legs and a cavernous Rambler Bags roll-top bag on the bars. The bike came equipped with a slick dual-compartment frame bag from Terra Rosa Gear.

Overall, the setup wasn’t particularly lightweight, but it was functional, easy to pack, left lots of overflow room for extra food and snacks, and most importantly, held up to rough dirt roads, doubletrack, and trails. I had no mechanicals or gear mishaps beyond having to change out my brake pads once along the Munda Biddi Trail. All in all, I was quite pleased with the dual rack setup and mini panniers for a multi-week tour like this. Once my legs adjusted to the extra weight, it was refreshing to carry so much gear, have casual clothing to change into, and to feel like we were prepared for anything that might come our way.

Some standout items include the new Revelate Designs Nano Panniers, which raise the bar when it comes to lightweight off-road-capable mini panniers. While I’d have appreciated a waterproof design on this trip, they were wiggle-free and just the right size for our needs. Our Primus OmniLite Ti stove also proved to be great option for this trip as I immediately found out that finding standard liquid camp fuel isn’t so easy in Australia. I ended up using Diggers Shellite or Kerosene, which was easy to find at gas stations and hardware stores. The stove burned either fuel without any need to swap jets or parts, which made our lives easier.

The Ornot Lightweight Mission shorts also continue to impress me. After riding 2,000+ kilometres across Australia, in the mud, rain, heat, and dust, they are still looking brand new, which is mind-blowing. I expected the bum of the shorts to wear out after this trip, but they aren’t showing any signs of wear, which is downright impressive. I have since purchased another pair of shorts and continue to recommend them to my friends so we can all match and start an indie rock band.

Bags & Bits

Revelate Designs Nano Panniers
Custom Terra Rosa Gear Framebag
Rambler Bags Handlebar Bag
Framework Designs The Travellers mini panniers
Old Man Mountain Divide rack
Old Man Mountain Elkhorn Rack
3x bottle cages

Sleeping

Western Mountaineering Flylite sleeping bag
Durston X-Mid Pro 2
Durston ground sheet
Klymit Luxe pillow

Clothing & On Body

Outdoor Research Astroman Shirt
Ornot Lightweight Mission Shorts
7mesh Foundation Boxer Briefs x2
Chubbies Retro Outdoor Shorts
Smartwool underwear x2
7mesh Elevate Short Sleeve
Outdoor Research synthetic hoodie
7mesh Northwoods Windshell
7mesh Copilot Jacket
Bikepacking.com cap
Wool socks x3
7mesh Flight Path pants
Fizik Terra Ergolace Flat shoes
Bedrock Original sandals
Sunglasses
Helmet
Bike gloves
Porcelain Rocket Big Dumpling prototype hip pack

Electronics

Canon 6D
50mm F1.8 Lens
Canon USB battery charger
Camera batteries x3
Memory cards x3
Small screen cloth
iPad with keyboard
iPad SD card reader dongle
Anker 10,000mAh power bank
Various charging cables
iPhone
Garmin inReach Mini
Black Diamond Storm headlamp
Apple AirTag x2

Tools & Repair

29″ spare tube
Dynaplug Pro with extra plugs
Tire patch kit
Tidewall repair kit
Tire boot
Spare brake pads x4
Spare nuts/bolts
Crankbrothers M19 tool
Tire levers
Zip ties
Spare shift cable
Ottolock
Extra sealant
Duct tape
OneUp hand pump

Cooking & Food

Primus OmniLite Ti Stove
Fuel Bottle 325ml
Fuel Bottle 591ml
Pot Set
Sea to Summit collapsible bowls
Mugs x2
Hydrapak Seeker 3L + 28mm filter kit
Sporks x2
Small cloth

Personal & Hygiene

Toothbrush
Medication
Toilet paper
Baby wipes
Packable camp towel
Trowel

Emily’s Packlist

While I opted to carry an iPad for work on the road, Emily hauled around a MacBook Air, which only just fit in her Bags by Bird Piccolo handlebar bag. She also carried most of our water and strapped the super luxurious Big Agnes double sleeping pad on her rear rack. Although I can’t say for sure, I think her setup might have been heavier than mine. That’s a first considering the size difference between our bikes.

Emily used Rambler Bags panniers, mounted bottles on each side of the Curve’s carbon fork, had a big Klean Kanteen under the downtube, and Curve lent us a full-sized Apidura frame bag. Running a big full-frame bag was especially exciting for Emily as most small/medium bikes don’t offer much main triangle space—a big benefit of the GMX+’s unique geometry. She wore the smaller Rockgeist Dumpling hip pack with some personal items and her film camera, while I lugged around my trusty Big Dumpling and a full-sized DSLR.

We were experimenting with larger and more plush sleeping gear for this trip, and it really threw a wrench in any attempt to pack light. We’ve had some of the best sleeps ever after introducing the Big Agnes Rapide SL double sleeping pad, which isn’t massive at 40″ wide, but it has eliminated the dreaded “sleeping pad gap” and has proven to be quite comfortable. It has PrimaLoft insulation inside, offers enough room for two close friends, and pairs nicely with our oversized camp pillows. I used a Klymit Luxe pillow, and Emily used the Exped MegaPillow. Let’s just say it’s been hard going back to a standard ultralight sleeping pad and pillow.