Bikepacking: A Printable Gear List and the Art of Loading Your Bike

11 lb (5 kg). That’s the maximum load Ortlieb and Topeak list for their biggest seat bags, at 15 to 16.5 liters [1, 2]. Yet Canyon, which makes gravel bikes, advises against putting more than 5 to 7 lb (2.3 to 3.2 kg) in that same bag [3]. The two numbers don’t contradict each other: the first says what the fabric and straps can handle, the second what the bike can carry without wagging its tail. All of bikepackingSelf-supported travel by bike over several days, with bags strapped directly to the handlebars, frame, seatpost, or fork, usually without a rack. comes down to that gap: what you bring matters, and where you pack it matters almost as much. So here are the mounting points and their limits, the physics of loading, the lights the law requires, and then the list, section by section, ready to print.

Handlebars, frame, saddle, fork: what each bag should carry

A bikepacking bike gives you five places to carry gear, not counting your back. Makers list bag volumes in liters: they run from under 1 liter on the top tube to 16.5 liters under the saddle, and every bag has a maximum load, listed by its maker.

The logic is simple: heavy gear goes where it gets in the way least. Apidura and Canyon both save the frame bag for heavy, dense items, water, food, tools, and the stove, because it sits in the middle of the bike and fairly low [3, 14]. The handlebars take light, bulky gear, typically the sleep system, and the top tube bag works as a drawer within reach [14].

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Spreading the weight: low, centered, and never at the end of a lever

A loaded bike has a center of gravity, and every pound you add moves it. Canyon sums up the rule in one line: heavy items low and centered [3]. Two positions need more care than the rest, because they act as levers: the seat bag and the handlebars.

The seat bag sits highest on the bike and farthest from the center of gravity, Canyon points out; overloaded, it sways from side to side, especially on descents and technical terrain [3]. Topeak talks about the pendulum effect of large rear loads [2]. The bag hangs from just two points, the saddle rails and the seatpost, and reaches far behind them: up to 26 in (67 cm) long, according to Topeak, for its 15-liter bag [2].

Let’s do the math for 4.4 lb (2 kg) packed in a seat bag. At 4 in (10 cm) behind the seatpost, it puts a torque of about 1.5 lb-ft (2 N·m) on the mount; at the tail of the bag, 16 in (40 cm) back, about 5.8 lb-ft (8 N·m), the same as 18 lb (8 kg) placed at 4 in. Torque grows with distance, and inertia, which makes the load resist each movement and then keep it going, grows with the square of the distance: four times farther back means sixteen times the inertia. Hence the advice from Apidura and Canyon: heaviest items first, closest to the seatpost, light ones at the tail [3, 14].

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Up front, the physics changes. Whatever is strapped to the handlebars turns with them, and every steering correction has to get it moving. Apidura’s take is that weight added to the bars affects handling more than anywhere else, and that a light front end keeps the steering responsive and predictable [14, 15]. Canyon offers a rule of thumb for balance: a handlebar bag about as heavy as the seat bag, and an even load left and right [3].

That leaves your back. A backpack takes weight off the bike, not off you: the load rides at its highest point and presses on your shoulders and your saddle. Apidura notes that added weight, on your back or in bags, means revisiting your tire pressure and suspension settings [15]. In my view, a small hydration pack is plenty on your back; everything else belongs on the bike.

Tire clearance, dropper posts, forks: the limits to check

A seat bag needs room under the rails. For its 6- to 15-liter bags, Topeak requires at least 8.7 in (22 cm) between the saddle rails and the tire, and 4.7 in (12 cm) of exposed seatpost between the collar and the rails [16]; Apidura has you measure the same distances before picking a size [11]. On a small frame, those inches run out fast.

On a full-suspension mountain bike, the rear wheel rises toward the saddle as the shock compresses, so clearance has to be checked with the suspension compressed, not at rest. For these frames, Apidura designed bags shaped to clear the rear wheel, and an adapter that limits dropper post travel to keep a gap above the tire [15]. A dropper post that goes down takes the seat bag with it: Ortlieb declares its hook-mounted seat bag compatible only with the adapter included, on posts of 22 to 26 mm, and with about 1.2 in (3 cm) of free seatpost [17].

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On the handlebars, two distances count: the gap between the brake and shift levers, which limits how wide the bag can be on drop bars, and the height between the bars and the tire [5]. Apidura recommends its 9-liter bag for bars 16.5 in (42 cm) wide or narrower [5], and spacers between the bars and the bag make room for the cables [14]. Nothing should interfere with the steering or the brake cables [3].

On the fork, cages and bags bolt to threaded mounts or, in Ortlieb’s case, clamp onto a fork leg of constant diameter. Ortlieb and Salsa list 6.6 lb (3 kg) per side for theirs, and Ortlieb only accepts a carbon fork if it has threaded mounts [12, 13]: the load the fork itself can take is in its manual. The whole bike has a ceiling too, the maximum total weight, rider and luggage included, and it varies a lot from one model to the next: 220 lb (100 kg) for a racing road bike from Canyon, 300 lb (136 kg) for an urban e-bike from Trek [18, 19]. A 176 lb (80 kg) rider on a 20 lb (9 kg) bike has only 24 lb (11 kg) of margin under the first of those ceilings. Beyond what bags can take, a rack changes the scale: Ortlieb lists 44 lb (20 kg) for its lightweight model [20].

Lights, reflectors, bell: required equipment, from California to Switzerland

Bags create a problem the law already anticipated: they hide your lights. In France, the rear light must be clearly visible from behind [21]; in Great Britain, lamps must be kept “lit and unobscured” [22]; in Germany, lighting must be neither covered nor dirty [23, 24]. A seat bag often blocks a light mounted on the seatpost, so some makers add a mount to move it onto the bag [1, 11]. In Germany, it then has to sit between 9.8 and 47 in (250 and 1,200 mm) above the ground and be an approved type [23]. For the other countries, see Required Bike Equipment in Europe, by Country.

These rules cover the bike on the road. Where you can sleep is a separate question, and the answer depends on the country and the land: we’ve covered it for France and for the UK.

The gear list, section by section

This list is for two to four nights self-supported, in mild weather, with a tent or a tarp. You can check it off at a glance and print it; add what your trip demands and cross out what it makes unnecessary. In parentheses, the position the loading logic gives each item.

Sleeping

• Sleeping bag chosen for its comfort temperature, in a dry bag (handlebars)
• Sleeping pad with an R-value suited to the season (handlebars)
• Inflatable pillow, or a stuff sack of clothes (saddle)

Shelter

• Tent, tarp, or bivy sack depending on the forecast (fabric on the handlebars, poles in the frame bag)
• Stakes and guylines (frame)
• Lightweight groundsheet (saddle)

Clothing

• Base layer, warm layer, and rain jacket, following the three-layer system (saddle)
• Spare bike shorts and socks (saddle)
• Gloves, beanie, or neck gaiter depending on the season (top tube or saddle)
• A dry set of clothes kept for camp (saddle)

Cooking and water

• Bottles or a hydration bladder: water is one of the heaviest things you carry (frame or fork) [14]
• Filter or treatment to make water safe to drink, depending on the sources along the route (frame)
• Stove, fuel, lighter, pot, and utensils (frame); never a gas stove inside the tent, where carbon monoxide can build up very quickly [32]
• Food for each day, plus a reserve (frame, with snacks in the top tube bag)
• A bag to pack out your trash (saddle)

Repairs

• Spare tube or tubeless repair kit (frame)
• Tire levers and pump (frame)
• Multi-tool with chain tool, and a quick link (top tube or frame)
• Spare derailleur hanger for your frame, brake pads (frame)
• Zip ties, tape, a spare strap (frame)
• Chain lube and a rag (frame)

Navigation and lights

• Route saved for offline use, on a phone or GPS unit (handlebars)
• Power bank and cables (top tube)
• Paper map of the area (frame)
• Front and rear lights that meet the rules wherever you ride, charged and not blocked by bags
• Headlamp for camp (top tube)

Hygiene and first aid

• First aid kit, and the training to use it (frame)
• Sunscreen, toothbrush, soap (top tube or saddle)
• Toilet paper and a bag to pack it out (saddle)
• Charged phone, emergency numbers written down (top tube)

Documents

• ID valid in every country on your route (top tube)
• Credit card and some cash (top tube)
• Proof of insurance, liability and travel assistance (frame, in a waterproof pouch)
• Name and number of someone to contact, written on paper (frame)
• Route and return time left with someone close to you

The rule to remember fits in one sentence: heavy gear low and centered, light gear at the ends, and nothing that touches a wheel or hides a light.

Worth watching

Tom Hill of Restrap shows where gear can go on the bike, from handlebar bag to frame bag to seat bag, with tips for packing it compact and keeping what you need within easy reach.

The video is hosted by YouTube (Google): nothing loads until you play it, and Google may then set cookies.

Julien de Jurquet

Vans, RVs, biking and calculators

Julien de Jurquet writes for Outfarer about camper vans, RVs, biking, and calculators. He reads manuals cover to cover and never lets a number slide without its unit, so your choices rest on math, not promises.

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