The Carburetor Chronicles

Camping Gear for Motorcycle Camping

Lots of Shiny Metal Stuff

A couple of years ago (2001-2003)  I replaced a lot of my personal camping gear this summer so I can get back outdoors.  I have done tons of research on what is out there and most of the reliable gear is the same stuff I used to use on Baja trips a couple of years back (anybody had some Dos Equis at Bar Miramar in San Felipe?).  This list is limited to camping gear. The major items will be reviewed elsewhere in the Gear section.

First the credibility part, I did four years in the Navy as an Aircrewman where you learn to appreciate good quality functional gear and you also learn that “pretty” don't mean jack in the woods.  Lots of camping trips in Baja.  And way too much time on the internet researching new gear before I committed my meager $$'s to a purchase.  This doesn’t make as knowledgeable as many out there, but like you I am just getting back into it, and hopefully I understand a little of what you are looking for.

This list of gear is balanced with cost vs. performance.  When I had to choose between the two I went for performance, still I was able to keep cost relatively low.  I am not climbing Everest and I do not near gear that is purpose built for an extreme expedition.  Comments follow each item of gear. 

I saved a lot of $$ by shopping at department store for stuff before heading to a sporting goods store (or website).  Check the automotive sections and house wares sections for “gadgets” and other sundry items that are priced way too high at sporting goods stores.

First aid Kit - $25.00

Get a good one, and buy this first.  After you get it buy some aspirin, ibuprofen or other painkiller, some Day-Quil and Ny-Quil liquid caps (use with caution when riding) to put in  the kit.  A few over the counter symptom relievers can save what would have otherwise been a horrible trip.  A couple of Excedrin PM's will drown out what your earplugs cannot when it is bedtime.  Whenever taking any kind of meds use caution when riding.

Trying find stuff like this in the middle of a desert with green stuff leaking out of every hole in your face is less than fun,  I don’t know from experience, a friend told me . . . yeah, that’s it, a friend told me.  I do know that he would have willingly paid about $75,000 for a tab of over the counter Benadryl at the time.

Ortlieb makes a great waterproof bag that is available at Aerostich. Aerostitch also has some well thought out dedicated rider's first aid kits.

Back of bag  Front of bag

Sleeping pad - Thermarest discovery series full length - $50 to $100 and a Ridge rest foam pad - less than $20

Buy the Thermarest and don't settle for less than it.  It is the first, and the best.  The cost savings with other brands are insignificant and they don't measure up.  Don't get fooled into buying the ultra light models.  They just don't work as well as the regular models. Go for the full length. Waking up with cold wet feet sucks a lot more than spending the extra twenty bucks. I add on the Ridgerest foam pad when car or motorcycle camping, and it helps out lots on the comfort level.

Sleeping bag - Too personal choice to call but get the best you can afford. 

 Down is the best, but if gets wet it loses its loft and thermal properties with it.  Synthetic bags work well even wet but don't pack as small.  A mummy bag is best for heat retention, but if you are “two-up” it will not usually zip to another bag.  If you are doubling up at bed time get rectangular bags.

All thermal ratings are optimistic at best.  In the Summer I just use a polarfleece bag.  Fleece bags can be had for less than $20

Stove - Campingaz Turbo 270 - less than $30.00 / Better MSR Pocket Rocket - $39.99

It is a iso-butane stove (propane/butane mix to improve cold weather performance).  Lights easily and every time.  Fuel is readily available at any major sporting goods store and can be purchased online from REI (ground shipping only so order in plenty of time before your trip).  You will hear people talk about the poor cold weather performance of this fuel, unless you are camping out in less than 15 degrees Fahrenheit you will have no problems (I haven't).  When everyone else is still trying to prime their neat-o looking Whisperlite you will be munching away on some yummie Ramen (or whatever, see below for camp food ideas).  I think there is more written on stoves than any other piece of gear, but this thing is the Jeep of camp stoves; not the prettiest, not the coolest, but it has been around along time, it is proven, it does the job well and with a minimum of fuss.

I have decided  to ditch the Campingaz though.  It only uses the Campingaz brand of fuel canisters and no others. I have never had a problem finding the canisters in sporting goods stores, but I am seeing less of them.  Primus, MSR and many other brands sell similar stoves for a similar price and I would buy one of those before I purchase a stove with a needlessly limited, proprietary fuel canister. The only difference is the way the stove threads onto the canister.

The MSR Pocket Rocket is a pretty cool stove and it is very compact. It can utilize every brand of fuel canister but Campingaz. It has all of the positives mentioned above, it seems less stable than the Turbo 270 but I have never had a problem.  I love this new stove.  Even better, it fits right into my way cool cookset (see below).

Lantern - Campingaz/Primus/Snow peak etc.  compact lantern - less than $30

Each of these companies makes a nice compact lantern that runs on the same fuel as the stoves mentioned above, and works nicely. Just make sure they are cross compatible.  Before you buy a lantern try screwing on a fuel canister that works on your stove.  I carry one big canister for the lantern and one small one for the stove (stove tips too easy on tall one).  The fuels goes quicker in the lantern but last a long time on either. I always carry one small spare can of fuel.  They weigh ounces so weight is no problem, and unless you pack pretty heavy volume should not be a problem.

Torch - Around $20.00

I was at Lowe’s (same thing as Home Depot) and saw a little butane torch that looked like an oversize lighter.  It takes an ordinary butane lighter (those cheapie Cricket brand you always see at convenience stores) and turns it into a high intensity butane torch, it comes with a refillable “fuel cell” that is just a lighter without the flint wheel.  I bought it for the hell of it not sure what I would do with it.  The brand name was “Solder-it” so I assume it was a cheap version of those mini-butane soldering torches.  I have used this thing a million times.  It lights wet tinder, it is easier to use than matches to light a propane stove or lantern (the jet of flame extends into the globe or under the burner where a regular lighter would not), it does indeed solder, it can melt insulation off of a wire, and makes one hell of a pipe/cigar lighter.

Flashlights - 2 Mini Maglites AA batteries - $10 each with Nite-Ize accessories (head strap and pocket) - $15

There is no better all purpose light than a Maglite.  This size twists on so it doesn't get accidentally turned on in your bag draining the batts.  The AA version puts out plenty of light to manage most campsite activities even without the cool little Campingaz lantern mentioned above. I carry a spare light and spare batts.

The Nite-ize accessories are a $5.00 headband that hold the light like a miner’s lamp on the side of your head (a lot cheaper than a $40.00 Petzl headlamp and just as good) and a pocket that hold a Mini-maglite, a multi-tool, and other miscellany (two spare batts, a small pocket knife, my mess kit utensils and a St. Christopher medal).  Get them from a hardware store and save a couple of bucks.  Also cheaper at Wal-Mart than most other places.

The maglites fit into the middletech theory very well. hey get the job done, they are damn near bulletproof, an and they are inexpensive.

LED lights are getting better all of the time but the good ones are still pricey and the cheap ones usually suck.  I have a couple and they are getting better all of the time.  They are still high tech but are headed for middletech.

Multi-tool -Good - Leatherman Original - about $40 / Better - Leatherman Wave about $65

Leatherman, there is no substitute.  I have used mine to fix everything from a 1976 Honda XL350 to a brand new Jeep, to spread peanut butter, to clean a wound (without the peanut butter), to pull a stinger out, and to pull, pry, twist, and/or wrench my way out of trouble more ways than I can count.  Next to duct tape or a good lawyer, a Leatherman is the best friend a guy who just screwed up can have.

You can even use a Leatherman as a tool kit now.  The Leatherman website offers a tool adapter that lets you use 1/4 drive bits and sockets.  The Cabela's website has a tool that turns the tool onto a ratchet.  Either can be had for about $25.00.

The Wave is the big dog in the Leatherman line, better tools, one handed open on blades that are on the outside of the handles (like a pocket knife) and it has curved grips which are worth the extra $45 alone. 

Nylon Zip ties - Less than $8.00

Head for the hardware isle and get some of these babies in varying lengths.  They solve problems you will never anticipate.  Add these to the duct tape/good lawyer/Leatherman list. 

Duct Tape - $3.00

 I can't say anything someone else didn't already say better.  Just get some. It is a pain to pack though.  A friend showed me a cool trick; take a straw and use it as a spool to wrap the tape on and you can pack a whole roll of tape in less than 1/3 of the space of a regular roll.

Navigation - Compass Silva or Brunton less than $30.00  GPS - Garmin eTrex - $119.00

I bought a GPS for the gee-whiz factor as much as anything else.  GPS is a back up plan.  There is no substitute for a compass and good nav skills.  I got the eTrex as a nav supplement so I did not need downloadable  maps.  It is the cheapest model out there and short on features but it will give you a good position quick, and is waterproof (and runs on the same batteries as the maglights, see there is a method to the madness).  When a budget permits I will upgrade though, GPS is too cool.

Cookset – Just get a Coleman set for cheap - less than $20.00  Nylon utensils - $5.00 - or maybe go nuts and get a really trick ridiculously expensive one

There are a ton of cooksets out there, but a cheap old aluminum cookset that can boil water and comes with a 6 inch skillet will fry fish, make soup, boil water and let you make whatever pretty much whatever you want without spending a small fortune.

I got my spatula. ladle and spoon for less than five bucks and I just cut the ends off so they would fit in my Coleman cookset (this cost less than half the price of the sporting goods store version already short enough to fit in the cookset sack). 

That being said I completely lost my mind one day at Galyan's sporting goods and bough a pretty trick cookset. It is made by Snow Peak, and they some pretty sweet gear. This cookset has been discontinued, my guess is because of price, it listed for $99.00 when I bought it. I got for $69.00.  A small stove like the Pocket Rocket fits in there with a fuel canister, the utensils, the sierra cup, and the cutting board. I can even slip a small Nalgene bottle of spice in there as well.  The lid is a skillet and the bottom is a one liter cookpot. In 1999 it won an editor's choice award from Backpacker magazine.

Mug - Good - Double wall aluminum travel mug (“Nissan” style)- $10 to $15 - Better - Thermax can cooler/cup combo

 Not much beats a cup of hot coffee in the great outdoors while you watch the sun come up.  You can get one of these mugs almost anywhere, but be sure to get a double wall mug or you will give yourself a nice burnt lip on that morning coffee if you have a cool looking enamel camp cup (I claimed to be a little bit experienced, just not very smart). Burning your lip while watching the sun come up leads to a profanity based alarm clock that none of your buddies will appreciate. Target has some nice ones called "Migo" in their house wares section that are a lot cheaper than what you will find at a camp store.  They cost about 1/3 what a Nissan cup costs and are of similar quality.

The Thermax line by Nissan has a great cup thin wall that has no handle and doubles as a beer can holder that will keep your beer cold better than anything else I have ever seen. A 12 oz can slips into this thing perfectly.  Pop on the lid and it keeps your coffee hot too, just don’t try both at the same time. This is probably one of my favorite pieces of kit.

Stainless steel hip flask - $15.00

 Man does live by bread alone.  For the truly dedicated you can get a 1 liter nalgene flask.

 Hydration - Platypus or CamelBak - less than $30.00 (more expensive models available)

 These are just too cool, low tech, no maintenance, and they do the job.  They are flexible water bladders that can be boiled or frozen (freeze about 1/4 of a bag of water prior to leaving and have cold water for the whole ride, unless you are heading out for Iron Butt, then freeze the whole thing, stay home until it melts and hopefully you will have forgotten you entered in the first place).  The bag goes into a nylon pack that goes on your back or in a tank bag and you drink through a hose that has a bite valve on it.  Drink while riding/hiking!

Camp Coffee - Good - Maxwell house filters - about $3.00 / Better - A French Press or stove top espresso maker

Gotta have the coffee man, how else would you find out about the enamel mug being able to fry your lip.  There a lot of nifty ways to make camp coffee, but these filters, available in the coffee aisle of almost every grocery store, are by far the easiest to use and the easiest to pack.  They look like tea bags but have coffee in them, and they taste a lot better than regular old instant.  Boil water, drop in bag, wait (so you don't burn you lip on the water in your new safe to drink out of double wall mug,  . . . don't ask) and then drink you coffee while you watch everyone else at the Rally still making coffee in their neat-o coffee contraptions.

Though it must be said, a French press will make the much better coffee and without much more fuss than the filter bag coffee.

The stove top espresso makers are a little more fuss, but a freshly brewed americano is a damn civilized way to start the day.

French Press        Espresso maker

 Camp food

Stay away from sporting goods store and use the money you save to buy your wife a nice little gift for letting you go off and be manly for a couple of days.

Head for the grocery store. You can find lots of cool stuff in the soup isle that is really good.  I have found gourmet type dehydrated soups that I buy for about $2.00 that make camp dining a real pleasure, just add water and boil.  You can find all kinds of good stuff if you just wander the store thinking about what would make good camp food the next time your significant other makes you go along to the store.  If you are motorcycle camping, and not hiking, you can always stop at a store just before stopping to camp so you don’t have to worry about packing cans for more than a mile or two. Peaches and cream over some pound cake is really easy and tastes great.

Easy Mac is about the coolest thing ever. It says you need a microwave on the directions, ignore that and just boil the specified amount of water and make it in your pot.

Frozen bread items, pancakes, waffles, etc. can be purchased the night before, put them in the top of the cooler so the come pretty close to thawing out and just warm them up with some butter in the skillet in the morning. Very little fuss, very little mess.

This is long winded list, but not a long one, I hope it helps.  If it helps a lot then you can buy me a beer someday in a little bar on the road less traveled.

dp 3/04

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