Hi, I am Leroy – the other half of TrailFare.

I do the not-so-glamorous maintenance and trouble shooting/fixing side of things.

Anyway we are going on an adventure, and adventures need gear. So I have been working on purchasing new bikes, parts, bike accessories, and general camping gear. Some things are higher end such as my new bike and others are lower like our tent. However I have tried to put together decent gear without breaking the bank.

Let’s start with the bikes. Mine a Kona Sutra that comes with Shimmano GRX400 drive train a Brooks B17 saddle and a Tubus Low Rider front rack. I installed a Topeak Explorer rear rack and a Robert Axle Project rear axle to secure a trailer hitch to my bike as it uses 12mm through axles.

Emily’s bike, a well used Norco Yorkville that she likes is in need of a full going through. A new chain, break pads, fenders, tires, seat, clean and grease wheel bearings and free wheel as well as tighten spokes/true rims.

For panniers I decided on Topeaks MTX Trunkbag that incorporates their proprietary Quicktrack system since I already had the rear rack to accommodate it and Thule Shield 25 litre panniers to go on the front rack. I will be packing all the gear for the whole family so a trailer will be needed for the comprehensive list. After researching my options the Burley Nomad trailer seemed to check all the boxes. For the kids we have a Wike child trailer that we bought when our oldest was a baby. It is a few years old now and will also need some attention before it is trip worthy. New tires, clear poly front, new hitch and a good cleaning bring it back from the brink. A Wike trailer hitch was used on both bikes because the Wike hitch is slightly thicker and will work with both the Burley Nomad and the Wike child trailer. Needing a bike rack, I bought a Reese Explorer, because it looked good on Amazon. After receiving it, I think it looks a little flimsy and am slightly worried about it.

The rest of the gear seems to be up to the task after a few tryouts. So here we go.

Since I didn’t get around to finishing this post before we left on our trip I may as well carry on where I left off, but with a different twist. I have now used all the stuff, or more realistically abused.

On the first day from Pentiction to Chute lake everything was working quite well with the exception of the last five kilometers or so of the trail to Chute Lake being very sandy and loose. That made pulling trailers especially difficult. The 16” tires on the Burley Nomad were particularly terrible and would be for most of the remaining trip digging into the sand and bouncing over larger rocks. Burley offers a wider tire option that would have suited the situation better. Also the trailer was probably overloaded and top heavy with the Plano Sportsman Trunk on top. It contained all our TrailFare meals and cooking/eating utensils (Primus stove and fuel canisters, kettle for boiling water, Katadyn BeFree Gravity Water Filtration system, our favourite Outbound double wall stainless camp mugs, bowls for the kids…and spoons).

Once we arrived at Chute Lake we set up the Woods Cascade 4 tent. That night it rained nearly the entire night on and off. However our trusty Canadian Tire tent kept us and our gear dry thanks to the dual vestibules. The rain let up as we were making breakfast giving me some hope that the tent would dry out a bit before putting it in the dry bag. But that was not to happen, just as we started to fold up the tent the sky released a deluge on us turning my old rain jacket to what felt like more of a funnel down the back of my pants. The rain continued for the next five or so km of riding through puddles, one of which overturned the overladen Burley trailer with trunk on top. Thankfully the Plano trunk is very sturdy and kept the water out. Also the gear was in SealLine Blocker dry sacks that are lightweight and most importantly waterproof.

At Hydraulic Lake we setup camp with enough time to dry the tent before retiring for the night.

Thanks to the KLYMIT sleeping pad we woke up well rested even though the tenting spot was a little lumpy, ready for the unknown challenges that the next stretch of trail would throw at us. Both man and steed tested by the unmaintained trail and its many rock slides. The bikes and trailers took the punishment with little complaint save the poor overloaded Burley that overturned countless times between Hydraulic Lake and Midway. At Beaverdell my left pedal started to squeak, assuming that during all the water crossings water and silt had made its way past the seals, I grabbed my fancy bike tool and pulled out the 6mm allen key with 8mm adapter that promptly split as I applied pressure to remove it…the pedal squeaked all the way to Grand Forks.

Over all I am happy with the equipment.

A few pieces really stand out. The KLYMIT sleeping pad is probably the most comfortable and very durable air mattress I’ve used. We had no flat tires, the tent surprised me for being a relativity cheap tent it was easy to set up, light for it’s size and is still in great shape. The Katadyn water filter was a lot more convenient then boiling water and the Reese Explorer bike rack survived. Oh, I almost forgot to mention the Brooks saddle on my bike. The thing is almost mid-evil till it is broken in but is now my favourite. I could write a whole article on how I broke it in before we left but I’ll spare you this time.

Also our TrailFare freeze dried meals were great, but that is what you would expect me to say.

It was an awesome trip and I can’t wait for the next adventure.

If you aren’t bored yet you can check out my video of the trip.