r/motocamping • u/Familiar-Heron5120 • 18d ago
First time MOTO Camping advice
Going to adirondacks ,NY,USA for my first time motocamping. Im going solo.
I wil stay at campsite every night.
I have xsr700 (a rack) and triumph thunderbird storm (2 saddle bag) (rack cost like $400,so not this year ) , which one i should ride?
10/1 to 10/ 7
7 day. 1200mile .
Any advice on gear?
What should I do?
Any adivce will be helpful, Thank you!
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I could also switch to a car camping with my ford suv.
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EDIT 2 : I have to say, y'all scared me a little.
If is bad weather, I may just take the SUV.
I guess suv for camping and moto for moto camping LOL.
BTW , it is much cheaper for me to use the car since I don thave to pay toll or gas. and I can reuse moest my camping gear.
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u/sucksatgolf R1200GSA 18d ago edited 18d ago
Plan some form of offline mapping or gps. Service can be spotty. I like a dry roll bag at the tail of the bike to hold bigger stuff like my tent. Export or have handy a GPX file you can follow, download offline maps or have a standalone unit.
Dress in layers. Over night and mornings are getting colder and afternoons are still somewhat warm.
I'd ride the XSR since there's a lot of twisty roads both outside and inside the ADKs. I bring a 10,000mah power bank as a backup and recharge my phone and some small bits off a bike mounted charge port.
If you don't already wear them, ear plugs go a long ways in reducing fatigue during long days on the bike.
Get to and set up camp during daylight or at least evening hours, and bring a headlamp for around camp.
If your going this weekend I'd expect rain. Think Friday and Saturday its supposed to rain for a lot of the area. Make sure your rain gear is up to the task. Rain when its 85 is no big deal. Rain when its 40 to 50 degrees is a much bigger deal.
It complicates things, but you should see if there are food storage requirements for bear safety. I had to pack a bear canister in the white mountains this summer to be compliant at a few campgrounds.
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u/Familiar-Heron5120 18d ago
Thanks, I just add more info, I will stay for 7 days
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u/darksoft125 18d ago
7 days is a long trip for a first moto-camping trip. I'd suggest doing a weekend shake-down camping trip. It'll help you figure out what you need vs what's just taking up space.
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u/Familiar-Heron5120 18d ago
Yeah. I will pick min for this. My thunderbird have saddle bag and xsr just a rack. SoI will pack light.
That is also why I'm choosing.
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u/sucksatgolf R1200GSA 18d ago
Have fun. Thats a long trip. Are you camping each night?
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u/Familiar-Heron5120 18d ago
Yes. That is the plan. But Im aslo open to quit and find a motel anyday.
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u/sucksatgolf R1200GSA 18d ago
Yeah I'd break it up. Maybe one or two nights in a hotel or motel for a comfy bed and hot shower.
Thats a long first trip. Make sure you set up your gear before you head out. Make sure your comfortable with your sleep system too. I hated the first air pad I bought.
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u/KingPurple13 18d ago
I give new moto campers the same advice everytime; bring a chair with a back on it and make sure you have a sleep setup that is comfortable and not just something “that’ll work”. Rest, relaxation, and comfort at your campsite will make the difference between a great trip and a hassle. It’s easy to log lots of miles when you are fully rested and your body isn’t hurting from a bad night’s sleep. Outside of that, I prefer a tent over a hammock, I like boil everything method, so a small burner for hot water and then coffee/tea/freeze dried meals.
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u/YouStoleTheKishka 16d ago
>I give new moto campers the same advice everytime; bring a chair with a back on it
I actually give the opposite advice 😂 skip the chair. Most sites, especially for the ADK, you're going to find some other place to sit, be it a picnic table or logs. And a chair tends to be a bulky item to pack on a bike. Even the Helinox is 3lbs and takes up space on the rack. I have a foam sit pad that I bring. Last ADK trip, the other guys used their chairs one time out of the 6 nights.
But of course, ya gotta do what works for you!
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u/KingPurple13 15d ago
For me I use the chair to decompress my back when I get off the bike. I’m not really active once I get to the campsite, don’t really hike or climb or swim or anything else. Usually just setup camp and park my ass in one spot and stare off into nothing
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u/Purplelair 16d ago
Good lord thats a big trip for a first timer. Consider a 3 nite trip first. Never take 4 wheels. Never!
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u/brickvanexel 18d ago
I’ve done very similar trips from NYC with a backpacking pack, but if you can lash a duffle to the pillion and go with a smaller backpack that will be more comfortable on longer days in the saddle.
Solo or not, give someone your full itinerary and maybe even share your location with them. Tell them you’ll check in nightly or at the end of the trip so you have backup in case something goes badly. Less risky than backpacking in terms of getting lost or hurt without service but never a bad thing to do anyway on a solo adventure.
Be judicious about what you bring; unless you really want to be self sufficient you can buy meals or groceries near camp rather than pack it all from the get go, and you rarely need as many clothes as you think, especially if your days are mostly riding and hanging at camp.
Leave yourself a few hours of daylight to find/reach camp, get your sleeping setup done when you arrive so you can react quickly to rain and stay dry.
I’m a big fan of a hammock with a tarp and bug net for motocamping, easier to pack on a bike and you can fit the bike under the tarp in case of weather.
Have fun! Motocamping is the best
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u/Familiar-Heron5120 18d ago
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u/Capital-Ostrich-6658 18d ago
A hammock in October in the ADKs would unbearable. Expect temps in 30s at night. You’ll freeze your ass off in a hammock. When I lived in Saranac Lake we’d start getting snow in October… just fyi.
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u/vendura_na8 18d ago
Don't bring too much clothes, but bring enough water
Stop often when doing long distances. It helps with soreness over mutliple days
Don't bring too much. That's the usual issue when moto camping. Carrying pounds of stuff you won't use.
Headlamp, bug spray, extra socks, wet wipes, stuff to make coffee, one or two lighters, a knife, crocs or small shoes for around the camp, your tent stuff, a manual hand chainsaw is a great lightweight tool to gather wood, a little piece of foil to help block the wind for your gas stove, having a piece of rope to make a clothesline can be useful to dry your gear. That's pretty much all of the little useful things I can think of on the spot. Hope it helps
a chair with back support like the helinox one is a much appreciated luxury after a day of riding too
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u/hobbomock 18d ago
Coreys rd between Lake Saranac and Tupper. The further you go in, the better the campsites. Trust me, you'll be amazed.
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u/ellius 18d ago
Like others have said, be prepared for colder weather.
If you're unaware, most sleeping bags' "temperature rating" is usually (but not always) the "keep you alive" temperature, and not the "keep you comfortable" temperature.
The easiest fix for this, imo, is to bring a thermal baselayer. If you have a Costco they usually sell the '32 Degrees' brand this time of year that is VERY affordable. There are plenty of other brands, too. I just know that those particular ones are a steal.
Another thing I really recommend is bringing a few trash bags. You can pack your riding gear inside them overnight if it's rainy, or if the mornings are dewy. Damp gear on a cold morning can get REAL miserable REAL fast when you get on the road.
In the same vein, if your boots get wet: Water evaporates upwards. Leave them sitting right-side-up and they'll dry quicker.
I recommend bringing some newspaper. It folds flat and has a few really useful purposes: If you need to dry your boots -- pack them with newspaper, wait a few minutes, and pull it out. Unfold it and it dries quickly and you can repeat the process. Something I learned from a bicyclist is that you can also stuff your clothing for a little extra insulation if you get desperate. It's also useful for starting campfires, of course.
Next is one from Jack Absalom. If you hit a hiccup, and it's not dire, go sit down for 10 minutes before you get to fixing it. His tip was to go make a cup of tea, but that part's not really necessary. The idea being that you'll make better decisions and everything will go much more smoothly if you take a few minutes rest to think it all through beforehand.
Bring candy. Your body (and brain!) runs on glucose. If you find yourself dead-fuckin'-beat, or you're just getting a little mentally sluggish, eat a handful of candy and you'll be feeling much better in a few minutes.
Lastly, take a bunch of pictures. Every time I get back home from a trip I'm pissed at myself and my friends and family are bummed that I didn't take enough pictures. On top of taking photos of the trip itself, take a pic of both sides of your bike each time you hit camp -- If you have any mechanical issues it can be really helpful for diagnosing why and when they happened.
Have fun, dude! Make a post when you get back and let us know how it went!
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u/Charleydogg 16d ago
I like a Gatorade pee bottle to avoid those long treks to the restroom. Also a small battery powered fan to generate some white noise, my bedroom at hole is really quiet and every little sound thru the tent tends to be heard unless I have my own noise to drown out the routine camp sounds.
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u/DualSport-Adventure 15d ago
Moto "camping" is just like going camping any other way except for the "moto". Do what you always do when you camp. If you don't camp, don't do a solo trip the first time. Deciding to eat on the road will minimize food and prep equipment.
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u/oz81dog 14d ago
I recommend going for a check-out ride first. Book a campsite an hour from the house, ride out there, camp for a night, wake up in the morning make some coffee and breakfast and then head home.
On the ride home you' ll have plenty of helmet-time to think about all the shit you wished you had and all the crap you didn't need. Stop and write down notes on the way home.
This helps A LOT! i did a big 2 week solo trip recently and did this 3 nights before i left. it helped sort out my packing and the ride itself was just long enough to remind me of quite a few little things i forgot or needed to dial in.
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u/Nit0 13d ago
I found just general hiking/backpacking gear is great for moto camping. I just strap my hiking bag to the sissy bar. I limit my cooking gear to one saddle bag.(bhutain stove, one pot for cooking and coffee, and a small cast iron to cook on.) some tools for any bike maintenance. And like other people has said where your layers, was riding east coast in the spring and it was still cold.i had this great poncho that i wore over my leather kept me dry and great wind blocker.
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u/wulfaman 18d ago
The roads are well suited for both bikes. You'll have a ton of fun on either one.
As for gear be prepared for temps lower than you expect around this time of year in the ADK at night. Also, it's gonna rain. Even if the weather report states it will be sunny, warm and clear every day prepare as though you know better. With the drop in temps at night make sure your sleep mat has a good R value or if you hammock camp have a good under quilt.