For our first bike trip post-retirement, we drove to Southern Arizona to sample the gravel around Patagonia. We ended up riding 9 days and took one rest day waiting out the rain. Ride stats were 374.3 miles, 38:03 ride time, 20,737 feet vertical.
Day Ride Dist. Time Vert. Blog
(mi/km) (hr:mm) (ft/m) Page
1 Patagonia 30 28.8 / 46.3 2:57 1,719 / 524 Link
2 Patagonia 50 46.5 / 75.8 5:05 2,917 / 889 Link
3 Halfway to Nogales / Alto Ruins 41.3 / 66.5 4:34 2,917 / 889 Link
4 The Cyclist's Menu Wine Country Loop 52.7 / 84.8 5:24 2,748 / 838 Link
5 Up and Over Montezuma Pass 31.2 / 50.2 3:43 2,962 / 293 Link
6 Rest Day in Bisbee Due to Rain
7 Owl Buttes: Eye of the Needle Route 38.1 / 61.3 3:45 1,866 / 569 Link
8 Tucson to Las Cienegas 52.5 / 84.5 5:39 3,226 / 995 Link
9 Las Cienegas to Patagonia 22.4 / 36.0 1:48 538 / 164 Link
10 Patagonia to Tucson 60.7 / 97.7 5:08 1,824 / 556 Link
Total 374.3 / 602.4. 38:03 20,737 / 6,321
One of the goals was to test out our bikepacking setups, which we plan to use on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Ride (GDMBR) this summer. My Giant Revolt handled well, especially after I remembered to lock out the front fork before standing to pedal. My Old Man Mountain rack and bags were flawless. The Ortlieb QR handlebar bag was easy to access. I am a little concerned about how waterproof the roll top will be. Maybe next time I will not overstuff it, like that is going to happen. After returning home, I went ahead and bought two 20 liter Ortileb Backroller Plus panniers. This will give me an extra 14 liters of volume. I also ordered two 7.5 liter Roadrunner drybags to fit in the Salsa Anycages. I will also bring along a 13 liter Sea to Summit Drybag I can strap to the top of my rear pannier. In total, that will be 66 liters, with an expansion to 79 liters if needed. That should give me plenty of volume to overpack with.
The biggest test was riding without padded shorts. I developed a saddle sore this summer that did not go away, and I had to get a steroid shot. Picture a 60-year-old man with one leg propped up, holding his delicate man parts to one side while a Physician’s Assistant gives him a shot. Anyway, some bikepackers ditch the chamois cycling shorts in favor of wool underwear; the concept being that wool underwear is easier to wash and dry while camping. As they say, cleanliness is next to godliness. The combination of a cushy Ergon touring saddle and clean undies worked for me this trip, but the jury is still out.
Slide Show (Link)