R
RTFlyer
Guest
Thanks for all the suggestions guys!
I've come to some conclusions as of today...
I probably won't pack as efficiently as I should. I'll leave things I need here, and I'll bring some things that I have no use for. It'll be a learning experience for me, so I'm not going to sweat it too much. If I truly need something, they'll have stores there. I found a quality brand-new tent on Craiglist here and saved a bundle, have a good sleeping bag, and a serious self-inflating air mattress, so at least I should be able to sleep at night.
I'm probably going to make a generally straight run as far as routing goes with a small detour to avoid the worst of St. Louis traffic. I considered the route suggested above, but that will add considerably to the overall distance. I'm new to the touring thing, so I want to arrive in Iowa fresh, and not try to squeeze too many miles in per day. I figure that I can make the entire trip (380 miles) in one day in case of rain or other unforseen delays on my route. I don't want to plan any more than that for my first run. I can ride 200 miles per day locally without any problem, so I don't think I'm out of the ball park there. My route gives me about 130 slab miles initially, then a relaxed run for the remainder. Less than two hours after leaving the house, I'll have nothing but open road ahead of me.
Theres a nice state park with camping at about the 3/4 point. If I feel like stopping, I can camp there, then continue. That would also be a good place to see how well prepared I really am.
I'm starting a packing list today, based on some published on the web and tailored to my own needs. I'm also running by Grass Roots BMW today to see about a tank bag, tie downs and other misc items. I'm still a little confused as to how it all will fit on the bike, stay dry, and be stable. I'll leave plenty of time to pack and re-pack.
Any advice on packing the bike would come in handy now. I've read the threads on it and seen some pic's of packed bikes. I just need to figure out my own system I guess.
I've come to some conclusions as of today...
I probably won't pack as efficiently as I should. I'll leave things I need here, and I'll bring some things that I have no use for. It'll be a learning experience for me, so I'm not going to sweat it too much. If I truly need something, they'll have stores there. I found a quality brand-new tent on Craiglist here and saved a bundle, have a good sleeping bag, and a serious self-inflating air mattress, so at least I should be able to sleep at night.
I'm probably going to make a generally straight run as far as routing goes with a small detour to avoid the worst of St. Louis traffic. I considered the route suggested above, but that will add considerably to the overall distance. I'm new to the touring thing, so I want to arrive in Iowa fresh, and not try to squeeze too many miles in per day. I figure that I can make the entire trip (380 miles) in one day in case of rain or other unforseen delays on my route. I don't want to plan any more than that for my first run. I can ride 200 miles per day locally without any problem, so I don't think I'm out of the ball park there. My route gives me about 130 slab miles initially, then a relaxed run for the remainder. Less than two hours after leaving the house, I'll have nothing but open road ahead of me.
Theres a nice state park with camping at about the 3/4 point. If I feel like stopping, I can camp there, then continue. That would also be a good place to see how well prepared I really am.
I'm starting a packing list today, based on some published on the web and tailored to my own needs. I'm also running by Grass Roots BMW today to see about a tank bag, tie downs and other misc items. I'm still a little confused as to how it all will fit on the bike, stay dry, and be stable. I'll leave plenty of time to pack and re-pack.
Any advice on packing the bike would come in handy now. I've read the threads on it and seen some pic's of packed bikes. I just need to figure out my own system I guess.