Long distance bikepacking

[Kingfisher]

I've started bikepacking with the ebike last summer. So far I have done mainly weekends. The 'limited'range of the battery adds simply another navigation challenge to the journey, I don't find it a downside. You constantly have to fight the temptation of using boost to climb that hill. With a 50km range (500Wh Bosch Gen3) start off in the morning, ride 30km, stop for lunch, recharge, ride another 20km. camp for the night, ride 30, lunch+recharge, etc... Another option is just riding the full 50, stay at a camping and recharge overnight.

I'm beginning to think about doing the Transandalus , 2.000km through south Spain. Any random thoughts on how to tackle the challenge? A second battery would be a necessity. Switch bikes to a 625Wh. Switch tires from Nobby Nics to a more XC tire,.... Anything else? On my touring bike I can easily get 100km of range (street tires, flat asphalt roads)

The transandaluz is setup so that there is a hotel/guest house at every daily stretch, but I want to be unsupported as long as possible.

 

[SquireRides]

That's a big ride! All I have to add is that I ran my old hardtail eMTB on 2.2" Conti Speedkings and that made a significant difference to the range compared with the 2.3" Nobbly Nicks. Reckon I was getting close to 100km on mostly sealed road and a bit of gravel, running a 500Wh battery and riding mostly in Eco.

 

[Akiwi]

Train your legs!!
I did the transalp last year with a 500 wh Bosch bike. First day we did 110km and 700 Vertical metres and I had about 1/4 of the battery still at the end of the day without loading it at lunch time. On the flats the motor was always turned off and only used eco when there was a holl or crossing some paddocks with long grass.
Later in the tour we had some days with over 2200m Vertical. We organized stops where we could load the battery for about an hour. That added about 1/4 of a charge.
I am planning on doing another tour this year. I now have a bike with the 625 wH Battery and am considering getting the 6 amp charger. Adds more weight to my backpack, but will fill the battery more in a short lunch break.
I consider that better than lugging an extra heavy battery with me.

 

[Akiwi]

That's a big ride! All I have to add is that I ran my old hardtail eMTB on 2.2" Conti Speedkings and that made a significant difference to the range compared with the 2.3" Nobbly Nicks. Reckon I was getting close to 100km on mostly sealed road and a bit of gravel, running a 500Wh battery and riding mostly in Eco.

I am not convinced the tyres make such a huge amount of a difference if they are well pumped up. I had a 2.8 Eddy Current on the back which is supposed to be pretty bad for rolling resistance.

 

[SquireRides]

I am not convinced the tyres make such a huge amount of a difference if they are well pumped up. I had a 2.8 Eddy Current on the back which is supposed to be pretty bad for rolling resistance.

I see around 15km extra range on nearly-slicks vs 'all purpose' off road tyres. That might not be significant if you're planning charging stops anyway. For me, it means I can hit TURBO for the last couple of miles rather than grind out more ECO miles!

 

[Akiwi]

I see around 15km extra range on nearly-slicks vs 'all purpose' off road tyres. That might not be significant if you're planning charging stops anyway. For me, it means I can hit TURBO for the last couple of miles rather than grind out more ECO miles!

OK, On Tarmack I can see there would be a difference, but nearly-slicks would suck on a transalp where a lot of the tour was on single tracks and off road. I guess it depends on what you are planning.

 

[GrahamPaul]

Switch tires from Nobby Nics to a more XC tire,.... Anything else? On my touring bike I can easily get 100km of range (street tires, flat asphalt roads)

Your tyre choice will be critical. I know the southern part of that route in Cádiz Province quite well (I live on it) and much of the route follows the coast or goes through the dunes (or forest on dunes). There is a lot of soft, loose sand (unless it's rained - we're in the middle of a drought, so that's not likely). Away from the coast and dunes, the paths can be very rocky. You'll battle with a slick tyre in the sand, even with low pressure, and you may well suffer side wall shredding on the sharp rocks with a light XC tyre.

 

[srileo]

Excellent adventure you have planned. I hope to do similar rides with my turbo Levo here in the usa.
Do u plan to carry your tent and sleeping gear or always stay in hostels?

 

[GrahamPaul]

The transandaluz is setup so that there is a hotel/guest house at every daily stretch, but I want to be unsupported as long as possible.

Forgot to mention, the bit of the Transandalus through the Parque Natural de Cazorla shows lots of refugios. Be aware that these are just huts. Made out of stone and very nice, but they have absolutely no services - which means no water at many of them and there is certainly no electricity. Depending on season, you may well need to carry a couple of days worth of water with you because the springs dry up in summer and autumn. Being "unsupported" is a challenge on an e-bike in that terrain. I did a circular tour there last year on a normal MTB on the GR247 - I think part of which is used by the Transandalus.

Contrary to what you may read about MTB tracks being 4WD roads in Spain, I spent part of that "ride" walking a 20cm wide "footpath" along a rockface with my bike dangling from my right arm over a 100m drop. Hike-a-bike is a fact of life in that area as it is only 90% rideable. (Although, just checking the Transan route, it does seem to stick to the forestry roads, so you won't have that excitement unless you get bored and take an alternate route).

Lastly, be aware that July and August are brutally hot. The coastal area is a prime holiday destination and accommodation and campsites will be full and expensive. The Sierra de Cazorla is a very popular destination for the Spanish because it is high and much cooler. It will also be full - and there will be little/no water in the springs.

Don't forget mosquito repellant!

 

[Kingfisher]

Your tyre choice will be critical..

Any recomendations?

Schwalbe marathon plus would be the obvious one. They are bombproof but extremely heavy.

 

[Kingfisher]

Excellent adventure you have planned. I hope to do similar rides with my turbo Levo here in the usa.
Do u plan to carry your tent and sleeping gear or always stay in hostels?

Tent, sleeping gear, cooking gear,...

 

[Kingfisher]

Lastly, be aware that July and August are brutally hot.

Don't forget mosquito repellant!

I know about August: parents have an appartment in Fuengirola. What would be the best period for the trip? I'm fairly flexible, as I'm working in projects abroad with a long on/off cycle.

I basically need to figure out what the longest unsupported stretch is. If it is more than 150K, I\'m screwed and can't do it with an emtb.

I'll also skip some of the single track parts and stick to fire roads. It'll require a few weeks of planning. I'm probably going to do a 2-day part of the route this June (closest to Fuengirola/Mijas), just to get a feel.

 

[GrahamPaul]

I know about August: parents have an appartment in Fuengirola. What would be the best period for the trip? I'm fairly flexible, as I'm working in projects abroad with a long on/off cycle.

I basically need to figure out what the longest unsupported stretch is. If it is more than 150K, I\'m screwed and can't do it with an emtb.

I'll also skip some of the single track parts and stick to fire roads. It'll require a few weeks of planning. I'm probably going to do a 2-day part of the route this June (closest to Fuengirola/Mijas), just to get a feel.

That's a really tough question. It depends on your resistance to heat. The weather here is all messed up at the moment. We (missus and me) did the GR247 in Sierra de Cazorla at the end of April-beginning of May last year. We had a weekend in Córdoba on the way there and the daytime temperatures were already 40°C at the campsite. Cazorla is high, so daytime temperatures were a pleasant mid-20s during the day, but close to zero at night - which made sleeping in our 10°C lightweight bags a bit chilly!

But June last year was cold, and we were outside taking coffee in the afternoon sun sitting in our coats. But Almería province can be hot all year long (26°C this week)

Great idea having a few days trial run in Málaga province. That'll give you a chance to see/experience the trails and help you decide on time of year.

The weather at the moment is a gamble - as is the bit along the Atlantic coast if the Levante is blowing. I think you may need to be flexible in your planning. If I were doing this from your part of the world, I know that the "cool" wouldn't feel so bad and would probably do this ride from end September through October before the serious rains started. However, you do need to check campsite opening times because many are only open at weekends outside school holidays. Hotels and pensions will be open, though, with rates that equal camping+power in the peak period.

It is possible to do this ride all year round if you are lucky with the weather or tough enough. A recent (temporary) neighbour of ours is a retired Welsh fireman who did the trip in torrential rain and floods. Wading waist deep through fords carrying his bike (not recommended!). Mud was a problem. As was getting warm - but he's probably the toughest person I've ever met. This February would have been excellent: no rain, little wind, reasonably (unseasonably) warm. Had my missus not been injured, we'd have done a 300km circuit I have planned near Sevilla.

One tip - get yourself a water filter system. You'll be spending a lot of your time sharing animal drinking troughs and water holes later in the year!

 

[GrahamPaul]

Any recomendations?

Schwalbe marathon plus would be the obvious one. They are bombproof but extremely heavy.

I wish I could answer that. My clockwork bike has Nobby Nics on it - as does my wife's. My EMTB came with Maxxis Rekon. I was looking forward to trying them because I thought they'd be great. Very disappointed. The sand here gives them no grip at all in a straight line and cornering depends on a huge slide before the side knobs bite. They don't have enough knobbly to grip on rocks either. Good, but a little noisy, on asphalt though - with the pressure air upped by 10 psi. Most of the guys around here ride either with Nobby Nic, Maxxis Minions or with a Vittoria of some sort.

You'll be riding loaded with camping gear, so you might want to consider some sort of armour inside the tyre. Tubeless is pretty well universal here because of the acacia thorns everywhere.

I'll be switching back to Nobby Nics in the next few weeks. Just got to convince my missus that the expense is a safety issue.

 

[Marvin2Shoes]

I ran smaller knobby tyres but they were noisy, didn't handle gravel well and tended to get punctures after allowing tube creep when tube pressure dropped. I replaced with Schwalbe Marathon Plus with armour inserts over tubes. I ride 20+ km every day of the week and have definitely found riding on tarmac much more enjoyable since the new tyres.
I also ride on clay-mud roads near my home and ride a makeshift bmx circuit built by local kids withjumps and tight burms... it gets very slimy after rain but the road tyres handle it surprisingly well.

 

[Marvin2Shoes]

Velotraum Finder video on YouTube by Nomad's Trails is well worth watching for anyone looking at touring/bikepacking.