There's so much to this subject, I struggled with what to leave out. Happy to discuss more (hooped bivvy's, tarps etc) in the comments. Cooking and camping skills in the next two videos.

You're such a good and professional presenter. Your stuff is always a pleasure to watch.

Glad to see someone else enjoying Mountain Equipment sleeping bags - a highly UNDERrated company and not well known here in the USA!

I am hooked simply because of your tone of presentation! I'm here to stay! Thank you! 😁🙏

This is excellent. So much to learn from that I have watched it through a second time and taken notes. Also good use of the washing line as a prop!

I have just discovered this channel...I was searching for tips on wild swimming for my next video. Ended up watching almost all your videos...they are great 👍

I totally agree about the tent. Bivi’s are fine for good weather or emergencies in my opinion, but having some extra space to get out of the elements and rest and relax before the next day is really important.

I've spent a few nights sleeping in a hammock under pouring rain in Indonesia's North Maluku, and now consider it a viable alternative to a tent. A modern hiking hammock and a tarp made by German company Amazonas take a very little space. Of course, you've got to travel where there are trees. Thanks for a no-nonsense video!

Great use of a laundry drying rack! Thx for the great series

I'm a recent convert to a down quilt in the warmer months, and agree a good bag is a sound investment and buy the best you can afford (my winter bag I picked up second hand but Well looked after and less than half the price of new bag. My winter mat is also full down down! So a big fan

Would love to hear your stories from PCT adventure

I have a RAB sleeping bag bought in 1992 and thanks to a silk liner, the bag is as good as new and is still my winter bag.

You know your stuff Simon....like myself you've experienced many different forms of kit such as trangia burners etc...we tailor our kit down to experience.....one thing I bought recently which I love is a Craghoppers eye mask....Dawn light often wakes me up....in the past I used cheap flight masks which are flimsy...the Craghoppers one is great...well padded with indents for the eyes....can help you sleep in longer in the mornings..I respect your wisdom....love the photos from the past American travels...true man of knowledge......

I love sleeping out on cold nights under a tarp and on my very good insulated sleeping pad with my down bag. If I'm still a bit chilly in my bag I pull my puffy jacket in with me and loosely cover my face with it. The extra bit of down around my head notches up the warmth and I drop off to sleep.

Great new series thanks.

Great advice from experience 👍. The hot water bottle and a small thermal flask really underrated for uk autumn winter weather . I go by the army principle wet clothes for the day , and dry clothes only for the sleeping bag and tent 🙂

I've stumbled across this while researching summer sleeping bags (I need to replace my bulky and heavy old 'cheapo' brand one) and although this video isn't specifically what I was seeking it was enjoyable to watch and you clearly have a lot of knowledge and experience mixed with professional style production - that's a great recipe... subscribed and look forward to watching more of your videos :)

Great vid. Material technology has came on so much. The best materials come at a premium though. Personally for me camping in Scotland means fully meshed tent and a bottle to pee in!

Thanks for the silk liner tip and for pointing out that we should get in our sleeping bags while still warm. One tip I could share is spraying some permethrin on camping gear to keep bugs away but this isn't really a problem in winter.

take what you need to be safe and comfortable, it's not a race, it's leisure, if you have a good time you'll do more. You don't notice weight on a bike, like when running or walking unless you're shouldering the bike, and you should be able to do that when necessary. Been doing this for over 30 years.

One suggestion that another bikepacker made was to use a bivvy sack inside the tent. It will give you a few more degrees of comfort, but more importantly, if your tent leaks some your bag will stay dry. Yes, it's extra kit to bring along, but if you have nice nights when you don't need a tent then it saves the effort of setting up and striking the tent.

I bivi a bit and use hand warmers I put inside the bivi at least 30 minutes before getting in it myself. I take a poncho or superlight tarp as well to cover me. It doesn't need to be a 3 x 3, I'm only small but wide, 1.5 x 2 metres is good enough. Use a stick or walking pole to hold it up or, turn your bike upside down and use that to keep up the tarp, place a shopping bag over the seat to stop it getting wet. I leave the bivi open a little at the top to let my heat out, I sleep very hot and condensation can be the big issue - a Gore-Tex bag is essential for me but it's not perfect. I have anti slug tape all around the edge of the bivi too, hate those things.

Always enjoying listening to your sensible advice based on experience. I have used a thin 'karrirmat' under my sleeping bag in the summer but also brought along a cheap aluminised windcscreen/sunshade to place under it. They weight nothing and are easy enough to stash in my pannier bag. My tent's footprint layer protects the tent's bottom from damage but probably als0 helps a tiny amount as a thermal break. Bivvy sacks never appealed to me either based on the possibility of it chucking it down when you want to sleep: having to remain in wet gear gear and having nowhere to retreat out of the elements? :No thanks! Thanks for the new ideas.

Thank you - really appreciated - as we've just done our first 2C overnighter. I feel I took at least a kilo worth of gear that was unnecessary and as the weather gets warmer, I plan to brutally take less and less - maybe just a tarp, sleeping bag and a mat.

At last a realistic review from a realist!

I have a really lightweight 3 season sleeping bag, and if I need to be warmer I have some thermal under clothes that I use for snowboarding if it's very cold. Because I find 4 season bags to be a little too inflexible and can make you sweat if it starts to warm up, which is far worse.

I recommend a tarp or tent cover. Over a tent or bivvy. Wind is a major enemy there's no room to sit up in a bivvy.

Superb professional video. Thanks.

Joy of freedom and happiness in simple things, really enjoyed your video thanks. What was the PhD ultralight sleeping bag you showed in the vid please?

Good video, really solid advice. PCT must have been amazing..and tough. Thanks 👍

Excellent information thank you and looking forward to next time.

I know I am a little late to this, but great series.

Great content yet again 👍

Another informative video Simon. I agree with your thoughts on tent v bivibag and would recommend people look at tents by Lanshan. Popular tarp type shelters with many KZfaq backpackers at a good price. They tend to use a trekking pole to erect the shelter but carbon poles can be purchased. Available in 1 and 2 person options and with different inners.

useful and practice advise. interested to find out more about your tarp tent - looking at bike packing tents now, like you i find tents a better option.

A hooped bivvy gives a bit more protection than the bivvy bag, especially from midges. Something like the Alpkit Elan, or Rab Ridge raider (I have the ridge master, similar.) Still not much use for multi-day trips due to the lack of room when raining etc. They are also back up to almost a kilo in weight, so really not much advantage over a lightweight tent. (If any, low profile maybe?)

Good advice as ever Simon! Personally I feel the biggest challenge with bikepacking is space, I have tended to migrate away from sleeping bags to using a quilt. The quilt takes up less space in my bikepacking bags and I can use my insulated jacket, beanie etc for added warmth if required plus down socks/booties for the cooler months. Henry makes some great tents - I've had a Tarptent Scarp 1 for 10 plus years and I use that for summit camping but it's a little too bulky for bikepacking, so I bought the Tarptent Bowfin 4 years ago, which isn't too dissimilar to the Rainbow in the video. Like the Rainbow, the Bowfin works well and has survived windy nights in Foula, Unst and Fair Isle in Shetland as well as most of the islands up and down the west coast. Most tent poles could be improved for bikepacking - shorter sections would make the pole more packable. Currently my entire tent fits inside my saddle pack but having a more packable pole would allow for more options. I see Big Agnes has realised this and is making poles with shorter sections for their bikepacking tents. I agree with your bivvying comments - it has its place but isn't always practical for Scottish conditions.

Very informative, thank you

Thank you for your videos, I really look forward to watching them. A question, I have a place at the Torino Nice Rally 2023 and wanted to ask if whilst you are there you could ask about accommodation options, If you dont sleep out and the route options? Thanks again for all the great information you share. Cheers Aj

1000g of down :o that much weigh like 1,5 kg How cold does it get in Scotland… dang! Here in Portugal I think 800g would be fine. Only in the mountains does it get much colder than 0c

My boxer English lab mix basically 156 pound lapdog Passed away while hiking the Pacific crest trail And is buried on top of mount rainier. He was 11 his name is rocky.

Great video as always. the Tarptent Rainbow 2 is very intriguing. Do you find that you get more bugs inside the tent that you bargained for?

Great video. Where are the links for the other parts?

Is the orange top you're cycling with a cycling jersey? Does it have pockets? What make is it? Thx a lot.

Great stuff

Can you use the same sleeping bag and tent for gravel bikepacking as for road bikepacking? Or do they not have sleeping bags and tents specialized by ride type yet? 🙄

Gud dat 👍 Thanks

How are you liking your alpkit handlebar bag? I was thinking of getting one but was put off the by poor reviews on the website

Was looking at your emergency Sol silver bag and wondering how effective reflective foil would be if slid between an insulated airmat and a sleeping bag whose underside is necessarily compressed. I had an airmat deflate recently and I couldn’t find the leak until I got home. I don’t really want to carry a closed cell mat. Would reflective foil help offset the loss of insulation do you think?

Serious question : How to get rid of the fear of ghosts/ supernatural creature/ whatever similar while camping alone at night, far from human habitation? I know that is a phobia of mine ( I know that during daytime) but when the day's light starts to dim, those phobias make me...umm, nervous. I am an adult male, have crossed forty , yet this phobia has stopped me from camping alone at night. Shame. Any suggestions or personal experiences regarding this will be appreciated. Any person reading this, please add your bit too !

Great info, what brand were your dry leggings/trousers please?

I'd go along with every word you say. You don't need to be a die-hard bikepacker to know what to take as there is a lot of carry-over from lightweight backpacking to bikepacking. On a bike the machine itself is doing more of the donkey work so perhaps you can allow yourself the occasional luxury.