Loaded Up for Fun on a Sub-48 Eskape with Addison and the Specialized Sequoia
By Addison (@DJWildYeti)
2020 was supposed to be the year of bikecamping for me. I picked up a Specialized Sequoia from Conte's in January and they helped me get it dialed in over the next couple months. I had big plans! GAPCO, San Diego, Vermont! Well... COVID-19 happened and suddenly it was a lot harder to go places and do things. My Sequoia had been sitting alone, well loved but underutilized, until a friend of the team asked me if I wanted to do a short notice two night socially distanced trip up the C&O canal. Finally a chance to test out all my new gear, and boy did I have a lot of it.
After doing GAPCO last year on a 'cross bike with traditional touring panniers I decided if I'm going to do more of this I would need a proper bikepacking rig, hence the Sequoia. The Sequoia seems to have been specifically designed for a fun, offroad, fully loaded ride. Fork cage mounting points and multiple options for bottles on the frame mean you can attach SO MANY THINGS. It's great. The carbon cranks mean very little of your effort is wasted and the steel frame is guaranteed to take a beating and last forever. The geo is relaxed enough to be comfortable over long miles but still "sporty" enough that you can get into some fun trouble when you ditch your bags in camp. I'm also excited about the frame and fork being set up for dynamo wiring. I'm not a fan of making camp after dark but am totally going to build up a wheelset and install lights for its "off season" duty of commuting and grocery running.
Note from the Editor: The Specialized Sequoia, along with their burlier AWOL, has been discontinued from the big S’s line of bikes as the brand moves wholesale away from steel frames. I think it’s a shame, though cannot comment on the business virtues of doing so. The Sequoia brought a lot of common sense touring bike capabilities to the Specialized lineup, with a steel frame-set and plentiful, but not overly plentiful, rack and bag mounting options and an all-day-every-day geometry. Plus, the bike looks damn nice. Addison here is a lucky duck, having scored one of the very last new to world bikes from our very own Conte’s this winter.
The Ergolaces survived the mud
Cockpit p/b PTAP
A Revelate Designs Terrapin, framebag, and Polecat fit everything I need. I rounded out my bags with a personal favorite: a PTAP Designs stem bag. Matching bottles from either side of the world, a Vermont maple syrup themed bottle and a bottle I picked up at a shop in Sapporo in Japan when I was there last September completed the look.
My main goal was to cut down on "extra" weight, i.e. the racks themselves, heavy bags, etc. Step one was to ditch the panniers and convert to a saddle bag, which helped a lot. I considered a few options for tent transportation and chose the Salsa Anything Cradle mostly because it looked the coolest (lol). I'm new to fork mounting gear so I picked a couple options to try out while I figure out what works the best. A balanced bike definitely makes riding on the canal smoother. I do sort of miss the momentum carrying capability of the Kona rig though. Once that thing got moving very little was stopping it.
I mounted my Big Agnes Copper Spur Bikepack (which I've been loving) off the handlebars with a Salsa Anything Cradle. Big Agnes obviously did their homework. The shorter poles and stuff sack means the tent fits in a lot of places a normal tent wouldn't. I like keeping my tent in one package (old habits die hard) but I have contemplated stuffing the whole thing in my frame bag which wasn't possible with my old tent because the poles were too long.
For riding I had Handup gloves (duh) and tried out a new pair of Fizik Terra Ergolace X2's. The Ergolaces are definitely not race shoes but worked great for a long day in the saddle. The recessed cleats meant I wasn't worried about sliding on floors or rocks when I was off the bike and the laces were a nice change from the ratchets/ Boas I normally use. The Ergolaces aren't quite as stiff as my racing shoes which makes them more comfortable off the bike but you definitely lose some power in return. I'm also not a fan of laces on race shoes. 'Cross races already have enough stuff getting caught in my drivetrain, no need to add laces.
Oh yeah, and fanny pack as sling pack. Highly recommend.
Day one was great weather and the towpath was nice and dry despite heavy storms the night before. I signed off work a little early and took the 38 miles nice an steady to make it to the Turtle Run Hiker Biker campsite with plenty of time before sundown.
Day two was going to be out to Harper's Ferry but it was hot and VERY humid. We decided we'd rather have a good time than a long time so we stopped at the wonderful Beans in the Belfy for lunch and had a relaxed ride back east to set up an easier day three. We grabbed last minute supplies at White's Ferry and made it to the Chisel Branch Hiker Biker campsite early enough to relax and sit by the river before heading to sleep.
Day three was HOT and hurt way more than it should have (turns out trying to do 110 miles in three days on a fully loaded bike after not seriously riding for three months is a bad idea) but we made it back to DC in time for lunch! All in all a great two night trip out of DC that is very doable especially when the temperature drops a bit.
And God said: “let there be gravel.”
Front row seat.
Heron!
#idyllicAF
Creep the itinerary here: