Since it was difficult to find a light backpack, large enough for my bicycle touring gear, I decided to make my own.
Most of the time this pack will be rolled and stored in the bicycle. The concept behind this frameless pack was to lay my two empty Ortlieb classic panniers flat against the back and stuff it tight with gear.
My Hyperlite 4400 Porter served as a template. After a busy weekend and 3 Ikea bags, the result was surprisingly usable. Carrying 10kg gear with this is bearable for up to 1h, I guess.

Let’s see how it will hold up.

Recently, the thirst for a Kirin after the onsen (hot spring) grew stronger.
Since we had such a great time cycling southern Japan in 2015 – we are planning for a new Japan cycling tour 2017!

I believe it was on Rob’s blog 14degrees.org when we saw a Bike Friday folding bike the first time. How convenient it would be in Japan if we had folding bikes!

When we met Jonas, the owner of Faltbar in Biel, weather wasn’t perfect for cycling. Nevertheless, we tested his BF New World Tourist Silk and Brompton, which helped our decision a lot! Bromptons are fun to ride, but definately not for many hours. Around 4 months later we were able to ride our own Bike Friday New World Tourist folding bicycles.

Soon these tyres will ride on the lonely backcountry roads of Japan!