BIKEPACKING 2024
inspired by some very cool and very foolish pals, i set myself a goal in 2024 to go for an overnight bikepacking trip once in every month.
here's some pictures and stories from all of these little trips!!!!
January: Ashfield MA -> Hawley MA
started the year silly with a bikepacking trip in a blizzard.
it wasn't SUPPOSED to snow!! but it did.
we really got dumped on, were very cold, and took a lot longer than we expected with the weather. the roads were completely covered in snow, and the one section of off road riding we had was really off road walking.
we arrived at our cabin for the night and got the wood stove ripping and thawed. we ate lots of food and played a game and were so cozy and happy to have made it!
the ride back was gorgeous, cold, and uneventful after our crazy day out.
February: Northampton MA -> Cummington MA
February was a deliciously uneventful trip after the ridulousenss that was January's trip. Gorgeous days and trails welcomed us on this perfect little loop from Northampton to Cummington.
January: Ashfield MA -> Hawley MA
started the year silly with a bikepacking trip in a blizzard.
it wasn't SUPPOSED to snow!! but it did.
we really got dumped on, were very cold, and took a lot longer than we expected with the weather. the roads were completely covered in snow, and the one section of off road riding we had was really off road walking.
we arrived at our cabin for the night and got the wood stove ripping and thawed. we ate lots of food and played a game and were so cozy and happy to have made it!
the ride back was gorgeous, cold, and uneventful after our crazy day out.
March: Greenfield MA -> Warwick MA
March was our first time sleeping outside for the year. We rode up to Mt. Grace on a gorgeous day, treated to some beautiful roads and bridges, great sights, and some extremely steep hills.
We were also treated to some very silly unmaintained off road sections, including a stream crossing with absolutely freezing ice water. Leigh and I decided to go barefoot through it carrying our heavy bikes. this may sound very stupid but it was actually smart.
April: Greenfield MA -> Westminster VT
April was a celebratory trip! Our longest of the year, we had the biggest group yet - celebrating birthdays and me quitting my job!
Our route was another gorgeous adventure, ending with a super fun challenging climb up a mountain to a cabin! David brought his hatchet and folding saw, and we had a cozy fire going all night. I had just gotten a new tent, so I brought it on its maiden voyage and slept outside!
May: Northampton MA -> Wendell MA
May was a short and sweet bop from Northampton to Wendell. A classic route we've done lots and lots of times, this was a way to sneak in a quick trip in less than 24 hours, get out of town, and spend some nice time recreating, reflecting, and sleeping in the woods.
June-July: Albany NY -> Amherst MA
This was a wild trip and a wild time. I missed my first planned bikepack in June with covid :( and then I missed the first 3 days of this trip with covid :( When I finally tested negative, I rented a car and sped off to meet up with my friends along the route in Albany. They had had some pretty long and rainy days. After one day of riding all together, Sara got sick with a super rough migraine. We had to swivel on our plan, and rode just 20 miles to the nearest town so she could stay in an actual bed. David stayed with her and Leigh, Emil, and I rode down to a state park nearby to camp.
We chatted about plans as it became clear that Sara needed to head home. There were a lot of logistics involved in this trip and things were falling apart!
We made some decisions.
David and I rode 50 miles on the road the next morning to pick up a car. We picked up the rest of our crew and drove back into Massachusetts.
Emil and I stopped off just over the border and camped at a state park, while the rest headed home.
The next day, Emil and I had a suuuuper fun day riding from the edge of Mass all the way home. It is so fun to start somewhere far off and unfamiliar, and to get closer and closer to home and recognize roads and places i've ridden many times before. I was v proud of this route since I made it with my phone dying in a campground, and it ended up being superb! I rode through easthampton and called Joe and he met me for ice cream which was very cool. And then I rode to the hampshire reservoir to swim and met up with Liz and Meem which was also very cool. A great way to come back into the real world after a couple bizarre days of bikepacking and logistics!
August: Craryville NY -> Saugerties NY
In August, I was invited to join a couple of pals from my last job at bici co for a little trip into the Catskills! I decided to make it an overnight instead of a day trip, and then we all ended up camping! We celebrated Chris' birthday with some hiking, swimming in this super cool gorge, and lots of laughing. Was a blast to see Chris and Dwight, especially in a new context. Fun and challenging riding, especially when my route didn't quite work and I ended up on a very long road climb!!
September: Scranton PA -> Lackawanna PA
September's trip was pretty dang special. Mostly because of the company I had with me! It was really meaningful to get to share this trip with my dad, for allll sortsa reasons. I grew up riding bikes with my dad, waking up wayyy too early on the weekends as a teenager to go out on 4-hour road bike rides. I credit my dad as a huge part of me getting into bikes and finding this major life purpose and passion. But it wasn't until I went away for college that I found mountain biking, gravel riding, ATB riding, bikepacking, all the kinds of riding that I really have fallen in love with.
It was such a treat to get to share this ride with my dad, hear his stories about bike touring trips in his youth, share stories about recent trips, and spend more joyful hours together on bikes. what an absolute pleasure!
October: Killingworth CT -> Killingworth CT
October was a bit different, kind of my sneakiest little trip! My longer trip earlier in the month fell through with some rough weather, but fortunately this weekend was absolutely gorgeous. I traveled down to CT with some pals for the Nutmeg Nor'easter, an absolute blast of a grungy bike weirdo weekend. The bikepacking was my mile long ride with all my stuff from the car to our campsite for the weekend. I am counting it!
We had such an amazing time riding bikes, eating, laughing, being immersed in nature, meeting people, looking at everyone's gorgeous bikes. Here's a few pics.
November: Florence MA -> Florence MA
November was another short and sneaky trip! Again, bad weather cancelled the initial trip planned, and with a busy month of travel, I was scrambling a bit to fit something in. I landed on a super fun weekday overnight. I stayed late at work and left from my office, riding into the woods nearby. After a bit of chilly night mountain biking, I got to my stealth camp spot. I slept out there, and woke up early to break down the tent and head back to town for some hot tea, before finishing my ride to the office. I showered and then logged on to work for the day! Was such a valuable new perspective on my daily life, and what an amazing backyard adventure.
December: Greenfield MA -> Brattleboro VT
After a couple of months off from bikepacking with the usual crew (don't worry, we still rode together lots), December was a fun return to our typical shenanigans. We really ended the year how we started it, with riding in snow!! We did some fun slippery riding through unmaintained snowy "roads", big climbs, gorgeous gravel, and landed at a super cozy crunchy cabin.
We got the wood stove roaring and ate our yummy dinners, played games, laughed, and even took showers!!!
Our hosts had been walking around barefoot in the snow, so when we had to move our bikes before bed, Lizzie and I headed out barefoot to see what it was all about. (also because it was a liiiitle too toasty inside)
We got back inside and dried our little feets, and settled into bed as snow fell softly outside.
We awoke the next morning to bikes covered in snow!
After getting ready to go and cruising out into the muck on the roads, we got some yummy breakfast, and rode through some breathtaking woods, looking like we were way further north than we actually were. We enjoyed the winter wonderland as we made our way back to Greenfield, and I closed out my year of monthly bikepacking trips.
I'm sitting here on January 31st, the end of the first month since December 2023 that I haven't gone bikepacking. the funny thing is, we had a trip planned this month, but a big snowstorm convinced us to stay home.
Bikepacking brings me so much joy, and I'm glad I set myself this goal to go out on a monthly adventure for all of 2024. It forced me to make space for something hard and fun, to keep learning and growing, even when it would've been easier to stay home.
And, I'm so grateful for the community I have with others who want to do these fun and silly things with me. I am so lucky!!!!!
Even without this dumb goal, 2025 is shaping up to be a busy year. As ever, I'm looking forward to my next adventure.
<3 jacob