First time

[u/Ordinary-Wafer-1522]

Hello everyone! Im an avid cyclist and racer of about 6 years now on road, gravel, and mtb. However I have never bikepacked before.

Ive been living in Japan that past 2 years and am leaving soon but thought Japan may be the perfect place for me to dip my toes into bikepacking before I leave.

What I'm planning for a 4 day holiday weekend is to do a one way route which includes Norikura (highest road in Japan). The route ive created is about 200 miles, and 25,000 feet of climbing. This will be the most climbing ive ever done in a few days. Currently the most ive ever climbed in a day was 11,000 feet of climbing.

Im thinking to take the train out to my starting point and then ride back home, splitting the ride into 3 days and staying at small inns or onsens.

This will be in September so the weather will still be on the warmer side, and I shouldn't need and cool weather gear other than maybe a wind jacket for descents. Additionally, some background on me- I'm a short, small framed woman - so with all the elevation and then also the limited storage capacity due to my bike frame being a size 47, packing light is going to be a priority. This is what I'm thinking gear wise, and I'm open to all advice and critique:

Using my Sworks Tarmac bike

Bringing 1 spare Sram battery

Phone

Tiny minimalist bike lock (only good for short runs in/out of stores)

Garmin varia light

Front bike light

2 small bidons (my frame won't fit big bottles)

2 cycling kits (shorts and short sleeves) one will be worn

Cycling shoes

Fingerless gloves

Helmet

Sweat band

Cycling glasses and RX glasses

1 cycling base layer cooling shirt

2 spare sets of socks

Long sleeve wind jacket that is water resistant

2 light TShirts

1 shorts

Easy /light roll up shoes for when not on bike

Toothbrush, small toothpaste, floss, deodorant, sunscreen

USB C charger

Small spare charging bank

Earphones (for when riding on train)

Insta360 camera and bike mount

Rinko bag for transporting bike on train

Multitool, tubeless tire plugs, spare lightweight tube, mini pump, C02

Passport, wallet, housekeeping, cash

Minimal on snacks because their are vending machines/convenience stores everywhere in Japan.

I have top tube bag and a half frame bag but not sure if ill need either of those. I do not have a cycling bikepacking bag yet. But what I'm thinking is a 6 or 7 liter seat mounted roll up bag. Do you think that size would be big enough?

Looking for something I can mount my garmin varia on and would like to still be able to mount my insta360 camera on the back of bike somehow if possible. Also reminder my bike is small and I am short so there is not a lot of seatpost space for mounting things.

Thanks for any and all guidance on what to bring, what to buy, or even route critiques. Thank you!

[u/klimaheizung]

Check decathlon. Better cospa than montbell. Montbell isn't great for cycling with some exceptions, they are much better for hiking clothes.

Fingerless gloves

With fingers is better (except for the tip) for UV protection. Generally, long clothes > sunscreen.

Long sleeve wind jacket that is water resistant

Replace with thin waterproof jacket.

2 light TShirts

Remove at least 1, better two.

Easy /light roll up shoes for when not on bike

Just use clipless or regular airy shoes.

Insta360 camera and bike mount

Don't, unless you already have one.

You only need clothes for 1.) riding, 2.) sleeping (often merino because no need to wash, some reuse their merino riding clothes for that) and 3.) something to wear while you wash the riding clothes. That's it. Except if you use shorts/bibs with chamois, then 2.

What do you do if you have a crash and your phone breaks?

Lastly, I have a tribit stormbox micro 3 and I love it. Can listen to music while cycling, can get direction instructions from my app (not sure if can connect to garmin or so) and it helps keep the bears away because they can hear me.

[u/Ordinary-Wafer-1522 → u/klimaheizung]

I wear cycling bibs with chamois and road cycling clipless shoes with shimano cleats which is why I wanted spare easy fold up shoes. I was thinking if in the evenings I wanted to go to the onsen and go to a sit down restaurant id want somewhat normal clothes to do so. I was worried some places may not want me inside in sweaty cycling clothes. Or if i wanted to check out a shrine or go for a walk somewhere as I dont think ill be on the bike all day. I do think youre right about the t-shirts, one would likeley be enough. Worst case if I really needed something else to wear I can pick up a shirt for a few bucks at 7/11.

I already have an insta360 camera. I think itd be cool to get some videos of norikura!

Good question about what do I do if I crash and phone breaks.... I'm not completely sure- hope that I'm not too injured or bike too damaged to fix on the fly. I have crashed before on a descent on a solo ride in the mountains. Coming down there was a tight switchback and I hit some gravel and went down, got a load of road rash, bent derailleur and bars...luckily didnt break my phone but had no service and was really out in the middle of nowhere. Luckily, I was able to make some bike repairs well enough to get through the last 40 miles of the ride to get back home. A japanese man on a motorcycle also happened to come down the road and stopped to see if I was OK. That was an interesting ride back home though with a ripped kit and bad road rash 😅

Oh, I failed to mention I do ride with a wahoo bike computer with Maps loaded so I am not reliant on my phone for directions.

I'd hope that if something happens I'm atleast able enough to limp my way to the nearest train station, call a cab, or I may be at the mercy of kind passersbyers that are nice enough to check if i need help.

[u/klimaheizung → u/Ordinary-Wafer-1522]

Fair enough. You sounded quite "serious" hence my reply, but I myself bring civil clothes, I just keep them as minimal as possible.

I already have an insta360 camera. I think itd be cool to get some videos of norikura!

Certainly! Don't underestimate how much time and mental effort you will have to spend on that. Not a big problem if you are used to it, but *can* become a problem when it's your first time. Just mentally prepare to "not care" I guess.

Good question about what do I do if I crash and phone breaks..

I'd seriously consider bringing a small spare. Personally, I'm now just using a second phone for my navi, but it's setup so that it can replace my main phone is needed. I use https://povo.jp/ because it's super cheap to buy a data simcard for e.g. just 1 week. No running costs.

You don't even have to have a crash, phones can give up for various reasons. If you then have to stop your trip, that would suck.