Packing List for the Pamir Highway

Introduction

Bikepacking the Pamir Highway is different so not surprisingly this has had an impact on my bike and the items I'll be taking.

Regarding "stuff", there's new stuff, more stuff and overall, the full set of stuff is heavier. And some it I will probably.... hopefully..... never use. Whaaaaaaat?

Blame the Risk Assessment

Bikepackers sometimes like to pride themselves on being able to "travel light" and not get sucked into taking things they don't really need. For this trip though, I'm knowingly taking things that I very much hope I won't need. It's all a question of risk and early on in the planning process I carried out a fairly formal risk assessment, listing things that could go wrong, how likely I felt this was and what the impact would be (graded as low/medium/high).

Amongst the various categories of risk were things that might affect the bike (e.g. various mechanical failures) or my health (accidents, injuries, illnesses etc).

I then looked for ways to mitigate each risk, assuming I thought it worthwhile and that there actually was something I could do. Not all risks can be mitigated of course. And it was here that I started to add things to the packing list; first aid items, tools, spares and repair materials.

Bike Changes

The Mule has new wheels designed specifically for touring with a heavy load. Details can be found here. This was motivated by the fact that any type of wheel damage worse than a broken spoke could probably not be resolved, possibly ending the trip. Your bike's wheels are somewhat important.

The only other change made specifically for this trip is the tyres. I'm still using the excellent Continental Contact Plus tyres but this time went for a larger 47 mm tyre. Previously I've always fitted 43 mm tyres. 

The idea is just to have a greater volume of air supporting the heavier load being carried on this trip.

Carrying Stuff

The main carrying system consists of:

• 2 x Ortlieb Back Roller Classic panniers (40 L capacity total)
• 1 x Ortlieb Rack Pack (31 L)
• 1 x Ortlieb Handlebar Pack QR (11 L)

And new for this trip to provide extra capacity:

• 2 x Ortlieb Fork Packs (5.8 L each)

The Mule with the six main bags

In addition, I bought a dry bag from Alpkit (13 L) which I can use to carry extra stuff such as food, with the dry bag lashed to the back of the bike using one of two bungee cords or the luggage straps that I'll have with me.

I also have a small frame bag on the top tube. This is mostly used to carry my phone for navigation. 

A small saddle bag contains tyre levers, a spare inner tube, mechanics gloves and a bike multi-tool.

Indirectly related to this topic, I also bought a dry bag for my sleeping bag from Sea to Summit. This gives me the option to carry my relatively bulky sleeping bag strapped to the bike rather than taking up room in one of the panniers.

So, I have the ability to carry a greater volume of stuff and spare capacity for the food I expect to need to carry in the more remote, higher altitude parts of the journey. 

Keeping Warm

It's likely to be hot during the day time, especially at lower altitudes nearer to our start point, Dushanbe. But it's possible that at high altitude it will get quite cold at night, maybe a few degrees below freezing point. That means that not only is it essential to be able to keep warm in the tent at night but also sitting outside the tent in the evenings and when first cycling early in the morning. To that end, the following new items are coming on this trip:

• Sea to Summit Spark -9 C down sleeping bag

• Rab down jacket

• Sealskinz mittens

Mittens may seem like a questionable choice given we're expecting day time temperatures around 35 degrees Celsius! But, I have shockingly bad circulation in my hands and suffer badly in chilly (but above freezing) conditions so without them would struggle on those cold early mornings we are expecting to encounter at high altitude.

As well as the new additions, as always I'll have merino wool leggings, a long sleeved top and and a hat for extra layers to wear whenever necessary.

Drinking Water

We've been advised to not drink tap water. We also know there will be occasions where tap water won't even be available and mountain streams and rivers will be our only available source of water. So the kit list includes the following water purification tools:

• Katadyn BeFree water filter - this is a one litre flexible bladder with a screw on filter. To use it, you fill the bladder from a tap or stream and then push the water through the filter and nozzle by squeezing the bladder. It's quite a slow process but will reduce the presence of particles, bacteria,  protozoa and parasites.

• Steripen Ultralight - The water filter doesn't remove viruses. The steripen should. Steripen is an electronic ultra-violet emitting "wand". It is used by  immersing it in water that has been through the filter and then switching it on. UV is emitted for a period of time before the device switches itself off. It has a rechargeable battery in it with a USB socket.

• Water sterilisation tablets - we shouldn't need to use them but if for example the Steripen breaks or if we simply want to be extra careful, a tablet left in the water for a suitable period of time will get rid of (most) bacteria and viruses.

We also have the option to boil water as well.

The usual strategy will be to filter water using the Katadyn filter first and then zap it with the Steripen.

Food 

We expect to wild camp sometimes, possibly most of the time. So for the first time, I'm taking cooking equipment with me. 

I had to buy a new stove. My existing equipment either uses gas canisters or alcohol. Neither of these fuels are easy to obtain in Tajikistan. So that left fuels such as petrol, diesel and kerosene. There are a number of multi-fuel stoves on the market that can run off any of these types of fuel and I bought an MSR Whisperlite.  I also bought a titanium pan and a fuel bottle to carry fuel for and be connected to the MSR stove.

To carry the MSR fuel bottle and its contents, I bought a Blackburn bottle cage which is to be lashed with cable ties to the underside of the bike's down tube.

These stoves seem to use fuel quite quickly so I'll be taking a second fuel bottle made by Trangia so that I can carry extra fuel. I'll either be cramming it inside the Ortlieb Rack Pack or I'll be lashing it to the bags at the rear of the bike. Necessity is the mother of invention. 

I don't eat meat but I'm not a vegan. I'm hoping to be able to buy fresh eggs from time to time as these will be a valuable protein source for me. To ensure I can carry up to four eggs without breaking them, I bought a couple of plastic 2 x egg boxes.

The final new item in my camp kitchen is a collapsible colander. I'm expecting to buy grains such as oats, lentils and buck wheat and will need to be able to rinse them before cooking.

Tools and Spares

More tools and spares than ever before are being included for this trip. Not only might I need to deal with mechanical problems in a remote location but I'll also need to reassemble my bike after flying and to prepare it for boxing and flying home at the end of the trip.

The tool bag contains:

• A full set of hex keys 
• A small torque wrench set
• Scissors
• Pliers
• Small flat headed screwdriver
• Spoke key
• Chain whip
• Socket bar
• Cassette lock nut
• Pedal spanner
• Chain link pliers
• Chain connector aid
• Tyre levers

These tools will allow me to:

• Reattach my handlebars and derailleur and tighten bolts to the correct torque.
• Reattach my pedals.
• Tighten or undo any bolt on my bike or luggage system.
• Replace or repair the chain.
• Replace a spoke, including on the rear wheel, drive side which would require the cassette to be removed.
• Remove tyres.
• Deal with other miscellaneous issues.

The "Spares and Repairs" bag includes:

• 2 tent pegs
• Pole repair tube
• Spare rack bolts
• Selection of M4 and M5 bolts with a few nuts and washers
• Cable ties (3 sizes)
• Gorilla tape
• Insulation tape 
• Derailleur hanger mech
• Chain links
• Set of brake pads
• Puncture repair kit
• Puncture repair patches
• Gear change cable
• Threadlock paste
• Super glue
• Safety pin
• Rubber bands
• Spare 114 link bike chain

First Aid 

My kit includes the following:

• Plasters
• Sudocrem
• Cotton wool pads
• Paracetamol
• Ibuprofen
• Aspirin
• 3 x bandage / dressing - Extra Large, Large and Medium
• Diarrhea remedy  (Immodium)
• Tweezers
• Triangular bandage (sling)
• Azithromycin (antibiotics for diarrhea)
• Acetazolamide (altitude sickness)

Note that:

• Ibuprofen is not recommended if dehydration is a risk. Paracetamol is preferable for basic pain relief.
• Aspirin has been included as it can be used to thin blood in the case of a cardiac issue.
• Large dressings can be folded to make them smaller 
• Diarrhea is a high risk issue and in the case of serious food poisoning could take us out of action for a week. Azithromycin can be effective more quickly than over the counter remedies.
• Acetazolamide helps the body adjust to lower oxygen levels at high elevations by promoting deeper, faster breathing.

Electrical Items and Power

The solar panel I took on last year's trip has an even more important role to play this year. Since we're expecting a significant amount of wild camping to be done, we'll only occasionally have access to electricity supplies. Hopefully we'll have a lot of sunshine and be able to keep our power banks topped up.

I'm taking two power banks this year and bought a fast charger too. The idea is that if we're staying in a homestay, plug sockets may be few and we may need to share with other people so the quicker a power bank can be charged the better.

Here are the specific products:

• Belkin 20000 mAH power bank
• Ugreen 25000 mAH power bank
• Ugreen USB-C fast charger with USB-C to USB-C cable

Items I'll need to charge are:

• My Android smartphone 
• My Suunto 9 Peak Pro watch
• The Steripen Ultralight 
• My kindle
• Front and rear bike lights

Other Stuff

Wild camping has other consequences. I've always packed but never used, a small plastic trowel for digging holes. I am pretty certain I'll use it on this trip!

In the hope we'll make minimal impact on the environment, we're taking biodegradable bamboo toilet paper and biodegradable wet wipes. We're also using environmentally friendly soap but will take care to avoid polluting streaks and rivers with it.

We're bound to generate rubbish/ trash. I'm taking a whole roll of plastic rubbish sacks so we can ensure we leave nothing at places we camp (apart from obvious stuff buried in holes!). I don't know how we'll dispose of rubbish bags but hope to fall in with local practices.

That's it!