Gear
Bikes - THORN STERLING
Ali rode a Thorn Sterling for the duration of the trip. A multi-functional Rohloff equipped touring mountain bike with front suspension, made in the UK by Thorn Bicycles. This bike is designed to travel long distances and over unsealed terrain while also providing an opportunity to play around on the mountains and trails that we found along the way.
Thorn themselves describe it as: ‘The most awesome trailer-pulling, adventure touring hard tail using V brakes and a suspension fork…drop the trailer and you have a very nice hard tail to explore/play on’
At the 10000km mark in San Diego Ali modified his set-up with the Thorn by swapping out his Bob trailer for a Tubus swing rack to carry front panniers with a suspension fork. This was done to allow Anna to benefit by being able to 'draught' behind him in windy conditions which was not possible with the length of the trailer.
(*note that while it is not recommended by Thorn to carry relatively heavy front panniers on this bike. Ali did so with front panniers for another 22000km without problem)
THORN eXXp
Anna rode the robust Thorn eXXp, steel bliss designed to cover long distances with heavy load on rough terrain...What more could you want for the length of the Americas along the Rockies and the Andes and everything in between. Heavy it was at nearly 20kg but it stood up and performed faultlessly to every challenge that she threw at it
The spec of the bikes that we rode was: Magura Odor 100mm/85mm travel forks, shimano xtr v-brakes, Brooks saddles, Rigida Andra30 CSS rims, Schwalbe Marathon Plus Tour 2.0 tyres, Shimano SPD Road Touring Pedals, Tubus 'swing' front racks, Thorn custom rear racks and a Rohloff equipped hub.
check Thorn out at:
Panniers - ORTLIEB
We both used Ortlieb 'Bike-Packer Plus' panniers on the back and Ortlieb 'Front-Roller Plus/Classic' panniers on the front as well as of our 'Ultimate5 Plus' handlebar bags. We loved the simple but effective nature of the Ortlieb panniers, extremely waterproof without the hassle of additional covers, great for the shopping missions and they looked pretty good too.
Lights - NITEFLUX
To store electricity while we were on the road, we use rugged Li-Ion rechargeable batteries from NiteFlux. NiteFlux batteries offer idiot-proof charging direct from a bottle dynamo or mains power.
We used NiteFlux lights to see in the night, commute around towns and villages after dark, and especially as safety lights on rainy, foggy, and cloudy days. We also used a small and simple adapter 'the Niteflux powerhub' with the NiteFlux batteries to charge our other electronic devices including MP3 players, and AA and AAA batteries.
Tent - HILLEBERG - The 'Jannu'
From the Hilleberg website:
'The Jannu is our strongest, lightest Dome Tent model. While it is an Ultralight tent, it is nonetheless ideal for harsh, high altitude use, as well as for above and below treeline use in all seasons and all weathers. Its compact footprint shines in limited-space sites, and it is very stable, even in high winds. Yet it is also easily light enough for use on long distance trips where low weight is a high priority. The Jannu’s single entrance and vestibule favor lighter weight over absolute comfort, and its Dome design gives it exceptional static strength for handling snow loading'.
We absolutely loved our 'Jannu' Hilleberg! How could we not since it provided us with a home, comfort, and refuge in a whole range of conditions from freezing cold -17 degree altiplano nights to stinking hot tropical camps. It resisted the many rain storms, a few nights of snow, desert sands, Patagonian winds, camp dogs and very importantly, the marauding mosquitoes! This is not to say we didn't have a few problems over the 2 years and 9 months of use. The most common was with the zippers which needed replacement at times, gentle 'leatherman' persuading at other times, and lots of care with cleaning and opening gently especially after any sandy desert camping. But hey after such a long time of use, we can't complain at all! And it's still going strong!..
Would we take another Hilleberg on a trip such as this again? Of course we would. Just maybe the 'Staika' with two entrances and a vestibule at each side.
Sleeping Bags - MACPAC Latitude 700 LP
More unsung heroes of the trip. Tireless performers when zipped together, on their own, or in 'mummy' mode.
Just, just, just got us through -17 degree nights on the Chilean and Bolivian altiplano and maybe a bit tired after such a long time of sustained use and irregualr cleaning (ie not often, but you don't want to know how long, trust me!).
Sleeping Mats - THERMAREST Prolite Plus 4
Only one puncture each from the spiny deserts of Baja California, but otherwise tireless performers on a range of surfaces and temperatures.
Kitchen 'business' - OPTIMUS Optimus Nova Multi-Fuel Stove
We use the excellent and reliable Optimus Nova multi-fuel stove for all of our cooking needs, easy to clean and maintain ourselves on the road with a maintenance kit from Optimus. Works faithfully at high altitudes and freezing conditions.
From the Optimus website:
'The benchmark for outdoor cooking equipment standards, Optimus Nova has it all; performance, durability and ease of use. Outdoor adventures, including those on polar expeditions, rely on the Optimus Nova to fire up in a snap with its patented quick-priming burner. Users can rest assured knowing that the Optimus Nova will always burn strong and clean thanks to the MAGIC magnetic cleaning needle. Its self-purging Flipstop pump makes shutdown a task simple enough for one finger and despite the Optimus Nova's long reach pot supports, it folds up smaller than its fuel tank. That means more room for food. Get cooking!'
MSR Whisperlite International™
From the MSR website:
'The WhisperLite camp stove has been the one to choose on outdoor adventurers for more than 20 years. Backpackers, climbers, hikers and adventure travelers alike have come to rely on its easy-to-use design and durable, stainless steel and brass construction to deliver dependable performance in most any situation.'
MSR POTS The Alpine 2™
Water filtration
STERIPEN
SteriPEN® Classic (SP-RP)
From Steripen website:
'The SteriPEN Classic purifies water using Ultraviolet (UV) light. Whether your source is a clear running brook or a hotel tap, SteriPEN Classic destroys viruses, bacteria and protozoa, including Giardia and Cryptosporidium, in seconds'.
We bought a SteriPEN Classic in Vancouver after Ali managed to bust the thread on our more traditional Katadyn ceramic filter (duh!) and the SteriPEN was cheaper than a replacement ceramic..so we thought "why not?". And it meant no more sweating over a pump.
'Handy, but a little bit unreliable'
We found it great when it worked properly, but often it was unreliable (maybe a faulty product who knows?) continually switching off after treating a couple of litres of water. Usually freshly charged batteries solved this problem or more thorough drying of the contact, but the instructions suggest that you should be able to treat 90 to 100 litres with NiMH batteries. We never got anywhere close to that number of treatments.