Equipment

     The countdown is going on, and there is little time left before we take off... it's already time to get the luggage ready, to check what it's missing, and what we still need. Since we are getting so many questions about what we'll be bringing with us for the journey - here you go - we present some pictures to satify our followers' curiosity. As a general guideline, we have very light stuff, which take as little space as possible, and can hold as many knocks, heat, and water, as possible.

     First of all, you can see all the material that Cyclotrip has very kindly given to us: a camping tent much better than the "coffin" we had before, some Crosso saddlebags that are a big step forward compared with our old Ortlieb, a camping oven copatible with the Japanese gas cylinders, some t-shirts and great maps, of which we will talk in greater detail below, when we will explain how we prepare each section of the route.

…here you can see our luggage spread up all together. Hopefully, we’ll manage to pack nicely everything… but let’s go step by step, from left to right.

   In this picture you can see better the maps we were talking about earlier, a bit of “technical stuff”, the "neccessaires" toiletry, the first aid kit (much needed when travelling), and more IT bits and boobs, such as our cameras and a tablet, which is more on a trial phases than anything else at the moment. In addition, we have a couple of self-adhesive Velcro stripes, which are more useful than one can expect in these kind of adventures. Of course, our personal good luck gadgets are coming too: the hand made amulets especially created by Cristina, Ainhoa’s sister, among which Pikachu is shining by proudly wearing the colours of La Rioja flag.

 

    Above you can see an example of how we will be using our maps in Japanese. The post-its have been prepared by our personal translator, and Gabriel’s brother, David.

 

    A bit of camping stuff here. Starting from the top left in the picture above, you can see the tent and the two sleeping bags, expandable ropes, lights, crockery (a set of pans, plates, mugs, and cutlery), the and camping hob. On the right hand side, in the corner, you can see the mats we will be using until we get tired of sleeping on uncomfortably stones, and before we decide to buy some inflatable mattresses. Although it’s not included in the picture, we will bring along also a 2x3 metres of fabric for a variety of uses: to put it below the tent to keep its floor as clean as possible, to use it as a cover for cooking when it’s raining, to have a rest in the shadow when it’s sunny, or to use it as the antechamber of our tent.

 

    Right below the mats, in the picture above, you have Ainhoa’s cloths: a cosy sweater (for when it’s cold and, above all, to use it as a pillow), a thin bike jacket, a waterproof jacket, t-shirts, a towel for quick drying, two culottes, short trouser, a dress, underwear (three sets), tennis shoes, and a pair of sandals to use as much as to take a shower, or as when walking through cities and mountains. Girls, it’s not that difficult to travel light!

 

    This one above is Gabriel’s version of luggage; practically the same as Ainhoa’s, but in its male version.

     But, ops!, we nearly forget one of the most important things: helmets, glooves, chains and mirrors for the bikes, which you can see in the picture above.

 

    And to finish up with, all the above must fit in a couple of bike bags (see above), a bag for the front of the bike, a triangle bag, and two backpacks of 45 litres. Ah, and we need some extra space for the little presents we'll bring back from Japan. :-D