The last-minute rush is on for the perfect gift, and this year’s 12 Days of Randonneurmas is here for you. And to add to the fun, I’ve recruited a guest contributor – TDR pal and accomplished randonneur Jerry Seager, who sent in this post from his and his partner Carolyn’s global bike tour.
For off-the-bike excursions, Jerry took along the waterproof Ortlieb Light Pack 25. It rolls up for stowing but has come in quite handy when they want to park the bikes and look around.
We have a lot of Ortlieb stuff around the TDR headquarters for commuting and touring. But we haven’t bought any of their packs, so this is helpful info for our next tour – and that grocery store stop after work.
Here is Jerry’s take:
When we planned our tour we knew we wanted to do some hiking in the mountains along the way. We’re in Myanmar now and since leaving London we have hiked in the Caucasus in Georgia, the Pamirs in Tajikistan, the Ala-Too in Kyrgyzstan and the Himalaya in Nepal.
We bought an Ortlieb Light Pack 25 for this trip. It’s essentially a 25 liter dry bag with shoulder straps and a thin waist belt. It rolls up into a neat ball that we can chuck into a pannier bag. At 290 grams it’s light enough that we don’t mind carrying it for all that time we’re not actually using it. The cost was about $90.
The pack has been great. We’ve found it comfortable and strong, even when loaded with food and lightweight camping gear for a few days. It has just enough loops on the outside to strap on things we can’t fit inside when we go on a longer hike.
Being a dry bag it stays, well, dry. We’ve also used it as a solar shower bag – we fill the bag with water and leave it in the sun for a nice warm shower. Sometimes we use the bag as a bucket, when we’re wild camping and the water source isn’t right at our camp spot.
Many thanks go out to Jerry and Carolyn for adding to Randonneurmas. If gear makes the cut for these two, it’s a good piece of kit.
And though Mary and I miss them a lot, we know they are having a true adventure and inspiring us and others to get out and see the world by bike.
You can reach out to them via Instagram: Jerry is @tenmetersfromthehut.
Tomorrow: Something that comes in pairs and (most) everybody loves to get.
The Daily Randonneur 
I have been looking for something just like this! Multiple uses are a must for bike touring. Thanks, Jerry and Ed.