A Decade of Gratitude + 2022 Accomplishments & 2023 Plans

As some of you may know, we celebrated our first decade of operation this year. For the record, the official date was October 17th, marking 10 years since I published the first post on what was originally a blog about bike travel. It’s been a profoundly wild ride since then. Bikepacking exploded in popularity over those 10 years, and as we rode that swell, we invented new ways of defining, discussing, and covering it, and tried others that failed. We hit a number of milestones and made a few mistakes. All the while, we remained zealously committed to building and fostering the bikepacking community, creating and maintaining a network of high-quality bikepacking routes and guides—the first of its kind—developing a varied and comprehensive resource library to support bikepackers, and highlighting pivotal issues and topics to make the community more sustainable and inclusive.

We feel a deep sense of gratitude for everyone who has stuck with us and helped us achieve all that we have throughout this past decade, and we’d like to thank our Bikepacking Collective members in particular. Your financial support makes the site possible, and we truly couldn’t do it without you. For the majority of readers who found us sometime along the way, here’s a brief summary of BIKEPACKING.com milestones:

• 2012 – Founded as Pedaling Nowhere, a blog about traveling by bicycle
• 2013 – Started popular MYOBG DIY series and Film Fest Friday
• 2014 – Started the bikepacking routes map, the first of its kind, and became the first entity to create and publish purpose-built bikepacking routes with online guides
• 2015 – Rebranded as BIKEPACKING.com, launched Bikepacking 101, the annual Bikepacking Awards,
  Leave No Trace for Bikepackers, Rider’s Lens, and Field Trips
• 2016 – Launched several cornerstone routes, including the Tian Shan Traverse, Green Mountain Gravel Growler, and Altravesur
• 2017 – Redesigned the website, launched bikepacking events calendar, added loads of new routes, and started the “Rigs of” series
• 2018 – Announced the Bikepacking Collective, our annual membership that supports this website, and The Bikepacking Journal, our biannually printed publication
• 2019 – Launched the Local Overnighter Project, started the Gear Index and Reader’s Rig series
• 2020 – Started YouTube channel, launched Bikepacking for Conservation initiative and the Routes Access Fund
• 2021 – Added Native land acknowledgements throughout our route network, reached 85,000 miles (137,000 kilometers)

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Year 10

And wow, fast-forwarding to today, what a stellar year our 10th one has been. Since January 1, 2022, we’ve published more than 11,500 miles (18,000 kilometers) of new bikepacking routes, hundreds of original stories and videos, 20 in-depth bike reviews, countless deeply-researched gear reviews and inventive comparisons, a record 17 “Rigs Of” event roundups, a wealth of bikepacking events, and all the timely reportage and breaking news our readers have come to expect. All that said, we’re especially proud of a few big projects and accomplishments we brought to fruition this year, which wouldn’t have been possible without your help:

100,000 Miles of Routes!

Expanding our global bikepacking routes network of published route guides to 100,000 miles (161,000 kilometers)—well, 98,172 miles, to be exact, but we think that’s still a number worth celebrating.

Eastern Divide Trail

Finishing phase one of the 6,000-mile Eastern Divide Trail and publishing eight detailed segment guides, each adding a new component to underscore the Indigenous history of the region through Whereabouts.

Route Alerts

Adding Route Alerts functionality that allows riders to better keep us informed of road or trail closures, land access issues, and potential for improvements or advocacy opportunities within our route network.

Andean Bear Corridor

Launching the Andean Bear Corridor, a conservation-focused routes network project in Colombia and a model for things to come.

Bucket Lists and Route Log

Developing Bucket Lists and Route Log features for our routes library, providing members of the Bikepacking Collective the ability to add dream trips to their list and keep track of their completed adventures.

Rider’s Lens Grants

Awarding a group of talented photographers with over $16,000 worth of camera gear, trip stipends, and other gear through our Rider’s Lens Grant.

New Events

Sponsoring and hosting events, such as the Wilson’s Ramble, to bring our community together, face to face.

2023 and Beyond

We have a whole lot more in store for 2023, with plans for several new routes, fresh website features, new map functionality, and few other noteworthy and exciting projects that we’ll be unveiling throughout the year. We’ll also be publish Issue 10 of The Bikepacking Journal, which we plan on making extra special. Stay tuned!

Support This Platform

Unfortunately, the woes of inflation and the economic downturn have hit us too. A number of members have had to leave over the last few months due to personal finance reasons, and printing and shipping costs for The Bikepacking Journal have skyrocketed. To keep reaching milestones and evolving the site, we need your support now more than ever.

The Bikepacking Collective isn’t just a subscription to The Bikepacking Journal. It’s also what enables us to create ALL the content on this website. This is especially important considering our commitment to minimal advertising, as well as our dedication to building and documenting high-quality, purpose-built bikepacking routes and continuing to foster and support the bikepacking community. If you’re not yet a member of our Bikepacking Collective, or you’ve been delaying for whatever reason, please consider signing up to help support this platform. Your support means a lot and is a lifeline for us. Thank you.

In closing, we’d like to ask all of you for your input and suggestions. What have you gotten the most value out of on the site over the years? And what types of content would you like to see more of in the years ahead? Please add your thoughts in the Conversation below and we’ll keep them in mind as we plan for the future of BIKEPACKING.com.