Fear not, The Bike Hermit is doing an excellent job of upholding his title, but he does confess to enjoying several of our Wandering Wheels Adventures this past year.
Like kids in a candy store, exploring the Owyhee Desert (just out the back door) has given us a new appreciation for an area of Idaho we have virtually overlooked for 23 years. We’ve been experimenting with several different bikes on these adventures. Depending on where we ventured, we’ve ridden the Rivendells (Chief and Sky), the Surly LHT (Cruella de Ville), the Surly Disc Trucker (Jalapeno), the Surly Straggler (Meredith) and our newest additions to the stable – the Surly Big Fat Dummy (Etza’a) and the Surly ECR (Mustang Sally). After last weekend’s adventure we both agree that, for us, the best choice of Desert bikes are Etza’a and Mustang Sally. Sky King is still tweaking her load for the Surly ECR and will be posting more about racks, panniers and frame bags as she decides what works best for her. Suffice it to say, The Bike Hermit is really getting the Surly BFD dialed in, the back platform and panniers prove to serve not only as a carrying device but make a great table or bench and can do double duty as tent stakes.
Surly Big Dummy and platform are excellent as shelter support
Okay, back on track to the title of this post. Everyday we continue to meet other bike wanderers and every trip seems to bring someone new into our lives. We are constantly awed by other riders ideas, bikes and gear. We’ve been humbled while observing the creative bike packing and gourmet meals produced by many.
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- The BFD.
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- Jones Loop Bars and a Salsa Minimalist rack.
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- Jones Loop Bars and homemade bag.
We are beyond being impressed by the photography and video skills of our fellow bike adventurers. Perhaps, best of all, we’ve learned to eagerly anticipate the video productions of our trips produced by our friend, Aileen Frey. While we have shared many of them on our Facebook Page, we haven’t shared them here. SO…
We invite you to sit back, grab a beer and live vicariously through her lens
ENJOY
