Solo MTB Southern Cross-Island Coastal Trip (Planning)



Read about the trip
Day 1 浸水營古道 JinShuiYing
Day 2 阿郎壹古道 ALangYi


Foul weather has sat in again and again and there is probably a typhoon this weekend. Personally I love outdoor activities during foul weather but for this trip, I have to be careful as I am doing alone. The rivers that I will be crossing might cause the whole plan to backfire and I might get myself trapped. So this is one time I have to respect Mother Nature. Anyway it gives me time to write and log about my planning for this trip also allow me to look into my gears second time. I do hope the rivers that I need to cross is not flooded after the typhoon. 


So, finally after much slacking, here is my plan to embark on a ride which will cover both On-Road and Off-Road. Most of the journey will be On-Road, only few places will be Off-Road. This trip will take me cross the island from FangLiao Train Station (East) to Dawu Village (West) and down South following the coast to 風吹砂 FengChuiSha then cross back to the East to 大圓山 DaYuanShan or Kenting. 

One option is to follow the routes as the map highlighted, take a train or drive to Fangliao Train Station and do a loop back to the train station.

STAGE 1 
枋寮火車站(?) - 歸崇派出所(?) - 浸水營古道 - 巴塱衛山 (30.9Km?) + 27.7Km
Fangliao Train Stn - Police Check Point - JinShuiYing Trail - BaLangWeiShan (camp)

STAGE 2
巴塱衛山- 台26 - 阿郎壹古道 - 九棚大沙漠 - 出風鼻 41.9Km
BaLangWeiShan - Route26 - ALangYi Trail - JiuPeng Desert - ChuFengBi 

STAGE 3
出風鼻 - 佳樂水 - 籠仔埔大草原 - 大圓山(營camp) - 枋寮火車站(?) 19.6Km + (59Km?)
ChuFengBi - JiaLeiShui - LongZaiPu Grassland - DaYuanShan - FangLiao Train Stn  

Off-Road Areas 
  • 浸水營古道 17.4km mostly downhill
  • 阿郎壹古道 4km plus carrying bike over a hill
  • 九棚大沙漠 2.5km desert riding
  • 出風鼻 11.5km carrying bike over rocky terrain
  • 籠仔埔大草原 2km flat grassland  

I would definitely like to take my dog with me, well...that is my partner's advise. If I have to go as plan, I am afraid he can't make the total 180Kms loop. Another option is I get my partner to drive us to 浸水營古道 trail head and end at 大圓山, so in 3 days he has to cover 90km, half of the planned trip. This trip can make it in a day but I prefer to go slow and easy. Time is not a factor, the idea is to camp out and take our own sweet time. Well, this is another option.

Main Objective 
 鹿寮溪
Main objective of this trip is 出風鼻 (see photo album), our bike group have done this trip several times but I failed to join them. From the info gathered, you will find the most amazing rock formation and ship wrecks around the area. My objective is to camp one night in this area near a river 鹿寮溪 LuLiao River and maybe get a chance to see a deer here. As you know river is a source of life and also a source of death, there might be predators. 

Preparation
As this trip involves carrying bike in certain stretch, I would need to go light weight. Using Panniers is not an option, only those essential gears will be considered. Hammock camping will be the most ideal choice for this trip, I hope. 

Choice of Pack will be my old faithful 2003 Camelbak HAWG 17L. Will try to store everything from water, food, rain gears, repair kit, first aid, survival kit, clothes and miscellaneous for 3 days 2 nights. The Hennessy Hammock will be stuffed inside a Seal Line Dry Bag and secured to the handlebar.  
   

Checklists
  • SHELTER
  • LIGHTING KIT
  • HYGIENE KIT
  • SURVIVAL / FIRST AID KIT
  • COOKING KIT
  • HYDRATION KIT
  • UTILITY KIT
  • CLOTHING and PROTECTION
  • BIKE REPAIR KIT
  • RATION

Solo 3 Days 2 Nights MTB Camping Gear Lists
Total Backpack Base Weight 5795g
(Base weight do not include items that is worn or consumable such as food, water and fuel are in Bold Red). 

SHELTER (86g)(1273g)
The Shelter will be secured to the bike's handle bar stored in Seal Line Dry Bag. 
  • Hennessy Hammock (1141g)
  • Seal Line Dry Bag (67g)
  • Fastening Belt (65g)
  • 6 x Aluminum Tent Stakes (86g) 


LIGHTING (302g)(21g)
Primary lighting will be Petzl Tikka XP for biking at night if needed and campsite usage. Petzl e+Lite will be a backup light also to be used for night reading, night vision and bike rear lighting if needed

HYGIENE KIT (133g)
  • Disposal Towel
  • Mini Toothpaste
  • Mini Toothbrush
  • Mini Campsud
  • Toilet Roll
  • Cotton Bud
  • Hand Sanitiser
  • Contact Lens

SURVIVAL / FIRST AID KIT (600g)
Survival Blanket will be used as a ground sheet, tarp or a blanket when the weather is cold. That removes the need for a sleeping bag. Gormmet holes have been prepared on the survival blanket so it can be used as a tarp.
  • Light Weight Survival Knife with whistle (60g)
  • 550 Paracord 5metres (33g)
  • Compact Survival Kit (119g)
  • Survival Blanket (62g)
  • Mini First Aid Kit (45g)
  • Sunscreen (36g)
  • Leatherman Juice Xe6 (188g)
  • Insect Repellent (17g)
  • Turbo Lighter (40g)
compact survival kit

COOKING KIT (424g)(136g)
I was considering Alcohol Stove to lighten the weight. After considering some factors such as quick meal and the weight difference was marginal to Alpine Stove, I decided to use the Alpine Stove. I had purchased a Snow Peak Gas canister which is half the weight from the original canister I have and it nested in my pot set nicely thus reducing space in my backpack.

HYDRATION KIT (191g)(2000g)
The water filter will be useful as it involves river camping. A spare bottle for filtered water use for cooking etc. 

UTILITY KIT (1635g)(276g)
If it was not the plan for video capturing on this trip, I would have ditched half of this weight. Carabiners will be used for carrying the bike together with the Bike Carrier Belt and also to be used for hanging stuff on the hammock. 
  • Travel Lock (86g)
  • Glasses (26g)
  • Spare Batteries (154g)
  • Solar Charger (275g) for camera batt charging
  • Lumix Camera (135g) just died on me
  • Panasonic SW20 Camcorder (243g)
  • Olympus Camera (197g)
  • 2 x 4G SD Spare Cards (4g)
  • Camera Spare Battery (19g)
  • Camera Stand (113g)
  • Garmin Oregon  400t GPS (200g)
  • iPod Shuffle with Charger and Headphone (68g)
  • Carabiners (65g)
  • Note Book and Pencil (29g)
  • Ear Plugs (4g)
  • Handphone (109g)
  • Casio Protrek Watch (76g)
  • Survival Book for night reading (220g)

CLOTHING and PROTECTION (1144g)(1799g)
The clothing will not be folded, instead it will be compressed in the backpack to fill up all void spaces. This method will save alot of space for packing. Trash bag will be used to waterproof all the contents in the bag.
  • 1 x Columbia Convertible Hiking Pants (380g)
  • Leg Warmer (86g)
  • Arm Warmer 
  • 2 x Socks (43g+41g)
  • 1 x Riding Shorts (215g)
  • 2 x Riding Jersey (177g+211g)
  • 1 x Riding Gloves (72g)
  • Riding Helmet (326g)
  • Halo Protex Bandana (31g)
  • Riding Shoes (865g)
  • Camp Sandal also use for river crossing (311g)
  • REI Jacket (410g)
  • Sunglasses (36g)
  • Bush Hat (85g)
  • Kerchief for shower, neck cooling or use as First Aid (34g) 

BIKE REPAIR KIT (323g)(360g)
The rear bike seat storage bag have been ditched to minimise weight. Only the bike tube is secured to the seat and the tire pump mounted on the water bottle mounting point. The rest of the repair kit will be in the backpack. 
  • Spare Tube (190g)
  • Topeak Mini Morph Tire Pump (170g)
  • Topeak Hexus Tool (172g)
  • Tire Patch (4g)
  • Chain Link (3g)
  • Rear D-Hanger (17g)
  • Chain Oil (32g)  against mud and sea water
  • 2m Duct Tape (16g)
  • 5 x Cable Ty (10g)
  • Cotton Glove (17g)
  • DIY Bike Carrier Belt (52g)
bike spare tube and pump secured to bike


RATION (1197g)
  • Instant Pork Rib Noodle with Dehydrated Cabbage (268g)
  • Instant Beef Stew Noodle with Dehydrated Cabbage (293g)
  • Anchovies Congee with Dehydrated Cabbage (67g) Spare Ration
  • Dehydrated Seaweed Miso Soup (26g) Spare Ration
  • Oats with 3 x Instant Milo Mix (110g)
  • 2 x Mars Bars (76g)
  • 3 x 7-11 Mixed Nuts (112g)
  • 3 x 7-11 Mixed Meat Jerky (107g)
  • 2 x Wrigleys DoubleMint Chewing Gum (51g)
  • Pocari Sweat Mix (77g)
  • 3x German Tea (10g)

PACK (957g)
Overall the base pack weight is below 6Kg, gross weight is around 9Kg mostly from ration and water. I must say I am pretty satisfied with the weight as I expected it to be around 12kg total.
  • 2003 Camelbak HAWG 17L (861g)
  • Flyye Small Accessories Pouch (96g)

If my dog is coming, he will carry his own DIY pack, not going to overload him just some gears and food for 3 days. Water will be shared with me. 


The last trip to Hayou River 哈尤溪 I had to carry my partner's bike and my bike through countless river crossings, it was a big mistake that I was not prepared for it. Furthermore I did not packed correctly and ended up carrying a lot of unnecessary weight. This time will get it right. Now let's see how the weather holds.

PRECAUTION
Since I have never been on this trip, some necessary precaution is taken.

  • Around Kenting area, there have been reports of wild dogs attacking the deers, so a Survival Knife for protection is necessary. If needed, the lightweight survival knife will be used to make a spear as it has a hollow handle.
  • Survival knife is attached to my backpack harness so that I can draw the weapon quickly.
  • Partner will be informed and will call back to report safety
  • Check weather forecast
  • Register at Police checkpoint
  • First Aid and Survival Kit, hopefully I do not have to use it. 
Well, if you guys have further advise, do comment.



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