Bike Packing Supplies: Panniers, Mess Kit, and Headlamp

A package came in  from China today; woohoo!  I am so excited.

 I opened it up and discovered my Panniers!  I was surprised they could lay so flat; I'd imagined they'd come in a big square boxy package.

The material is nice and sturdy, water resistant but not water proof. I  ordered some waterproof covers for them but they aren't in yet.

 There are three parts to the pannier, a top part, and two side parts.

 The two side parts are connected, and the thin black strip down the middle sits on top of the rear pannier rack on my bike. The top part of the pannier can be clipped onto the top of the side parts.

 I stuffed one of the bags to see how much it would expand, and was happy to see it should hold quite a bit.

 I stuffed the top part as well.  It would hold my laptop nicely, as well as other items.

 A few weeks ago I purchased this Coleman mess kit at the Walmart for under 20 dollars; I think it was 12 bucks.

 The pots and pans are extremely small and would be great for a boy scout or girl guide.  They will also work for backpacking or bikepacking.  There's just enough room to boil water for an instant coffee or tea, to heat up a bit of soup or stew, or to MAYBE make some instant noodles, lol.  The little frying pan would be big enough for a few scrambled eggs, or one hamburger patty.  It's a great little lightweight starter set but if I end up enjoying bikepacking, I'll get bigger, nonstick set.

 I also picked up a headlamp for my bike, for riding at night. It would also be nice to use while bikepacking.  I had hoped to do an overnight bike ride this fall, and I may still, but if I do I will be staying at a motel, not a camp ground. The spiders are freaking enormous this year, and i hate spiders, lol.  I'd still like to try biking with a tent, but that will have to wait until next summer, at the start of summer, when the spiders are still small, lol.  I'd also have to buy a tent first; I have no idea where mine is; I haven't seen it in over 10 years so it may have gotten lost in a move somewhere along the way.

New Gear for my Bike: Pannier, Waterproof Pannier Cover, and Rearview Mirror for Glasse

So excited that I found inexpensive waterproof pannier covers for the new panniers I ordered from Ebay last week.

Pannier cover

 Hopefully they won't be so cheap that they'll rip right away.  If they are, at least buying them will give me a chance to figure out the pattern so I can make my own set.  It basically looks like big pieces of waterpoof material with elastic, or maybe a pull tie.  I ordered them from this seller on ebay.

Panniers I bought on ebay.

 I plan to use them to cover the panniers I purchased, as seen in the photo above.  Both items are coming from China so will not get here for a month. It's August 25th now, so they should be in by the end of September.  The people who sold the pannier cover sent me an email saying they were shipped yesterday, and if they don't arrive by the 29th of September to contact them.

Take a Look Mirror

 I also ordered the Take a Look Mirror from Ebay.
It was located in the USA and arrived very quickly, within days of ordering.  I tried the mirror out for the first time on Bike Ride 14, a few days ago, and it works very well but takes some getting used to.  I wondered if people would react to it when they saw me wearing it, but the only people who gave me a hard time about them were my parents.  I don't care how they look to others; I only care about road safety.  Now I have a better view of what's coming up behind me, and that means a lot to me.  I think these are brilliant; so much better than the rear view mirror on my bike, which just gives me a view of myself, lol.

Hilda

I found this Hilda cartoon online and cracked up, as that could be me and Benji and my bike...except I wouldn't be caught dead in a bikini, lol.  Also, my hair does have red highlights, but is more brown than red, lol.

I'm not feeling great today.  I feel achy all over and have been wheezing all night and morning, despite my ventolin. Normally when I feel like this, it means I'm coming down with the flu.  I sure hope not.  I had hoped to go for  another bike ride today but I'm not sure I'll be able to. I'll see how I feel later.  I can always try to ride, just in the neighborhood, and if I don't feel well, just turn around and come home.  I had planned on going to Fort Creek but my Dad says it's very hilly and there's no way I could walk hills today, let alone bike them.