The Baja Divide is a rugged 1,700 mile off-pavement bikepacking route down the length of the Baja California peninsula, from San Diego, CA, USA to San José del Cabo, BCS, MX, researched and developed by Nicholas Carman and Lael Wilcox in the winter and spring of 2015-16. Sandy two track, dirt roads, 4 WD trails, and a few stretches on the beach. A remote desert landscape with stark beauty of rugged mountains interspersed with small towns and outposts; it connects the mostly untouched coasts of both the Gulf of California and Pacific Ocean.
REVELATE bags will take care of all cargo storage needs.
2x XT group top to bottom for a dependable system in remote country….Oh, and big water.
January is a cold month in Steamboat Springs, and the joy of desert riding while cheating old man winter, the adventure of route finding, the challenge of self-supported, backcountry experience with a group of old friends was something I couldn’t pass up.
A tank bag for quick snacks, phone and maps. Eaisly one of the best bags to have no matter the distance.
The gear needs are intense, from shelter and tools to food and navigation, and so much water to carry. Some remote stretches call for a minimum of 10 liters of water on the bike, a lot of weight and the challenge of where to carry it all. But the main question for most Baja Divide riders is which bike?
More water storage. Keep the weight low, keep hydrated.
The sandy, rocky conditions call for a Plus size tire, 2.8 -3.0, and a bike that won’t break or fall apart with the demands of such a rugged course. Fortunately I have just the bike for the job, the Moots Mountaineer YBB. We built this bike with a trip like this in mind, so it’s exciting to load it up with new Revelate frame packs and put it to the test. We roll out of San Diego on January 2, and with 3 or 4 weeks of riding we hope to tackle about half of the route.
The YBB unit will soften the blow of millions of small hits along the way, the Revelate bag will hold shelter and light items up high.
Multiple hand positions, lights and gear storage.
In our group of six riders, four of us will be riding the Mountaineer YBB, so we’ll be getting some great gear reviews coming in the next month.
There won’t be any snow on the Baja Divide. Michael is running the Maxxis IKON 2.8 set up tubeless.
Visit the Moots site and the Mountaineer Ybb page to dream up your next adventure rig.
