Plan a bikepacking route

From blank map to GPX you trust: daily distance, elevation, resupply, water, and weather-aware bail-outs.

From a blank map to a GPX file you trust — daily distance, water, resupply, and the small details that separate a good trip from a survival mission.

How to Plan a Bikepacking Route (Tools, Daily Distance, Resupply)

Plan a bikepacking route step by step: choosing tools (Komoot, RideWithGPS), setting realistic daily distance, mapping water and food resupply, and reading elevation profiles.

Which is better for bikepacking routes: Komoot or RideWithGPS?

Komoot is faster for discovery and has great surface-type data in Europe. RideWithGPS gives more control over the line and is stronger in North America. Many riders plan in one, export GPX, and navigate in the other.

How many kilometres per day on a bikepacking trip?

On mixed gravel with a loaded bike, plan 60-90 km per day with 800-1,500 m of climbing. Single-track or technical terrain drops that to 40-60 km. Always plan a shorter day one.

How do I plan water on a bikepacking route?

Mark every reliable water source on your map: villages, campgrounds, gas stations, known springs. Never go more than 60 km between sources in summer, and carry a filter when riding through remote areas.

Should I plan a loop or point-to-point route?

Loops are easier logistically — start and finish at your car or home. Point-to-point opens better scenery but needs a train, shuttle, or second car. For trip one, do a loop.

Decide what 'good' looks like: scenery, mileage, gravel-to-pavement ratio, technicality. Filter regions by what's actually reachable from home in a single drive or train ride.

2. Draft the line in Komoot or RideWithGPS

Use surface filters to favour unpaved roads. Snap to known long-distance routes (EuroVelo, GDMBR, local trails) where possible. Avoid red-coloured highways and unrideable hike-a-bike sections.

10 m/km of climbing on a loaded gravel bike is meaningful. 20 m/km is hard. Front-load climbing on day one when you're fresh, and keep the last day flatter to make a tired ride home rideable.

Pin every shop, café, campground, and water source onto the map. Cross-check shop opening hours — rural Europe shuts on Sundays, rural USA shuts early. Carry one extra meal as buffer.

Check the forecast 72 hours out. Have an early bail-out point at roughly the halfway mark — a train station, town, or shorter loop back. Knowing the exit makes the rest of the route easier to commit to.