# What to do with panniers while touring??



## moodle (17 Feb 2011)

I'm going on a 5 day cycle tour, my first time, and I need to buy some panniers. 

One thing is stumping me though - what happens when you have to leave your bike? i.e. stop to go into a museum/church/coffee shop/toilets etc. Do people tend to leave the panniers on the bike or take them with them?

I'm not sure whether to make sure I get panniers with straps. I was just going to buy second hand ones. Surely if you're carrying a tent/sleeping bag etc you don't want to carry them around with you. I guess maybe you set up camp first and then go exporing. But what if this isn't practical?


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## Jerry Atrik (17 Feb 2011)

I thread a lock through the handles and around the panniers as a visible deterrant and so far so good .


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## Arch (17 Feb 2011)

Yeah, I've used a small cable threaded through the pannier handles, and the D-lock. I only tend to be leaving mine while I'm in a cafe, and try to keep the bike in sight, or at least somewhere where I can get up and look at it everyso often. But in a lot of places, you'd probably be ok leaving the bike with the bags on. If they can't be removed quickly, I don't think a lot of casual thieves will rummage through, for stuff that is probably not quick and easy to sell. As an added deterrent, pack all your unwashed clothes at the top of the pannier.

Also, you can sometimes find someone, a cafe owner or a small shop assistant* to keep an eye on your stuff.

*I mean an assistant in a small shop, not a pygmy behind a counter.


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## ComedyPilot (17 Feb 2011)

Arch said:


> Yeah, I've used a small cable threaded through the pannier handles, and the D-lock. I only tend to be leaving mine while I'm in a cafe, and try to keep the bike in sight, or at least somewhere where I can get up and look at it everyso often. But in a lot of places, you'd probably be ok leaving the bike with the bags on. If they can't be removed quickly, I don't think a lot of casual thieves will rummage through, for stuff that is probably not quick and easy to sell. As an added deterrent, pack all your unwashed clothes at the top of the pannier.
> 
> Also, you can sometimes find someone, a cafe owner or a* small shop assistant* *to keep an eye on your stuff.
> 
> *I mean an assistant in a small shop, *not a pygmy behind a counter*.


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## andym (17 Feb 2011)

It depends.

Stop at a church, coffee shop or toilets etc in the country or a small town I tend to park the bike outside. I often lock the bike, but not the panniers. I generally prefer to sit somewhere where I can keep an eye on the bike and I wouldn't leave it for a long time. I'd advise against leaving a bike around in a city.

Museums, often have somewhere to keep bags and it might well be worth asking. Equally there's nothing to stop you taking your panniers off the bike and leaving them in a corner at the back of the church.

Otherwise, yes it may be a question of finding somewhere to camp and then going sightseeing. Unfortunately sometimes this isn't practical - and as they say you have to cut your coat to suit your cloth - but often there's a way round. If there are really important places you want to see then plan your route around these - either identifying a place to stay nearby or making them the focus of a circular day-trip.

Oh and at risk of stating the obvious, it's worth having a separate bag which you can use to carry valuables, definitely don't leave really valuable things with the bike. Some people use a bar bag for this. I wear a backpack - this isn't for everyone, but one option might be to carry a minimalist lightweight backpack bungeed to your rack.


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## Wardy (17 Feb 2011)

My last two cycle camping trips were with front and rear panniers and I was never in a situation, in transit, where I felt I needed to keep them with me when leaving the bike. Most times, I was able to keep the bike in sight. However, my rear panniers (Altura Arran) had a swivel-out securing device which locked them onto the rack, thus making it impossible for them to be taken off quickly by someone without experience. In addition, I stowed my tent, poles and extra groundsheet on top of them so this effectively hid access to the pannier clips etc.. The front panniers were not so easy to secure. Although I like cycle camping on my own I recognise the advantage of having a pal to look after the bikes while I visit the loo! I think it also depends on where you stop too. There is no way I would leave my bike unattended (even if locked) in a city centre, but going into a village shop in (say) the Scottish countryside is a different matter.


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## ufkacbln (17 Feb 2011)

I use something called a "Pacsafe"










If you get the 140 Litre one you can put the rear of the bike with panniers inside it in a few seconds

The whole thing then "cinches" tight to the rear stays and carrier.

Prevents opportunistic theft.


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## psmiffy (17 Feb 2011)

Most of the time you just have to risk it for a biscuit - remove all the cartable valuables and lash the bike to something and sightsee or shop as rapidly as possible – not something I would trust to in the UK but in Europe I am much more trusting – crossed fingers not had a problem so far – all day sightseeing I generally take a day off and have a collapsible back pack to carry those bits and pieces I do not want to leave at the campsite – on one occasion – Venice – I just lashed the lot to the Police Station and hoped that they did not blow it up


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## ComedyPilot (17 Feb 2011)

For me, I pack my most valuable bits - camera, passport, wallet, phone, iPod etc - in the handle bar pannier, and that goes with me like a man-bag.

Everything else is left with the bike, cable locked up.


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## frank9755 (17 Feb 2011)

I have my valuables in a bar bag. I take that with me and leave the panniers on my bike, unlocked. 
Never had a problem. Dirty camping gear - even if it is good quality stuff - can't be top of the list for a casual thief. 

I do the same when I go grocery shopping - just load up the panniers between shops. 

I have no evidence for this but I always have a feeling that a bike is less attractive to a thief if it has heavy panniers on it than if it doesn't and that locking up my panniers implies they have valuables in them.


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## Brains (17 Feb 2011)

Our solution is bike pyjamas

You lock the bike up as normal with panniers and then put the cover over both bikes, panniers and all, and lock it to the bike

The bike pyjamams also keep the bikes dry when camping, doube up as a picnic groundheet for lunch and have served an an emergency shelter for us humans

Considering the minimal weight, well worth taking on tour








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## snorri (18 Feb 2011)

andym has spoken my thoughts  

I think we develop a "feeling" for security issues and just hope the feeling is right.


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## Garz (18 Feb 2011)

Brains at least we know where you store the screenshot locally on the home computer!


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## Bodhbh (18 Feb 2011)

I just leave them as is, although my mate has a small wire lock he puts through the rack and handles. If they're new there's always kicking them around in the muck to give the hobo-on-tour-not-worth-robbing appearance.


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## Gary Cummins (18 Feb 2011)

frank9755 said:


> I have my valuables in a bar bag. I take that with me and leave the panniers on my bike, unlocked.
> Never had a problem. Dirty camping gear - even if it is good quality stuff - can't be top of the list for a casual thief.
> 
> I do the same when I go grocery shopping - just load up the panniers between shops.
> ...




I'd agree with all of this!


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## Sheffield_Tiger (18 Feb 2011)

Cunobelin said:


> I use something called a "Pacsafe"
> 
> 
> 
> ...





That's useful!

Last time I cycled out into the peak district, then changed into walking attire and went for a day long hike I always had the niggling worry of having to cycle home in walking boots on SPDs if someone nicked my cycling shoes in the panniers


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## vorsprung (18 Feb 2011)

I had Ortlieb Backroller panniers when I was touring in the Netherlands. Mrs V had some much cheaper ones from Lidl. V jnr had some very small panniers but they just had a bag of sweets and some water in them  The Ortlieb ones had a anti theft wire loop fitted but we never used it. The bags were either on the bikes, in our hands, in a secure "cloakroom" in a museum or in a hostel room we were staying in. 

The panniers clip on and off in seconds and it didn't take much planning to arrange things so we wouldn't be lugging them around much

It was a good tour, I fancy the Canal Du Midi next time.


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## andym (18 Feb 2011)

Sheffield_Tiger said:


> That's useful!
> 
> 
> Last time I cycled out into the peak district, then changed into walking attire and went for a day long hike I always had the niggling worry of having to cycle home in walking boots on SPDs if someone nicked my cycling shoes in the panniers



Well maybe. The pacsafe is a pretty good product, but as with every security product, security comes at a price - they weigh 500g a each. and they're not going to stop a thief with a pair of decent wirecutters. Also there's no point protecting your panniers if you don't have a decent lock on your bike. §i'm pretty paranoid about security and my bike for riding around London is protected with security skeweres and and expensive lock, but even I would rule out pacsafes as a practical option for a touring cyclist.

If you are going hiking then you might be better off finding a place to leave your bike and stuff - or failing that hide your panniers behind a hedge. Or carry your cycle shoes in a backpack.


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## Bigsharn (18 Feb 2011)

I'm tempted to get a crap Poundland cable lock, just for when I leave the bike for longer periods of time. The panniers only carry stuff that costs less than they did, so it's not worth securing the contents


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## Ticktockmy (18 Feb 2011)

I only bother to thread a cable lock through the carrying loops as i secure the Bike to something, as in my mind it just as easy for someone to slash the pannier open with a knife.


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## mike1026 (18 Feb 2011)

In 2009 I was passing through central London in the early hours of the morning but there were still hundreds of people about. In Trafalgar Square I needed to use the toilets, oddly enough there was a uniformed security guard outside the loos. I asked him if he would look after my fully loaded tourer while I went into the loo, he said "Yeah no problem". Even so I still took my handle bar bag with me. When I came out of the loo a few minutes later he was gone! There stood my tourer with all my worldly possessions for anyone to just wheel away. Lesson 1 'Don't trust anyone' Lesson 2 'Become proficient at P*****g in the street' .


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## rich p (19 Feb 2011)

I've done most of my touring on the continent and I rarely give it a second thought. Having said that, I don't spend much time in cities unless I'm staying for a day to have a look round and would be pannier free. 

In a city the bike is the obvious thief attraction but you learn to relax or take care. Lock it up near a busy street cafe. The thief has no way of knowing that you're not sitting at one of the nearby tables and it takes some front to cut through a lock with an audience of people.


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## Danny (20 Feb 2011)

I have never had anyone touch my panniers even when I leave them in the centre of York full of shopping, so if you're touring in a rural location I really wouldn't worry, particularly if you take obvious precautions like parking your bike in reasonably open location rather than down a dark alley.

As others have said if want a bit more security you can pass a simple cable lock through the handles on the panniers and that should be a sufficient deterrent in most cases.


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## aberal (20 Feb 2011)

Think about it logically. Leave your bike unattended for short periods only and then somewhere public and visible. Carry your valuables in a bar bag and detach that when you go into the cafe/pub/whatever. Thread a cheapo cable as others have said to fend off the opportunist and if your panniers do get nicked, so be it. They can have your smelly socks and undies. There is only so much you can do....


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## Ste T. (23 Feb 2011)

+1 Bar bag

Bar bag is your friend.


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## Amanda P (23 Feb 2011)

What can be more of a problem is buying a train ticket if you have a loaded touring bike with you.

If you have a companion, no problem: one minds the bikes while the other buys the tickets.

If you're on your own, you have a problem. 

At many stations, you'll be hustled out of the ticket office if you take your bike in with you, as it's "a hazard". Why it's a hazard in a spacious, well-lit ticket office but becomes miraculously harmless on a crowded, swaying, ill-lit train with people climbing over it every five minutes is a mystery. Also, why is a bike so dangerous in a ticket office when wheelchairs and armchair-sized wheely suitcases (usually operated by careless drivers) apparently aren't?

But if you leave it anywhere outside, it becomes "unaccompanied baggage" and you're likely to find the Transport Police have taken it away.

The only solution appears to be to remove all the bags, lock up the naked bike and carry all the bags into the ticket office. Of course, by the time you've done this, you'll have missed the train.

Like Mike1026, I once found a railway employee who promised faithfully to keep an eye on my bike while I bought a ticket. When I emerged, he was nowhere to be seen. Thanks, mate.


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## andym (23 Feb 2011)

Most train stations have ticket machines. so buying a ticket is relatively easy in my experience (relative compared to say a station where you have to cross a bridge to get to the other platform).

If I need to queue I do leave my bike at the back of the ticket hall and I've not had any problems.

If I have to leave my bike in a station and I'm not close enough to keep an eye on it I lock it and leave it - on the basis that I'll be able to get my ticket/coffee or whatever before the transport police can move it/blow it up.


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## frank9755 (24 Feb 2011)

Never had a problem either wheeling my bike up to the ticket machine with me, or leaving it nearby while waiting in the queue for a window


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## frank9755 (24 Feb 2011)

andym said:


> Well maybe. The pacsafe is a pretty good product, but as with every security product, security comes at a price - they weigh 500g a each. and they're not going to stop a thief with a pair of decent wirecutters. Also there's no point protecting your panniers if you don't have a decent lock on your bike. §i'm pretty paranoid about security and my bike for riding around London is protected with security skeweres and and expensive lock, but even I would rule out pacsafes as a practical option for a touring cyclist.
> 
> If you are going hiking then you might be better off finding a place to leave your bike and stuff - or failing that hide your panniers behind a hedge. Or carry your cycle shoes in a backpack.



Agree with this.

Where do you stop? What about a thief with an allen key, a chain tool and a pedal spanner taking bits off your bike?


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## Arch (25 Feb 2011)

andym said:


> Most train stations have ticket machines.



Oh yes, very helpful. Like in York, where they are inside the same ticket office you may not take your bike into...

They have at least now installed a set of racks just outside the office - I took a bike in and was told off and pointed out that there was nowhere to lock bikes except about half a mile away down platform 1. Presumably enough people said the same, so they bunged a rack in.


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