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When we are young, one of the fanciful thoughts that often occur to us is travelling the world with the person we love. We dream about yacht journeys and private jets flights to Paris. However, reality tend to deal us different hands and most people end up minding the grind, hustling 24/7 and stuff like vacations become distant thoughts. However, you don’t have to wait until you have a million dollars in your account before you travel the world with your partner. If you are couple who shares a joint love for exploration and the outdoors, then bike packing can be a good medium to enjoy yourself as a couple. You should however note that something that was meant to be enjoyed can become a catalyst for various fights and arguments. If you want to go bike packing successfully as a couple, then you should follow these guidelines for a successful and enjoyable trip. Enjoy!
Tips for bike packing and touring as a couple
Discuss the details of the journey
If you plan to go bike packing with your partner, the first thing you have to do is to discuss the details of your journey and the contingency plans you have in place should things go wrong. Not every body can survive under certain conditions and you have to know what each person can and cannot take before you set out on this kind of journey. You should know if you are staying in a hotel, what you will eat, the budget of the trip, how many days you plan to spend and everything else before you attempt to venture on a trip with your partner. When you make adequate preparations, there is a less likely chance that things will go wrong.
Share duties according to personal strengths
It is very important that you share duties according to your personal strengths when you go outside your comfort zone. The outdoors will test both of you as individuals and you need to be ready to operate on your full potential. For example, if you are good at planning and organizing while your partner is excellent with maps and riding. You can take over the daily planning of your trip, setting up camp and putting things into place while your partner concentrates their strengths on finding the right place to camp and leading the way during riding. The most important thing is that both partners bring something substantial to the table and everybody is happy with the results.
Carry personal gear
Another important factor that can contribute to the success of any bike packing trip is when you carry personal gear. Carrying personal gear means that the only thing that you will share is a tent. You should have personal sleeping bags, personal water bottles and everything else. This will allow each person to monitor his/her belongings and it will reduce the risk of little fights and arguments. If you happen to misplace a non-essential item, you know that your partner is not under any obligation to share theirs with you. However, they might still do so because of the love you share.
Carry personal food and water; share when necessary
Same way you carry personal gear, you should also carry personal food and water. We cannot deny the fact that we don’t have the same metabolism and your partner might eat a lot more than you or vice versa. If this happens to be the case, then you should make sure you and your partner carry food and water that will be enough for you for the duration of the trip. If your partner’s food and water should finish before the end of your trip, you should endeavor to share with him or her. I know this might sound counter-intuitive but your partner is still your partner and you definitely don’t want them to go hungry or thirsty.
Be a little more emotionally intelligent
Emotional intelligence is a great soft skill in the 21st century an couples who hope to have a successful bike packing trip must possess a fair amount of this emotional intelligence. When you go on a trip with your partner, things might not go according to plan and you might encounter some situations that will leave you frustrated and angry. It is important to know that these situations are not directly the fault of your partner and you should do your best not to vent your frustration on them. If the setback is your partner’s fault, try to understand that you are both under the same tense situations and they may make mistakes sometimes.
Conclusion
When you travel with someone under intense situations like a bike packing tour, you cannot avoid the occasional fights and disagreements. However, the way you manage these conflicts and grow from them will be a reflection of how strong you are as a couple. You can get through a stress related journey like this one by following the above guidelines and adhering to them strictly. Cheers!
