Panniers

We each carried four panniers, plus another bag that attached on top of the rear rack. The panniers were split half-and-half between black Nashbar Waterproof Panniers (both front and back) and yellow Ortlieb Bike-Packer Plus panniers (again, both front and back).

The Ortliebs cost four times as much as the Nashbars. For that extra cost, you get something that is much better made and better thought-out: The heavy-duty plastic attachment system that the Ortliebs have is extremely durable, will not accidentally come off your rack, and are a snap to take on and off. In contrast, the Nashbars are attached using two rubber-covered metal hooks at the top, two velcro loops at top as back ups, and a metal hook through a bungee at the bottom. The system breaks apart one by one: the rubber comes off the top metal hooks; the velcro back-up loops rip off from the pannier; the metal hooks at the bottom, which are not securely fastened to the bungee, fall off and get lost; and it’s just matter of time, I’m sure, before the bungees will snap.

Some of these problems with the Nashbars could be prevented: We could have used some preventative twist-ties on the bottom hooks, for example. And one could probably replace the bungees after they snap.

Even with these faults, the Nashbars kept our stuff dry and attached to our bikes the whole trip (and on previous shorter trips, too). So if you already have Nashbars, there’s no reason to replace them with Ortliebs or another nicer brand before your big tour. However, if you’re looking to buy panniers for the first time, consider whether you want to make the investment in the O’s. I really do think our Ortliebs will live longer than we will, and completely intact, too. They are really awesome bags, but are they $$$$ more awesome? I don’t know. Maybe not.

One problem we had with the Ortlieb model we chose is that the cinch-and-cover tops it has are not raccoon-proof. It was fine because our Nashbars were roll-top and we just kept our food in those. Make sure you have enough roll-top panniers, of whatever brand, to keep your food in.