Budget Bikepacking: The Scrapyard Challenge

How much money do you actually need to go bikepacking?

It can certainly be an expensive hobby, but it doesn’t have to be, and I’ve always said that accessibility is one of the best things about bicycle travel. All the fancy gear is lovely if you can afford it, but when it really comes down to it, all you really need is a bicycle and the determination to get out there. Bikepacking can be incredibly cheap if you want it to be.

In summer 2025, I finally had the opportunity to put that to the test. I set myself a simple challenge inspired by Tom Allen’s fantastic 2013 article, “How I Got A Touring Bike, Gear & Luggage For The Price Of A Round Of Drinks.”

The idea was to start from scratch, using none of my own equipment. I gave myself a budget of just £100 to go on a two-week bikepacking adventure in the UK. That £100 had to cover not only the two weeks of cycling, but also sourcing everything that I’d need to go on the trip itself. That included finding a bicycle, bags, camping gear, and everything I thought I’d need to (hopefully) cycle the full length of Britain. And because I wanted it to be a proper challenge, and as I wasn’t riding a loop route but rather finishing a very long way from where I was starting, that £100 also had to cover any additional transport costs, including getting back home at the end.

I genuinely didn’t know how this one would turn out. I thought there was a very reasonable chance that the whole thing would be a total failure, that I wouldn’t be able to get a serviceable bicycle within my budget, that the bike would implode, or that I’d run out of money and not be able to feed myself. It’s the most nervous I’ve been for any trip in quite a long time, and I really enjoyed that aspect of the experience.

I’ll leave it at that and let you draw your own conclusions from the two films I put together about the project. I hope you enjoy them!