The 2024 Mid-Atlantic Bikepacking Summit brought together 100 participants over four days in the beautiful Laurel Highlands region of Western Pennsylvania. The event celebrated riding in beautiful landscapes, inclusive community building, and shared learning among backpackers of all levels. Read on below for a captivating summit recap from Bikepacking Roots Executive Director, Noelle Battle.
When I joined Bikepacking Roots in early 2023, I was eager to further our mission to support a growing bikepacking community all across the United States. Based on the East Coast, I was excited to bring a new perspective and to expand our work from its roots in the deserts and mountains of the Southwest & Mountain West across all of the varied landscapes and regions of the country.
I’ve spent a lot of my time getting out to events or connecting virtually with amazing people from coast to coast who are doing cool things to build community among bikepackers in their region or among like-minded affinity groups. This has helped to refine the vision for how a national non-profit can support and partner with grassroots community efforts that are happening more and more at the local level.
Over the past year, Bikepacking Roots has re-envisioned and expanded our Regional Stewards program, a cohort of trusted leaders and community builders who can swap ideas at a national level while also being supported as they host events and lower barriers to bikepacking in their own communities.
The Mid-Atlantic Summit is the culmination of a lot of this work, but also hopefully just the start of more events like it in the future. Bikepacking Summits, which bring together elements of awesome riding, education and community-building, have been happening in various forms over the years as bikepacking has grown in popularity, but the longest-running Regional Summit in the US is the New Mexico Bikepacking Summit held in Las Cruces, NM annually since 2021.
That event has inspired other regional summits, like the Midwest Bikepacking Summit that started in Wisconsin last year. I was able to support both Summits last year, including one of my favorite parts of each event – leading beginner-friendly overnight bikepacking trips.
In 2024, I had the idea for a Mid-Atlantic Bikepacking Summit as a collaboration among the seven Bikepacking Roots’ Regional Stewards in the region, representing New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, Washington D.C., and myself in Maryland. The Summit was envisioned with the following objectives: to build community among Mid-Atlantic bikepackers from a diversity of backgrounds and experience levels, to expose participants to the wealth of bikepacking opportunities in the area and increase participants’ connections to and understanding of the local landscapes, and to lower the barriers to bikepacking for people wanting to try out the sport.
This spring, with a shoestring budget and a group of volunteers, plans were launched to create the first-ever Bikepacking Summit in the Mid-Atlantic Region. The model channeled the grassroots effort and community-focused model that I had experienced in Las Cruces. The event was donation-based and had no sponsorship beyond some amazing brands who donated some great gear and experiences for our fundraising raffle.
Our first task was selecting an ideal venue that would have great riding for all levels – not an easy feat in a region characterized by steep and challenging Appalachian terrain. We settled on the Laurel Highlands Region of Pennsylvania, along one of America’s most beloved and beautiful rail trails, the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP), and surrounded by gravel roads and trails in nearby state park and state game lands where riders could test their love of Type-2 fun against the unavoidable steep grades in the area.
The Outflow Campground in Confluence, Pennsylvania, had a large non-profit group site that could serve as our home base. With dates chosen and a venue secured, we launched a Save the Date at Philly Bike Expo and started to get the word out.
This was my first time putting together an event like this, but I have been lucky to be a part of a few other fantastically organized, community-centered events in the past year, such as Sarah Swallow’s Ruta del Jefe and GRIT Fest, hosted by All Bikes Welcome. These folks set the gold standard for events that stay true to the larger purpose they are serving.
I wanted to make sure that this Summit had something for all types of riders, and I especially wanted new bikepackers and bikepacking-curious folks to feel welcome. We built in elements to support that goal through lending bikepacking gear for any participants that didn’t have all that they needed, hosting workshops aimed at beginners, and ensuring that group rides had support volunteers for riders no matter their pace.
All of the pieces fell into place quite perfectly. Over the course of four days, we had around 100 participants join the Summit and we were graced with almost-too-good-to-be-true weather – no summer storms and a break in the characteristic August humidity that can be sweltering. Many riders joined from Pittsburgh and Washington DC, with a number of riders even riding to the Summit utilizing the GAP Trail and the C&O Canal path. But we were excited to welcome bikepackers from up and down the East Coast, from North Carolina to Massachusetts, and even a visitor from across the border in Ontario, Canada. It was fun to hear all of the stories about how people found out about the event as Bikepacking Roots is still growing its presence across the East Coast.
“The diversity among humans was incredible from age, ethnicity, sexuality, and experience in bikepacking. I felt like I was at the best summer camp ever!” said Ally, a Summit attendee.
Participants rolled in throughout the day and evening on Friday and set up in our “base camp” for the next two nights. Those who were early enough squeezed in some shakeout rides, choosing from a few recommended routes or opting for a casual cruise on the GAP. The group was welcomed by Bryan Perry, Executive Director of the GAP Conservancy, who recounted the story of how the trail was developed from a covert trail building project to a destination that draws riders from all over the world. My friend Taj from Baltimore brought his bikepacking tall bike and threw on some films after dark in our mini outdoor amphitheater.
On Saturday morning, groups gathered to ride to the Bikepacking Expo that had been organized in nearby Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania. There were two options to get to the Expo: enjoy the leisurely 11-mile ride along the GAP or opt for a 14-mile route that climbed up into the state game lands and featured some steep gravel and double track climbs and a fast, flowy descent.
The Expo featured a great mix of advocacy orgs, regional makers, and organizations supporting the bikepacking community. We also organized two informal workshops. The first was all about the camping aspects of bikepacking (shelter options, bear safety, Leave No Trace principles, etc.) hosted by Wild City NY, a newly formed non-profit focused on outdoor adventure, conservation, and youth programming.
For the second, Maggie Livelsberger and Kayla Layng, Bikepacking Roots’ Regional Stewards and co-founders of Hellbenders Adventure Collective, talked Bike Repair for Bikepacking 101. The Hellbenders Adventure Collective, an information hub and community to inspire, encourage, and support FTWNB cyclists to explore bikepacking and adventure cycling in Pennsylvania led several events throughout the weekend and helped to create a welcoming environment. This no doubt contributed to our event demographics, with 60 percent of Summit attendees identifying as FTWNB.
After spending a few hours at the Expo, grabbing lunch in Ohiopyle, and perhaps stopping for a dip in the river, everyone headed back to Confluence for a series of afternoon panel discussions. The first panel was Building Community Through Bikepacking, a discussion on creating inclusive communities and lowering barriers for underrepresented riders. Maggie moderated the panel and Kayla was a panelist along with two other women from the DC area: Alyssa Proudfoot Siegel, Founder of Radical Joy Riding, and Tia Moore, a BIPOC Bike Adventure Grant Recipient and cycling community leader.
Next up was a panel titled Love Where You Ride: Discover How Bikepacking Can Boost Economic Development and Protect Our Cherished Public Lands. The panel was moderated by Andy Williamson, Director of Outdoor Community Development at West Virginia University, and featured perspectives from Helena Kotala of Pennsylvania Environmental Council and regional route developer David Landis. The trio of panels finished up with Bucket-worthy Routes from across the Region, highlighting great routes from the mountains of West Virginia to the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, moderated by Bikepacking Roots’ Community Programs Coordinator Jacob Rex.
Following the panels, groups mingled over a casual cookout, worked on getting their bikes set up for the next day’s overnighters, and grabbed some last-minute tickets for a big fundraising raffle. Some top prizes included a custom frame bag from PA-based bag maker Hikes and Hose, crazy bars from Maryland-based Velo Orange, and entries for regional events like GRUSK in West Virginia, UnPaved Pennsylvania, and Philly Bike Expo.
On Sunday, some folks had to head back to reality but about 50 riders stuck around for some choose-your-own-adventure style bikepacking. Huge thanks to Geoff Patterson, a talented route creator in the Mid-Atlantic Region who curated all of the routes for the 4-day summit.
About half of the riders camped in Ohiopyle, with beginner-friendly, intermediate, and advanced routes to get there. I led the most beginner-friendly option, which was primarily another relaxing ride on the GAP, but managed to squeeze a bit of bikepacking grit into it with a 600 ft gravel hike-a-bike from the rail trail up to the group campsite. Across all of the rides, there were about a dozen riders who were supported on their first-ever bikepacking trip. One rider enthusiastically shared with me that all of the support from the event had, “Enabled me to update my Strava Bio from ‘Aspirational Bikepacker’ to ‘Bikepacking Enthusiast’.”
The Hellbenders led two ride options to Meyersdale, Pennsylvania. Those looking for a challenge rode a hilly, gravel route up to the highest point in Pennsylvania, Mt. Davis. Others opted for a party-pace ride on the GAP, complete with swimming in the Casselman River and a brewery stop in Rockwood, Pennsylvania. The two FTWNB groups reconvened at a campground in Meyersdale that is the site of the annual Pennsylvania Maple Festival and bonded over the campfire until the wee hours of the morning.
Monday morning everyone made their way back to pack up and head their separate ways. New friendships were forged, future bikepacking companions were identified, and the enthusiasm for future events was high. We had riders of all identities, riding all types of bikes, set up in all different ways, from a tall bike to two Bromptons that kicked ass on the gravel climb up Mt. Davis fully loaded!
“One thought kept coming back to me during the event: It doesn’t matter what you ride, how you ride, how you camp, who you are, who you love,” reflected summit attendee Pete. “Being one of the older participants, it made me feel happy to see so many people of diverse backgrounds and ages welcome each other to a common passion, bikepacking.”
We hope to make the Mid-Atlantic Bikepacking Summit an annual event that rotates around the region to introduce riders to new bikepacking possibilities. Through Bikepacking Roots and our Regional Stewards program, I would love to be able to support other Regional Summits all across the country to support inclusive community building, learning, and adventure. Thanks to everyone who contributed to such a special weekend to cap off the summer.
If you would like to find out more about Bikepacking Roots, check out their website, follow them on Instagram, or consider becoming a supporting member today.