has bikepacking killed hiking?

[HaYWiRe]

Now I come from a background of hiking, I've walked many trails and was already from the ultralight point of view carrying a base weight of 4.6kg in a 30l osprey pack, all,was good

But since getting into cycling, and consequently discovered bikepacking, I dont find myself wanting to hike anymore, has anyone else been through this?

I mean its faster, I can cover more distance, fit long trips into short weekends, easier to get to resupplies, and carrying stuff on the bike is easier on my back, given how well connected wales is for bikers I find there to be no downside?

I still want to hike, but cycling just seems to make more sense, its a shame as I have quite the collected of packs and hiking clothes being wasted on shopping duties

So what I'm curious to ask, does anyone here still bivi by foot? Or do multiday hikes?

[Ray Young]

I have never been a hiker, I get bored after a couple of hours, same goes for road riding. Since taking up bikepacking I now find it difficult to motivate myself for short off road rides but force myself to do it to keep up my base fitness.

[Single Speed George]

i use to do allot of hiking when i was much younger ( did things like the WHW and wesix ridge way when like 10-14 with my parents) but then got in to mountain bikeing seperatly and later on at about 15 then rode down hill and free ride for years aswell as xc racing. after breaking too many bones down hill and freeriding and getting a proper job after uni decided to hang up the full face and get back in to enduraince xc racing properly but after s many years of freerid i wanted something totaly new so decided to go full ridigind single speed as i have allways done lots of feel running and stuff so pretty fit. and the ful ridgid 29er is really fun after 8" of travel and can still ride it fast down hill after so many years of practice anyway ! so then i thought hay i would like to do more with this single speed thing, remeberd my days of trying to mountin bike tour with to muc jkit back when i started out biking. but then took my experiences from long distaince walking and looked in to bike packing as i wanted to re do the WHW that i had walked like 10 years ago... so here i am.. i tryed to do some walking recently but it was slow and boaring so e bikepacing is so much more exiting especialy when you get to a technical decent and you ahve all your kit but its stowed well enough to shred like a maniack still get some good looks from people on there enduro bikes when you are keeping up so much more exiting than walking ! so ye i think it has for me !

[composite]

I'm not really answering the question as bikepacking hasn't really had any effect on any other out door activity that I did but your post reminded me of something.

One of things I enjoy about cycling generally is that due to the speed you are riding (in comparison to driving) you always see more of the place you ride through. This might be the scenery or it might be stopping for 15mins to read some info about village you are riding through. However this year I have done some walks in Wales in places where I had only ever ridden before. During these walks I realised I was seeing "more" or maybe I was seeing "different". For instance there is a picturesque gully and stream out of the back of BearBones Towers that I hadn't ever really noticed before although I had ridden past in both directions many times.

I think my point is that although there is obliviously a lot of cross over you can get different things out of them. If you are enjoying what you get out of bikepacking more then great, but I find it strange that you would characterise bikepacking as making more sense. If you want to hike just go do it. If you truly want to I'm sure that when you get out there all thoughts of what makes sense or not would be completely irrelevant. If it doesn't then maybe you are just holding on to something that actually you aren't really into any more.

[ootini]

Nope, if anything it's the opposite. My wife and I used to go on short walks in the country with my son in his backpack carrier thingy on my back, but we'd never walk for more than 3 hours tops. Lack of motivation for one, and lack of fitness on my part. Carrying a 2 year old on your back is actually quite taxing.
Since taking up bike-packing (and MTBing generally) I've found I now want to get out more often and further afield, I'm also fitter and stronger so can carry George on my back for longer periods. I've also had a slight change of mentality since using BB too, instead of thinking "Oh I can't do x, y or z because I don't have quite the right equipment", I'm not thinking "Ok I don't have quite the right equipment, but so what,it can't be that hard, let's give it a go and see how we get on".

[whitestone]

If by "hiking" you mean long distance paths like the Pennine Way then it's not something I've ever been "in to" though I did do Wainwright's Coast to Coast in 1976 so not long after the book came out. However I've been fell walking for nearly fifty years now and it's not something that I can see myself giving up - I've got eight Wainwright tops to do in the Lakes and quite a few Munros left to do. In fact I got my current bike partly to get in to the more remote Munros which is, as yet, the one thing I haven't used it for

To me, bikepacking is simply another activity that I do in the hills. Mountain biking in general gets me to places that I simply didn't visit when fell walking or rock climbing. A couple of years ago I visited two Lakeland valleys that I'd never been to before despite them being only half an hour from where I grew up - neither has a crag so there was never any reason to go. Last new year's eve I rode a bridleway just two miles from the family home that I'd never been on. Last week I was mountain biking in Chamonix and went on trails that I never knew existed as you'd never use them to get to the main climbing areas. So even in areas that I know very well, there's still lots to discover.

[HaYWiRe]

I understand the comment about noticing the scenery, but I actually find I notice more on bike, while yes, I ride alot faster than a walk, I still have the option to ride slow and soak in the surrounding, as I have time to do so.
Whereas before I was rushing to get to the next bivi or supplies in time

In between hiking and bikepacking I got into trail running, day runs bored me but mountain marathons seemed fantastic, and forced me to stay light, maybe I get bored easily and want to go faster, could be my age

The other side is now cycling has taken over completely, I dont drive and my health is very important, I'm constantly riding, distances just keep getting further, 60 mile off road, or 200 road miles, doesn't matter, so maybe its about more than weekend trips, I actually ride in some form every single day,

[petemaz]

I'm the same as you Haywire. I'd backpacked/hiked for years but was starting to suffer a lot from joint pain on steeper climbs. I then discovered bikepacking and the ability to go much further on off-road tracks... now I love it and don't really miss the hiking. Ideally I'd like to get out more but family commitments restrict me.

[benp1]

A bit, but not entirely

Biking means I'm going too far for the dog to come. Walking means shorter distances so the dog comes with me, which gives me an entirely different type of trip

[Mariner]

No.

I live at a point where NR2 and SWCP combine on the seafront given at 4m height.
At each end of the seafront the hills rise to approx 170m and 1.75 miles peak to peak.
The best route is SWCP although I can ride about half way up each hill without mixing with walkers.
The final stage sees me on foot with crossbar across my shoulders - walking or hike-a-biking!
The walkers like to make sure I am not trying to cycle the SWCP as its theirs.

(When its really steep why is it easier to carry a bike than push?)

[Joshvegas]

Nah I'd say its made no difference to me.

Bikes are bloody hopeless if there isn't some sort of path. Feet go overywhere.