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The GPX said water in 18 miles. The creek had been dry for two years.
I found that out from a guy in a pickup who slowed down, looked at my two near-empty bottles, and said “you plannin’ on that creek up ahead?” I was. He gave me a litre from his cooler and I made it to town. The route was from a well-regarded blog. The post was four years old. Nobody had updated it.
What changed everything was building my own routes — not downloading someone else’s and hoping. This is the system I use now: a seven-step process that takes you from a blank map to a verified, rideable bikepacking route with resupply stops confirmed and water carry calculated. Takes about 2–3 hours the first time. Gets faster every trip. If you want pre-built starting points, the best bikepacking routes guide has verified options across the US.
Table of Contents
- What Makes a Bikepacking Route Actually Work
- The 7-Step Route Building Framework
- Water Gap Calculator
- GPX Files: Building, Editing, and Cleaning
- Resupply Strategy
- Real Walkthrough: Building a 3-Day Route
- Common Route Planning Mistakes
- Pre-Departure Checklist
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Where to Go From Here
What Makes a Bikepacking Route Actually Work
Before you open any app, it helps to know what you’re optimising for. A good bikepacking route has five things working together:
- Achievable daily distances — not what you can do on your best day, but what you’ll do on day three, loaded, with elevation
- Water at the right intervals — sources you’ve verified are reliable, not “should be fine”
- Resupply that matches your carry capacity — with real store hours, not just a town name on a map
- Surface type you can actually ride — the difference between “unpaved road” and “sand wash” is not academic
- Bailout options — at least one per day; plans change, bodies break down
Most routes you download are strong on one or two of these and vague on the rest. Building your own means you get to verify all five before you leave.
The 7-Step Route Building Framework
Step 1 — Define your trip constraints
Start here, not with a map. The same questions apply whether you’re figuring out how to plan a bike tour across a new state or a local 3-day loop — answer these before you open anything:
- How many days do you have, including travel?
- Point-to-point or loop? (Loops are logistically simpler; point-to-point requires a shuttle or public transport plan)
- What’s your realistic daily range on a loaded bike on mixed terrain?
- Any non-negotiables — terrain type, specific region, starting town?
On a loaded gravel bike on mixed surface, most riders average 45–65 miles/day. On a hardtail with significant singletrack or climbing, drop that to 30–50 miles/day. If it’s your first multi-day trip, use the lower end and add a buffer day. The most common planning mistake isn’t underestimating distance — it’s forgetting that day three exists.
Step 2 — Sketch the macro shape
Open Google Maps (satellite view) or Gaia GPS and draw a rough territory — not a route yet, just a corridor. Where does it start and end? What’s the general shape? Are you going through mountains, along a river valley, through high desert?
At this stage you’re asking: does the geography support what I want to do? Are there obvious barriers — mountain ranges, rivers with no crossings — that’ll force you somewhere you don’t want to go? Mark any must-hit points: a particular pass, a town you want to stay in, a stretch of singletrack you’ve heard about.
Don’t route yet. Just sketch.
Step 3 — Set realistic daily targets and mark resupply
Take your daily mileage estimate and divide your total distance into day-segments. Then immediately ask: where does resupply fall within those segments?
The rule I use: no more than three days between resupply points unless you’re deliberately going remote and have planned food weight accordingly. Three days of food on a loaded bike is roughly 3–4 lbs — manageable. Five days starts to hurt your handling and your back.
| Days between resupply | Food carry (est.) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1–2 days | 2–3 lbs | Comfortable, flexible packing |
| 3 days | 3–4 lbs | Standard planning target |
| 4–5 days | 5–7 lbs | Manageable but affects handling |
| 6+ days | 8+ lbs | Mail drop territory — plan ahead |
Once you’ve marked your resupply towns, verify them before you commit. Google the store. Check whether it’s a full grocery, a gas station, or a seasonal operation. Look up the hours — small-town stores in the American West often close Sundays or keep 9–5 hours that’ll catch you out if you’re rolling in at 6pm. I’ve pulled into a Texas town at 7pm on a Sunday and found everything shut except a gas station with warm beer and stale peanuts. That was a three-bar dinner.
Step 4 — Plan your water
This is the step most route guides skip or hand-wave. Water planning isn’t complicated, but it requires actual research — not assumptions.
Start by identifying every potential water source on your route using the USGS National Water Information System Mapper, Gaia GPS water layer, and Caltopo (which pulls USGS stream data). Mark all of them. Then research reliability: a spring that’s listed but hasn’t been confirmed in 18 months is a maybe, not a yes. Cross-reference with recent trip reports on bikepacking.com, MTB Project, or local hiking forums.
Find the longest stretch between verified reliable sources on your route. That’s your planning number. Match your carry capacity to it:
| Gap between water | Carry needed (moderate temp) | Carry needed (hot / desert) |
|---|---|---|
| Under 20 miles | 2L | 3L |
| 20–35 miles | 3L | 4–5L |
| 35–50 miles | 4–5L | 6–7L |
| 50+ miles | Reconsider the route or add a cache point | |
In the Southwest from May through September, add 30–40% to those numbers. Heat and elevation change your consumption significantly. I carry 4L minimum in desert terrain regardless of distance — one unexpected detour or a slower-than-planned day changes everything. For extra capacity on long desert gaps, the CNOC Vecto 2L packs flat and fits easily in a frame bag pocket.
Water filter I use on every route:
Sawyer Squeeze — Lightweight, reliable, works inline with a soft bottle. Covers everything from mountain streams to desert springs.
Step 5 — Build the actual route
Now open your routing tool. Here’s how the main options stack up for bikepacking specifically:
| Tool | Best for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Komoot | Fast route sketching, surface filtering, good trail database | Auto-routing defaults to pavement — set profile to gravel/touring and manually check any section that seems too direct |
| Ride with GPS | Custom POI layers, clean GPX management, collaborative editing | Full custom routing needs a paid plan (~$80/yr) — worth it if you build routes regularly |
| Caltopo | Topo detail, USGS data, water and terrain research | Not a routing tool — use it alongside Komoot or RWGPS for verification, not building |
| Gaia GPS | Offline maps, water layers, on-device navigation | Route building is clunky on desktop — better as your riding app than your planning app |
| gpx.studio | Free GPX editing, merging, cleaning | No auto-routing — you draw manually on the map; slower but precise |
The most reliable stack for most riders: Komoot route planning gets you to a draft fast (good trail data, surface filtering) → verify terrain and water in Caltopo (USGS layers) → add custom POIs in Ride with GPS → export GPX and load into Gaia for the ride. If you only use one tool, Komoot handles 80% of the work — just watch for its tendency to default to pavement on auto-routing.
Step 6 — Verify the GPX
Before you trust any GPX — including one you built yourself — run through these checks:
- Open it in Google Earth and look in 3D — you’ll immediately see if a section climbs something unreasonable or routes through terrain that doesn’t make sense
- Check surface breakdown in Komoot or RWGPS — “unpaved” covers everything from hardpacked gravel to deep sand; if you can’t tell, search the specific road name + “bikepacking” in recent trip reports
- Flag any section longer than 30 miles with no turn options — these are your commitment points — and cross-check your elevation totals against a second source; GPX elevation data is notoriously unreliable, and Komoot, Strava, and Ride with GPS all calculate it differently
- Download offline maps for the whole route in Gaia before you leave — cell coverage is not a planning assumption. I download a 10-mile buffer either side of the route so a wrong turn doesn’t leave me navigating blind.
Step 7 — Score the route before you commit
Run through this quick sanity check before finalising anything:
- Daily mileage is achievable on day 3, not just day 1
- Every resupply store verified open on the day you’ll arrive
- Longest water gap within your carry capacity with buffer
- All water sources confirmed reliable in current season
- GPX surface breakdown reviewed — no mystery sections
- At least one bailout option per day identified
- Offline maps downloaded for full route
- Someone at home has the route file and knows your return date
If you can tick all eight, go. If you’re fudging more than two, the route needs more work.
Water Gap Calculator
Enter your worst-case gap and conditions — get your minimum carry recommendation.
For a 25-mile moderate-temperature stretch with flat terrain, 3L covers you with a small buffer. Always fill completely at the last confirmed source.
💡 Add 0.5L per hour of expected delay (headwind, hike-a-bike, wrong turn).
GPX Files: Building, Editing, and Cleaning
Working with GPX files for bikepacking throws a few curve balls that aren't obvious until you've lost an hour to a broken merge or a device that won't load your route. A few things that'll save you time:
Starting from scratch vs editing an existing GPX: If a good route exists for your area — bikepacking.com, local club, whatever — start there and modify it rather than building from a blank map. It's faster and you benefit from someone else's terrain knowledge. Just treat every water source and resupply stop as unverified until you've confirmed it yourself.
Merging GPX files: If you're stitching segments from different sources, use gpx.studio (free, browser-based). It handles merging cleanly and lets you manually adjust connections where segments don't quite line up.
Cleaning bad elevation data: If your GPX has elevation spikes or obviously wrong total climbing, use the "correct elevations" function in Ride with GPS or import into Strava and compare. For really messy files, gpx.studio lets you strip elevation entirely and re-apply from a clean source.
Export format: Export as .gpx for maximum device compatibility. If you're loading to a Garmin, test the file on the device before the trip — some models have file size limits or struggle with routes over a certain number of waypoints.
Resupply Strategy
A solid resupply strategy for bikepacking comes down to two numbers: calories per day and miles between stops. Most riders burn 3,500–5,000 calories/day depending on output. Trail food runs about 100–120 calories per ounce for well-optimised packing. A rough planning target is 1.5–2 lbs of food per day if you're prioritising calorie density. See the bikepacking cooking system guide for specific meal ideas and calorie-dense options that actually taste good after day three.
When you hit a resupply town, buy for the next segment plus a half-day buffer. If the next segment is three days, buy three and a half days of food. This gives you flexibility without overloading.
What actually works in small Western towns — and for most bikepacking routes in the USA, you'll be hitting at least a few of these: Dollar General and Family Dollar are more common than full grocery stores in rural areas and carry oatmeal, peanut butter, crackers, ramen, and candy — fine for a 1–2 day resupply. Gas stations with a deli offer hot food, which is genuinely valuable on a long trip. Always search "[town name] grocery store hours" the week before your trip — hours on Google Maps aren't always current for small rural stores.
Real Walkthrough: Building a 3-Day Route
Here's how this process looks applied to a specific trip — a three-day loop in the Hill Country of Texas, starting and ending in Fredericksburg.
Step 1 — Constraints: 3 days riding, loop, gravel bike, targeting 55 miles/day average.
Step 2 — Macro shape: In Google Maps satellite view, I sketched a counterclockwise loop heading north through Llano County, east toward Mason, south back via the Pedernales corridor. Total rough distance: ~165 miles. Fits the 55/day target with some flex.
Step 3 — Resupply: Fredericksburg (start/end, full grocery), Llano at mile ~55 (HEB grocery, verified open 7 days), Mason at mile ~110 (small grocery, confirmed open weekdays until 7pm — I called). Three segments, all under three days, all verified.
Step 4 — Water: Hill Country has decent water in spring but limited in summer. I identified seven potential sources using Caltopo water layer, cross-referenced four of them with recent trip reports — two confirmed, two uncertain. Worst-case verified gap: 28 miles in the middle section. Carry capacity needed: 3L minimum. I carry 3.5L on this bike, comfortable.
Step 5 — Route build: Drafted in Komoot on gravel/touring profile. Manually checked every auto-routed section over 10 miles — Komoot tried to put me on Highway 87 twice. Corrected both to county roads. Added water POIs and resupply stops in Ride with GPS.
Step 6 — GPX verification: Opened in Google Earth — one section in the Llano Uplift looked sketchy (exposed granite terrain, no clear track visible from above). Found a recent trip report confirming it's rideable but slow. Adjusted daily target for that segment from 55 to 45 miles.
Step 7 — Scorecard: All eight boxes ticked. Went two weeks later. No drama.
Common Route Planning Mistakes
Planning for your best day, not your average day. You rode 80 miles last weekend on a day ride. Loaded, on day three, with a headwind, you'll do 50. Plan for 50.
Trusting GPX water sources without verifying. Any water source on a route more than 12 months old needs checking. Conditions change, springs dry up, and filters on water caches get removed. This is the one that bites people in the desert.
Routing through "unpaved" without knowing what that means. In the American Southwest, unpaved can mean hardpack, washboard, loose gravel, sand, or chunky rock — very different riding experiences. Search the specific road, not just the route, before committing.
Ignoring seasonal closures and land access. Forest roads, wilderness areas, and some BLM land have seasonal closures for fire, hunting, or wildlife — and not all land is open for through-travel. Check with the relevant agency for any section passing through managed or private land before you finalise the route.
No bailout planning. Every day should have at least one point where you can cut to a paved road and get out if something goes wrong. Know where those points are before you need them.
Pre-Departure Checklist
- GPX loaded on device and tested — scroll the whole route
- Offline maps downloaded for full route plus 10 miles either side
- All resupply stores verified open on arrival days
- Water sources confirmed for current season
- Water carry capacity matches worst-case gap
- Filter/treatment method packed and functional
- Bailout options identified per day
- Route file shared with someone at home
- Return date and check-in plan confirmed
- Weather checked — contingency plan if major weather hits on day 2
- Any permits or access permissions confirmed
- Phone fully charged, battery pack packed
The difference between a trip you tell stories about and one you'd rather forget usually comes down to five things: water, food, surface, fitness pacing, and bailout planning. Build the route right and four of those are decisions you made at home, not problems you discovered on the road.
Pick a region, open Komoot, and start with the macro shape. The rest follows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where to Go From Here
A good bikepacking route isn't found — it's built. The seven steps above take about 2–3 hours the first time and get faster with every trip you plan. Pick a region, open Komoot, sketch the macro shape, and work forward from there. The water carry calculator above is yours to reuse for every route you build from here on. For navigation apps to run your route on the day, see the Gaia GPS vs AllTrails guide. For the gear you'll need to pack, the full bikepacking gear guide has you covered.
This route planning guide for bikepackers is for general education and trip preparation. Conditions, water sources, and road access can change — always verify with local land managers before your trip and carry appropriate safety equipment.
