Two Wheels, Two Feet, One Wild Ride:
How Restrap Helped Me Take on Iceland
Before every big adventure, there’s a quiet kind of preparation—sorting gear, weighing what matters, and figuring out how to carry your life on two wheels (and two feet). For my recent bike–run–bike expedition across Iceland, that meant finding gear I could trust from day one to the final mile.
This is the story of how I packed it all—thanks to Restrap—and how the right setup made this wild idea possible.
I landed in Reykjavík with my bike in a box, a small backpack on my shoulders, and a big plan: ride across Iceland, cover 100 miles on foot, then ride back.
No gear drops. No outside support. Just a self-powered, self-sufficient adventure from airport runway to remote trail and back again.
Before the journey could begin, I built my bike in the airport parking lot, layered up against the wind, and rolled away from civilization with everything I needed for the next week packed into a set of Restrap bags.
This was a bike–run–bike adventure, and that meant one thing: every piece of gear had to come with me - across lava fields, up mountain trails, and back again. My entire life for this trip needed to fit on the frame.
The Setup
I chose Restrap because I needed bags that could handle everything—without getting in the way. Handmade in Yorkshire, these bags are built for real-world conditions: wind, rain, gravel, rough terrain, and long days. Everything Iceland would through at me.
Here’s how I made it all fit:
7.5L Frame Bag: The core of the system. It held tools, snacks, first aid, and backup layers. Easy to access and incredibly stable.
10L Bar Pack: My sleep system, rain gear, and puffy lived here. The roll-top design was weatherproof and perfectly balanced on the bars, even when things got rowdy.
0.8L Top Tube Bag: This was my quick-access stash —filled with snacks, gloves, sunscreen, my bike repair kit, and anything I needed while riding.
8L Saddle Bag: This carried my trail running kit: shoes, fuel, extra layers, trekking poles and all my food/meals for the running portion of my journey.
Small Backpack: For overflow and foot-travel-specific items, including poles, maps, and any rain layers I needed to quickly put on.
All told, this setup carried me across the country—twice—and through a massive trail run in between.
The Journey
The first leg was the ride: out of Reykjavík, across a landscape shaped by fire and ice, pushed by tailwinds and sometimes slammed by headwinds (mostly the headwinds, if I’m honest). My bike felt balanced and agile, even fully loaded, and the Restrap bags never shifted, no matter how rough the terrain got. And of course, in Iceland it’s never dry, and even after hours of rain, everything inside my bags were dry.
At the trailhead, I stashed my bike, adjusted my pack, and began part two: 100 miles on foot through volcanic valleys, river crossings, snowy ridgelines, glaciers and remote highland trails. Everything I needed was already with me—packed from the start—because there was no coming back for forgotten gear.
Once I completed the run, I returned to my bike, reshuffled the essentials, and set off on the final leg: back to Reykjavík with tired legs, a full heart, and a fierce tailwind.
Why It Worked
Restrap made this trip not just doable, but enjoyable. When you’re fully self-supported in a place like Iceland, your gear has to do more than carry weight, it has to carry confidence. These bags handled rugged roads, unpredictable weather, and a week’s worth of gear without a single issue. They stayed put, stayed dry, and stayed out of the way so I could focus on the experience, not the logistics.
Each piece is purpose-built, thoughtfully designed, and refreshingly simple. Nothing overcomplicated or fussy, just clean, bombproof construction that does exactly what it’s meant to. And I love that every bag is handmade in Yorkshire, by people who clearly understand the demands of real adventure. That craftsmanship came through in every mile.
Restrap helped me ride lighter, think less, and go further. And when you're chasing big, bold goals across wild terrain, that’s exactly what you want from your gear.
What’s Next
This Iceland bike–run–bike adventure was one of the most inspiring adventures yet. There’s something about moving through wild landscapes with everything you need strapped to your frame that invites new ideas, stokes curiosity, and nudges you toward the next challenge.
I’ve got my eye on something big: a bikepacking traverse across the Pyrenees later this year. More climbing, more solitude, more adventure - this time with new terrain, new challenges, and the same trusted kit.
With the right setup and a bit of stubborn curiosity, the possibilities feel wide open, thanks to a dialed setup from Restrap.
Amazing! Where did you leave your bike?