Putting Nelson on the Map: Bikepacking for All in the West Kootenays

Bikepacking is active transportation at its most adventurous, and it's far more accessible than it looks from the outside. The real magic, as today's guest explains, is how quickly it becomes doable once you understand the basics.

We sit down with Moe Nadeau, Nelson, BC route builder and newest member of the BC Cycling Coalition board. Her work has helped make the West Kootenays one of bikepacking.com's featured route network hubs in North America, helping put BC's active transportation scene on the global map. 

Moe shares the story behind the West Kootenay Bikepacking Route Network —  five routes designed to be accessible to everyday cyclists, not just hardcore adventurers — and what it actually takes to build a route from scratch. Along the way, she shares stories from riding the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route from Banff to Mexico, plus what long-distance bike travel teaches you about planning, patience, and self-reliance.

Moe also explains why she founded Building Momentum Bikepacking to support women and non-binary riders with skills workshops covering route planning, on-trail mechanics, bike fitting, pelvic health, and period care, lowering the barriers so more people can access cycling as both recreation and travel.

We also talk honestly about e-bikes in the backcountry (charging and weight trade-offs), and how welcoming all kinds of riders helps diversify the whole cycling community.

Whether you're an experienced bikepacker or just getting started with active transportation in BC, this episode will have you eyeing the West Kootenays for your next adventure.

Transcript

Welcome To Bike Sense

Peter Ladner 0:04

Welcome to Bike Sense, the BC Cycling Coalition's podcast, where we talk about all things related to active transportation advocacy in BC. I'm your host, Peter Labner, Chair of the Board of the BC Cycling Coalition. I hope you enjoy the show. Today we're going to talk about bikepacking. Our guest is Moe Nadeau, who has created many bikepacking routes around Nelson that have been recognized on the world's preeminent bikepacking site, bikepacking.com. Because of her, Nelson is one of only three North American bikepacking hubs on that site. Mo founded Building Momentum Bikepacking to provide women and non-binary people with bikepacking skills. And she is one of many eager volunteers around this province who have spent countless hours helping others enjoy cycling the way she does. Welcome, Moe.

Banff To Mexico By Bike

Moe Nadeau 1:15

Thanks, Peter. Nice to be on here.

Peter Ladner 1:17

You got into this in part because of an epic bikepacking trip that you did. Tell us about that.

Moe Nadeau 1:24

So in 2022, I biked from Banff to Mexico along the Great Divide bikepacking route. And then moving from that, we spent a bit of time down on the Baja, and then we took the ferry and the bus over to mainland Mexico, where we spent another month bikepacking in Oaxaca. So sort of a bit of a mix of things, but all throughout North America.

What Bikepacking Really Means

Peter Ladner 1:50

How is bikepacking different from cycle tourism?

Moe Nadeau 1:54

Essentially the only difference, and the reason there's this term called bikepacking, because these are really both the same things, but bikepacking is in search of the least amount of pavement as possible. And so what that means is you probably want the things on your bike to be a lot more streamlined and efficient so that you can maneuver the bike more easily. So, you know, not having large, cumbersome panniers at the back of your bike. You're often doing hike-a-bikes, or you want to kind of throw your bike on the side of a dirt road and be able to pick it up easily. Um, or if there's sections of single track or small ATV double track, you want to be able to maneuver appropriately. And so that's really where the streamlining of putting your gear is has kind of happened in the bikepacking space.

Peter Ladner 2:46

To me, this sounds like high adventure. Uh, and when we talk about cycle tourism, which is a big issue for us at the BC Cycling Coalition, we often hear about the guided tours and the e-bikes and the older people. Where does your version of bikepacking fit on that spectrum of cycle tourism?

Moe Nadeau 3:06

Yeah, I think this is where you know bikepacking.com really comes uh to play in sort of how I bikepack and my type of tourism. Um, I don't typically bike with a guide or have a trip that's predetermined for me, but I really love using the resources uh that are available online so that I can read about the routes, download routes that other folks have done. Um, and maybe I'm diverting a little bit along the way, but I have sort of a scaffolding that's created through online resources so that I can um you know access those to do my tourism.

Peter Ladner 3:44

So you're carrying all your gear. Uh it's not like a toothbrush and a credit card kind of trip where you just go from one hostel or uh nice Airbnb to the next one. And you have to be ready to look after yourself entirely along the trip. Is that right?

Moe Nadeau 4:00

That's right. Yeah. So everything that fits on my bike is essentially my house, my kitchen, all of my supplies for in the event that a mechanical happens, um, all the clothes I would need to keep me warm and dry and safe. Um, everything has to fit on my bike.

Peter Ladner 4:18

What kind of bike do you have?

Gear Without The Hype

Moe Nadeau 4:20

I ride a Surly Krampus, which is a steel hardtail sort of mountain bike. It can have suspension on the front, but I kind of mix between whether I want that suspension or not based on the technical pieces of the route. So it's sort of an indestructible bike, a really burly, heavy bike that can be changed based on the routes that I'm doing.

Peter Ladner 4:46

When I looked at bikepacking.com, they have a large section of gear. All the different things, not just for your bike, but for your camping and lighting your fires and so on. Do you have a special gear hack to make these trips better?

Moe Nadeau 5:02

Oof, that's a really good question. And I would say that the biggest hack to me is not getting caught up in all of that gear and all of the reviews and feeling as though you know you need all of these fancy items to be able to do it. Some of my favorite memories were when I first started bikepacking and you know, I was bungee cording whatever I could to my bike, some things I had found in a free bin that I kind of jimmy-rigged to be on my handlebars and carry my food. So I think for me, the the biggest hack is trying to find unique ways to fit any day items you might already be using to carry your things, rather than really getting sucked into buying all the fancy items. Um But I would also say that stretchy cord is really, really helpful. So if you can affix that to the outside of sort of any different pieces, whether that's, you know, on the back rack um or on your front handlebars, just having that extra space available when you need it, but it, you know, packs down really flat has been a lifesaver for lots of things like raincoats, but also baguettes that you might want to pack with you along the trail. So I've appreciated having that.

Peter Ladner 6:28

I feel like a pro. I never go anywhere without two bungee cords on the back of my bike because you never know what you might have to carry.

Moe Nadeau 6:35

You never know.

Peter Ladner 6:37

People I've talked to who've done epic trips often say that they learn to take less and less as they get more experienced. You just strip it all down to what you only what you need because you're carrying the weight around. Are you a light traveler?

Moe Nadeau 6:53

Yes. When I first started bikepacking, it really was for me more of a way to mountain bike longer and further. So I started not having much space on my bike because I still wanted the mountain bike functionality, which meant right off the bat I sort of had to be a minimalist. You know, I didn't have a big frame triangle because there was suspension there. I didn't have a lot of clearance on my back tire because I wanted to be able to move my bike seat up and down to ride the downhill. So I was almost just forced to be minimalist. And I would say that that has really transpired into all these longer routes that I'm doing, you know, that are less technical, but I'm just used to having less items. So it feels a little easier.

Peter Ladner 7:43

Let's talk about those longer routes. You've created a route or you devised a route or you just discovered a route that met the qualifications of bikepacking.com, which I'd like to know what those are, and became a celebrated route. Tell us about that one.

Moe Nadeau 7:59

Yeah, so back in 2024, yeah, about two years ago, I had been thinking a lot about responsible recreation and you know, how could we create bikepacking routes that really spoke a little bit more than just going out and enjoying a route leaving and not thinking about the place or the people or the culture. And so that was where the impetus for the Kootenai Confluence route came, which really sparked the West Kooteny bikepacking route network. And so I essentially pitched this idea to Miles Arbor, who is the only Canadian employee of bikepacking.com. And timing happened to be really great in that they had funding to create routes in the interior specifically. And so Miles came back and said, What if instead of creating just this one route, you created a whole route network? And we talked about the West Kootenies in general. We talked about their resource extraction history, the uh dams, the indigenous populations, the wildlife. But we also built four to five routes within that area for folks to use. And really the idea there is that the hope is that they're coming not just to do one of those routes, but maybe multiple, and maybe they're staying in Nelson, in between those routes, getting to know the area and really exploring more deeply.

Peter Ladner 9:38

What does it mean to build a route?

Moe Nadeau 9:40

It essentially means to scour over Google Earth and Google Maps and ride with GPS and try and piece together forest service roads, little bits of single track, um, things you might already know based on some of your previous experience, um, but to cobble some sort of a GPX track together that you think is going to work, and then do a big scouting mission with your friends. Um, and so that's what Miles and I did. We really worked collaboratively to think about this route. And we took a couple other people with us and did a bit of a scouting mission to, you know, see what worked and what didn't, and really make sure we were ground truthing as we were going. So for me, this was actually a big learning experience because, again, as someone who does a lot of mountain biking, the typical routes that I do tend to be a little bit um less for everyone. And so I really wanted to make the Kooteny Confluence route something that anyone could do. Um, we really take advantage of lots of the rail trail in the area, but there are a couple of high mountain passes that give some scenery, some beauty to this place. And so we were really thinking about how to mix those differences in to still make a route that was doable for people who were newer to bikepacking, but might want to do, you know, their first week-long adventure.

Peter Ladner 11:15

So they're not single tracks and crazy jumps and that sort of wilder mountain biking. That's not these that's not what you're doing. It's much more open to to let's call them ordinary people or less skilled people.

Moe Nadeau 11:30

Absolutely. We do have one that's a little bit more uh challenging. It's the Bonnington Scrambler, uh, but it's only a few days, and so it's a little bit shorter. So maybe you do want to try something that's a little bit more challenging. That's really the nature of Nelson. There's a lot of steep valleys and challenging terrain here. So we did want to offer one of those options, but largely wanted to make most of these routes accessible for everyone that uh is interested in bikepacking.

Peter Ladner 12:02

So if I go on one of your routes, do I have to have a phone or uh you know mobile device that's keeping me on track and telling me what I'm seeing and the history of the region? Is it is it quite linked into a mobile device? Do you need reception everywhere?

Moe Nadeau 12:20

So for the for the actual route itself, is it is a GPX track. So whatever navigation tool that you might use, you would need, uh whether that's a phone or a bike computer GPS navigator. But the additional information, you know, that speaks a bit more about the history, that's all found on the bikepacking.com website on our root network hub. So you would need to be able to access it via some sort of device to read about it. We don't have, you know, signs along the way that point you in the right direction.

Peter Ladner 12:58

What does it mean that Nelson is one of three bikepacking hubs in North America?

Moe Nadeau 13:03

Yeah, so this is a newer endeavor by bikepacking.com. But the idea again behind that was really to focus on establishing a network of routes in one area so that folks could really explore that space very deeply and again bring back that idea of responsible recreation and more conscious tourism. So, you know, in the bikepacking world, there's a lot of bikepacking racing that happens where people are blowing through areas because they're really wanting to go far and fast. Um we're trying to kind of flip that upside down and think more about what if we went slower and we stayed a little longer and we really learned about the areas. And so that's the essence of these route network hubs. The first one was created in Oaxaca, Mexico. Beautiful routes, very phenomenal opportunities there. The second one was created in Colorado in the US, and we were the third one created in Nelson.

Who Bikepacking Is For

Peter Ladner 14:10

You said you imagined people who would come and do one route and stay in Nelson, go to the bar, have some, have it go to the restaurant, and then do another route. That seems like a uh a little out of reach for your average person with a few weeks of holiday a year. Is this something that's geared to people who are more like yourself who want to do long adventures and have the time and money and whatever to take to do that?

Moe Nadeau 14:34

Well, I think it's a bit of a mix. So the Kootme Confluence route, we we have it on our um on bikepacking.com as about nine days. You could probably finish that in, you know, between seven to nine days. But the other routes are from anywhere from two to four days long. So I would say that, you know, if you do have a two-week holiday, you could potentially get two different routes in, have a little bit of fun in between there. And I think for me, the beauty of bikepacking is it doesn't have to be expensive. Most of our routes take advantage of rec sites, which, you know, those are largely free. And really the key piece there is just making sure you can fuel yourself with the resupply options that are available. And again, kind of coming back to I I firmly believe that the best bike for the trip is the bike you already own. So trying to get creative about what you may or may not need on your bike, how you can pack that efficiently. I really think that bikepacking is one of those sort of lower barrier options uh to, you know, camp and adventure without having to spend too too much.

Peter Ladner 15:48

We heard at a recent BCC meeting a talk about cycle tourism, which described the typical client as people over 50 who come and like to be guided and go on safe routes and bring e-bikes and stuff. Um is it possible to describe a typical bike packing person? Would it be demographic or or somebody younger?

Moe Nadeau 16:17

Yeah, I mean, I definitely do think that the older population are cycling a lot. They probably have more vacation and more opportunity to do that. So I I do tend to see folks, even you know, mid-40s um who have maybe older children or no children that are are coming out and doing these routes. Um, but I myself am in my early 30s and I have a phenomenal community of people and we are all bikepacking. So I I do think there's a a bit of a mix, or maybe more folks that are younger that are learning about this. But in the endurance sport world, I do think it tends to trend a little bit older.

E-Bikes And Charging Reality

Peter Ladner 17:02

Mo, are you seeing people on e-bikes doing bikepacking?

Moe Nadeau 17:08

I don't see a lot of that myself. Um, and I think that largely is because we're on back roads, there might not be reliable access to recharge facilities, or if your battery dies and you still have a big climb to go, the bike could be quite heavy. But I will say that with my inaugural workshop last year, we had one member who was on an e-bike. Um, and at the end of it, one of her big thank yous was thank you for not discriminating based on me needing this e-bike. I had an amazing time and I was able to connect with people I otherwise wouldn't have had the opportunity to because, you know, the non-ebike option was too far out of reach for me. So I think there are instances where, you know, it really could work, but just when you're bikepacking, you might need to do some additional planning to make sure that you can charge appropriately with the spacing of opportunities for charging, especially within the BC backcountry.

Peter Ladner 18:09

Is there such a thing as a solar charger that would fill up an e-bike battery?

Moe Nadeau 18:15

That's a good question. That seems harder. Okay.

Peter Ladner 18:49

You created something called building momentum bikepacking. Tell me what that's about.

Moe Nadeau 18:53

Yeah, so this was really a creation that stemmed following the development of the West Kooteny Bikepacking Route Network. While I was creating these routes with Miles Arbor and my partner Harry Tudor, one of the key things that I was finding was uh it was a challenge to get women or non-binary folks out to scout these routes so that we could have them represented in, you know, the photos and the write-up. And it got me reflecting a little bit on who I tend to bikepack with and what I'm seeing in terms of who feels like they can participate in this sport. And so for me, kind of turning on my researcher hat, I started to question that and reach out to folks and ask a little bit about what those barriers might be. And that's for me where building momentum bikepacking really was formed, uh, really as a way to lower the barriers I was hearing. And mostly what I was hearing was, you know, I'm not seeing myself in this space. All of the content that's being created typically is male-dominated. But when we do have great success stories from women or non-binary folks, it tends to be the racers, the ultra-elite uh athletes. And it's hard to also imagine yourself in that space when you're new to a sport and you just really want to go out and have fun and, you know, build community bikepacking. And so for building momentum, that's really the key pillar is allowing all those barriers to be lowered so that we can just ask questions, learn about the sport, build community in a really safe way. So some of the things that we teach, you know, how to do route planning, how to pack your bike appropriately, how to do some basic bike mechanics on the trail? Um, but we also talk about things like period care and pelvic, um, pelvic health, as well as bike fitting, um, and some more specific items for women and non-binary folks that might just not be talked about in the men's bike world.

Saddle Comfort And Fit Barriers

Peter Ladner 21:08

So uh what is different then about uh a group of women bikepacking versus a mixed group or a group of men?

Moe Nadeau 21:16

First thing that comes to my mind is being comfortable on the saddle. Women have a lot more challenges finding comfortable fitting saddles, and that can often be a big deterrent to wanting to go on long trips. Because I personally suffer from trying to find a good fitting saddle. And so one of my key things with this is trying to talk about it, trying to provide options for people to learn a bit more about you know what their soft tissue means and how we can support that. So they're comfortable. So they do want to go for more than one day because it still feels fun.

Peter Ladner 21:53

What is the secret to a comfortable saddle? Is it just trying different ones until you find one that works?

Moe Nadeau 21:58

I hate to say it, but I A little bit, you know, it it's about doing a little bit of research on your own anatomy and what that might be for the saddle. But I do think that being okay with trying multiple is really important. Um, and that's again for me where accessibility comes in because a bike saddle isn't cheap. And if you have to be purchasing multiple ones, it may become unaffordable. You know, we have a lovely bike shop in town that allows you to buy a saddle and try it and return it if it doesn't work. And that's something I'm promoting. But there are a few other pillars I'm hoping to kind of pull from um and eventually get a collection of saddles where people can come and just try different ones as they're they're learning.

Peter Ladner 22:42

Interesting. Well, you've done four routes now. Uh are there more in the works?

Moe Nadeau 22:47

Yes, we actually posted a fifth one late summer, but it's still um, it's online on bikepacking.com, but you have to go onto the local overnighters in order to find that. So we are building slowly but surely. It's all sort of capacity and funding dependent. So hopefully stay tuned and we'll have a few more routes as well.

Peter Ladner 23:11

At the risk of being a shill for bikepacking.com, what is different and better in your view about bikepacking.com that's made you want to work with them?

Moe Nadeau 23:21

Yeah, I would say that bikepacking.com, um, Logan Watts, the founder, has really rigorous standardization for how the routes are created. And so there's quite a high system criteria that he, you know, makes all route builders go through uh to vet the route. You know, we don't just put up something that we haven't scouted and we haven't thought about the audience. We really make sure to also provide detailed information regarding what a rough itinerary might look like, what some other features you might uh need to play a role in, such as best time of year to go, you know, in the West Cootenies, key information about bear awareness or forest fires that maybe international travelers might not know about. And really just making sure that as much information that could be provided is there, sort of as a one-stop shop. You know, if you don't look at any other information about this region, hopefully that route will provide as much information as you would need to be comfortable on the route.

Peter Ladner 24:29

Do you have any data about people who have been attracted to the region just because of your routes?

Moe Nadeau 24:34

Only anecdotal data, because whenever I see a bikepacker in town, I like to stop and ask them what they're doing. But I would say this. So the route network came out late fall of 2024. So really it wasn't rideable until summer 2025. And last summer I saw a very large increase in the number of cyclists that we had to town. And I heard that from some of the local bike shops or physioclinics that you know they were noticing an increase in bike pack uh tourism. So I think I'm seeing an increase, but no no official metrics at this point.

Peter Ladner 25:12

Well, uh we often talk about how cycle tourism stimulates uh economic uh activity. I but I I haven't really realized that the physio uh services would also be part of the beneficiaries. So yeah. Uh restaurants, massages, the whole works. It's been terrific talking to you, and I really appreciate the work that you're doing, filling in that niche. I also have to mention I'm thrilled that you volunteered to join the board of the BC Cycling Coalition, and we welcome you entirely. And uh look forward to working with you and helping you and others like you keep that part of the bike tourism business going and increasing, and uh filling in part of the full range of cycle tourism. So thank you so much.

Moe Nadeau 26:00

Thank you, Peter, for having me on here, for letting me share a little bit about the efforts that I'm doing here in Nelson. And I'm really looking forward to being part of the BC Cycling Coalition and supporting more broader provincial-wide strategies for cycling. So stay tuned. I'm I'm excited.

Peter Ladner 26:24

You've been listening to Bike Dance, an original podcast from the BC Cycling Coalition. If you like the podcast, we'd be grateful if you could leave us a rating of whatever platform you use. You can also subscribe so you don't miss future episodes. If you have comments or suggestions for future episodes, email me at peter.latner at bccycling.ca. You can help us amplify BC Cycling Coalition's voice by simply becoming a free member at bccycling.ca.