Packing Essentials and Tips for Your First Motorcycle Trailer

Looking to get on an adventure or camping but wondering how you could take your trailer with you? All you need is a bike. Many skilled motorcyclists have found comfort in the form of a motorcycle pull behind cargo trailer, mainly for two reasons:

  • Extended Storage.
  • Lowered Expenses.

If you’re not one of them, it’s time you reconsider.

However, while you may love to take a motorcycle trailer with you, it’s not enough. This article will take you through all the essentials you’ll need with your first motorcycle trailer and some tips to help you maintain it better.

Top 8 Moto-Trailering Essentials

When it comes to motorcycle camping, it may seem unnerving at first. But with the proper knowledge, you’ll manage to pull off these overwhelming trips without a hitch.

For people with their first motorcycle trailer, waiting for a reliable guide to help them pick all their trailer essentials, this is the place to be.

Atlas

An atlas is important for bikers, it ensures they’re on the right path always. Particularly road maps, these come in handy when you’re lost. Even if you’re not exactly lost, it’ll assist you throughout your planned journey.

Granted it is the digital era, everyone has smartphones allowing them access to any map in the world. But bikers cannot depend on the network to find their way, sometimes your device’s battery may also run out. For such situations, you’ll need an atlas.

Best Buy: 2019 Rand McNally Large Scale Road Atlas

Perhaps the best atlas out there, the 2019 edition of Rand McNally’s Large-Scale Road Atlas contains the road maps of every state in the U.S.

Some of its essential features are:

  • 35% larger than an average atlas.
  • Spiral-Bound, making it easier to turn through the maps.
  • Travel Tips!
  • Tourism Websites and Phone Numbers for every U.S. and Canadian province.

LED Headlamp or Flashlights

LED Headlamps or flashlights come in handy if you’re stranded somewhere at night. They’re a good investment, in any case, you need a flashlight after dusk if you stop anywhere on your trip. Headlamps can be helpful if you need your hands to be free for another task but need the area to be illuminated simultaneously.

Best Buy: outlite A100 Portable Ultra Bright Handheld LED Flashlight

This flashlight can serve you for more than 5 hours with 3 simple AAA size batteries. Its compact design is skid-proof, water-resistant, and unbreakable.

Some of its essential features are:

  • Powerful LED.
  • Two modes select between floodlight or spotlight.
  • Can light a 100 meters room easily or focus on an object 1000 feet away.
  • Additional settings with five modes; High, medium, low, strobe, and SOS.

Best Buy: Black diamond Spot325 Headlamp

This device comes with three AAA size batteries and works for hours at maximum intensity.

Some of its essential features are:

  • Synthetic Strap
  • PowerTap Technology, switch from full to dimmed power on the go.
  • Waterproof tested underwater for 30 minutes.

First Aid Kit / Survival First Aid Kit

You must be prepared for the worst-case scenario; you can’t assume that everything will go the way you planned it would. Be prepared to treat yourself primarily while waiting for help with a good first aid kit. But you could be camping, or trekking, or on a road trip, so a survival first aid kit is a better alternative than a normal first aid kit.

Best Buy: Holtzman's Gorilla 98-in-1 Emergency Survival Kit

With this survival kit, you’ll be prepared for everything that could go wrong; from snake bite to a fracture.

Some of its essential features are:

  • Comes with 98 items inside.
  • Get an attractive 8×5 inch backpack.
  • Includes everything in a single bag.

Tool Kit

Your bike might break down in the middle of nowhere, in such cases, there’s no chance you’ll get any mechanic nearby. With a handy toolkit, you can fix the problem yourself. You can use the tool kit if your trailer needs calibration or even your motorcycle.

Best Buy: Motorcycle Roadside Professional Tool Kit

With this toolkit, you can find a temporary replacement for almost all the parts of your trailer and motorcycle. It is highly suggested to buy a standard toolkit that can be used for both, the trailer and the motorcycle to preserve space.

Some of its essential features are:

  • 6 months warranty.
  • Includes Drill Machine and 115 different accessories.
  • Ideal for traveling.

Sleeping Bag

Wherever you are headed to, you cannot ride a bike non-stop, you may want to sometimes find a spot outside where you can spend the night. Getting enough sleep is perhaps the most important aspect to avoid accidents and be alert on the road.

These bags allow you to stay safe from the cold weather by keeping you warm. I know I broke mine out a few times underneath an overpass during a cold water thunderstorm.

Best Buy: Sleepingo Double Sleeping Bag (XL)

This queen size double sleeping bag folds into a smaller size and fits into a carrying case (provided). It is a perfect accessory to add to your trailer. Enjoy outdoors with your partner, or simply if you want extra space and normal sleeping bags are very compact.

Some of its essential features are:

  • Folds to a portable 15×12” size.
  • Waterproof, suitable for camping.
  • Lightweight.

Flares

At the time of an accident, these pyrotechnics come in handy to send out a distress signal. But traveling with these pyrotechnics is dangerous, therefore opt for inflammable alternatives like LED Flares and be prepared for the worst situation.

Best Buy: CY Plastics Red Safety Flare Container

This red container holds the ORION flares (pyrotechnic) intact so that when you need them, they’re still working. Also, so that they’re safely stored without opening up in the trailer.

Some of its essential features are:

  • Holds 12 Orion Flares.
  • Great to hold flares while hiking, camping, or riding.

Flaming balls of fire are outdated when it comes to “safety.” We recommend that you upgrade your kit to include these LED safety light markers.

Rain Gear

For motorcyclists, nothing comes between them and their destination. Not even rain, for this reason, packing the essential gear to keep you covered from the downpour is essential.

The common gear you’ll need to keep you dry during rainy motorcycle rides are:

Ground Cloth (Tarpaulin)

A tarp, or tarpaulin, is a sheet of strong, flexible, and water-resistant material to set camp on. Although for open motorcycle pull behind cargo trailer, the use of a tarpaulin to cover its top is common.

Best Buy: Heavy Duty Mesh Tarp

This heavy-duty mesh tarp is ideal for trailers and motorcyclists. Spread it out on the trip and put on a tent over it, it offers water resistant and durable base for your tent.

Some of its essential features are:

  • 10 feet x 10 feet.
  • Black Color.
  • 2” nylon webbing.

 

Some Tips for Your First Motorcycle Trailer

  • Always pack the trailer in a way that the heavier and bulky items are at the bottom and top of the trailer. The lighter items must be in the middle of these two layers. This ensures a better balance.
  • Regularly check the tires of your motorcycle and trailer, with a motorcycle pull behind cargo trailer you’ll be pulling almost half the weight of your bike. Naturally, this will affect the tires adversely.
  • Select a Cargo trailer according to the build and model of your bike.
  • The trailer must not be wider than the width of your motorcycle and not further than 2.5 meters from the motorcycle.

Conclusion

Getting your first motorcycle is thrilling, just as thrilling is when you get the extra space offered by your motorcycle trailer. Sure, there’s a learning curve, but that doesn’t stop the riders from hitching a motorcycle pull behind cargo trailer to their bikes.

Now that you have the trailer (and space) of your dreams, start filling it with all the essentials mentioned above which are suitable for every trip. Along with them, put in a few extra things that you’ll need based on the type of trip you’re planning, and you’ll be all set.

Happy Towing!

1 comment

Stan Gaskin

Stan Gaskin

good content and usefull, especially like the pups.

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