Trailtopia is a Minnesota-based adventure food company using all-natural ingredients and a boatload of real veggies, fruits, and meat. They make entrees, desserts, and breakfasts perfect for bikepacking. Today we review several of their food packs and share our thoughts. From Rochester, Minnesota, the idea for Trailtopia was born in 2013. Vince Robichaud wanted a better option for adventure ingredients that included all-natural foods and real veggies, fruits, and grains. They're a family-run company that makes adventure food right from their up-north kitchen in Minnesota. All of their meals (almost all) can be prepared right in the bag with no mess. They have minimal additives and usually have a shelf life of 5 years. They even sell freeze-dried meat on the side so you can go with extra protein or even add it to your own recipes in da woods. They're full of real fruits and veggies and color and protein. Natural, Nutrient-Rich Ingredients Trailtopia's foods are all made in their Minnesota kitchen using simple freeze dried ingredients. Their ingredient lists are all short and readable and their meals are full flavored but really wholesome. No matter what you choose, you're going to get a whole lot of veggies meat. If you need even more protein, they sell side packs of meat including beef, beef crumble, chicken, hulled hempseed, and sausage crumble. They're pre-cooked, freeze-dried, and rehydrate quickly. They also have some fun collabs including a Bent Paddle Beer Braised Chicken Stew using Bent Paddle's ESB Amber Ale if you want to double down on Minnesota goodness. Trailtopia Meals Variety is pretty important if you do a lot of camping. Trailtopia has versions of several of the staple outdoor flavors like chili mac and beef stroganoff also have some fun twists like Cajun Smack Chicken and Rice and Chicken Cashew Curry . Open them up and they're all full of color since they have a full does of real freeze-dried veggies. I'm gluten-free and really enjoyed the Teriyaki Chicken & Rice . But I'm also psychotic and don't like mushrooms so I pulled those all out before cooking. Back in the good old days, I would enjoy custom prepared meals in the woods, but I'm completely sold out on just-add-water meals. These are freeze-dried, super light, mess free, local, and made with wholesome ingredients. I also tried some breakfast options . The oatmeal is definitely tasty and simple, but personally I think it's hard to beat the simple grocery store variety packs when it comes to oatmeal. They come in smaller portions, but I've always just cooked up a few of them and mixed and matched flavors. But f you're looking for larger portion sizes and real fruit, these are an excellent option. Desserts with Real Fruit I almost never go camping without dessert. Whether that's a maple waffle chocolate bar or fried rice crispy bars, dessert tastes amazing in the woods (and it's a nice evening activity around camp). Trailtopia's Triple Berry Crisp weighs just 4oz and has real freeze-dried strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. These are gluten free, serve two, and you can prep it while eating your dinner so it's ready to go when you're done. The berry crisp was a nice sweet option that I wouldn't otherwise be able to have at camp without bringing some kind of processed berry goop. It comes with crisp topping and that made for a complete dessert. They have a few varieties of berry crisps as well as cheesecakes and pudding . They all prep right in the bag for a mess free end-of-the-night snack. To find more entrees, breakfasts, and desserts from Trailtopia, visit their website or follow them on Instagram .

Minnesota has just had one official bikepacking route, Straddle & Paddle, for several years. With the addition of Minnesota's new Driftless Loop , we added a Minnesota Bikepacking Routes page to The Nxrth. View the Minnesota Bikepacking Routes page. The two Minnesota routes are on pretty opposite parts of the state. Many of you who have done Straddle & Paddle are now already planning trips to explore The Driftless Loop. We'd love to add more Minnesota routes to the map, so if you have a great route and great photos to share, let us know!

Bromandude719 recently dropped a nice little Wisconsin gravel biking montage. Fair warning: this includes lots of snowy gravel shots so if you're strictly basking in your snow-free, mosquito-filled summer of gravel and lemon iced tea, you may want to avert your eyes. And just for fun, here's "Part 1" from last year:

Trenton Raygor closed the books on The Day Across Minnesota last year but continues his race, The Filthy, as well as some other upcoming projects. Here we talk about unforgettable experiences and doing adventures together with family. Interview with Trenton Raygor @trigunw0lf What's it like being done with DAMn? You built something incredible, filled 500 seats in a day, were a Banff Film Official Selection and now it's over. The Day Across Minnesota was something truly incredible. Never would I have thought that going on a birthday bike ride with my friends Carl and Robert would lead to any of this. The DAMn had five incredible years and challenged hundreds of all types of humans from all over the United States (and some from overseas) to push themselves. One of the most special things for me is knowing that each and every one of them has walked away changed, healthier, and primed for new adventures. Yeah, we made a film and were sent to Banff Canada to premier at the famed Banff Mountain Film Festival and then sent to Paris France to show at Tous En Selle in Europe's largest cinema. We even got to hangout and ride bikes with Bernard Hinault! It's all been an incredible honor to be a part of. This year, 2022, definitely feels different than the past five. I knew that it would, and honestly, that was the hope when Erik and I made the decision to shelve The Day Across Minnesota, announcing that 2021 would be our last. I have two children, as does Erik. They needed our time back and we both knew that it was the right thing to do. We see one another a little less than we used to, but he and I were hanging out last weekend grilling in his backyard and I mentioned noticing that since December of 2021, I've had a lot more time to spend with my kids. Mission accomplished? It's funny though, because in that same conversation, he mentioned that if I was on board and was interested in bringing it back, that he would be all in. It's safe to say that we both miss The DAMn and all of the great things that it's done for the cycling community as well as the small towns like Gary, South Dakota and Hager City, Wisconsin who have welcomed hundreds of us with open arms year after year. I'll go out on a limb and say that I think we both miss the time with each other, burning it at both ends, with little to no sleep for 3 days straight as well. The humanity, the nature, the fortitude, the suffering, the psychology, the disappointment, the elation, I swear...when you're race directing, you're in the middle of it all, and there's honestly nothing like it. You've been a great example of making cycling a family generational activity. What does family and biking mean to you? Biking has always been about family. My dad used to race road bikes regionally back in the 1980s. He was always a hero and inspiration of mine in that regard, though I didn't really start riding long distances or racing until he got back on the bike a little over a decade ago. He had just beat lymphoma, but was pretty unhealthy. Getting back on the bicycle and training for gravel rides like The Almanzo 100 is really what helped get him back to a healthy place and also gave us a wonderful opportunity to better connect. Around that same time, we decided that though all of these 100 mile gravel races were fun, there should be something more attainable to hopefully attract new riders and help grow the gravel cycling community. Nine years ago, together, we put on The Filthy 50 which has now become one of the largest gravel cycling events in the country. My mom, brother, and sisters are all a big part of The Filthy as well and my oldest son who is 14 years old will be riding it this year, so yeah, you could say that cycling is generational and important to the family. That 14 year old of mine has also joined the Six One Two High School Mountain Biking Team this year. He's pretty excited about it and needless to say, so am I. Any secret big ideas you've been working on that you want to talk about? No secrets, but I can talk about a couple of new things that are in the works on the film front. Upon the launch of our film ' Delta of Spirit ', my friend Nicholas Kapanke and I started Checkpoint Zero Films. Since then we've released a couple of shorts, but are now working on a couple of bigger, longer running projects. The first is unofficially titled 'The Last DAMn'. You can probably guess what it's about... We are getting close to finishing this one. One of the coolest things about it to me are the contributions that some of our riders have already made to the film. In addition to the riders that we follow and their gripping stories, Ben Weaver, a friend, poet, musician, and DAMn alumni, shared a song and a poem for the film. Tony Thomas, a friend, musician, colleague, and DAMn alumni contributed all of the soundscapes for the score. A few others who have completed The DAMn are also providing us with pieces for the film that will truly make it a community creation. I absolutely cannot wait for this one to drop! The other film that we are working on will be a bit more of a Ken Burns like documentary about gravel cycling in America. If you got into gravel cycling at all in 2022 and are wondering how it got here, well, this film will help you understand how and why things are the way that they are. Believe it or not, it hasn't always been this way. What are your Top 5 "Up North Things"? 1. The Arrowhead 135 It doesn't get much more "Up North" than riding your bike, skiing, or running 135 miles through the woods from International Falls to Tower in late January. 2. Jeremy Kershaw He's a fellow race director and all around good human who puts on the Le Grand Du Nord gravel ride out of Grand Marais as well as Heck of The North. 3. Y-ker Acres As a connoisseur of bacon, this family farm near Duluth is producing some of the best I've ever had. 4. Voyageurs Wolf Project Wolves are my favorite animal and if I haven't had the chance to visit in a while, the internet takes me there. https://www.voyageurswolfproject.org/videos 5. Jay Cooke State Park This is one of my favorite state parks in Minnesota and a place where my family has made some great memories.

Tour de Chequamegon event organizer Dave Schlabowske has teamed up with Brooke Goudy & Devin Cowens to offer 5 scholarship spots for riders who identify as gender expansive and BIPOC. Learn more about the Tour de Chequamegon and who is eligible to apply. Photo: Cliford Mervil @cliford.mervil From the Tour de Chequamegon website : Brooke Goudy and Devin Cowens will be ride guides along for all three days of the Tour de Chequamegon weekend trip and help create a welcoming space for BIPOC cyclists of any experience level to enjoy the scenic gravel roads of Wisconsin’s Northwoods. We are holding five of the 50 spots on the Tour de Chequamegon (Sept. 22-25, 2022) for this program, and people from the Midwest will be given preference to provide an opportunity for regionally located cyclists to explore in their own backyard. There will be no charge for those five spots. We can also help with equipment and possibly offset travel expenses. Representation matters so this scholarship opportunity will also aim to create an inclusive space for trans, women, intersex, and gender expansive adventure riders that identify as BIPOC. For more info, visit the Tour de Chequamegon .

In 1997 Borah shipped its first products. Now an iconic made-in-the-USA teamwear brand, they celebrate their 25th anniversary. Today we catch up with Founder Chris Jackson to chat about the company's history and his favorite up-north bike things. Learn more about Borah Teamwear on their website . How did you start Borah? After graduation from UWL, I moved to Minneapolis and took my first "real" job as a copier salesman. They say to hit up your family and friends first, so I called on a riding buddy who was managing a bike shop in the Twin Cities. I did not manage to sell him a copy machine, but he did suggest to me that I might want to try and sell bike stuff instead of copiers. So, I took his advice, purchased a suit, and drove down to the Chicago Area Bicycle Dealers Association (CABDA) show and managed to talk a few sales managers into letting me represent their lines in the Midwest. After a 5 year stint as an independent sales rep, I thought it would be cool to develop a casual line of mountain bike apparel and call it Mt Borah Designs. I have always enjoyed well designed clothing and I felt the market at that time had room for another brand and that was the beginning! Am I right that Borah turns 25 this year?! Borah's first shipment of product was in 1997, so that is 25 years already! I can hardly believe it has been that long, the bike industry has never felt like a "real job" to me, so time flies when you are having fun I guess! You started the Borah Epic (Now "Epic Bike Fest") and seem to be really supportive of your employees being active athletes. How important is active community to Borah's success? Our internal mission at Borah is to create and promote a positive and healthy work environment. This mission has proven to serve us well in many ways. Of course, encouraging employees to be active is very important to us. We provide extended (paid) breaks to our staff so they can take a walk, play an outdoor game, garden, or ride bikes on our 3 miles of single track behind our office. We have had a few employees who have had real lifestyle changes due to our culture, that is the most rewarding thing for me to see! Founding the Borah Epic was really an exciting time for me. That said, it was really a team effort and I could not have done it without the hard work of several key employees and volunteers. In the end, we donated o ver 130K to CAMBA, along with a few other organizations such as Wisconsin and Minnesota NICA leagues. I am really looking forward to watching the event continue to grow and I fully expect the Epic Bike Fest, under the leadership of the ABSF, to become the premier Midwest mountain bike event. What about you, what kind of biking gets you excited? Pretty much all kinds of biking get me excited! I am lucky to have so many great options right out my back door. I love riding the gravel roads south of Viroqua, they are some of the best in the country in my opinion. Then, I have endless miles of paved dairy roads with more Amish buggies than cars, so riding my road bike is always a good choice. And, of course, off road riding around here is always fun and continues to get better every year. Up north, I find myself mostly riding my mountain bike and fat bike, but I am hoping to explore more gravel up there too! Where the heck is Coon Valley and what do you love about it? Coon Valley is in the "heart of the Driftless", approximately 20 miles southeast of La Crosse. The town is surrounded by large bluffs with a class A trout stream running through the middle of it all. When I was attending college at UWL, our training rides would often take us through Coon Valley, so that is how I became aware of it. Then, when we lost our office space in La Crosse, I ended up finding an old grocery store in Coon Valley which we rented for less than $500.00 per month. Eventually, we ended up in the Industrial park on the southwest edge of town, so this little village has been great for us! What are your Top 5 'Up North Things'? The Driftless area and the Northwoods are both very special to me, I am very grateful to be able to call them both home! I grew up spending summers at my Grandparents cabin near Channing, Michigan and developed a real love of the Northwoods through this experience. Some of my favorite Northwoods things are: 1. CAMBA trails (both dirt and snow) 2. The Cheqamegon MTB festival 3. Rivers Eatery in Cable, WI 4. Sawmill Saloon in Seeley, WI and, of course... 5. Epic Bike Fest!

The Gravel Pizza Overnighter is a 2-day community bikepacking event that starts in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin. We'll all start together, follow The Nxrth's handpicked gravel route at your own pace and then camp together at Wedges Creek pizza farm before biking home the next morning. To join us, explore ticket options here .

Rachel and Abi recently went to the Chippewa National Forest for a quick bikepacking trip. As their first bikepacking trip ever, they kept the route short at less than 40 miles round trip. The forest roads were perfect for riding, and they were the only ones in the campground that night. Video by: RAAD Things Outside

When showers and wild swimming aren't an option after endurance activities, Crud Cloth from Duluth, Minnesota has a shower-in-a-bag solution. Today we we test it out and share our thoughts for gravel riding and bikepacking. Crud Cloths for After Long Dirty Rides Crud Cloths are from Duluth, Minnesota and are a vacuum packed pouch that contains a dry cotton towel as well as a sealed liquid/soap pouch. When you're ready to combine them, you get a wet towel with natural soap ingredients that they say is like a "shower in a bag". I just tested it after a 50-mile ride on a Sunday morning. Now, when I used it, I was at home but intentionally chose not to shower before heading to church to see how I felt. I expected it to clean up pretty well but fully assumed that I'd feel soapy and smell overly like citrus cleaner afterwards (they also make unscented) but that really wasn't the case. I didn't even feel like I needed to take a real shower and am planning on taking these with after longer races or nights where I'm camping away from bathroom/shower amenities. The cloths are 100% cotton and are definitely not disposable rags. They're small but really strong. If used as a disposable option, then these are not very sustainable. But if used as a cleaning rag or garage rag after initial use, then these can have a full useful life after being used as a shower-in-a-bag. How do you use it? You use it by following these steps: Smack Squish Tear Scrub When you smack it (and you have to smack it hard ), it breaks open the sealed water/soap solution so that you squish it around and get the towel wet and wash up after a long gravel ride or day of bikepacking. Ingredients for the citrus Crud Cloth include: Distilled Water, Cleanser (Coco Glucoside, made from plants), Essential Oil Blend (Lemon, Lime, Grapefruit, Orange, & Bergamot), Potassium Hydroxide. What about bikepacking; would I take this with? When I first started looking at reviews of the Crud Cloth, I noticed some folks who said that some of their Crud Cloths had burst open during shipping and weren't usable when they arrived. This made me come to the early conclusion that it wouldn't be worth the risk of shoving this in a pack on a long grueling bikepacking trip. But in reality, the packaging was far sturdier than I expected and even quite a bit sturdier than I wanted it to be at times. It's possible they've updated the packaging since those malfunctions. Even after several hard blows that I assumed were too hard, there were times the inside still hadn't broken open. I never had any break unexpectedly and I would feel really great about tossing one at the top of a seat pack to use during a 3+ day bikepacking trip if I wasn't expecting any proper showers or swimming holes along the way. ​PROS CONS Packs fairly small Pouch is resealable Has unscented options Doesn't leave you feeling soapy Natural ingredients Cloth is 100% cotton Could possibly rupture in a pack, though it's hard to imagine that happening Wasteful if you're not going to repurpose the cloth Wrap Up I've always just accepted the long dirty car ride home after bikepacking events and races. So it's nice to have a natural and packable option for cleaning up without bathroom/shower facilities. If you're just going to toss it in the garbage afterward, then these will get wasteful. But in my house we go through a lot of rags for cleaning at home and in the garage and will make sure these get put to good use after initial use. Learn more at CrudCloth.com

Hiker's Brew was founded in Eau Claire, Wisconsin on the values of sustainability fo the outdoors. Noticing an issue in the modern-day coffee industry, they created a solution for outdoor enthusiasts. Their packaging is compostable and their sizes are perfect for bikepacking. For bikepacking ,Hiker's Brew comes in Venture Packs which are 1.25oz packs of ground coffee that make 2-4 cups. Flavors include Hazy Hiker, Some Mores, Red Rocks, and Van Life. Non-flavored options include Mike Marker and Yurt Dirt. Their coffee also comes in 12oz Basecamp bags. Learn more at hikersbrew.com or visit them @hikersbrew Hiker's Brew Review by Garrett Denney Confession time: I am a total sucker for coffee on the trail. At home, my coffee routine is eclectic: I regularly rotate between a French Press, Chemex, and even a venerable Mr. Coffee for when we have company. Heck, there is even the rare day where I brew a latte on the Nespresso. But away from home when I’m looking for a fresh cuppa, I am always reaching for a packet of ground beans. It hasn’t always been that way. I’ve been similarly eclectic in how I pack and prepare coffee on the trail while bikepacking. For years I relied on instant coffee – the tiny packets of fine-ground beans that dissolve into boiling water – largely because of a friend’s recommendation. Dissolvable coffee worked well enough and even saved me a bit of weight and space on my rig because I could leave my coffee press kit at home. But it wasn’t perfect either. Many of the blends that I packed in those early years lacked the rich flavor and smooth consistency that are hallmarks of my home-brewed coffee. That changed when I stumbled on Hiker’s Brew, a boutique coffee company has been making sustainable coffee since 2016. Founded in Eau Claire, WI by a pair of outdoor enthusiasts, they fuse a wide palette of coffee beans with artistic packaging and slim form factors. Tried and true favorites like regular dark roast are complimented by flavored varieties like s’mores and hazelnut. No matter your coffee preference, they’ve got you covered. The best part? All products are available in single-serve pouches, meaning you can take as many as needed for your next trip. The company also makes a point of incorporating sustainability into the core of their mission. With compostable packaging and carbon neutral shipping, Hiker’s Brew is trying to do its part. Next time you’re packing your saddle bag for an overnighter, grab a packet (or two…or three) of Hiker’s Brew for the journey. Just remember to toss in at least one extra pouch so you can help spread the good word.

Rob Pelton recently met 2 strangers & bikepacked the Coon Fork Overnighter in Augusta, Wisconsin. He posted an open invite via Facebook and 2 strangers showed up. Check out his video and route report here.

Ben Petty recently crossed the cheddar curtain for his first 100-mile ride up in the Northwoods. After making his way through Stevens Point, he and his friend did the Bear 100 and made it to Jar's Bar & Grill with photos and a story to tell. Story by: Ben Petty I’ve been riding and loving Iowa gravel roads for years, but it’s always good to try to get out and explore some new areas. I’ve done several combination type biking/paddling/fishing trips to the Driftless areas of Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota over the years, as well as further into the Wisconsin Northwoods in the Seeley CAMBA area and around Tomahawk. However, I’d never done a really “long day in the saddle” up in the Northwoods gravel & forest roads, and was itching to take on that challenge. I came across the website for The Bear 100 out of Laona, Wisconsin, and was intrigued by the sound of it. I had a friend newer to gravel riding that had just purchased a gravel bike, and it worked out well to go with a buddy as there were multiple distance options available (31, 70, or 100 miles). I kept it on my radar for awhile, as I had been through a couple major knee surgeries on my left leg the year before and wanted to see how it held up at its first real test, the Mid South in Oklahoma in early March. I completed that gravel century (slowly, but knee pain-free!) and that gave me the confidence to sign up just a couple days after getting back to Iowa when I saw registration for The Bear quickly closing in on the 500 rider cap. I signed up for the 100 mile option and my friend Peter for the 31. We wanted to make a weekend out of it and not feel too rushed, so headed out of Iowa on Thursday, making our way to Stevens Point, Wisconsin later that day for our first night’s stop. I made it out for a short ride on pavement and gravel south of town that evening, and we spent Friday morning exploring the Green Circle Trail (which is a very scenic trail, at least in the western sections along the Wisconsin River and northern reaches of it that we explored), along with some fun and interesting sculptures we rode by in the Stevens Point Sculpture Park . Along the ride, we stopped by the Ruby Coffee Cafe (just slightly off-trail) for a caffeine break, and picked up some of their instant coffee packets to try out on future camping trips. After that ride, we loaded up and left Stevens Point, and continued our trip northeast to where we were staying in Crandon, Wisconsin. Race day on Saturday we made it to Laona in plenty of time, but not exactly stress-free as I was struggling a bit to get the route into my Garmin (it’s always something getting ready for these rides!) but managed to get it uploaded and to the line just in time for the start. After a little gravel trail at the start, we were soon into gravel and forest roads of the Nicolet National Forest, surrounded by woodland and cruising through some sandy gravel roads. The first 15 miles also had quite a few wet sections and some standing water at times, but I could usually find a line to slowly make my way through those without issue. As the route progressed, there were fewer of these wet sections to deal with. The route passed by the little village of Armstrong Creek at mile 45. There was a convenience store in town, and I was ready for a little break, so grabbed some food and drink and chatted with some fellow riders. After about a 15 minute break there, I grabbed a bag of my go-to energy bites (gummy bears) and was off for the back half. Of the 500 total riders, there were 207 registered for the 100 mile option, so while riding alone at times, I ran into other riders periodically throughout the day. Although I love my Iowa gravel roads, it’s fun to explore different places; one thing that’s different on this ride from most of mine is that being surrounded by forest land in often winding roads tends to throw off my “natural sense” of navigation; it’s much more difficult to find landmarks in the distance or know intuitively what direction I’m going (although I guess that just adds to the sense of adventure!). There were several stretches of some gnarly and beautiful, rocky rough forest roads in the 2nd half of the route, and a gorgeous river crossing around mile 61 at the Peshtigo River, where I admit to being a little envious of a couple I saw fishing and looking very relaxed. Although the weather was nice and mild that day, I’ll admit to feeling a bit worn down by this time, and was pleased to find an aid station around mile 80, manned by “Eric the Fox” from Embark Maple . I appreciated his support for the riders and contagious energy, and after chatting a bit and filling a bottle with their Elderberry hydration mix, I was off for the home stretch, and I was starting to feel ready to get there by this point! After correcting a wrong turn (thankfully not long after making it!), the last several miles were a beautiful gravel ride on the Rat River Trail, and I enjoyed watching its namesake river rushing around the boulders while cruising up this final section back to Laona. After 102 rugged and beautiful miles, I was at the finish at Jar’s Bar and Grill, and found Peter who had successfully completed and enjoyed his 31 mile route (and his first ever “official” gravel event!) We enjoyed visiting with other riders and the food and drink at Jar’s. It was a great location and race, very well organized and definitely whetted my appetite for further bike adventures in the Northwoods!