“It’s a release when you go bikepacking, you’re not really worrying about what’s going on in your outside life while you’re doing it,” said Bodie Oakley, Berkeley High School junior, “And you earned it because you biked 30 miles to get there, (you can) go on little adventures … and it’s a great time.”
BHS Bikepacking Club was founded last year by Oakley’s older brother Jackson Oakley, a BHS alum, who believed students needed a new place to appreciate and explore nature while getting in healthy exercise through biking. Bodie Oakley inherited the club from Jackson Oakley, and has helped it thrive since.
The Bikepacking Club spends Wednesdays in room C115 discussing new routes, preparing for trips, and strengthening BHS’s biking community.
“The club is coming into this room and planning bikepacking trips and discussing the act of bikepacking,” Oakley said.
Through these trips, students are offered a chance to immerse themselves in beautiful landscapes surrounding the Bay Area, and push themselves physically by completing the 20-30 mile expeditions this club undertakes. Although they are of high difficulty, these rides are an opportunity for students to connect more with nature and fellow club members.
Additionally, students have the chance to camp over the weekend, make bonfires, listen to bluegrass, and get to know fellow students who enjoy nature.
“One of the really cool parts is that kids who were never cyclists before joining the club started riding bikes for it,” said Ivan Watson, BHS junior and club member, “You can learn from other people around you, and it’s cool because you can have no experience and just go out there.”
Watson joined the club at the advice of his friends who were involved in the club, and has since built a community within BHS Bikepacking while simultaneously growing his passion for the outdoors. “It’s not going to be easy, but if you’re up for the challenge, then you’re going to learn how to bikepack and it’s going to be fun,” Watson said.
Esai Murillo, a BHS junior who recently joined Bikepacking discussed his own interests in camping and how this club has helped him create new relationships with other club members. “It’s a community at heart. Generating meaningful connections with other people, when you go bikepacking with someone, you really do get a lot closer with them,” Murillo said.
Despite the club’s popularity, a large barrier it faces is the lack of financial support awarded to the club and its members. Bikepacking — while an amazing experience — comes at a high cost, with the biggest expense being the campsites and gear required.
“When we get there, we need to pay for a site,” Watson said, “Big sites are $150, they’re expensive.”
Due to the increasing cost of keeping the club functioning, club leaders have decided to apply for grants in order to cover the cost and make the club more accessible to new members.
Overall, BHS Bikepacking Club strongly urges students to look beyond the city limits by giving them an opportunity to explore the beautiful and peaceful nature that surrounds the Bay Area. While it can be difficult to find the energy and strength to complete these rides, Bikepacking demonstrates that it is well worth it for the community and relationships you build along the way.
“(We) just want to encourage people to do their own stuff like this and come on our trips, go out into nature, and have fun,” Bodie Oakley said, “Step outside and smell the roses.”