compose Guest time Jul 4, 2025 comment 0

Six months into their ride from Patagonia to Alaska, Ryan and Ilse invite us into their camp kitchen for a closer look at how they cook on the road. From soup in the desert to a well-loved wooden spoon named Spoonie, their latest video offers a quiet glimpse into daily life on a long journey. Watch it here…

Words and photos by Ryan “Kodak” Brown

It’s early July in northern Argentina. The sun hangs low in a pink winter sky, and our tent is pitched in soft sand between cacti. After another long day riding through the desert heat, we’re tired, dusty, and hungry. Time to pull out the stove.

This video offers a look at how we cook while bikepacking on our journey from Patagonia to Alaska. It’s part gear breakdown, part daily ritual, and definitely not about being ultralight. We’re using a time-tested setup that lets us cook reliably in windstorms, on hotel room floors, and in high fire-risk areas without worry.

We carry a full Trangia 25 cookset: two pots (1.75 and 1.5 liters — just right for cooking for two), a non-stick skillet, an oversized windscreen, and a gas burner. There’s also a teapot for morning maté and coffee, a strainer lid that doubles as a cutting board, and a wooden spoon I picked up in Sweden that we’ve affectionately named “Spoonie.”

While our meals aren’t exactly gourmet, I’m eating better than I ever have while bikepacking. Ramen bombs are reserved for the most remote stretches or the most exhausting days. Most nights, we take the time to cook real food with fresh veggies whenever we can find them. Our gear choices lean toward comfort over weight. It might slow us down, but it makes life at camp feel a lot more homey. It’s not exactly fancy, but it works—and it helps us stretch the budget by avoiding restaurants when we can. Watch the video below.

Further Reading

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