Can I Go Bikepacking With an E-Bike?

Written by: Rémy Rossi | April 20, 2025 | Time to read 5 min

If you’re bikepacking in the first place, you likely like to cycle and pedal anyway, so you’re probably not just ripping on the throttle or constantly in the highest assistance levels. Staying in or around “eco-mode” and using your own pedal power extends your range and drains the battery less quickly. But if you need more range, you can connect an extra battery or range extender for added mileage— for example, there’s a range extender compatible with some Trek or Specialized e-Bikes and the Giant EnergyPak system.

And if you really need a recharge mid-ride, you can take an extended lunch break and plug in somewhere like a café. However, this isn’t as reliable of a choice depending on where you’re riding. Overall, range anxiety isn’t too bad if your riding days are short and if you are close to power, like between towns or powered campsites.

Although you can make it a full day without stopping to recharge, you will have to charge up the battery overnight. Depending on where you’re staying, a hotel or powered campsite can make this easy where there’s good access to outlets. Many campsites in the Netherlands have designated bike corrals and charging stations where you can leave your e-Bike to charge, often with a roof to protect the cables from water. Some parts of Britain and other sites in Europe have these types of e-Bike-specific services for cycle tourists, but I’m unaware of any similar setups in the US.

Keeping your battery charged when wildcamping is a much larger challenge. For bikepackers well off the grid and far from civilization, the lack of recharging opportunities may be an insurmountable roadblock. For more casual trips. e-Bikes could be a good option for quick overnighters out of town or days with stops planned every 30 to 50 miles.

Another recharging consideration revolves around e-Bikes having removable or non-removable batteries. Popular models like the Specialized Vado SL or Specialized Creo 2 have long-range batteries built into the frame and can’t be taken out for off-bike charging. This means you’ll have to leave your bike by the power source, potentially further away from your tent or where you’re staying. That said, the Specialized Creo electric road bike makes a great, high-end e-Bike for bikepacking— I’ve seen reviews where adventurers get nearly 70 miles of range and 93 miles if you include the range extender.

Bikepacking with an e-Bike isn’t everyone’s cup of tea— normal bikepacking is pretty niche anyway for that matter— but it may even annoy “acoustic” cycle tourists. There’s all sorts of judgments thrown around towards e-Bikers in the traditionally human-powered activity, like e-Bikes are cheating or will disturb the trails more. But I don’t think e-bikepacking is going to replace standard bikepacking anytime soon— to me, they serve different purposes, and largely cater to different audiences.

E-Bikes can encourage recreational riders to join up with more avid cyclists or experienced bikepackers on those longer trips— the pedal assistance levels the playing field without changing much else at all. If you’re already infected with the bikepacking bug, you’re probably not going to switch to an e-Bike all of a sudden, but you may be able to convince a friend to join you. And more people on bikes is something we can all get behind.