This brings back memories of my attempt at this route on my Fargo in 2010. I learned a lot in the 4 days I rode, including what I didn't know. I hope I can give it the South to North route a shot again soon.

Day 1 definitely was more pavement heavy than I was expecting, that said, I found it physically challenging, especially with the hills we we hit. The further we got in, the more remote things became. I had to start dealing with my choices at the end of day 1 / start of day 2 by riding off route to get refueled from the previous day's ride and load up for whatever was coming on day 2.

I don't like the idea of the bike swap. I don't think it's in keeping with the intended spirit of the event. Plan ahead, research, and make a call on your equipment. Adjust and adapt along the way. That's what these events are about IMO. I made some mistakes last year that I won't repeat again. While it would be unique, it wouldn't be something that I would personally be interested in

Moving it north would be interesting, and I think it would up the challenge level quite a bit. That said, I'm not sure I'm personally ready for that level of increase just yet. Seems like this would be a good stepping stone between the inaugural route and something larger.

Phil - I'm dealing with the same thing in my right hand. Based on what I've read it appears to be ulnar and median nerve compression. Shoulder and forarms are the likely culprits right now for me too, although I was using an Ergon BC3 during TransWisconsin. I'm assuming that most of mine came from being on my Fargo's drops for 300+ miles. Headed to the doctor tomorrow as well.

I've spent some time in the road touring world, and am now starting to switch over to more off road stuff. One reason for keeping things high is that I don't want a lot of stuff sticking out from the sides of my bike where it can catch on trees/rocks/etc. From what I have seen, most of the bikepackers tend to carry, bulky but light stuff (sleeping bags, etc) up front.