Not being a woman, my experiences are somewhat irrelevant, but I'll toss in a couple of cents anyway.

If you're into backpacking - or for other reasons want to prepare yourself for having to haul a big pack - the two items you need to make sure really have a good fit are hiking shoes and a backpack. Backpack designed for men are quite often not that good for women because of different physiology.

In principle, the process of finding a backpack is the same for both genders: You try a lot of different backpacks until you find one that really fits YOU. Both in men and women there are lots of individual variations in shape, curves, strength and so on. It is just that as models are made for the male body, the search process usually goes quicker for the male. (Or would be quicker if not for the fact that most males are gear junkies...)

Invest time in searching. Ideally, you should try it going hiking over the weekend, but your local store may not be that forthcoming. At the very minimum, load it up in the store and walk some stair. And be sure you learn how to adjust it properly, otherwise the pack will never be comfortable.

Finding hiking shoes is similar: There are fewer female than male hiking shoes. Search and Thou shall find...

As for bikes, those are not gender specific. Unless you happen to ride a lot with long robes and such there is no need for a "female" kind of bicycle (the horizontal bar of the frame is traditionally lower to accommodate long skirts. When was the last time you ever saw someone biking with a long skirt?) Just get a good bike of a type that fits you and your needs.