Europe (local)

At about 2000 m there is a turn off to a guesthouse from where I had a sight of the last 20 turns - like a rope twisted on a steep mountain wall with the top disappearing in snow mist.

My first tour without a firm objective. I knew I wanted to start from my front door and meet up with my family somewhere in the Ardèche. Barcelona seemed like a reasonable intermediate destination, but the rest was pretty much à la carte.

The resulting -less thorough than usual- planning was noticeable, as the route featured more major roads than I would normally prefer, and even turned around and bit me on the day two when I needed a train to complete the second half of the route.

However, there were still plenty of opportunities to bask in the quality of the French road network and many pleasant surprises, as towns I had given scant regard while planning the route turned out to be fantastic places to visit.

Another shorter than expected tour, this time in Switzerland, generally following Veloroute 2 (the Rhein Route) from Basel past Rheinfall, Bodensee, Liechtenstein and Chur to Andermatt via Oberalp pass, then over St Gotthard pass and onto the Italian border.

In what seems to be the theme of his years tours, events conspired to thwart the original plan of connecting July's tour (Copenhagen to Freiberg) with it's intended destination: Venice.

A freak, non-cycling related, knee injury on the third evening left me unable to bend my left leg; which meant the only way I was getting to Venice was by train.

Despite this (and the fact that it rained solidly for two and a half of the four days on the bike), it was still an enjoyable tour with some great sights and new personal achievements.

In theory this was second stage of a three part trip that was supposed to cover Europe from Nordkapp (the North Cape) to Sicily. The plan being to pick-up from where last year's trip left off in Copenhagen and head south to Freiberg in Germany and then onwards to Venice via the Alps.

The bike was damaged on the flight over, leaving me with a limited selection of gears and the tour happened to coincide with a heat wave the like of which no-one could recall. Most of the trip took place in temperatures close to or over 40 degrees celsius (104 fahrenheit)!

Things got worse at the half way point (just south of Frankfurt) when the loss of my mobile phone, money and credit cards forced me to abandon the trip a day later at Strasbourg. It was only a total stranger's act of kindness that allowed me to get that far.

Another Easter holiday four day, partially supported, mini-tour extending last year's London - Paris trip onto Geneva.

Once again the weather was still what you might expect in April, with the added bonus of snow and freezing rain in the Jura region, but at least last year's constant headwind had subsided into a mere crosswind.

The original plan was to cover Scandinavia from Nordkapp to Copenhagen with a long stretch along Sweden's east coast. However, safety concerns resulted in a hastily arranged detour along Finland's west coast.

My memory will be mainly of glorious sunshine and, another pleasant surprise, the wind blowing North to South for a good few days when I needed it (as evidenced by the grim determination on the faces of the cyclists heading the other way.)

A four day tour from London to Paris over Easter to try and get my fitness back on track for a bigger trip later in the year.

Despite the less than perfect weather and near constant headwinds this was a really enjoyable trip, if only because it totally dispelled my preconceptions of the French and their attitude to us Brits!

See all 8 reports by Mark Fenwick

The trip improved immensely upon abandoning the notion that it was somehow possible to get right around route one and still make my flight home.

Despite the variable weather, impossible winds, terrible roads, absurd prices and murderous wildlife, Iceland is a fantastic country with genuinely friendly people and some of the most amazing scenery anywhere!

Most importantly, allow more time than you think you need to see it all; for a small country Iceland feels vast!

My first tour and the reason the web site was set up in the first place. The site's original purpose was to help raise sponsorship for an unassisted charity cycle ride originally called the 'Anglo-Swiss Charity Bike Ride', after the nationalities of the two participants.

It was an unforgettable trip of a thousand miles on a pair of poorly equipped mountain bikes that raised over £1,500 for the National Autistic Society.

This blog (still ongoing) describes our experiences, both good and bad, of cycle touring around Europe. It was a long planned trip - about 15 years before coming to fruition - and we decided that as we were between jobs and countries (from Dubai on the way back to NZ) we would explore some of the places we had always wanted to visit and get a culture fix too!

We took the train ``City-Night-Line'' from Zurich (21.00h) to Berlin (10.00h. With some delay, ca.2 hours, due to railway personnel strikes, we arrived, alert in Berlin. In the sunshine we found the way out of the city at once. When we got to the border of Poland at Schwedt, it began to rain for two days with interruption. Fortunately we had tail wind until Masuren. We cycled via Stettin, the Baltic Sea coast along to Danzig, via Elblag and Olstyn to the Masuri sea-plateau until Gizycko. From there through central Poland via Bydgoszcz and Frankfurt/Oder back to Berlin. On the way back we fought against strong head wind. Because we cycled through so many forests, the heat (35ºC) in Masuren and wind on the way back, were not too big an obstacle.

Euskal Herriko itzulia / The tour around the basque country / La vuelta al País Vasco / Le tour au Pays Basque

In the summer of 2007 we cycled a whole month in Bulgaria. We ate al lot of shopska and purenzi kartofi, met a lot of women with beards, heard a lot of sheep and cowbells, saw beautiful woods and impressive canyons. On my webspace you'll find the route and some pictures to tell the story. Enjoy!

This is my tour along the German Donau, from Ulm to Passau, a continuation of my previous tour in 2006.

Viaggio lungo la valle dell'Inn. I primi itinerari sono stati percorsi nell'estate del 2001.

Siamo partiti dal passo del Maloja e abbiamo raggiunto dapprima Innsbruck e poi Kufstein.

Nel lugio 2007 abbiamo riscritto gli itinerari, aggiungendo nuove fotografie e rivisitato il percorso, che è stato modificato nel suo primo tratto in Engadina.

A few days spent exploring County Clare on the west coast of Ireland. I live in the UK and travelled via Dublin on the ferry and train. This was a short and rather windy trip based around the coastal village of Doolin, and included a visit to the Cliffs of Moher.

Starting in the south-east UK we took the ferry from Portsmouth to Bilbao, travelling south west across Spain towards Portugal. We wanted to find out whether we wanted to live in Portugal - after staying there for a month, the answer turned out to be no, but we had a great trip all the same, encountering beautiful mountain scenery in northern Spain and challenging hills (and drivers!) in the Portuguese Douro region.

Journey from south UK to northern Poland on a bike and a recumbent trike. We stayed in Poland for a few weeks and then travelled home via Denmark.

We left our jobs and sold our house to go on this trip - part of the reason for going was to explore whether we'd like to live in another country. The other reason was to satisfy my craving for long distance touring.

Read about the difficulties/triumphs of a first-time touring cyclist. I traveled through Austria, Germany, and Czech Republic for 16 days. Although I was credit card touring, I encountered obstacles throughout my trip. I had no plans or routes for this trip... I went wherever I felt like. I have had many people (family, friends, & co-workers) question why I am riding my bike alone across Central Europe... my answer has been: change. I needed to experience the unknown... hence the lack of planning of where to visit and stay.

Info pratiche su dove fare downhill, freeride, cross in Italia con segnalazione di 4 percorsi per l'estate: Oropa, Livigno, Pila e soprattutto Val di Sole sede dei mondiali di downhill 2008. Anticipazioni sui mondiali Mtb 2007 e 2008.

This was written as a ``Daily Blog'' of my bike trip from Venice to Rome. I had taken some Italian Courses at the University of Pittsburgh, and made friends with various Italians on the internet through an instant message program called SKYPE. I recruited my Italian Teacher to drive a support car, and I rode my bike. I was able to meet with 4 different people/families that I met online in my quest to learn the language and experience the ``real culture'' of the country. There are MANY pictures, and also quite a few VIDEOS of this trip. All links to photos and videos can be found on the index page. There is also a separate page for each day of the journey - my daily ``diary'' of surprises, delights, frustrations, and revelations. Even though I had only cycled in Italy before with organized cycling groups, I had an amazing trip doing this one alone. I am in the process of translating each day's blog into Italian, and eventually I'll try to post each day's road notes or route as well.

Plymouth (UK) to Plymouth (USA), May to November 2007

Started Bakewell, UK and have completed half of the tour to inlcude cycling up the East of UK to Aberdeen, then Shetland Isalnds then a tour of the Faroe Islands and then a East West crossing of ICELAND to include the Kjlour Route. Currently crossing Greenland (unfortunately not on a bike but on skis) I then pick up my bike in Labrador (Canada) and cycle down through Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and then the US arriving in Plymouth Rhode Island in mid November. Then in late December I will complete the final leg of 270 miles non stop riding from Plymouth (UK) to Bakewell.

Cycling from Venice to Amsterdam in 8 days.
Got a loooooooot of rain !!!
Photos of nice landscapes, houses and not DNA-manipulated cows !!! :-)

A lightweight tour of the Swiss, Italian, and Austrian alps, 1501km, 33047m of climbing, and several passes.

Eine anspruchsvolle Radrundtour auf Sardinien in 13 Tagesetappen über insgesamt 1126 km, Tagesetappen zwischen 60 und 110 Kilometern.

In May, 2007, I spent 15 days cycling in north-central Italy and covered about 1600 km (990 miles). I cannot understate how great the trip was and I suggest anyone who is eager for culture, amazing food, adventure, and a physical and mental challenge to follow in my tracks. Wine-lovers will also find this route especially pleasing.

The route begins and ends at Milan Centrale train station, providing an easy connection to the rest of Europe. Overall, the trip was flawless with only one flat tire. The route would be best suited for anyone who wants to cover lots of miles and see the main sights of north-central Italy (e.g. Venice, Tuscany, Cinque Terre, and Langhe/Roero). Although my trip was great, I would make some changes, and these are suggested below. I've briefly described the route and sights for each day. Please feel free to contact me for more specific information and advice (calebschiff@gmail.com).

This is my first bike journey. I visited many places, and saw many things. I hope it inspires you to get on two wheels, instead of doing the usual airline-backpacker thing.

Epilogue. ``Why have we come all this way to go cycling in Holland''.

Last year we wondered if we should have done the NSCR in Norway last, after doing all the other sections, seeing the spectacular range of countryside and the beauty of it all. This year's trip has sort of confirmed that we might have been right. That is not to say that there is no beauty in the Danish landscape. There is, and in our opinion the loveliest sections of the Danish NSCR were in the Northern part of the Jutland. As for the rest of the route there were gems to be found every now and again, which made it worth doing.........

.............However when you compare the Danish section of the NSCR to Norway, say the NSCR, Rallarvegen or Numedalsruta, the Danish NSCR falls short in sheer WOW! factor. The Rallarvegen in particular has fantastic scenery and it a great challenge. It is also amusing to be cycling at an altitude higher than the highest point in the UK. The Numedal, although it changes considerably from the higher reaches down to Larvik, is just gorgeous and treasures such as the stave churches complement the beautiful scenery.

Info, mappa del percorso, foto dell'edizione 2006 e link intorno al famoso Sella Ronda bike day, che segue un tour dei passi dolomitici (Passo Pordoi, Passo Sella, Passo Gardena e Passo Campolongo).

Epilogue.

Indelible impressions.

The final irritation on arrival in Schiphol did not diminish the wonderful memories we have of the tour and of Norway. The amazing light and vivid colours of sky and sea, the torrential summer downpours, still stay with me to this day. Not forgetting the range of roads and routes and landscape. I still have flashbacks of places that I did not photograph and have no idea where they were on the route.

We wonder if we should have done the NSCR in Norway last, seeing the spectacular range of countryside and the beauty of it all. I suspect that everything else will be an anti-climax after this. Still we started here with the NSCR and we'd like to go back one day and do it again.

This was our first ever long cycle tour, (and my first attempt at a travelogue). The trip was a wonderful experience for the both of us, and got us hooked on cycle holidays. As well as the travelogue there are picture galleries of the trip, and some information about the bikes and gear we used, plus things we learned about cycling.

A 9 day circular tour from Ávila (train to/from Madrid) on quiet roads through great scenery.

From Ávila, a long day westwards put us to within easy reach of the natural park of Las Butecas - Sierra de Francia, with some great cycling. Interesting mountain villages such as Mogarraz and La Alberca were followed by a climb over the Peña de Francia and a long descent to the delightful historic town of Ciudad Rodrigo.

Heading south from Ciudad Rodrigo got us to our primary objectives, the Sierra de Gata and Las Hurdes areas of northern Extremadura. The journey westwards took us along the northern boundary of the Sierra de Gredos before returning to Ávila.

Our new neighbors in the European Union and musings over the history and downfall of the Habsburg Empire led us to plan a trip through the countries involved: Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegowina, Romania, Montenegro, Poland, Ukraine, Italy and Serbia. Here you can read about the trip as planned and how far we got.

Late December, we left cold Holland to cycle in the sunny south of Spain. We made a tour through the Alpujarras, around the famous Sierra Nevada and along the Costa Tropical. You can see some pictures and our comments.

Rond oud & nieuw 2006 - 2007 fietsten we een week in het zonnige zuiden van Spanje. Vanuit Granáda fietsten we naar de Alpujarras, rond de Sierra Nevada en vervolgens richting en langs de Costa Tropical naar Málaga. In bijna 500 kilometer zagen we bergen, sneeuw, sinaasappelbomen, olijfbomen, cactussen, half-woestijn, bos, zee, strand en vooral: véél zon!

This cycle route from 25.04.07 to 25.05.07 was one of the most beautiful but most strenuous I ever made. Greece and Croatia with their many islands are very hilly. The advantage of such a landscape, it offers a different panorama at every bend. The total altitude my odometer shows is over 18.000 meters. That is two times the Mount Everest, not from the foot of the mountain but sea level. The weather is also responsible whether or not a journey remains a in great memory. During the whole journey I have had 4 hours rain on the morning from Pula to Porec (Istrien). That was the only rain I have had. In Greece the sky was sometimes cloudy, but I was not at all sad about this natural sun protection.

The Kystriksveien is a beautiful and unspoilt 670 km route along the RV17 coast road from Steinkjer in Trondelag to Bodø in Nordland, Northern Norway. We cycled along 450 km of the juicy bits (using ferries and a couple of buses for the rest) between 29 July and 13 August 2006. This travelogue describes the route we followed and the accommodation we found en route, with additional notes on web links and maps/guides for the journey. The Kystriksveien is known to just a few touring cyclists who appreciate how quiet and scenic it can be; it isn't a destination that sees a lot of cyclists, even during the high season between June and the second week of August.

The clock was ticking, I was one hour off C-Day with everything packed. I had gone through my checklist time & time again fully knowing that as always with my memory I was bound to have forgotten something.

[...]

3 days in, the sun had come out and I was settling down into my monotonous click, click of turning peddles, I was just dwelling on trying to figure out how many revolutions I'll need to turn these things to get me to my final destination, when In front of me not 30m away was a police car blocking the tow-path. On closer inspection its inhabitants were, as I first thought just having a crafty fag break down on the River embankment. But what was he trying to cover up with that white blanket? Like a puzzle it all clicked in, he was covering up a dead body & as it looked (why did I look) a pretty decomposed one at that!

Retching was not a clever idea when you're in a strong head wind & speeding at 25km. But the sight of that body will stick with me for the rest of my life.

Was this the way it was supposed to be? I was planning a pleasant cycle trip along the Rhine to chill out and clear my muddled head of all my earthly problems! But this was turning into a Hollywood horror movie & I was the sucker, who you always knew, was first up to get mutilated.

Well did I survive to tell the tale, did I find the inner me that I was looking for? Read on & find out!

In June 2007 I have joined a few members (20) of my worldcyclist-club to cycle a week in Great Brittain (De Wereldfietser). On my webspace you'll find information of the route and pictures to tell the story.

Our Dutch cycling adventure started on September 3, 2006 with our arrival in Amsterdam. After a few days of sightseeing in and around Amsterdam we took the train to Apeldoorn and cycled to our first overnight stop near Brummen. Over the next 4 weeks we cycled up and down the Netherlands and to Brugge in Belgium. The trip exceeded our expectations and we enjoyed fantastic weather.

If you are planning a similar trip you will find a lot of useful information in our detailed trip Itinerary, day-by-day Trip Report, and the collection of Practical Tips.

If you would like to see the beauty of the Netherlands do not miss the Best Photos. You may also be interested in our recommendations for the best places to see, stay and eat in our Top 5. Enjoy your virtual bicycle tour with Glen and Margaret!