Do you own a bike? Do you like cycling? Do you enjoy holidays? Then have you considered ever going on a bike tour?
A bike tour is basically when you explore a country by bike. Up until recently I never thought about doing it but then two things happened.
The first was reading Moods of Future Joys by Al Humphreys. This was an inspiring read because it showed how much more you get to experience a country on a bike. It also showed me that you didn’t have to be some sort of extreme traveller cyclist type to be able to do it. Anyone could do it with a bit of planning.
The second was being recommended an amazing resource which has made planning a bike tour a lot easier. After having read through it I feel a lot more prepared.
In 2010 I’m planning on exploring the British coast . I want to see all those amazing places you see pictures of and think surely that can’t be in the UK? I also want to go further and do a trip around parts of Asia. Possibly starting in Istanbul, though Turkey onwards through parts of Russia. You may have considered taking a similar trip in 2010.
Bicycle Travellers Blueprint
The resource I was recommended that I want to share with you is called the Bicycle Travellers Blueprint. It takes you through everything from the equipment you need to the mentality behind bicycle touring. It is a fantastic eBook that converts a complete bike touring beginner like myself into someone who you would think has done it all before.
It is aimed at anyone who wants to do a bike tour. This includes those of us that are happy sleeping in a hotel and those of us that would prefer to sleep in a tent. I’ll probably try the latter because it sounds like a lot of fun and is very cheap.
What I really liked about the Bicycle Travellers Blueprint is that it is easy to read without compromising on the depth of information. Whilst the author Darren Alff has been bike touring for over 8 years he keeps his writing style accessible to anyone including beginners and those with some previous experience.
The eBook discusses topics such as equipment, finding a partner, how to build up the confidence to go on a bike tour and some of the emotions you will experience. It also has a fairly comical yet at the same time brilliant suggestion of living off your bike for a while before leaving so you can ease your way into it. I would never have thought of doing this. The Blueprint then moves on to creating a plan, doing your trip research and calculating a budget. It pretty much answered all my questions and made me think about things I would not have even considered.
It definitively saved me a lot of time in working these things out for myself. I wanted to recommend it to you as I have found it so useful.
Where to get hold of the blueprint
Click here to find out more about Bicycle Travellers Blueprint
Having been bike touring for 25 years on and off I would clearly recommend it as a great holiday, but offer one or two bits of advice to beginners.
Think carefully before you decide to camp, especially on longer trips, and perhaps set aside some of your budget for a night or two in a hostel or hotel along the way. I have camped and toured a couple of times and found that after a long day’s bike ride, the last thing I wanted to do was sleep on the floor, no matter how good my Thermarest. Even if you travel very light, a small tent can still add a lot of weight to your panniers, once you have added sleeping bag, mat, cooking equipment and so on. The time taken to set up and strike camp can become a chore over a longer trip, and I also found it difficult to secure my bike properly on many campsites. Having said that it’s often not as simple as you would expect to secure your bike at hotels or B&Bs – mine has had such diverse overnight stops as posh function rooms and being locked to a picnic table in the pub garden!
If you are thwarted by the need to find a partner, don’t give up on the idea of travelling solo – most of my touring has been solo and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It does mean that sometimes you have to reach inside yourself for that extra bit of motivation when the going gets tough or it’s raining and you get a puncture, but on the other hand you don’t have to endure the resentment when your partner wants to have a late start on a beautiful morning, or refuses to take the scenic/hilly/easy route that you are so keen on.
Finally, leave some flexibility in your route (this is much easier if you decide to camp as you aren’t so restricted by accommodation). For trips in the UK I usually decide on a starting point and a finishing point, usually railway stations that I book my tickets in advance, to and from on certain days. I usually book the first night’s accommodation but that’s all (and travel outside school holidays to avoid the peak times). The freedom that this gives me is very liberating, and lends the trip a slight whiff of adventure, but not so much that it is too scarey!
Thanks for the tips Knit. I’m very new to cycling but already know I want to do a cycling holiday in the next year or two. This is exciting!