How To – Solo Female Cycling Around The World

Bicycles And Bellies…How Many Kilos Are You Pack´in?

My tanned hand cinches the strap on my otlieb rack pack, my load feels light this morning. The week´s worth of food (470km) I carried over San Francisco pass from Chile to Argentina has been eaten. The 10 liters of water that was attached to the frame has been reduced to 6 liters. The next big food shop is only 50 km away. The morning sun beats hard on my shoulders as I park at the bank machine on the way out of town.

“Did you cycle San Francisco pass I hear”. The confident voice rings with a slight accent of someone who truly understands cycle touring.

“You travel pretty light” The man says as I turn my shoulders and smile at the full size man. His t-shirt stretches over his firm belly. He appears fit. He legs show the signs of a couple of tours. His eyes are kind and curious, he continues

“ My name is Ive, I am from Belgium but I live in New Jersey, I flew here to cycle the pass. I carry 50 kilos of gear. You only have back panniers and a rack pack, how many kilos do you have. That packing is magic!”

“ I don´t know but I only weight 47 kg. Your gear weighs more than me. I weighed myself yesterday at the pharmacy, maybe I should weigh my gear (found out later it´s 22kg) or start eating more icecream. My bike´s name is Pandemic the Magic Bicycle” I say, we both laugh as I stand in his shadow.

“I met Harriet and Neil Pike from the andesbybike.com website on New Years Eve. New Year’s is when everybody talks about weight loss, is it not” I say and I adjust the baggy waist band of my new boys size large shorts, the only ones I could find in town.

At almost 5 foot 2 I have always considered myself huge compared to Asian. I chuckle to myself.

“Harriet and Neil told me they carry 12kg and 14kg each. Their website is a great resource for touring in the Andes They go light so they can climb lots of mountains and access off the beaten track areas. I am looking forward to their next project, a regional hiking and cycling guide of their favorite area in Peru. ” I say, excited to be talking to a fellow cycle tourist.

“Well that is why I am here” The big guy says. The underside of his chin is freshly shaven. My neck strains up. My eyes squint in the sun as I look up at him. My titled faded green visor hardly a sun block for the sun overhead.

“I read about the route on the andesbybike.com website so I came to try the route. You just came from there? How was it?” Ive, the man from Belgium says.

“Paso San Francisco is beautiful, I will show you the photos if you want. My water froze on day 4, the wind went wacko and stopped me after 20km on day 5. I slept at 4725 meters 15500ft on day 6. There is ample water about every 80-120kms (2 days riding). Beautiful scenery, bike trekking at it´s absolute finest” I say as I make plans to meet Ive later to show him my photos.

Rocket Sprocket…How To Detonate a Route While On Tour

As rain dances on the ferry boat schedule departing Turkish, Cyprus, I stand like a racehorse at the starting bell antsy and raring to go. I have new water bottle holders, a repaired Rohloff bearing and a new rocket sprocket that gives me lower gears on hills.

It has been a week and ½ since the ferry boats have not run. It is the coldest and rainiest winter that Cyprus has had in 25 years. I am told by a curious British expat as he peers at a wet magic bicycle circling the port town of Girne hoping for a ferry boat. The roads lack drainage, dirt puddle sloshing has become my new past time. An awful lot of fun not counting the wet car door I skidded into this afternoon.

Love this guy, he sits grinning on his sinking boat. He probably realizes there isn’t anything he can do about it so he might as well smile.

As dark rain/snow clouds take up residence over the ocean between Turkey and Cyprus, the temperatures in the Sahara desert up ahead continue to climb. My legs soften from the lack of daily long cycling distances as the plan morphs itself into new phases of halted indecision.

Cyprus is an island divided by two countries, Turkish, Cyprus and Greece, Cyprus. So pedal off I do in a thunderous down pour of winter rain from Girne to Nicosia then Larnaca on the Greek side of Cyprus. Larnaca is my last stop in the search for an island escape. Decisions of east verses west Africa still preoccupy my thoughts as reality sinks in that I can either wait possibly for weeks for a boat to Turkey then cycle Europe to the west of Africa or take the aviation express over Syria to Amman, Jordan pedal the dead sea down the infamous King George Highway and ferry into Egypt.

Also, crossing the Atlantic and pedaling ocean to ocean across Canada has been ever present on my mind. This would complete my cycling line that rounds the world, that I began many experiences ago in 2009. Fresh thoughts of completion have crept into newly discovered spaces of my, got nothing to prove, could it be time to finish this mind. After all, world peace has changed a fair bit in the last few years since I pedaled out the door.

Egypt…..Egypt….Sudan….Sudan…..halted indecision. Grandiose media reports flood my vacillation as cyclists friends on the ground continue to share good reports and pedal on through the E Africa region. However, one news worthy report has captured my curiosity, “Cyclist robbed at machine gunpoint mid-day on the desert road in Egypt”. He reports he is fine and still pedaling towards Sudan, lightened only of some money and his bank cards. For now, I will just pedal my rocket sprocket over the mountains to the rainy south side of Cyprus looking for clear skies, beach camping, ferry boats, a little bit of logistical magic and/or a decisive onward plan.

Tips and Magic Bicycle Tricks For Bicycle Touring With Only Two Panniers

As anyone who has read Roll’in With My Hommies, How To Bicycle Tour Anywhere With Only 2 Panniers knows, Pandemic The Magic Bicycle is a close personnel friend of Houdini’s. Pandemic The Magic Bicycle ran into Houdini at the Spokes Bar for a talk about bicycle touring anywhere with only 2 panniers.

Pandemic The Magic Bicycle:

So Houdini, you are into bondage, are you an S and M freak or something? What’s with all the straps you got on the outside of your back rack?

Houdini:

Take it easy Pandemic, I only got into bondage because I was afraid of being too weighted down with unnecessary equipment. By the way, I love your rohloff equipped Thorn Raven…Oh la la. And, like your 2 pannier bicycle touring set up, my escape artist act has been spoken of as a very efficient use of space… of course, you can forgo a bulky cook set and put an MSR int’l whisper lite stove inside one large pot. You just have to pick the right pot. MSR Pot or cheap pot like the one you might already have is a great use of pannier space. Please don’t tell anyone Pandemic but I do get off on back rack bondage. Thanks for letting me know that your sea to summit light dry sack tore very easy, I agree those light weight Ortlieb dry bags are a lot tougher.

Pandemic the Magic Bicycle:

Houdini we have known each other since 2009, you and we have stuck together through continuous bicycle touring in 18 countries. Can I talk to you about some personnel stuff, I been having some issues….with change. It’s hard to talk about because it has happens quite a bit. My Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires keep getting changed from front to back due to uneven wear. On the bright side, I have cycled/boat/cycled the same Schwalbe tires from N. Oz to the Turkey/Iran border. Punctures? Hardly any, unlike you Houdini I don’t mess with that kind of necessary bondage. Funny enough, I have only used one small patch kit, although, I did have to replace the glue twice. Yo, Houdini, did you know that glue evaporates inside panniers. What’s up with that, did you have something to do with it?

Houdini:

Whatever Pandemic, how’s your rohloff doing? What makes you think you are magic anyway, you got a screw loose or something?

Pandemic the Magic Bicycle:

Stay inside the box will y’ah. Screw loose? N’ah man, I have only snapped one rack bolt in all this time, that’s why I carry only a small tools and spares bag and no extra bicycle parts. When the bolt snapped, I stole a bolt off of a bottle cage and repaired the back rack until I could buy the right bolt. I also have one handmade allen key multi-tool and one rohloff/pedal wrench. My hardly used and not missed leatherman multi-tool used to live in a small pannier under the saddle, a brooks B-17 standard, women’s. This was taken so I no longer want any small panniers bags on the exterior of my frame. Thanks to a puzzling contortionist packing technique that I sure you can understand Houdini, bicycle touring anywhere with only 2 panniers is definitely possible.

Houdini:

Pop a wheely Pandemic and stay in touch as you continue pedaling to Capetown. You are in Cyprus aren’t you? Which route will you take?

Pandemic The Magic:

Excuse me for a minute, I am not feeling well; my logistics just puked on my air sickness. The ferry boats to Egypt from Cyprus and EU to Egypt have been cancelled. They still run, summer only to Israel. Due to airsickness, flying is not an option. Syria visa? Pedal/Boat/Pedal to Morocco? I haven’t decided yet, for now, I’m just wait’in on a man.

Man In The Mirror…How To Turn Illusions Into Realities and Start a Bicycle Tour

Photo Credit London To Kathmandu By Bicycle

Illusion: Bicycle Tourists must be super fit

It is true that a sustained level of daily activity such as bicycle touring does do some good for cardiovascular health, however, some bicycle tourists lack or have lost their upper and core body strength.

I no longer have my wood chopping arms or a natural six pack tummy acquired not from a gym but from hours of chopping wood and walking in the snow back in my prior life in Alaska.

Reality: It is possible to gain some weight while

bicycle touring

When the world over says that I must be super fit I typically say ‘Fit? Fit for the mental hospital and that’s about it’, or ‘no man, I am just trying to stay out of jail’. I have met people who have grown bellies from touring and others who have trimmed done their waist lines. Like everything in life, nutrition and what is available to eat on tour are big factors.

Illusion: You must start with a small bicycle tour and work up to a longer tour

I and a few other men and WOW (Women On Wheels) had zero cycling experience prior to a world tour. Granted when I left the bicycle shop in England my throbbing neck and creaking Achilles tendons might have been an issue through Wales to Ireland if I hadn’t been grinning so hard over the handle bars of finally starting my long dreamed of adventure. 18 countries later, I am still grinning and learning as I go.

Reality: You do not need prior experience, just a sense of adventure and a willingness to try

Camping and sleeping for free cuts back on costs and I have spent many a day spending nothing more then $2-4 (USD) on food. Biciclown who has been on the road since 2004 usually spends less then 6 (EU) no matter where he is touring. Travelling Two is a great website highlighting all sorts of folks that have toured continents such as Africa and S. America for 10,000 (EU) for a couple’s tour. World Biking is another huge resource for cycle tourists, these two have been touring since 2006 on a low budget. Touring for cheap ($7usd a day) in SE Asia is very popular.

Illusion: Bicycle Touring is very expensive

The Karakorum Highway, Pakistan ($4usd a day) is my favorite place for glaciers that touch the pedals, beautiful free camping and wonderful people. Pakistan is even cheaper than India ($6usd a day). Warmshowers is a website dedicated to finding free warm showers for cyclists; it’s full of bicycle touring on the cheap supporters. Coughsurfing is another resource for meeting locals, sleeping for free and budget bicycle touring. Camping and sleeping for free inside can be pretty easy, the world over seems to understand bicycle touring.

Illusion: Girly Girl Gear For Guys Too

is too expensive, you can’t afford it

Many people get off the bus and get a $100 bicycle at a local market and pedal on. Central, SE Asia and India are great for that. I have seen backpacks strapped to pieces of wood for 1000’s of KMS and handmade panniers that have gone the distance. Couples touring is less costly then solo touring but even than 3-8 USD is less then you might spend on a mug of beer or coffee back home. An expensive bicycle might insure less time spent on repairs but the memories acquired and the smiles of a dream in action will surely curb some of the worries of saving cash and putting off the dream.

Reality: Locals have been pedaling up mountains on old one speed bicycles wearing nothing but flip flops for a very long time

If someone decided to write a bongs and bicycles article I am fairly certain they would find a contributor. Tobacco can be found in some panniers and there are plenty of WOW (women on wheels) and men who enjoy a good drink. Dervla Murphy and Helen Lloyd who counted miles and beers throughout Africa come to mind.

Reality: Bicycle Tourists come in all sizes and personality types, say hello to one today!

Next month’s newsletter is in the works. I would love to hear about your favorite article of outdoor gear and why. Please say hello at skalatitude@gmail.com, FB or Twitter

Roll’in With My Homies…How To Bicycle Tour With Only Two Panniers

I have been asked several times how I got bicycle touring gear and a camping kit into 2 Ortlieb panniers and no handlebar bag instead of the typical 4-5 pannier set up. The answer is Houdini is a close personnel friend of Pandemic The Magic bicycle, just kidding. Here are 5 myths debunked about lightweight 4 season bicycle touring.

Myth 1 You must not be camping

I camp and only sleep inside in big cities when it’s cheap and/or makes sense. My camping kit for the last few years of continuous touring consists of…

Tent/Home

I had an amazing Vaude Hogan Ultra light which was too hot for the tropics of SE Asia until I lost the poles. A small patchable hole encouraged me to purchase a new tent.

Tent 2, Big Agnes Fly Creek 1. This tent was too small and not tough enough. The mesh ripped almost immediately and the zipper gave out after only 2 months. Things kept failing out of the pocket and hitting me in the head and I wouldn’t describe this free standing tent as free standing.

Tent 3, It’s necessary to have a tent without holes for poisonous bugs up ahead in Africa therefore Tent 3 is on it’s way. Tent 2 I will cut and use as a double ground cloth. Thanks to a online x-mas sale plus coupon I purchased the Mountain Hardwear skyledge 2.1 for $196. Happy New Years and Gears to me!

MSR whisper light int’l stove, which after some cleaning of the fuel pump has been unstoppable at altitude and with use of various fuels in the Middle East, great in all conditions so far.

Franscesco from Italy on the Manali to Leh Highway, Himalayan Mtns., N. India

Cook Pot (unknown brand) , a plastic container from China with a sealable lid that serves as a sauce holder, take-away container and coffee cup. I often cook lunch at breakfast time and store it in the container.

Fork, spoon, chopsticks, knife. I have two knives, a buck knife and an X-L REDRUM type knife that I found on the road in Malaysia. It’s great for cutting watermelons and heads (just kidding).

Sleeping Pad REI ¾ inflatable, bought off of another bicycle tourist who was done camping in N. India. Until then, I had an $8 blue foam mat that I replaced on route, which I miss.

Sleeping Bag Mountain Hardwear 3 season. It is a warm, wide women’s bag and there’s enough room inside for me to curl up.

Water bag, Ortlieb 20L it makes a great hot shower and water carrier for expedition type areas. Others have reported they are easy to puncture and that the MSR water bags are tougher but mine is holding up fine.

Dervla Murphy, Ireland To India

Myth 2. You must never change your clothes

Cycling Shirts

Call me a girly girl here but I usually carry 8 bohemian cotton shirts, long and short sleeved purchased cheap on route, shorts, a couple of tank tops, 5 multi-functional buffs for my shaggy locks and 6 pairs of socks because my only shoes are Shimano cycling sandals given to me in Malaysia.

Be The Adventure Panties

Houdini loves my ‘be the adventure panties’, so I remember to always pack these. I have a fake arct’rex fleece jacket, marmot precip jacket, 3 pairs of thin gloves and faux leather over-mittens that I made for $.50 because my Gortex over-mitts were stolen.

Thermals

A full set of thermals (brand unknown), pants, 1 short and 2 long sleeve synthetic tops which are all perfect for rain, snow and mtns . In the rain, I pedal in my Gortex ski pants that I have had for a decade. They are too heavy for warmer rain but are amazing to warm up fast in wet cold temperatures. Travelers since the beginning of time have worn hats so I have 3+ of those as well. I usually find them on the road and wash and wear them.

Loretta Henderson (me) in Tibet, China

Myth 3 You must not have a laptop

Asus Eee PC

On a bad day, writing until I laugh makes me feel better, therefore, I carry an Asus Eee PC ($300usd) purchased in Thailand which I named Prozac. I also carry a Nikon L120 camera, 3 mp3 players, a cell phone that I don’t use and all the electrical cords. I have a tool bag full of spare bolts and tools that I have found on the roads. I pick up anything metal that might help a magic bicycle or Houdini.

Myth 4 You must be on a short bicycle tour

I have been on the road since 2009, 18 countries and a not counted number of KM’s. Bicycle computers are great but too easy to lose. The first six months I had the traditional set up of 4 panniers. I cycled for 3 months with one front pannier completely empty. This bothered my brain while pedaling because I was no longer balanced literarily. I send my water purifier home which was never used and never since been missed, called Houdini and had him pack the back 2 panniers. I added a light Ortlieb dry bag that I carry inside a pannier. It can expand and be attached to the back rack to hold a week or more worth of food for expedition areas.

(the front bag is from a backpack I found on the road, it was an experiment that didn’t last long)

Myth 5 You are a midget bicycle tourist

Ok, this might not be a myth. At 5 foot 1 and ¾ inches, I have never been the biggest kid in the class. I met a tall cyclist who was very weight conscious. He looked at my fit for Houdini set up and said ‘yeah that works because your clothes are smaller and you eat less than me’. This myth might be the secret of how Houdini got out of that box and Pandemic The Magic Bicycle and other WOW(women on wheels) and men can bicycle tour anywhere with only 2 panniers.

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Tips and Magic Tricks For Bicycle Touring With Only 2 Panniers

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Cheers and Gears…How To Celebrate The Holidays On The Road

As the musical sound of some unknown voice belts out the verses of the Karan from the nearby mosque, my ears resonate with memories. I am reminded not of the Christmas holidays but of the need for all mosques to update their speakers.

Realizing I am politically incorrect to mention such things, the Karan verses that are so freely sung through circa 1980’s stereo equipment on Muslim streets throughout the world would be beautiful if the acoustics were not similar to the sound of a deaf dog barking underwater.

With that said, there will never be room for Ebenezer Scrooge on Pandemic The Magic Bicycle. And, there are many people who are celebrating the holidays while singing beautiful carols around the world.

As my family sits around an x-mas tree at my sister’s house opening gifts and eating turkey I find myself riding this holiday out solo not eating Turkey but in the country of Turkey (Cyprus) half way around the world. In the spirit of a happy holiday, I refuse to give way to the sad lonesome blues as I open not presents but my many messages on skalatitude.com, Facebook, Twitter and e-mail. My long time friend or rather someone I consider a sister by choice has send me a message, she has some big news to share. She has started a blog just in time for the holidays. My pinterestinglife.com is a hit in only two weeks and rocking off the charts with huge reviews and requests for guest blogging posts. My chosen sister of 20+years, Dawn Cochrane who is as obsessed as Martha Stewart with crafty ideas, has finally decided to share her gifts with a blog.

Her blog has become my on the road holiday choice to receive some well needed holiday cheer. Her gift of household crafts is as obsessive of my love of bicycle travel. Through her creative blog writing and excellent photos, I have smiled and learned about making x-mas gift wrap out of children’s artwork and drooled while reading her Rudolf pancakes recipe. I dearly appreciate such holiday cheer but most of all I love connecting and sharing the x-mas news with all of you. I hope you all enjoy the x-mas craft tips from her blog as much as I have this year. For all bicycle gears will also need some holiday cheer in order to pedal the continent of Africa by this time next year.

Ego On The Rocks…Top 5 Bicycle Touring Buzz Kills

•There is an ego on my tail. Recently, I had the fine pleasure of pedaling for the first time in a group. One unique man decided to use me as a rabbit because I have less stuff and therefore faster. Therefore, he could stay in my wheels shadow on hills for as long as he could. Mixing egos and rabbits apparently doesn’t make for a very good cocktail. It was interesting for the first few long days and did make for a few laughs. However, it proved to be remarkably distracting to the silent meditative rhythm and peace I usually find while pedaling up mountains. Huffing and puffing all day to someone else’s speed and rhythm is nothing more than ego madness. It is pertinent for a pleasant ride to find and maintain your own pace while pedaling.

•Why do so many people become so narcissist while on a bicycle tour? Ego, ego, ego, issues, issues, issues…Granted bicycle touring does garnish a lot of attention but it is important to check in on your big fat head because you do want it to fit through the door when you get home. The occasional sing along in the mirror to “You’re So Vain” might do you some good. Also loosen the spandex it might be affecting the blood flow to other vital parts.

•Poor nutrition For instance, packaged instant noodle soup is cheap and readily available in most countries, especially Asian countries. However, noodle soup lacks nutritional and caloric value. The salt content in the accompanying spice package will make you more susceptible to dehydration rendering packaged noodles soup a weak choice for cycling. Make healthy choices from the foods that are available. Rice or bread is also cheap and available most everywhere and will sustain blood sugar and energy levels for far longer, making for a happier tummy and a more pleasant ride.

•Loosen The Spandex It Might Be Affecting Blood Flow To Other Vital Parts Packing too much into the day is a definite buzz kill. 100plus km a day, 7 days a week, is not a very sustainable, enjoyable pace for a happy multi-month bike tour. Life and travelling is far more enjoyable when not stressed to maximum levels all day, every day. Stop and smell the flowers once in a while, take photos, relax and enjoy. Life is meant to be, you know, FUN!

•Good Morning, Let’s Go Cycle The World. 24 hour a day map discussions, navigational dialogue and bicycle babble is energy suction and exhausting. Put the bicycle talk on lock down for at least a couple of hours a day. A positive attitude is important; however, an overly keen approach to bicycle touring will suck the life right out of the trip. Life is about balance, even on a bicycle tour. Other interests, hobbies and conversations can keep the fun up and essentially make the pedaling easier on the spirit and legs.

Tibetan Leg Lunch…Top 5 Ways To Deal With Dogs While Cycling

A chorus of alarm has been set off in the sleepy Tibet police town of Yanjing, the first police check point into Tibet. Foreigners are not technically allowed to come down this road hence my nighttime duck and cover, drive by technique. Therefore, the canine chorus is awake and on duty as I proceed under the barricade amongst a forest thick echo of barking, chasing and howling dogs. I cross deeper into Tibet, squeeze my horn, make noises with my water bottle and the dog pack moves on to other activities. These dogs are as motivated as dogs gets hence the perfect trial for all dog safety cycling techniques I can come up with.

Top 5 Ways to Deal With Dogs While Cycling?

The rock technique. Throw rocks. A lot of dogs have not been treated all that well therefore throwing rocks at the ground near them will scare them off. I do my best to not actually hit them.

The swing a water bottle technique. Water bottles make excellent weapons of defense to swing around, num chuck Bruce Lee style and call off the chase. The noise the plastic makes at times is enough to do the trick.

The chemical canine warfare technique. Attach pepper spray to the handle bars and if the dog gets too aggressive just spray them and temporarily blind the little buggers. However, prior to turning the dog neighborhood into a Helen Kellar camp you might want to make sure the dog is actually trying to bit you not just chase you for fun. Also, I have heard this technique can easily backfire in the wind and get in your own eyes instead rendering a possible blind ground battle to deal with.

A baseball bat? A fellow cyclists, I met on the road into Tibet after having read about aggressive dogs and bicycle touring decided to bring a baseball bat. A great idea for anyone who has ever been chased and bit and well worth the empowering benefits to overcome the fear.

My personal favorite is the gratitude technique. Cycle past psycho dog and say hello, thank you for letting me pass and not biting me. I actually lift my legs while saying this over and over. Perhaps it is half prayer and half personal mantra but so far the canine community has been remarkably supportive.

Bicycle Touring Solo? Boo Hoo Hoo, How To Tackle The Lonesome Blues

Lonesome is described by the Webster’s dictionary as forlorn, lost, alone, deserted, solitary, isolated, secluded, remote, out of the way, without a friend in the world. Lonesome is described by the solution oriented solo bicycle tourists glossary of terms as….if at times after weeks or months of solo bicycle travel, a profound forlorn feeling creeps into your soul, it is perfectly normal and healthy to have deep meaningful conversation with your bicycle. Psychiatric counseling will not be necessary unless the bicycle or other inanimate objects begin to respond in any recognizable verbal auditory format.

And no, a squeaky brake pad does not qualify as a conversation starter. However, just after breakfast this morning, Pandemic The Magic Bicycle past gas, she then got to chatting and told me she would prefer tea to coffee this morning. Just kidding, Pandemic The Magic Bicycle only talks to me after lunch. However, many bicycles have become muses, bicycles with character, bicycles who are characters and have inspired many a solo bicycle tourist to write a book, after all solitude does have its benefits. Check out the WOW (women on wheels) Wall for books, blogs and photos.

Flip It! Flip, defined as the act of turning over in mid air and landing on ones feet. Flip, or turn all that lonesome energy into something positive and entertaining. Many people from many countries, in many countries have asked me “Are You Alone”? I can be completely oblivious to my being a “onesome” and not have thought about it in some time and then here comes the bomb of all reminders. “Are You Alone” and all of a sudden I feel so very boo hoo hoo, playing my miniature violins for myself, all alone. So flip the energy into something positive and fun, keep a journal and call it S.O.L.O, Sexy, Out there, Loud and Out of control and spend time thinking about Annie Londonderry, Gedridur Thorbjarnardottir, Amelia Earhart, and other female explorers, However, while pondering your remarkable similarities to the great women in history, it is important to check in with the ego for we all can’t be famous or perhaps we can, if only in our own minds.

It is pertinent for the sake of this so called sanity to create self entertaining answers to this ‘are you alone’ curiosity for I will venture a guess and say that there isn’t a woman out there who has travelled solo in the developing world who hasn’t been asked “Are You Alone”, at least once and in some places several times a day. A while back, I told a harmless curious motorcycle pose of Indonesian men that my 6 brothers, and I gestured how big they were, all 6, 7 feet plus tall were waiting for me up ahead, a half dozen, large genetic mutants waiting for little alone me. I could hardly say it without laughing, as I explained why I couldn’t talk about being alone anymore and must go right away and meet my large mutant family members. I have also mentioned that I am part of the ‘I Have No Friends’ international social club and they should become members. Or, that I am studying the effects of solitude and isolation on mental stability and had decided, last night, while sharpening my knife, that it was a precarious balance. So have a laugh. For solo female bicycle touring can be as fun as you make it.

I would love to hear your experiences of solo cycling and bicycle touring. Leave a comment below or join the WOW (women on wheels) Wall.

Let’s Get Ready To Rumble…How To Turn A Backpacking Trip Into A Bicycle Tour

Let’s get ready to rumbleeeeeee…..As the echo of the announcer’s voice permeates throughout the walls of the world arena, the heavy weight champion of world travel is introduced. In the ring of dust and exhaust, in the veteran blue corner, we have the bus. A motorized method of vehicular transportation that is undefeated to date by a 13^th round popular decision on 4 continents.

Present Champion of World Travel by Popular Decision

A ‘as crowded as a Los Vegas boxing arena on title fight night’, a travel method which attracts thousands of world travelers yearly to the well trodden backpacker circuit of Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, also known as the golden triangle of overland travel of South East Asia.

Often the bus is a crowded familiar means of transportation in which backpackers jabbed by right hooks and softened by uppercuts zip by villages and thousands of authentic experiences. Sporting fancy footwork unseen since the likes of Muhammad Ali, tourists with their belongings strapped to their backs dance from one bus stop to the next shucking and jiving from one must see destination to the next. Surrounded by familiar westerners and protected by the bus window, only a shield of glass, the size of a mouth guard away from a culturally enriching travel experience.

We turn now to the contender’s in the world championship of travel title belt fight. In the red and black spandex corner we have the underdog, an unknown and newcomer to the sport, backpackers Alle Veenstra and Irene Bosma on holiday originally from Groningen now hailing from Amsterdam, Holland. By first round knock out, they blur the now defeated world champion and as quick as a good left hook; leave the bus staggering on one knee in search of a better experience. And with a one move victory, the well earned world champion of travel title belt is theirs to have. So, how did such an underdog defeat the bus, the world champion of travel transportation options? It’s simple, they announced their victory, got off the bus in Vientiane, Laos, purchased 2 Trek 4300 four series bicycles, a map and some quality gear for 1100USD ($550USD each), strapped their backpacks to the back rack and pedaled off into South East Asia basking in the championship glow of their impressive one move victory.