The other day Rebecca and I spent close to an hour watching a video where a solo cyclist documented his 6-month travels through Mexico. At the end of the recording, after summarizing all the beautiful things that he had experienced, he finished by saying that what he shared was not in fact Mexico, that instead it was only what he had experienced – a snapshot (my words, not his) – and I assume, implying that the country was so much more.…
Without getting in to any details, I'll just say that both Rebecca and I had a very frustrating day yesterday. Our friends on Forever Catamaran had a similarly tough day, albeit for different reasons (their difficulties were caused by Mother Nature, ours by mere mortals). Perhaps as a remedy we should all just go on a nice lazy rafting trip like the one featured in this video by Alastair Humphreys? It might be just what the doctor ordered. By the way, I…
If there's one piece of kit that we've spent an inordinate amount of time researching, it's tents. It's understandable though, because there are a ridiculous number of shelter options on the market. Seeing as how our tent will be our home while we're on the (dirt) road, we don't want to go over-the-top trying to be minimalist. On the other hand, since we need to carry it, we can't afford for it to be too large or heavy either. In…
Since we first announced our biking scheme, we have been asked multiple times how we plan to carry all of our gear. Most people have seen cycle tourers before, if not in person, then at least in photos or on film, and almost always these people are found traveling on bikes designed to carry a large load, and that are fitted out with panniers, front and rear, to carry all of the traveler's possessions. Occasionally they are also seen towing…
I have to admit it, for more than 6 months, we've been telling a bit of a fib. Or, at least, a partial truth. For months, as we sat stationary in Grenada, and now here in Martinique, we have been systematically selling all of our possessions. People would ask, "Why are you getting rid of everything?" We'd do our best to explain that, for a period of time, we owned two boats, and because the new one came full of things that we…
Yesterday's post talked about what I'm not (unnecessarily) scared of. Today I'll confess what I am concerned about: my knee. Back in October, Rebecca and I participated in the 950th Hash, and of course we opted to run the longest of the trails, one that was just shy of 10k. As often happens, my mind writes checks that my body can't cash, and in this case, I ended up hurting my knee. Bad Mike! I'm not unaccustomed to sports injuries. They…