Are you like me?  Do you stop seemingly every quarter mile, because some entrancing scene catches your eye and you want to photograph it?  Or are you a head-down-eyes-front-pound-out-the-miles-til-you-get-there sort of rider?  Is it the journey or the destination that motivates you more?

Stopping a lot is a double-edged sword; this I know from last summer's experience.  I get lots of pictures, and I have a moment to recover each time so fatigue sets in more slowly.  The price, of course, is that I either get to my destination later in the day, have to start earlier, or both, and covering ten miles in an hour is about all I average.  That adds a subtle time pressure to the day, which eats into the enjoyment factor unless I've planned a short-mileage day that doesn't include a lot of climbing.

So, how about it: what's your habit and preference?

Well, I don't usually stop every 1/4 mile, but I stop fairly often; maybe I average stopping every 5 miles or so, hard to say, and of course it varies depending on things.  I carry a DSLR in my handlebar bag; in the early mornings I have a telephoto mounted so as to be ready for wildlife shots, and sometime around noon I switch over to a normal zoom lens for scenery.  Sometimes in the early morn I will swap out lenses for a sunrise shot as well.  

I enjoy photography, and I wouldn't even consider going on tour without taking a "real" camera and a couple of lenses with me - I also take a mini-tripod that I can strap to my bicycle seat when needed to get a selfie of me at places like a state line or mountain pass.

Of course, this selfie technique only works because I can park the bike upright using the Click-Stand.  I carry a few pounds of camera gear with me and make very quick stops for photos whenever I see a good photo opportunity - other than the selfies mentioned above, most of these stops are less than 1 minute total, just enough time to grab the camera and get the shot.  

I also make a lot of quick stops for bathroom breaks - some of this comes with age, and in my case my "plumbing" has been rearranged when they removed my prostate and that perhaps causes me to stop more often than before; regardless of the reason, a quick relief stop is needed once or twice an hour.  We men have a plumbing advantage over the ladies in this regard, and I accomplish these quick stops without even dismounting the bike.  This may fall into the "TMI" (too much information) category, but this thread deals with frequency of stops and it is what it is.   No picture needed to illustrate this one. 

On most every tour there is at least 1 day that falls into the "head down and pound it out category" as it is necessary to cycle a long day for whatever reason.  So I may stop less on such days, but I still stop when I see a good photo opportunity.  Mostly on those days I just get up a bit earlier and start rolling before sunrise. 

On recent tours my speed has averaged a pretty consistent 10 mph pace.  So for a 60-mile day, stopping about every half hour would mean 12 or so stops.  That sounds about right, and includes photo and bathroom stops (sometimes the stop accomplishes both tasks, of course).  And the stop really is only about 30 seconds, or maybe 1 minute at the max.  So my stops add about 6 - 12 minutes to my day.  

I also make a short stop whenever I encounter another touring cyclist coming from the opposite direction.  These are usually 3-5 minute stops with pleasantries and photos and info exchanges ("where did you stay last night? How was it?  Did you stay at the hostel in Smithville - do you recommend it?").  On some routes I have encountered lots of other tourists, and on some routes I've only encountered a few.   What surprises me is that sometimes the other tourist doesn't want to stop and just blows on past - it's rare, but it happens.  The information gained from the other tourist's recent overnight stays can be quite valuable, and I always pass on my tips and recommendations to them - so those that don't stop are missing out.   On some routes like the Transam you will meet a lot of opposite-direction tourists, so some days you may stop several times for this reason. 

I've focused on the short stops, since that's what this thread is about.  But if I'm lucky enough to find a diner along the route for second breakfast and/or lunch, then I'm absolutely going to stop for 30-45 minutes and enjoy the break.  If lunch ends up being a roadside stop along the way somewhere, then it's usually only a 15-minute affair until I'm rolling again.  

While I do stop often, as I said, my stops are of short duration.  It's rare that I would take the time to hike a trail or do something like that along the route.  I might venture 5 minutes down a trail to get a photo, but that's about my limit.  I do focus on the goal of getting from Point A to Point B that day - I'm not in any crazy hurry to get there, but I try to roll on steadily to avoid the afternoon heat and weather.   And you never know when a flat tire or mechanical issue might throw a curve in your day's plan, so steady rolling may be prudent and perhaps adds a buffer to allow for the unexpected.  This is mostly an experience thing - you can't avoid all the weather-related challenges or occasional flat tire, but you can certainly minimize your exposure by rolling steady in the morning and early afternoon. 

I know there are some folks who travel as lightly as possible and roll as quickly as they can with minimal stops.  And that is certainly fine if your goal is to get as far as possible as quickly as you can.  But that's not my goal.  I travel long distance via bicycle because I want to see the countryside at slow speed, because I want to remember what it feels like to climb the mountains, I want to remember what it smells like to roll across the plains - I want to EXPERIENCE the entire journey and I want to REMEMBER that experience.   So I travel slow and stop often - I still get there in plenty of time, whatever that means.  For me it's all about the journey - it's great to reach the destination at the end of a long journey, but I have to first earn the right to be there.   In later years my photos rekindle my memories and actually bring back the emotions I felt at the time, so for me these short photo stops are invaluable.   I'm serious when I say that the photos "bring back the emotions" - sometimes when I go back and review a journal like my Transam trip (8 years ago) I find myself getting all choked up as I recall overcoming the challenges of that particular day. 

So that's how I roll - slow and steady with a lot of quick stops - I won't win any races, and I don't want to - but at the end of the day I'll be there and I'll have a few photos.   I think this is a great idea for a thread, I'm looking forward to reading other views. 

Some days I stop as many as 50 times to take photos and explore various things. The best views are seldom from the middle of the road.

When it comes to rest and pee breaks, I usually stop for 10-15 minutes after about an hour of pedaling. About every 10 miles in rolling terrain.

Most club cyclists and group tour cyclists take shorter and less frequent stops. I take fewer photo stops when I have tour partners. Many cyclists like to be done with the day's riding at noon. I've usually only gone 20 miles by noon.

Rain sometimes causes me to quit taking photo or rest stops. I don't like those days partly for the unpleasant conditions and lack of rest, but mostly because I don't see very much.

Isn't the stopping the zen moments of touring, like the value of a vase is its emptiness? 

The stopping is what makes it possible that Patrick and I can ride together. We call it riding Together alone, as we are always in sight of each other but rarely actually cycling together because of our different abilities and styles. We leapfrog. Patrick will stop to take a picture, and I keep cycling (unless it's something very interesting to see and I'll stop too), and on a hill, Patrick gives me a headstart and usually catches or passes before the top and we regroup or take a break to eat. In certain areas, we strive to make it to a stop for a second breakfast at a cafe. As we've aged, we do shorter distances and call them "half rest days".

After all, as Jimmy Buffet says, "Go fast enough to get there, but slow enough to see".

During my first couple of tours, I stopped only when I was thirsty, when I wanted a quick roadside snack, or when I needed to stretch my arms & legs a little bit.  I took very few pictures.  I didn't feel like I needed them.

On more recent tours, I've been stopping a lot more often and it's because I take way too many pictures.  Sometimes I will take 20 or more photos over the course of the riding part of my day, and to be honest, I think the only reason I take them is because I'm posting an on-line journal.  I know the subjects of most of my photos aren't really all that picture worthy, but I take them anyway--just because I feel I need them to enhance the narrative--even with full knowledge that nobody will care about them more than a minute after seeing them.

Anyway, I think I need to find a Jimmy Buffet-like equilibrium (see previous post) between too many stops and too few.  Thanks, Keith, for the opportunity to give this topic a bit of thought. 

On one tour, I stopped in a diner in a small town in Nebraska, and there were a bunch of old guys sitting at a table, shooting the breeze the way old guys in small town diners do. I finished lunch, got on my bike, rode a couple of blocks, and saw one of the old guys driving back to his house--on his riding lawn mower! I didn't stop, because I'd only ridden two blocks, and if I stopped to take a picture every two blocks, I'd never get anywhere. And then a mile or so later, I really kicked myself for not getting a picture.

I can think of lots of pictures that I wished I'd taken, but I can't think of any times that I regretted stopping to take a picture.

There's a lot of wisdom in what you wrote there.  For us, one of the big points of touring on a bicycle is how easy it is to stop.  So we stop a lot, mostly to take pictures, which is our way of marveling at the beautiful, crazy world we live in.   Yes, I don't think we've ever regretted stopping for a picture either.  

It gives me great satisfaction to stop and take photos on bridges and cliffside roads where motorists could never stop.

Like many aspects of cycle touring, the number of stops per day depends on a few things. Weather, scenery, attractions and distractions. And whether or not I’m riding with others or solo.

Other than quick photo stops which can range from none to dozens, I stop  to eat and drink  every hour or so. Keeping blood glucose levels and hydration up is important to keep my legs moving. 

On 100 km + days, I’ll stop at least three times for a substantial rest and refreshment breaks where I set up the stove and make coffee or even noodle soup. 

I like the description ‘Riding together alone’.  Scott and I do that a lot, also.  I’m really excited about our meet-up!