A Dream Coming True

April 26, 2003

Some time ago I had a dream to cross continental Europe from the eastern edge to the furthest-most western point under my own power. In the past few months this dream has evolved from an item on a list of things to accomplish in my life to an event that WILL happen - in August 2003 I will depart from Cochrane, Ontario, CANADA, and the next morning I will arrive in Istanbul, Turkey - where Asia meets Europe.

Call it what you like: a sabbatical because of a great job and family who allow me the time to realize my goals, or a time when I have finally lost it?! Whatever you might call it, I am putting aside my comfy life in Canada for a few months to sit on a bicycle seat for about 100 days in a row.

Before departing I shall dip my rear tire into the Bosporus. For the next 100 days I will bicycle an average of 50 km per day until I arrive in Cabo da Roca, Portugal, the westernmost edge of continental Europe where I will dip my front tire into the Atlantic.

Over those 100 days I will bicycle from Istanbul toward and into Bulgaria, then into Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia, Slovenia, Italy, France, Spain and finally Portugal. Along my route I hope to meet with the locals to discover their way of life and tell them about my country. Diplomacy will be required as some of these nations have only recently emerged from very difficult civil wars. In fact, I have been warned in some regions to avoid deserted buildings, unpaved roads and open fields due to the tens of thousands of landmines remaining from these wars. The safety that we simply take for granted in Canada would be only a dream to many of these people. I must be wary.

Seen by some as a rather unorthodox means of traveling, a bicycle truly allows a traveler to meet with the local people. Much more approachable than in a car, a cyclist is often seen as a curiosity yet someone who is 'safe' to approach to talk to.

I will be bringing my 18 speed hybrid touring bicycle with me on the plane. To pack it, I must remove the front wheel, the pedals, seat, and handlebars. I carefully pack all of these into a bicycle box, tape everything together along with my very limited clothing (basically two sets of cycling clothes), a few tools, my camping gear and necessities. In a second box will be my BOB Yak trailer with which I will carry most of my gear. The trailer clamps onto the back of the bike and is much more stable than the traditional panniers with their more dangerous and higher centre of gravity. Possibly more cumbersome in busy traffic, I am counting on its secure attachment to the bike to make the touring safer and more enjoyable.

In order to prepare myself, I plan to do a lot of cycling in the Iroquois Falls and Cochrane areas in northern Ontario, Canada, including commuting some days between the two towns. Many of these kilometers will be fully loaded with the gear I will take with me across Europe. This way I will get a feel for the weight and be able to make numerous adjustments. It is one thing to cycle 50 km from Iroquois Falls to Cochrane a few times over the summer. It is another thing to do it every day for three and a half months. Everything must be loaded exactly right. In addition to the training on the bicycle I plan to do some weight training and canoeing. By the time August rolls around, I hope to be able to easily cycle from 50 to 100 km per day. My fingers are crossed!

Here is the guy who will be eating, pedalling, eating, sleeping, and eating.

And this will be 'home' for the next many weeks (the BIKE, not the bed, TV, or Santa Bear)

...and all my belongings in this teeny tiny space.

I have added the stand to the trailer so it no longer bends the rear of the bicycle. I have also used 3" lengths of dog-choker chain to connect the pins to the frame of the trailer. I zip-tied the chains to the frame and now have no worries about losing the pins. (This pic shows that I used to use electrical tape - this was replaced by the chains.)

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