About

About the Bartletts

We are the Bartlett’s, Barry &  Mary Ellen, and we love to travel on our recumbent tandem, a Rans Seavo TR (with S&S couplers) and our Azub Ti-Fly 20 recumbent trikes. Cycling  has been a life long passion for Barry  and an important part of Mary Ellen’s life as well. Cycle touring has long been a part of our lives dating back to our youth with trips in Europe, Scandinavia, Great Britain and North America.  We both caught the travelling bug early and continue to share this passion.

Barry grew up in Victoria, BC and Mary Ellen in Belleville, Ontario. We have enjoyed  living on the beautiful Southern Gulf Islands of Galiano and Saltspring Islands for the past 30+ years  for most of Barry's teaching career.

Now that we are retired on Saltspring Island, my wife, Mary Ellen  and I are spending our time enjoying Island life as well as perpetually planning and saving for our next cycling adventure. 

There are so many places that we want to go - just spin the globe and we'll find a destination.  For many years, Europe provided us with so many options that we found an ourselves going back every year for a three month cycling trip. After Covid , we started bicycle touring in Japan. We are presently on our third trip, once again for 3 months, to Japan.

Years of riding upright bikes, accumulating injuries and aches & pains,  and just the reality of getting older led us to discover the benefits and joy of riding recumbent bikes. 

We have  added an electric assist to the  recumbent tandem that we ride in Europe.  With an electric assist we feel that we will be able to continue doing challenging and hilly bike trips without our knees failing us. 

Our bikes seem to attract the attention of people wherever we go. The unique design of our "big rig" tandem and our trikes provides a good icebreaker to interact with local people regardless of language barrier. These interactions and the kindness that we experience are the true joys of travelling.