Europe (all)

A travelogue from an 8 month, 16,000km bike tour from London to Beijing via the ancient silk roads.

A 40,000 km. 3 year ride through 30 countries, from far eastern Russia (Siberia) in winter, to London England, via Australia. Trying to cover the whole route by bicycle and boat only. I have encountered plenty of good times and a few tough ones, noteably in Siberia (camping at minus forty), Papua New Guinea (pushing my bike down a beach as no roads) and Tibet (in winter).

We had just finished cycling the South Island of New Zealand and instead of sitting back and relaxing on the flight home, we began planning our next trip, a month long self-supported cycling trip in France.

What better place to begin a trip to France then in Paris. From the 'City of Lights' we would dabble in a little art history by visiting Monet's gardens and then it would be off to the D-day beaches and a WWII history lesson. From 20th century history we would go back in time to the 11th century and visit Bayeaux and its famous tapestry. We would then check out life in a monastery, cycling across Normandy to Mt. St. Michel.

From Mt. St. Michel we would travel along the Brittany coast. At St. Malo we would leave the coast for the medieval city of Dinan and continue to the mouth of the Loire. We would then cycle through the land of chateaux and wineries ending our trip at Fontainebleau.

Our site includes lots of photos along with a daily log and an equipment list.

In the summer of 2006 I aimed to finish to succeed the Granfondo Campagnolo, the hardest bicyclemarathon in Italy in 2006. Before the Granfondo I and two friends of mine spent 3 days in the Dolomites, with those tours I bicycled onto 6 passes above 2000m there. The most wondeful climb was the very hard Tre Cime di Lavaredo (2350 m) from the Lake Misurina, with a beautiful panorama. An another memorable pass was the Staller Sattel (2052 m) on the austrian border: the last 5 km is very nice with panorama, calmness, forest, flowers, blue lake down and snow on the mountains. The Giau pass was a hard one, but ``only averagely nice''.

The Granfondo was one of my most memorable bicycle memory. I was the only one who finished it with a 13 kg+ 2,5 kg pack heavy touring bike. I could bicycle with the last 30-40 participant; I enjoyed the nature, countryside and the feeling; I stopped few times for photos. After arriving in time, as the speaker saw with how a bike I arrived into the finish, he called me next to him and after 2-3 sentences he spoke a few minutes about my performance. After it, the 50 people audience clapped for me and immediatelly I could hear the hungarian anthem from the loud-speakers. It was a surprise for me from the speaker, who found this performance very serious with a bike, I had.

After the last 2 years of my alpine bicycletours, in 2006 I went back to the Alps with the aim that after my tour maybe I would be the first hungarian people who bicycled up to all (74-75) of the asphalted alpine passes above 2000m. After 6 years of alone bicycling, this year I had two guys with me. In Italy and France we had nice, warm, sunny days with cycling a few hard cols, passes, like the 2612m high Passo Nivolet (I'm sure between the 3 best / most beautiful passes, where I had been), or the almost unknown Passo del Preit (2083 m), onto we bicycled in stormy weather with thunderstorms. The Fort Gondran (2347 m)was also very nice next to Briancon, I can suggest to visit it.

After Col du Lautaret, Alpe d'Huez, Col du Sabot, we arrived to Chamonix on a nice day, when at last we could see the snowfields of the Mont Blanc before sunset. Next day we got rain and cold as we cycled to Switzerland, and the bad weather remained for 3-4 days long. We had to postpone passes onto the next days, or climbed 1-2 of them partly in rain and arrived to the top in 4-8 degrees Celsius. The Sustenpass was the worst and coldest. The Passo Spluga (2117 m) was also a very beautiful pass, with a lot of hairpins, views and superb hairpin-row on a almost vertical wall, with short straight sections. Because the times went by too fast on that evening I decided to climb the famous Mortirolo (and the 2100m high Passo Val Bighera) in dark, in the night. It was wonderful: in a calm, dark forst in a warm air. I enjoyed very much the nature, air, and the views, because it was light, because I had fortune with the full Moon. I enjoyed the feeling so much, that I spent much time above. Our last pass was the Passo Goletto di Crocette (2070 m), onto we had 8-10% steep kilometers in or after raining for 2-3 hours. With a few passes postponed, we remained 4 passes to climb, that I did in September 2006.

Montenegro is beautiful. Montenegro is affordable. The personal train transport is also good in Montenegro (and you can carry bicycle). There are brilliant beaches, marvellous mountains and canyons, lovely lakes, old or cheer towns, a lot of cafes and restaruants with local specialities. So there are everything what we want. Even though we met only tree Russian bikers in this country.

In the summer of 2006 we cycled 62 days and 3700 kilometers through Europe. From Holland to Germany, the Alps, Italy, Corfu, Lefkada, Keffalonia, Greece and western Turkey to complete our journey in front of Istanbul's Blue Mosque. On our site you can find a lot of pictures, tips and travel stories (in Dutch, English will appear later).

In de zomer van 2006 fietsten we 3700 kilometer in 62 dagen door Europa. Van Nederland trokken we door Duitsland, de Alpen en Italië naar de Griekse eilanden Corfu, Lefkas en Keffalonia, over het Griekse vasteland naar Turkije om te eindigen voor de Blauwe Moskee in Istanbul. Veel plezier!

This journey I made in Sept.2005. From Bremgarten (AG) cycling in direction Graubünden,the eastern part of Switserland. I enjoyed one week cycling, climbing 7 passes.

The cycle tour in 2006 we decided to make within Norway. We had in fact never been to the coastal areas between Trondheim and Bodø before. A lot has been done to promote cycling along this coast line, and the choice was not too difficult to make. The coast of Helgeland, as this area is called, is not as well known as Lofoten, that lies farther to the north, but we had already cycled in Lofoten, so this time we went for Helgeland.

Why upstream the Elbe? Mostly, 80% to 90% there is west wind in Holland and North-Germany. Unfortunately the first few days it was the opposite. But of the 14 days only 2 were spoiled by rain, otherwise beautiful and in the beginning cloudless weather. At the same time there was a dreadful storm with flooding which caused enormous damage in the alpine area.

From Zürich (Switzerland) to Sicily (Italy). Through Lugano-Como-Bergamo-Verona-Vicenza-Padova-Ravenna-Rimini-Ancona to Pescara. After Pescara the river ``Sangro'' comes down out of the Abruzze mountains. I followed this river to get on the other side of Italy. Further through Napoli-Amalfi,down the coast of Calabry to Messina (Sicily) -Siracuse-Agrigento-Marsala-Trapani-to Palermo. (the capital of Sicily) Total kilometre 2731

Radtour von Rastatt nach Strassburg über die elsässische Weinstrasse weiter nach Colmar und schließlich nach Freiburg

THE PLAN: My bags are packed, i've got a new bike (long story, best told over beer...) and i'm heading to the airport tonight. My plan for the trip is as follows:

Istanbul --> Bucharest --> Odesa --> Kiev

Each leg of the trip is about 600 km long and will take me about a week (at a stately pace). I'll try to send an email from each city. I'm hoping to take a train back to Istanbul and spend my last week checking out the sights there.

THE REALITY: Spent the bulk of the trip in Turkey, due to its inhabitants' incredible generosity and friendliness, as well as the dismal roads and driving in the Balkans.

I enjoyed a marvellous bike trip from Alicante (South Spain) back to Switzerland. Three high points I wanted to visit. First; the country of ``Don Quijote'' in Castilla y Mancha. Second; ``El Escorial'' west of Madrid. Third; ``the bridge over the river Tarn'' in South France, build of the English star architect Norman Forster. I avoided busy roads as much as possible and enjoyed the quiet side streets, especial along the Pyrenees.

The month August 2006 was one of the worst fore many years. Cold weather and much rain left little hope for a third bicycle tour this year. The weather forecasts of the first weekend in September promised however improvement. Sunday evening I packed my bags and Monday morning 10.15 a.m. I started cycling From Andermatt to Chur with a dertour.

Vom 20 Juli bis 08 August 2006 fuhren wir den Rhein entlang von der Quelle (Tomasee) bis zur Mündung in Katwijk aan zee. Dort trägt sie noch den Nahme ``Rijn'', im Gegensatz zu Hoek van Holland.

This is a description with lots of pictures of our August 2006 trip on tandem recumbent around Alsace with a few days in Bourgogne. We also did some traveling on the train, even with out very long bike. I also describe some of our planning work and how we built a box to take our 104-inch long bike on the airplanes from New York state to Mulhouse France. We camped part of the time and stayed in a great chambre d'hote (bed and breakfast) for several days.

The author is selling a book on his tour around the world, but has made several chapters available for free, in PDF format. Espcially the chapters on Ethiopia and Siberia are fascinating to read and among the best stories found on Trento Bike. This is true adventure. Here are two short paragraphs:

• Ethiopia How can two sides of one village be so different? One hundred metres from Sudan and I had left behind Islam and North Africa and was into the continent's heart. The buildings, people and attitudes all felt different. The red dirt road was busy with pedestrians. Barefoot people and donkeys easily outnumbered the few fume-spewing, rattling vehicles. Women walked shaded beneath golf umbrellas, a strange sight in the African sun. Men bore a stout staff across their shoulders, their hands hooked over like wings. In Sudan the ladies flowed in colourful loose robes and men with bushy moustaches glided around in white galibayahs. In Ethiopia the men wore tight little shorts and tattered T-shirts, repaired many times, with a blanket draped over their willowy shoulders.

• Siberia We rode on and on through a frigid emptiness of low hills white with snow or black leafless woods. The white road ahead on the wooded hillsides stood out like a photo negative. The horizon's high mountains looked enticing and I felt happy to be here, to be at the ends of the earth with my bicycle. ``I'm out here a thousand miles from my home, walking a road other men have gone down. I'm seeing a world of people and things,'' sang Dylan in my headphones.

Also check out the expedition advice.

Eine anspruchsvolle Radtour in 8 Tagesetappen über insgesamt 549 km durch das südliche Korsika, Tagesetappen zwischen 40 und 109 Kilometern.

A demanding bicycle tour over 8 days and 450 kilometers through southern Corsica. The daily stages were between 40 and 109 kilometers.

15 giorni per andare dal centro della selvaggia Norvegia alle isole Lofoten, lungo la mitica rv17 con le nostre mountain bike cariche all'estremo.

Un team per la prima volta formato da 6 persone, incontri e avventure tra traghetti e fiordi.

Photos and video of the more scenic and quiet backside ride up to Alpe d'Huez, Col de Sarenne, in the French Alps.

My girlfriend suggested we cycle from her brother's house to her mom's. Of course, her brother lived in Switzerland, and her mom in Austria, and there were a few mountains in between. I immediately jumped at the chance. Little did we realize that it would be the hottest summer in the Dolomites in 250 years. It was swelteringly hot, but we persevered, and had a great trip through some amazing scenery.

The canyon of the Tarn is one of the obvious highlights of the Cévennes National Park. Another landmark landscape phenomenon are the so called 'Causses'. Causses are the bleak and barren high limestone plateaus of the Cévennes National Park.

This site deals about a short but fascinating cycle trip that Willem Hoffmans and I undertook through the gorges, plateaus and volcano landscapes of the Massif Central. Cycling in the autumn means there are gew facilities but also few tourists, which gave us a whole new perspective of life in the French countryside.

After the long German winter, we are impatient to get started with the cycling season. Looking for a land of early spring sunshine and mild temperatures, we decide on Apulia, southern Italy, the heel of the boot.

Apulia is more than just sunshine. There are many small roads with little traffic, beautiful beaches and an excellent cuisine. Those interested in history and art won't be disappointed: with Palaeolithic finds, Greek vases, Romanesque churches, Norman fortresses and Baroque cities there is much to see.

We toured two weeks, 750 km and stayed in hotels or pensions.

We are now in Cambodia, after 10 months of cycling thru New Zealand, Australia, Malaysia, Thailand. Our site is bilingual.

Our web site is about the trip that we are now realizing. We have gone across the world to go back to Canada. We already crossed 5 different countries in 10 months. We will keep biking for around 2 more years. The subject treated by the web page is mostly about our trip (story, pictures, organisation) but we added a lot of other stuff like recipes, rock climbing, and small articles. We are French-Canadian, so our web site is belingual.

I decide to leave Switzerland and cycle until Tibet. The road decide for me and I finally arrive one and an half year later in Cape Town, South Africa. This is a journey dedicated to freedom, people and nature. This tour may continue to South America but I'm still working as a tour guide in Namibia to get money for the next destinations.

Have a look on my cold stage in Turkey, nice time in Syria, amazing Sudanese crossing, wild Tanzanian experience, pure Namibia, etc... I hope you will enjoy and feel free to contact me.

A historical look at Alpe d'Huez plus written and photo reports from the Marmotte and Etape du Tour events. Both events finished at the top of Alpe d'Huez this past July.

In the summer of 2004 we cycled 2250 kilometer from Holland to Rome. During the trip we passed through 10 countries and cycled through the Ardennes, Vosges, Alps, Apennines and Tuscany. We enjoyed the beautiful italian villages and met a lot of other cyclists. A lot of pictures, tips and travel stories in Dutch (English translations will soon appear).

In 2004 fietsten we van Nederland naar Rome. We fietsten door 10 landen en door/over de Ardennen, Vogezen, Alpen, Appenijnen en Toscane. We genoten volop van de mooie Italiaanse stadjes en ontmoetten heel veel andere fietsers. Veel plezier!

During July and August 2005 we cycled through amazing Norway. Mountains, glaciers, fjords, forests, carribean-style beaches (with cold water :( ...), space and stillness. We cycled from the North Cape down to Oslo via the Lofoten, RV 17 Coastal Route, Trollstigen, Geiranger, RV 55 and Rallarvegen. A lot of pictures, tips and travel stories in Dutch (English translations will soon appear).

In juli en augustus 2005 fietsten we door fantastisch Noorwegen. Bergen, gletsjers, fjorden, bossen, bounty-eiland-strandje (met veel te koud water :( ...), rust en ruimte. We fietsten van de Noordkaap naar Oslo via de Lofoten, RV 17 Kustroute, Trollstigen, Geiranger, RV 55 en Rallervegen. Veel plezier!

From the beginning of the Italian Alps to Munich, and way back to Venice.

A self-organised, seven-day tour for four through the countryside of Eastern Slovenia and Western Hungary. A total of 647km travelled.

Highlights included: romantic Ljubljana, the socialist-realist new town of Velenje, traversing the Pohorje Massif via the Rogla ski resort, crossing the border at Kobilje, sampling erratic Hungarian driving techniques, having to off-road frequently, 85km of flat along Lake Balaton, the old town of Szekesfehervar (when we found it), and entering Budapest the hard way via the Buda hills.

All that and sampling every beer we could find...

In March of 2006 we set out to cycle from the UK to Tibet. We didn't quite make it but had a great adventure cycling across Europe in one of the wettest winters on record and then through the wilds of Central Asia. The site includes lots of images from Tajikistan one of the really countries for cycling.

In the summer of 2006 I have cycled from Stavanger in Southern Norway to the Nordkapp. It took me 3.260 kilometer along fjords, across islands and over highlands. These pages put together stories, pictures, maps and information about the cycling trip.

Siamo partiti il 16 luglio 2006 da Magdeburg. Abbiamo costeggiato l'Elbe, intersecando la Romanik Strasse, sino ad Amburgo. Lungo la riva sinistra dell'Elbe abbiamo raggiunto Cuxhaven sul Mare del Nord.

Da qui con una motonave che salpa due volte alla settimana siamo sbarcati a Brunsbuttel, sulla riva destra dell'estuario dell'Elbe e, attraverso l'alzaia del Nordsee-Ostsee Kanal, abbiamo guadagnato Kiel, sul Mar Baltico, dopo 830 km, il 26 luglio.

Bike Tours: Travelogues, photos, maps and tips about long distance bike traveling in Greece, Turkey, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Slovenia, France, Spain; Mexico, Canada; South America and others.

Reiseberichte und Reisefotografie von Radtouren in Europa (Italien, Griechenland, Spanien, Mallorca, Frankreich, Tschechien, Slovenien etc.), Kanada, Mexiko, Südamerika und viele mehr. Lass dich inspirieren!

These pages describe a week long cycle tour through Central Tuscany in May 2006.

The route took me from Siena to Florence via Castelnuovo Berardenga, Vagliagli, Radda, Gaiole, Panzano, Montefioralle, Greve, San Polo, Strada, and Impruneta.

In questa sezione del sito personale di Paolo Adamoli vengono descritti alcuni viaggi in bicicletta dal 1998 al 2006.

Oltre a itinerari classici come il Danubio da Ulm a Bratislava, è interessante l'ultimo viaggio, nel luglio 2006, da Magdeburgo al mare del Nord e lungo il Nordsee-Ostsee-Kanal sino a Kiel, sul mar Blatico.

Bicycle world tour part II from Mun Suk and Eric Wehrheim. Actual tour in South and maybe Central America. Open end. On the homepage you will find also some information and fotos from our bicycle-world-tour part I who was from Germany to South Corea by crossing Africa.

If the link to our homepage doesn´t work well (sometimes in South America this happend to me) please go to http://aventurero.cjb.cc. It´s the same page only on another server.