2. Celebrating Distance

(Day 4-13, 1.194km cycled)

Travelling at Lightspeed

Today I cracked the 1,000km mark, meaning I have finished 10% of my journey and I have done it in about 12 days. Actually none of this is really true but let me get to that. 

I met great people along the way, have experienced all sorts of weather and tried my first wild-camping night, you can read all about it in this blogpost:

Iago and Freddy 

...is the name of the game. Steering my bike into the carpark of an Aldi for lunch (because nobody can say no to a good discounted deal), I spotted two road bikes with obvious bike touring gear. One had two massive saddlebags and the other a one-wheeler cart attached at the back.  

Bikepackers are a bit like car guys, or horse girls, or mechanics, or any sort of geek for that matter. When they see something that's close to what they're working on, they will get excited and that's what happened to me. So now I am in the Aldi, half looking for lunch and half spying through the shelves to spot the people whose bike-shorted butts belong on the two saddles outside. 

A loud and clear "Ja was machn wa denn jetzt zu Mittag?" gave me the certainty that it was indeed ZE GERMANS JA! Thats not uncommon since I am just 200km or so shy of the German border. Germans on holiday are a two-edged sword: Sometimes you want to meet them, often you dont. Especially if you want an immersed experience into another country, mingling with other Germans is almost a guarantee that no immersion will take place. 

While I now sat in the shade outside the supermarket, I saw the German boys inspect my bike and we got talking. The two of them are both 17 year old boys on the way to Barcelona. They are sleeping in hammocks in contrast to my tent life and being underaged means that most camping grounds wont allow them in. But I dont care about hammocks, the two guys are cool and easy going, thats what makes them interesting! 

Since I am more on a fast track, needing to reach Nice in a couple days and all that, we exchanged numbers and decided that somewhere along the way to Barcelona I will either catch up with them or either we will meet in Barcelona for a beer for their well deserved break. 

Meeting people like this can lift your mood for a long while and I sincerely hope that we will meet along the way again. All the best to you two!

Locks

There is urgency to my cycling. I am aware that I have about 160 days to do 10,000km. The most picturesque and culturally rich section of my trip will be Europe. So in all honesty, taking your time to take a good look at your surroundings will be in Europe. But experimenting with your limits, pushing more and more kilometers in a day is best done in Europe too. The trails are well paved, designated cycling roads that lead you through river deltas or along old traintracks. It's like a racecourse where making many kilometers a day is possible.

I find myself locked in, trying to make up time that I can later use to, lets say, get diarrhoea or a fat fever for a couple days, make wrong turns, have visa issues, wait for spare parts or just be slow on a dirt track. While all of beautiful europe passes me by, I am flying at lightspeed alongside the artificial canals, going up and down the locks that Dutch people use to justify their 100.000€ purchase of a houseboat in the summer. 

Clouds in Dijon

Having sped by Nancy and Mets, crossing through the Côte d'Or, which has its name presumably from the golden grains and mustard that grows there, I am fighting my way through 35°C heat with exhausting headwinds and constant hilly terrain. 

The previous 100km-day limits fall out of reach as I reach Dijon way, last midday, in a last effort stunt. My legs are just not having it anymore. After 55km, I have the sour feeling of surrender and defeat in my mouth as I order my 12€ pitch for the night at the city-camping site.

I dont know if it was the defeat, the lethargy of France's national holiday in the air or the 3 or so people that call me to get updates on my tour. That day it is clear as day to me that I am stressed. Absolutely super stressed. I am having half a day off and I feel like I dont have any free time. Writing blogs, a trip diary, making Instagram content, setting up camp, washing your clothes, cooking or organizing food, doing 100km a day on your bike, stretching, packing up your things, maintaining and checking the bike, taking photos and videos. All of that in a single day. And beyond that, I start to question, whether the assumptions on the trip (like speed I can maintain) are right. 

I have about 160 days (June 7th to December 15th) if I want to have one week to care for diabetics in Togo. There is about 10.000km (more like 11,000 - 12,000 realistically) and my current speed is 1,000km in 12 days with 1(!) day free time included. This means I have 28 free days extra and another 11-12 thats included in the calculation. 

On a lighter note, I am doing a lot more kilometers in 12 days now. I am much faster and to be honest, who knows if it will be actually 11k or 12k kilometers

Maybe (and hopefully) it ends up only being  10k. 

Although I am on "holiday", the sun was shining, everybody I meet and all my friends are supporting me, and to top it all off, French national holiday fireworks in Dijon were great, I was stressed. Super stressed.

Mediterranean 

The following days went by fast. In more than one way. Getting woken up by thunder in Dijon, I packed up everything in a record 26 minutes just before the rain set in and I departed on my way to Lyon. Passing the Bourgogne wine region, I had to indulge in a fine glass of red wine. But that glass had to wait for after I rain-tested my equipment. The announced Thunderstorm for that day came with brute force. I could see the clouds approaching while I rode towards them and about 15km away from my destination, the skies opened its gates and out poured an absolute flood of water. Good to say, mostly all of the Bags passed the rain-test and a special thanks goes out to myself for investing in a good rainjacket. 

Reaching Lyon the day after gave me a lot of courage and strength because it meant not only that my streak of 100km/day rides seemed to prove the norm rather than the exception - because I continued spinning these wheels for an insane duration each day - it also meant a well deserved full day break for me and my legs. 

Checking into the hostel in Lyon and absolutely stinking up the whole 10-person room with my cycling shoes and semi-wet clothes from the stormy day before, I felt relief . Finally time to do laundry! The beautiful weather and the existence of an outdoor store in Lyon further fueled my energy.

Hadn't there been so many stairs in Lyon, I might have even recovered so much, I would have learned to fly and reach Nice in one day. On the other hand, Lyon made me break my only camping rule: No more weight. 

I couldn't stop myself from buying a camping chair. It had to be done. Sitting is believing. And with that advertisement phrase from Helinox, I can say that breaking that rule was the absolute right choice. I love my new chair. 🫶

Cycling after a day of rest and a load of ice cream was an easy feat, the next three days I cycled 120km or more a day, heading towards Nice at great pace and bracing myself for the mountains that mark my last 200km etappe. I must have cycled so fast that today, passing by Avignon, I realized, I am in the mediterranean. 

Not only does camping cost 18€ for one person and a tent, instead of the reasonable 7€ in the north, but there is wormwood and pine needle smell in the air. The cyclepath tuns into a dusty white piste and the deafening sound of cicadas now masks the wind noise while riding. I am passing plum, apple, lime and peach tree plantations and the sun is turning my uncovered hands brown, giving me an ugly, unforgiving, and probably life-long lasting tri-shade. But since I love chocolate, I will from now on be the Milka Triolade. Dark brown hands, milk-chocolate arms and white... well... everything else. 

Regarding my openening statement: While I sit here, hearing the sounds of wild boars creeping around my tent, trying to comfort myself that everything will be alright by writing this blog, I have done 1,200km in 13 days, maaaybe completed 10% of the journey, maybe more, maybe less, and my celebration for the first 1,000km comes one day late. Well, what can you do. When I survive this first wild-camping night, I will make sure to give it all, spin those wheels like rotissery chicken and rotate both crank arms of my bike until I arrive in Togo!

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