We arrive in Zacatecas after dark and make our way through the bustling town to find Victor, our couch-surfing host, in his student digs.
Victor lives near the centre of town in a tiny semi-derelict house. Amazingly, the limited space Victor has at his disposal doesn’t prevent him from unquestioningly offering four cyclists accommodation. Victor is a [...]
One of the best things about walking in the Copper Canyon area is experiencing the amazing natural surroundings.
Travelling with a knowledgeable and observant companion has meant I have learnt a lot about some things which I previously knew nothing. The following is a list of some of the birds that I have seen, some of [...]
Silver City is the last town we will pass through in the USA. We linger a while, spending five nights on the lounge room floor of our hosts, before Jeff and I set off at around 5PM on a cold evening with snow predicted for the next day. Cass opts to spend another night in [...]
Also tagged desert, dirtbag gang, new mexico, wind, winterThe idea of the Gila Hot Springs has seen us through a few cold difficult moments over the past few days so a fourteen mile side trip with a thousand foot climb over a mountain to get there doesn’t deter us at all. We are also motivated by the thought of a ‘hiker box’, a [...]
Also tagged hot springs, magic, mountains, new mexico, snow and ice, winterWe leave Pie Town and head for the mountains with snow and storms predicted for the next three days.
The road seems innocuous, certainly no rougher than many of the gravel tracks I have followed since I left the coast, but within an hour of leaving I find myself sprawled on the ground, tangled up with [...]
The temperature plummets during the night and I wake to icy rain. I cook breakfast under the inadequate shelter of my fly and pack my wet things onto the bike. The road surface on the last ten miles to the highway is good and so I am soonback on tarmac with only fifteen miles [...]
Also tagged a place to stay, arizona, canyon countryOn arriving in the metropolis, I discover that San Francisco is, in fact, a number of cities separated by water and linked by bridges, only some of which can be traversed by bicycle. By some chance, everybody I know lives in East Bay, on the other side of Bay Bridge, which is one of the [...]
Also tagged california, city life, hospitality, san franciscoI cross the state line from Oregon into California with only an ancient map of California at my disposal. Each time I unfold it the paper tears and crumbles some more. The coastal cycle route is clearly signposted on the highway but, for no particular reason, I cut-off Highway 101 inland onto Route 197 towards [...]
Also tagged california, fish, wildfoodEverything is slightly out of kilter for me on the Pacific west coast.
It is the mornings that are misty here. The sun rises – in the east, like it always does – behind the hills and as it creeps upwards light spills in luminous sheets and shafts through gaps and fissures in the ranges, silver [...]
I set off from Cape Lookout, riding along a road which winds along the cliffs high above the ocean.
After the racoon incident, I obviously need to replenish my supplies and I make a number of stops at various grocery stores in the towns I pass through during the day. I am irritated to discover that [...]