Marching About

Having an office job, I am constantly looking out the window daydreaming about being outside. Even when it's not nice, but especially when it is. At this point I have a pretty good idea for the next trip coming up next month. The original idea was to head from Berlin to Istanbul but due to some time constraints I shortened it a little bit to Odessa. That way there should be enough time to bike, but also to take detours if anything comes up along the way. Sometimes when bike touring I like being able to just take a day and bike around and explore a city. Countries to be explored : Poland, Romania, Moldova (plus Tiraspol), Ukraine Berlin to Odessa by Bike: Make this map bigger! I know I haven't even begun this trip yet but I'm already scheming for the next one. During those intermittent daydreams.  Taking the R1 from Berlin to Estonia. A great Baltic discovery.

I love gadgets and data. I have no clue what I do with all the data besides rattle off figures. Although I generally like to see numbers go up. As for gadgets I want as many features packed into as small a space as possible. And also this bike I would use this bike to go from point A, around the world, to point A .

     After biking for about 50km in the pouring rain. Often through very muddy and poorly maintained rural roads we were relieved to finally get a glimpse of the afternoon sun.      We came to a fork in the road - one which kept us along the paved road, and the other that took us along another equally muddy and hole-ridden road. As we took off our wet and muddy clothes and cleaned out our dirt-filled chains we tried to decide if the paved road would get us where we needed to go.           A very old man and his wife road up on their bikes and asked us if we had any questions. He responded that the paved road would also take us in the Usedom direction but circumvent the actual route which was halfway underwater. We said we were soaked already and would make the most of the sun. To which he said as he road away down the muddy path with his wife, and I'm paraphrasing, "Psh kids, you guys are pussies."

      Just as we were starting out on the third day, John Bikesurf's chain snapped and he had to replace it just outside of Tergelow. Fortunately I have a chain tool and as he was changing it we were approached by several very old men. One who told us stories about his dead wife's finances and how he was spending them. The next man (easily in his 80's) came up and just seemed to be staring, he asked some questions then left. He came back with a burlap sack from which he took out a candy tin. Inside was a single chain link which he offered up to Mr. Bikesurf.

      After a couple of days of straight camping we had run out of water and had to rely on just asking some people for a fill up as we saw them outside their house. This may be in part due to stinginess of not wanting to buy bottled water, or our environmental consciousness of not wanting to buy lots of plastic containers. But I would really say it's to increase human interaction with other people.       One guy's wife came out and after I had asked for a bottle fill-up and said "Did you just want tap water?" And I said "Yes of course, thank you." And she said "What? Nah, bubbly water is much better, you don't need tap water." So she opened up a bottle of seltzer-water and poured it in our empty bottles. It was cold and refreshing. Later on we found out that after going up and down hills (and shaking it around over cobble-stone streets) that the water will hit you in the face the next time you try to take a drink.  

I feel like when you're bike touring, or going all out doing some kind of activity that requires you to dress up, people tend to be more open and interested in what you're doing (unless it's a fantasy game involving dragons in some way). So along the way we met some great people, some for only 5 minutes, some a bit longer who either helped us out or just shared a laugh. Shooting the bow and arrow. Yeah I missed. Every time. The medieval wedding party . I was lagging a little behind after a late start so I caught up with the rest of the group at this place. Along the path a ways after Bernau we ran into a medieval-themed wedding party. The guy serving drinks had stopped them on their bikes and poured honey wine into their mouths. When I got there they were shooting arrows at an apple in the rain at twilight. I was immediately served a large glass of honey wine for my efforts.

Went to the Ostsee this weekend! It rained pretty much continuously from the time I left Berlin until Warnitz. The rain definitely slowed down our progress even though we trudged through it, it was often difficult to really push the pace especially when we were on wet and muddy roads. My chain and brakes complained (sometimes by not responding) but ultimately my bike took me through it and we were rewarded at the end by some great sun and warm weather in the afternoon. More photos and stories to come. The GPS battery ran out after about 13 hours (but I guess that makes it about 15 hours of operation). So I had to wait a little before I could recharge it...but almost everything is there.

Whether biking for a couple days or a couple months, the packing list is pretty much the same. I've compiled a list of everything I think is necessary (and some unnecessary things in italics) to successfully bike 3 to 300 days (with camping involved). I planned to bike to the Ostsee, about 250 km from Berlin to train for some longer rides. Since this was just a weekend trip I took some food with me. On longer trips I normally take food for about 1-2 days and stock up when I can. Food weighs a lot! Here is what I took (bike not included): Packing list, laid out  And it all condenses, well-organized into a fair amount of bags And the equipment in action on the road (or in this case over it, where the bikes belong). I didn't weigh it, but it was somewhere between a lot and a bunch. Time to bike!

I only have one bike at the moment. Would love to have more but it also helps me to stay mobile (as a drifter obviously). Since I've arrived in Berlin in late October I have averaged about 100-160km (60-100 miles) per week. Since March I've been on some much longer rides with no method of tracking them. That is about to change. Bike : Surly - Long Haul Trucker Equipment : Don't care - it's nothing too special but robust, and easy to fix Wheels : 700 Mods : Shortened stem for more ergonomic rides Front brakes on the drop handlebars - for easier position switching Racks for 4 Arkel Paniers. Nothing against Ortlieb which seems to be the standard here in Germany, I normally avoid bike accessories in which I can see my own reflection. Fully loaded, mine is on the left after biking from Paris, France to Zadar, Croatia. Time to go home after its first tour.

Biking in Berlin is a fantastic, I mean, the only way to get around. I like to take two different paths - the Multi-use path along the Landwehr Canal (will post this one later), and the Street which rides along the center of Capitalist Berlin - Kurfuerstenstrasse, KaDeWe, Zoologischer Garten, hotel row. But also the MIT of Germany: TU. Ok, granted this route has a lot more car exhaust, bus stress, and according to bbbike , about 14 more traffic lights. But when it rains you avoid getting muddy clothes and a rooster tail - which is great if you are racing, but not when you are going to the office. My bike faster jam for this week: Caravan Palace - Clash   And a test of the new bike activity tracking unit. Home to Work - The Street