Bicycling
I have been bicycling for my whole life. To cycle 100km (62mi) at one sitting felt magical to me. Almost impossible. But I did it the first time in 2014. Not long after that did I do my first overnight bicycling tour in Southern Finland. That started a series of events that led to me bicycling around the world.
- 2014: Helsinki-Lahti (100km/62mi)
- 2015: Helsinki-Lahti-Evo-Lahti (200km/120mi)
- 2017: Helsinki-Porvoo-Virojoki-Lappeenranta (250km/180mi)
- 2019: Lappeenranta-Koli (330km/205mi)
In 2019 I bicycled abroad for the first time in my life: I went from Estonia to Latvia. That gave me the confidence that I am capable of bicycling abroad, getting food and sleeping outside.
So naturally in 2020, just before the pandemic hit, I bought flights to New Zealand and decided to bicycle around the south island. My plan: Christchurch-Hokitika-Queenstown-Christchurch. I only made it to Wanaka before the country went to lockdown. Bicycling around 650km/400mi in two weeks. That was the first time I went that far from home. To be exact it’d be difficult to be farther away from Finland than that. It was also my first time to fly with a bicycle. I proved myself anything is possible.
2021: I bicycled from Montpellier, France to Italy along the Riviera. Then headed to the mountains and went past the Alps. I finished in Zurich, Switzerland totaling at about 1100km/680mi in one month. That tour changed my world. I got hungry for more. I decided I have to do this more often and I need to bicycle around the world for good.
2022: Helsinki-Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Via Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary. Totaling roughly 1300km/800 in one month since we used the train at times.
2023: Bicycling in the Nordics: Kolari-Abisko-Narvik-Alta-Hetta. Finland/Sweden/Norway. 1100km/680mi in two weeks.
I have already done some cool tours in 15 countries on two continents. They have teached me a lot about myself, the world and my gear. As a European citizen it’s easy for me to travel inside EU. However, I don’t want to be “locked” here forever. It’s too easy and comfortable. So my next trip will be in Africa. I will post about that later if I come back alive.