Some of you may have discovered this blog because of listening to this podcast episode. To you I say, welcome and thank you for checking out my blog! For those longer-term fans who don’t know what I’m talking about: Hey, I’m on a podcast! I want to share the story of how that happened, to encourage some of you to also get the courage to apply and share your stories as well. And…I hope you’ll listen to my episode too 🙂
Warmshowers
As many of you know, I’m a fan of Warmshowers; I use this cycle-touring hosting platform on all my cycling trips, have had incredible experiences, and even made friends in the process! Warmshowers has a podcast called Bike Life, which I’ve been listening to almost since its origin. And, just like on the road, I’m frustrated by the lack of diversity in the stories (not just on Bike Life, but on all the podcast series I’ve heard that share cycling stories). To be fair, Bike Life does a good job of featuring a diverse array of voices; from hosts to guests, multiple genders, ethnicities, races, etc., but the fact remains that white, cis men are still the majority of cyclists on the road and on the pod.
Long story short, after a few years, I decided that I could be the voice I was waiting to hear. For a long time I thought “But is my story good enough to be on a podcast?!” But of course it is! Bike Life accepts applications from any WS hosts or guests who have stories to share, so I put in my application, had a pre-interview Zoom call with other applicants, and then recorded an episode with host Tahverlee!
Bike Life
Without further ado, here is my story on Bike Life. I wanted to share some backstory first in the hopes that it inspires some of you – especially those who have elements of your identities that are not widely represented in cycling – to apply to Bike Life or a similar podcast (or vlog, or blogging site, or something else) to share your stories. Representation matters, and we all have worthy stories to share (and yes, your story is good enough; don’t let that little voice in your head tell you otherwise!). Special thanks to Bike Life host Tahverlee Anglen for asking great leading questions in the interview, and to Warmshowers host Ken Francis for the encouragement to apply (even if it took me another year to do it). Enjoy the show, and enjoy the ride! 🙂
I’ve been home from my trip for three full weeks. In some ways the trip feels like it was eons ago, in other ways I’ve barely left…
This entry will cover my ten day stopover in Ireland, April 30-May 9. If you fly AerLingus to Europe (from the US), I recommend booking your flight over the phone so you can add a stopover in Ireland if you have time. I booked my trip online and had to pay extra to add the stopover when I did call, but it was worth it.
I’ll format this entry as a summary of the whole trip, with memorable moments and tips for cyclists.
Daily Destinations
April 30-May 2: Cork(the city): Hosted by Arthur, Niamh (pronounced Nay-ev), Felix, & RóisÃn (pronounced Ro-sheen) (from Warmshowers)
—April 30: No cycling, just adventures with my host family 🙂
—May 1: Cycled around Cork (didn’t track distance)
—May 2: 71 km/44 miles (to Kinsale)
May 2-3: Kinsale: Hosted by Naomi, Adrian, & Tristan (Arthur’s sister and family)
—May 3: 64 km/40 miles (to Leap)
May 3-4: Leap: Payed 60€ for a room and breakfast at the Leap Inn
—May 4: 50 km/31 miles on May 4 (to Durrus)
May 4-6: Durrus: Hosted by Gitte and Peter (Warmshowers)
—May 5: 87 km/54 miles (to Crookhaven, Mizen Head, Three Castle Head, back to Durrus)
—May 6: 72 km/45 miles on May 6 (to Dzogchen Beara)
May 6-7: Allihies: Stayed at Dzogchen Beara, a Buddhist monastery with a 30€ hostel
—May 7: 93 km/58 miles on May 7 (to Killarney)
May 7-8: Killarney: Hosted by Fiona (Warmshowers)
—May 8: 11 km/7 miles on May 8 (to the Killarney train station and a bit around Cork)
May 8-9: Cork: Hosted by Arthur & Niamh again
Total Distance Cycled: 445 km/277 miles
“Must-See” Spots
If you cycle through County Cork – or use another mode of transportation – here are spots I recommend, mostly in geographical order (starting in Cork, following the coast, eventually heading up to Killarney):
Marina Market in the city of Cork
Great for lunch and coffee, cool art, free book library
The bluebells of Courtmacsherry
I was fortunate enough to arrive on the day that Arthur and Niamh were taking the kids for the annual visit to a bluebell forest. The bluebells only bloom for around three weeks each year, so if you are in the area in May, go visit!
Timoleague
I joined Niamh, Arthur, and the kids for fish and chips along the water outside an old abbey. I stopped here again to munch on a snack when I passed on bike. Beautiful spot for a picnic 🙂
Kinsale
Many Irish towns are surprisingly colorful; the houses are vibrantly painted and there is fun street art (especially in Cork). Kinsale however, has the brightest buildings. It’s touristy, but it’s a fun place to spend an afternoon enjoying the colorful vibe.
Arundel Grain Store
This isn’t exactly a “must-see,” but if you cycle through the town of Ring, this is a cool place to explore. It’s a 16th century grain store (and later potatoes and coal) built for the nearby Arundel flour mills.
Drombeg Stone Circle
I did not know there were so many stone circles in Ireland, so when Peter mentioned this wasn’t far off my route, I had to detour. In 1957, according to a sign on site, “excavation revealed a compact gravel surface within the circle and a central pit which contained an inverted pottery vessel covering the cremated remains of a youth. More recently, radiocarbon dating has placed the burial in the period c.1100-800 B.C., i.e. the later Bronze Age.”
The Drombeg Stone Circle area includes the remains of what are thought to have been two stone huts from the Bronze Age. One has a fulacht fiadh inside, probably used for boiling food or bathing, which could hold 70 gallons (318 liters). The other hut has a stone-lined featured interpreted to be a roasting oven. Really cool to sit in the ruins of the hut imagining people in the Bronze Age using these structures.
The Leap Inn
I was going to stay at a B&B in Glandore which Naomi recommended, but they only accepted cash. I didn’t have enough $$ and my debit card didn’t work at the ATM (which I had to cycle to another town for!), so I decided to continue cycling until I saw something. Less than an hour later, the Leap Inn (pronounced “Lep”) was the winner! This is a rare gem in Ireland; an inn run by the same family since 1826 – almost 200 years! Please visit this place if you pass the town of Leap; even if you don’t stay overnight, you can get a meal or beer, support this family business, and check out the photos on the wall showing the inn through the years. If Ann is still working there when you go, send her my regards!
Ballydehob
I love this town. I only stopped to escape the rain and find warm food, but it quickly revealed its charm. It’s a bit of a musical haven, with many festivals and artsy-folksy events I wish I could have stayed for (I just missed a jazz festival and a fiddle festival – drat!). I had a great conversation with some locals at our shared cafe table about how Appalachian music in the US took so much from the Irish, but didn’t take the jig, and instead made something in 4/4. I also read a folktale about Fionn Mac Cumhaill (pronounced Fee-own Mac-Cool) and the Feathers from China at the cafe (Irish people love their folklore) and a local woman told me I should move to West Cork and get involved in the music scene. You never know!
Crookhaven
On bike you have to go a little out of the way to get to Crookhaven, but it’s worth it to visit O’Sullivan’s and drink “the most southerly pint in Ireland.” Pair that with fish chowder and a waterside table and you’re golden!
Crookhaven – and the Crookhaven Marconi Station – played an important role for ship communication. Guglielmo Marconi created a wireless communication system (the Marconi radio) which was on board the Titanic and allowed the ship to send a distress call as it was sinking. Those who survived the wreck did so because of that call.
Mizen Head
Not far from Crookhaven is Mizen Head, a beautiful place where some of The Last Jedi was filmed. You have to pay to visit the signal tower, but in my opinion it’s worth the price; you’ll see some interesting museum exhibits and explore beautiful landscape that you can’t reach otherwise. However, if you’re short on time, skip this and instead visit this next place:
Three Castle Head
This was the my favorite stop of the entire trip. I would not have known to go, but luckily Arthur, Niamh, Gitte, and Peter all said I couldn’t miss this. It’s not on tourist maps, nor the EuroVelo 1/Wild Atlantic Way cycling route, but it’s worth it to take your bike down the rocky road to a seemingly deserted parking lot on the edge of the water, walk 25 min. through grassy paths and rugged, rocky terrain near the cliff, until the ruins of the medieval Dunlough Castle and nearby lake appear out of nowhere. In my 70 days in Europe I saw many old castles, but this one had a sense of magic and intrigue like none other.
Important to note: This is the only ancient castle I saw with a sign specifically asking guests to treat the castle and surrounding area respectfully. There is a rare species of bird, called Choughs, that nest in the castle, and the castle is eroding more rapidly because of increased visitors and disrupting the stones. Be respectful if you visit; this gem is worth preserving.
Another sign taught me more about the castle. It was built in 1207, soon after the Norman invasion, on the site of an ancient Celtic promontory fort. The castle has three towers, hence the name “Three Castle Head,” and the rampart wall is ~20 feet high, making it one of the highest intact medieval walls in Ireland. The sign also mentioned some folklore:
“Many legends abound concerning the ‘Three Castles,’ not only because of its haunting atmosphere and desolate stillness of the lake, but also due to its violent history. The last family to have allegedly resided there were the O ‘Donohue’s, all of whom apparently died tragically in suicide or murder. A drop of blood supposedly drops daily in the tower by the lake because of this, as well as the appearance of the enchanted white ‘Lady of the Lake’. If one sees her then one will die imminently, according to the stories. Others maintain that gold lies hidden in the lake, the bottom of which has never been found, with buried treasures below the castles that if discovered bring only misfortune.”
How’s THAT for lore!
Glengariff
This is such a lovely town. I visited the Bamboo Garden and an area where a bunch of food trucks set up for the weekend. Ate one of my favorite cycling meals: Vegetarian burrito and ice cream!
Dzogchen Beara
If you have time, I recommend staying at this Buddhist monastery more than one night. I was only there one night, but it would be great to stay longer and attend meditation or drum circle events. You can stay in the hostel for 30€ or rent a cottage (I think 70€, a good deal splitting it with travel buddies).
If you happen to see an orange and white cat waiting to greet you, definitely follow. The human who checked me in didn’t provide much information, but this cat was an amazing guide, leading me to the shrine, making sure I sat on a bench to reflect on life and enjoy the peaceful surroundings, leading me to a cottage, the pagoda, and the animal sanctuary for injured wildlife, where I saw cool slugs and a beautiful horse that seemed to be standing on the edge of the world. If you’re lucky the cat will see you off the next morning and lead you almost as far as your bike, then sit and watch as you wave goodbye and thank your guide for the tour. 10/10 recommend.
And in County Kerry (where I spent way less time):
The Doorus Loop and Cashelkeelty Stone Circle
I found this by accident. I was cycling along, enjoying the ride despite some rain (seems impossible not to appreciate the rain when you know it’s responsible for the glorious green everywhere), when suddenly I saw a sign for a stone circle. Scrreeeeek! I braked, did a 180, parked, and proceeded to trek through what I can only describe as a fairy land. I’ve never seen so much moss in one place, plus shamrocks growing on top of the moss! The ground, trees, logs that were once trees…everything was sparkling with moss and shamrocks. “If I don’t make it back, it will surely be because I was kidnapped by fairies…” I thought to myself.
In retrospect, I’m not sure the path I took was actually the trail. I never saw signs, so I followed what was the most evident route, in what seemed to be the direction the map in the parking lot suggested. Eventually I connected with what I think was the Doorus Loop, which led me to an open, rocky field where some sheep were grazing. Later when I watched a YouTube video to confirm, I discovered that I was very close to the stone circle, but in the moment I didn’t realize. The trail seemed to have disappeared, there were no signs, and all I could see were sheep and some rocks that might have once been a stone circle-ish thing. Since I was already racing to get ahead of the rain, I decided to turn back. It would have been nice to see another stone circle, but I was already happy to have trekked through fairy land.
Killarney National Park
I loved cycling through this park! When I was there the road was nicely paved, and I had the pleasure of getting the climbs over with at the beginning, and coasting down through the second half of the park. There will be tour buses on the road with you, but that also means you can get someone to take your photo at the beautiful vista points, like Ladies View (see photo below).
Memorable Moments
I loved my entire trip in Ireland. Here are a few highlights that shaped the experience:
Niamh, Arthur, Felix, & RóisÃn
I am eternally grateful to Niamh and Arthur for their hospitality and kindness. I sent requests to multiple Warmshowers hosts in Cork asking if I could stay while figuring out where to rent a bike. Arthur responded saying that not only could I stay, but also I could borrow a bike! It turned out to be the nicest bike I’ve ever ridden, and it fit perfectly!
When I arrived, I was greeted by 5 1/2-year-old Felix with a hand-picked bouquet of flowers from the garden. He went back and forth picking flowers for me about a dozen times. He gave a detailed tour of the garden, and at some point I was able to go back out the door and pretend to arrive again so 3 1/2-year-old RóisÃn could give me her bouquet of flowers. What a wonderful welcome; this was absolute confirmation that I was in a good place and would enjoy my stay with this lovely family.
I have to give another shoutout to Felix, who was a great assistant grading student work (especially when I had no motivation to do so) and writing some of this blog. Thanks for all your help, Felix!
The Bull
One day I was walking the bike up a steep hill in a light drizzle when I saw what I thought was a black cow in the road ahead. I stopped, not wanting to frighten it, then realized…this cow has a muscular body…and long horns…that’s not a cow! I stood in the rain with my red bike debating what to do; was it best to continue walking toward the bull? If it charged, would I jump on the bike and speed back down the hill, in the direction? As the bull munched on grass, I slowly inched forward. He raised his head to stare at me many times, so I approached very cautiously. When a car passed from the other direction, I waved it down and asked the driver to confirm what that animal was ahead. “I think it’s a bull,’ said the driver. “If you’re nervous, just approach slowly. Bulls in Ireland are very calm…you should be okay.” Easy for someone to say who is shielded by a car! It took me probably thirty minutes to pass the bull; I moved a few steps every time it moved to a new patch of grass, and eventually it wandered to the side of the road and up a hill in another direction. Phew!
The Sheep
When I was walking my bike up the hill to Dzogchen Beara (I didn’t walk up every hill on this trip, but I am not ashamed to admit that I definitely walked a few), I came across a herd of sheep. I stopped to observe them and take photos. I heard someone calling them, and the sheep all began to run toward what must have been their shepherd. I started filming and providing commentary, which one sheep overheard. The sheep stopped in place, turned to look at me, baa-ed, and then the entire herd turned and trotted toward me! “Wait sheep, go the other way, I wasn’t calling you!” I exclaimed, but it was too late. I laughed as they all ran up, stopped, and stared at me, reminding me of the little green aliens in Toy Story waiting for directions. I walked further up the hill and the sheep all baa-ed and followed, going as far as they could up to the gate. I laughed a long time after that!
The Cows
Another animal that made me laugh was a herd of cows. I stopped to film the largest amount of cows I’d seen on the trip, and zoomed in on one who seemed to be the leader. “You’re the star,” I said. Then, just I said these words, a cow jumped on top of another one in the background of the video, and then another followed suit! Silly cows.
The Gorse
In an Irish children’s book, gorse (the yellow flower that grows on a bushy plant sometimes considered a weed) is known as the “golden wonder flower.” I felt so cheery seeing all the yellow blossoms dotting the hills. It certainly is a wonderful flower in my book!
Three Castle Head
I already mentioned this castle, but it’s worth repeating. This place was amazing. Don’t miss it.
Fleur, Manu, & Philias
When I stayed with Gitte and Peter, I met a French couple and their 17-month-year-old child. They were traveling long-term, having started in France a few months prior and continuing up from Ireland to Scotland, with no plans of stopping any time soon. They were taking a rest day at Gitte and Peter’s place in Durrus when I arrived soaking wet from the rainy weather. We shared meals together and Manu – who used to work at a crêperie – made some delicious crêpes. Imagine my surprise when two days later, once again dripping wet from another day riding in the rain, I arrived at Fiona’s house in Killarney to find them taking a rest day! We joked that this is our tradition now; we will encounter each other always when they are taking a rest day and I am dripping wet from riding in the rain. 🤣
Side Quests
Part of the charm of cycling is being able to pull over to explore at any moment. Take advantage of this in Ireland; you’ll find fun adventures like I did with the Arundel Grain Store, the Kashelkeelty Stone Circle hike, and the company and conversation at the shared cafe table in Ballydehob. There were plenty of times when I pulled over to watch birds, have a snack with a beautiful view, or examine some of the many intriguing ruins of Ireland. I saw abandoned schools from the 1800s, a house completely covered in moss, another castle, cool bugs, plants, and plenty of sheep and cows.
General Friendliness
I met such wonderful people on this trip. Local people in Ireland just have such wonderful hearts and spirits; I enjoyed the company of everyone I met.
Familial Feeling
I’m part Irish, with distant relatives from the Cork region, so I was happy to discover that I felt so comfortable in this country. I saw many people with the same tiny tints of “strawberry” in their hair that I have, some of the older people I spoke to reminded me of my grandma and great uncle, and at the Leap Inn I saw an old photo on the wall that reminded me so much of my grandma and her siblings. I don’t know if I was just projecting an imagined familial feeling because I wanted to feel it or if there was actually something there, but regardless I felt at home in this country.
I highly recommend riding a bike through Ireland if you can. It’s not as bike-friendly as the Netherlands (is any place?) but the scenery is gorgeous and it’s lovely to ride through the Irish countryside, coastal areas, mountains, etc. Even in the rain it’s nice; it’s so apparent that this rain falling on you is the cause of all the lush green scenery everywhere, so how can you complain?
Although I wish I’d booked my stopover from the start and avoided paying so much for it, I am so glad I did this 10-day trip. Out of all the countries I visited on this 70-day adventure, Ireland was absolutely my favorite. I plan to return to all through countries I explored on this EuroTrip, but Ireland has now joined Canada and New Zealand on the very short list of countries that touch my heart in a special way. Thank you to every one I met on this adventure for helping to make my trip so special; I appreciate you greatly and I’ll definitely be back!
(The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Ireland)
Here it is, one entry to sum up places I visited, $$ I spent, travel tips, FAQs, etc. If you’ve been like “I want to follow Carolyn’s trip but I don’t want to read so much” or you like statistics, this is for you. Enjoy!
Daily Destinations
Day 1: Dublin, Ireland: 8-hr layover, visited the Guinness Storehouse
Days 60-70: County Cork, Ireland: 10-day stopover in Ireland (will blog about this separately)
In total I paid for FOUR nights of housing; one hostel in Zurich, one “coachette” sleeper compartment on the night train to Amsterdam, then one inn and one hostel at a Buddhist monastery during the Ireland bike tour. Four nights out of 70!
Total Spending
Pre-Trip:
$466.35 for roundtrip airfare on AerLingus to/from Amsterdam
$167.57 to add a 10-day stopover in Ireland (I could have avoided paying for the stopover…more on that below).
$58 Allianz health insurance
$10 Airalo eSIM for phone
Note: I don’t buy travel insurance since my credit card (Chase Sapphire Preferred) covers that automatically
Total: $701.92
During Trip:
Counting EVERYTHING – food, housing, transportation, museums, buying a bike, topping up the eSIM, etc. – I spent a grand total of $1,967.41 over 70 days, with an average of 28.10/day. I also earned 165€ ($179) cash from the flamenco workshop. If I factor spending that money into the equation, my spending jumps to $2,146.41, or $30.66/day.
Grand Total Spent: $2,848.33
Reflection on Spending:
I didn’t quite *save* money on this trip, but I basically broke even. I had to move out of my apartment before the trip, so my only ongoing cost in NY was a monthly storage unit payment. The grand total for the trip was a little more than what I typically paid for rent, food, transportation, and occasional social outings living in my Brooklyn apartment (I had a cheap apartment, by Brooklyn standards). Considering how far that money stretched in Europe including flights, I’m satisfied. I was hoping to spend around or less than the amount I would have spent living in Brooklyn, and I more or less achieved that goal.
Travel Tips
The Netherlands
Public Transit:
Trains: If you have a smart phone, download the NS and NS International apps, or check the websites: https://www.ns.nl/en/travel-information/ns-app and https://www.nsinternational.com/en . Sometimes if you book ahead, you’ll find discounted ticket rates, especially if you book more than 24 hours in advance. There are also deals for weekend trips, student discounts, etc.
Technically you have to buy a bike ticket if you are going to take your bike on the train. I took my bike twice and nobody checked so…make your own decisions about this.
General transit: Check https://9292.nl.en for trip planning. There is an app and a website.
When you take public transit, check in at the yellow card readers. This is even important when you leave Schiphol airport, so you don’t get overcharged for a train voyage.
The Netherlands is trying to update their system so you can tap your credit card at the card readers instead of buying a transit card. This didn’t work for me.
Cycling:
There is an amazing cycling system in the Netherlands and Belgium consisting of numbered routes. You can easily get by without a phone for directions; write down the numbers to follow ahead of time and then follow the signs. For the Netherlands, you can find the numbers on Fietsknoop.nl, which is a website and an app.
If you’ll be in the Netherlands awhile, it might be worth getting an OV-Chipkaart and OV-Fiets account to rent the blue and yellow OV-Fiets bikes. In retrospect I may have benefited from this, but I didn’t know it at the start of the trip.
Luggage:
If you need to leave your luggage while exploring, there is a place at Amsterdam Central Station. I think this is also true of other cities, but I only looked into the one in Amsterdam (ultimately decided to carry my backpack with me, but it’s affordable): https://www.amsterdamtips.com/left-luggage-amsterdam-central .
Belgium
Public Transit:
For smart phones: Download the De Lijn app. There were times I was waiting at bus stops that didn’t have ticket machines, so buying on my phone was helpful.
Note: You can board a bus without a ticket; the driver can’t penalize you for not paying, but if an officer comes on board to check tickets you’ll be screwed. Check with locals about where it’s usually safe to chance it if you want to take that risk.
You’ll sometimes come across streets painted red. These are called fietsstraat(bike streets). These streets are open to bikes and cars, but cyclists get priority and may take up the whole road. Cars must drive at the cyclists’ pace.
General Europe
Transportation:
BlaBlaCar is a great ride-sharing system. It’s an app and a website. Just search for where you’re traveling and when and you might find a ride. Ride at your own risk.
FlixBus is a bus system that runs throughout many European countries. It’s often cheaper than taking the train from one country or city to another, so check if this is an option for your route.
OBBNightJet: Sometimes it’s cheaper to take a night train to your next destination than to rent a hostel for a night (*cough cough Zurichisexpensive cough*). I booked one from Zurich to Amsterdam in a “couchette” compartment. I slept well and got a small breakfast with tea or coffee in the morning. The couchette might be uncomfortable if you’re very tall or unable to climb up to a higher bunk; there were six of us in my car and I imagine the climb to my middle bunk or the one above may have been uncomfortable if I was a bigger person. There is a slightly more expensive sleeper compartment that I think is roomier.
Rome2Rio is a great way to compare travel options across the world. Definitely worth using.
eSIM:
I decided to get an Airalo eSIM for my phone. With a referral code, I paid $10 (normally costs $13) for 3 GB of data valid for 30 days. I only use data occasionally, so this worked well. For the second 30 days I paid $20 for 5 GB, since I was going to have limited wifi access at some locations. There are plans with more data and/or longer time periods, and you can buy based on countries or regions. I chose “Eurolink” since it worked in every country I was visiting.
If you’re interested in Airalo, use my referral code CAROLY5790 for $3 off.🙂
Discounts:
Many places in Europe have student and/or under-26 discounts. My approach is to ask if student discounts apply to graduate students. If yes, great! If no, they usually say “But I can give you the under-26 discount” and don’t ask for ID. I will use this as long as I continue to look young 😀
$$$ Things
I had a problem with Dutch and Belgian grocery stores not accepting my credit and debit cards, especially Albert Heijn in the Netherlands and Colruyt in Belgium. Sometimes the card readers don’t accept American cards, even Visa. Carry enough cash just in case!
Make sure your debit card works at ATMs before beginning your trip. I didn’t check before leaving and wound up not being able to take money out throughout my entire trip. Luckily I earned cash from the flamenco gig, otherwise I’m not sure what I would have done!
Flights
For this trip I flew AerLingus. They offer the option to add a stopover in Ireland for as many days as you want. IMPORTANT: As of right now (May 2023), you need to book flights over the phoneif you want a stopoverincluded; you’ll pay extra if you call to add a stopover after booking online. I could have avoided paying for my stopover if I’d known this; I called after making my reservation online.
When you call AerLingus, I recommend knowing when and for how long you want to stop in Ireland. I plugged in various date combinations online first so my total flight price would be as low as possible. Roundtrip from New York to Amsterdam, I had to option to add a stopover in Dublin or Cork, with the understanding I’d have to fly in/out of Dublin from the US, and could fly from Dublin OR Cork to/from Amsterdam. I chose to stop in Cork after Amsterdam, then took a bus to Dublin for the flight to NY.
Other airlines also offer stopovers. Icelandair and TAP (Air Portugal) are two, but there are others I’m not as familiar with. Could be worth exploring!
Hosting Platforms
I wrote a blog entry here about finding cheap or free housing. Here are the platforms I used on this trip:
BeWelcome: All the hosts I interacted with were great. Two couldn’t host me but provided good suggestions about things to do in their regions, and the one I stayed with was Niels on Wheels, who is genuinely a great host and Tilburg connoseur 🙂
Couchsurfing: It was so cool to stay with Bruno, a Couchsurfing ambassador who has been on the site since almost the very beginning. Couchsurfing is still alive and well, even if it’s frustrating with the paywall.
Host A Sister: On this trip I only used it once and met Nele, who quickly became a friend. If you’re a female-identifying person who is hesitant to stay with guys, this is a good resource to check out.
Warmshowers: This will probably always be my favorite hosting platform. I used it throughout my time in Ireland to meet cycling hosts, including Niamh and Arthur, who made my trip so great. I’ll write about Ireland in another entry.
Workaway: This was my first time using Workaway, and both experiences were positive. I volunteered at Brouwerij Feys and the ComSiBal dance festival, both in Belgium. I’ve heard both good and bad stories about volunteering on Workaway, but I think if you carefully read profiles and reviews you can avoid the sour experiences. So far I’d recommend it.
FAQs
Q: Aren’t you afraid of staying with guys?
A: Are you afraid of meeting guys from dating apps and going to their houses? Or getting in a car with Lyft or Uber drivers? I always read profiles and reviews on hosting platforms and look at photos shared by each potential host, regardless of gender. A host can’t delete reviews from guests, so if I see any red flags, I don’t stay. I’ve been using hosting platforms since 2012 and have had many male hosts, and zero bad experiences. There are plenty of respectful people using hosting platforms for cultural exchange and travel connections. I’ve even made a few friends from the experience.
Q:Did you have a favorite country?
A: Ireland. To be clear, I enjoyed every country I visited. I love how quickly Dutch accents and dialects morph in the Netherlands and Belgium, often over as small a distance as 5 km. I love all the bike culture. I love the scenery and hikes in Switzerland and Austria, the castle ruins in Germany, the people, the pets, how easy it was to travel from place to place by public transit, etc. But Ireland is a different world. There is so much nature, the people are so kind and welcoming, music is built into life, and I saw photos of older generations that reminded me so much of my grandmother and her siblings. I hope to return to all these countries, but especially Ireland. I felt most at home there, and I could envision myself moving there to live for an extended time.
Q: Any scary moments?
A:
While cycling through Ireland I saw signs saying “Danger: Bull.” When I encountered one loose on the road – with no one around and nothing to protect myself except a bicycle – it was scary. I stood in the rain and sloooowly inched forward as the bull slowly moved. I think it took 30 minutes to pass the bull!
In Brugge I was pretty distracted while making tea and casually checked if the stove was hot by putting three fingers directly on the burner. I hope you never hear the sound of your own sizzling flesh, and I hope I never hear it again. Luckily I was able to treat them right away and all is well. I never did drink tea that night 😆
At De Efteling I lost the fanny pack containing my passport, some cash, and a credit and debit card (I had additional cash and an emergency card stored elsewhere, but still…). I remained calm and luckily found it safely guarded by workers at the food court. Phew!
Q: Didn’t you get sick of staying with people? What about having your own quiet space?
A: I had tons of quiet space! On this trip I was staying at homes of many people I knew, and many offered ample time and space to be by myself. Nele in Brugge kindly let me stay in her home alone over an entire weekend while she was away, Etienne and Maud did the same in Brussels, and every host let me stay in their home while they were at work, school, etc. There were plenty of moments when hosts gave me a choice of joining for excursions/dinner/etc. or doing my own thing, so I did a mix. I get worn down from too much socializing; I know I need solo “me time” to recharge, and I had many opportunities for that on this trip. I think it helps that I work remotely, so I also use that to justify staying home instead of going out exploring.
Q: Favorite parts of the trip? Most memorable moments/experiences?
A: This is too difficult, but here are some off the top of my head, in no particular order:
5 y/o Felix answering the door with his hand-picked bouquet of flowers in Cork, Ireland
Joining Nele for adventures in and around Brugge. I loved rock climbing, visiting hives with a Belgian beekeeper, visiting Pierre’s farm, etc. Hearing the beekeeper and Pierre speak in thick Flemish accents and catching as many words as I could before Nele’s translation was amazing.
Seeing the start of De Ronde van Vlanderaan (the Tour of Flanders) and watching my favorite cycling superstar, Wout van Aert, ride past where Nele and I were standing!
Joining Jana in Germany for family brunch at her grandparents’ yoga retreat center. What a delicious meal and music in great company.
Seeing the slideshow and hearing stories of Greet and Walter’s round-the-world bike tour from thirty years ago. It was also great to participate in their family dinner while my friends Lente and Marnik joined on Zoom 🙂
Giving Marlene a hug and celebrating her partner/my friend Andrew’s memory with laughter, tears, and stories. Making memories in his honor, like having a catch, and turning a page in our friendship with new memories, like skinny dipping in icy cold water and warming up around a fire in a gorge.
Meeting Couchsurfing ambassador Bruno and experiencing his incredibly detailed, enthusiastic tour of Gent, plus the delicious tajine with his Moroccan house guests, Yonas and Soufiane.
Getting a crash course in flamenco percussion from Jeff and spinning it into a 30-min. workshop in Amsterdam.
Niels’ surprises. I was so happy attending the Aldous Harding concert in Utrecht, jamming on percussion instruments at the Kessels Museum in Tilburg, receiving thoughtful gifts…everything about this aspect of the trip was a pleasant surprise.
Dutch/Belgian enthusiasm for De Efteling. Niels’ nostalgia and stories made the park visit wonderful, but so did the reactions of every Dutch and Belgian person I mentioned it to; everyone was so excited I went there.
All the language nuances. I loved picking up on little differences between Dutch sounds in the Holland area vs. the Noord-Brabant region (not to mention regional dialects, like Tilburgs), and how it morphs into Flemish in Belgium and changes so quickly from Antwerp, to Gent, to Brugge (goodbye “g” sound), etc.
All the fun facts. Every host had so much enthusiasm about their area and knew a surprising amount of local information. Architecture, war history, industrial roles each city played, folklore…I was impressed by how much people knew.
Ireland…I mentioned Felix already but everything about Ireland was a highlight; I’ll write about that in another post.
I could go on and on…there were a lot of memorable moments on the trip.
Q: What’s next? Do you have another trip planned?
A: This summer I’ll mostly stay in NYC for softball. I’ll do a couple little trips, mostly cycling adventures. Then in mid-late September, I will return to Europe! I’ll spend a few weeks exploring somewhere (TBD…anyone want to meet up?), then start a new adventure through the Teaching Assistant In France program starting October 1st. I’ll be living in the Normandie region on a long-stay visa, then returning to NY again for summer softball 2024.
Final Thoughts
This trip was not my usual vibe; I typically prefer places with warmer weather and more outdoor adventures. However, this was the first time in a long time that I wasn’t traveling to run away from something. I had specific goals, and I was running to something (or someone: Marlene in Austria). I needed this trip in a lot of ways. It was therapeutic, it was empowering, it was full of unexpected twists and encounters, opportunities and realizations. When I was planning I wasn’t sure how or where I would go; I knew I’d go to Austria, but would I start from Greece or Italy and travel up? Would I explore new regions of France? Would I check out Dutch cycling culture, practice the language I’d been casually learning, and head down? I considered all these options and decided to go wherever I found a cheap flight, which turned out to be Amsterdam. I’m happy with my choice. The weather was cold and at first I wished I’d chosen the Greek route, as some friends had recommended, but I met such awesome people and made new connections both platonic AND romantic (surprise!)! that I have no regrets about my choice. And now, getting placed in the Normandie region for TAPIF means I won’t be far from places I visited on this trip. Future reunions await!
I’m grateful I have a job and living situation that allow me the freedom and flexibility for experiences like this. Sometimes people ask if I ever want to advance in my job to have more of a career. Honestly no; I’m happy as I am. I will use the upcoming TAPIF experience as an opportunity to live in a new place on a long-stay visa, but I’ll keep my online job and probably continue this “digital nomad” lifestyle after the teaching position ends. I’m a wandering soul, and wander I will.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you get to travel somewhere fun! To wrap up, here are my secondary hosts from the trip 🙂
Outside legendary Warmshowers host Ken Francis’ house
When people learn about my travels they sometimes say “I could never afford to do that!” That might be true if you visit pricey tourist attractions and stay in 5-star hotels, but that’s not me. Here are ways to make travel affordable, especially if you travel solo and want to focus on community connections.
These ideas are mostly for acquiring free or cheap lodging and meeting local community members simultaneously. Some require a subscription, but each is cheaper than even one night at a hotel. You can search most of these websites without a subscription, so I only pay when I’m actually going to use a service. Click the names below to access each website.
Volunteering for Lodging
If you want to give back to a community you’re traveling through, consider doing volunteer work in exchange for housing. I’ve personally done almost all of these, and/or have friends who have used them.
Services that require a subscription:
Volunteering on Quarantine Island/Kamau Taurua, NZ
WWOOF: World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. Despite the name, these environmental opportunities are not always on farms. I did one on small island in New Zealand. I worked 3-4 hours, 5 days/week doing weeding, gardening, counting birds, helping with educational programming, scrubbing the jetty, painting, and doing house chores. One day my job was literally to hang out with the island keeper’s two kids. I had two days off per week, access to a kayak, bike, car, and public transit, and got lodging and food. It was one of my all-time favorite life experiences. Read about it here.
Workaway: Similar to WWOOF, but usually in peoples’ homes helping with a wide range of tasks. A few hours per day in exchange for lodging and sometimes food.
HelpX: Short for “Help Exchange.” Same concept as Workaway.
House-sitting: Sites like Trusted Housesitters are cool if you like pets. You stay in someone’s house in exchange for watching pets and sometimes watering plants. There are many sites to find house-sitting jobs besides just one; here is a list of the “best” sites in 2022.
No subscription:
All Hands and Hearts: Abaco, Bahamas
English immersion: If you are a native English speaker, you can acquire free room and board for talking! Programs like VaughanTown(in Spain), Diverbo/Pueblo Ingles(Spain & Germany), EnglischHausen (Germany), Speak Anglos (Italy), ENGLISHstay(Czech Republic), JustSpeak (Poland), and Angloville(across Europe) offer chances to live in fancy places (hotels, sometimes castles) in exchange for speaking English to program participants. You’ll have a few hours off each day and might go on group outings.
All Hands and Hearts: Disaster response work. Volunteers live communally in an area affected by a natural disaster (hurricane, tornado, wildfire, flood, etc.). This is a very involved commitment; volunteers work five or six days a week on projects with one or two days off per week. Typical projects could be mucking/gutting houses, mold removal, rebuilding houses or schools, painting, etc. I did a hurricane relief project in the Bahamas; read about it here. In addition to lodging, AHAH has on-site meals for volunteers on work days, and sometimes they cover flight costs to and from a project area.
NECHAMA: Similar to AHAH. Their motto is “Jewish response to disaster” because their mission is “rooted in the Jewish value of Tikkun Olam, repairing the world,” providing “comfort and hope to communities by engaging volunteers in disaster recovery work.” You don’t need to be Jewish to volunteer. “NECHAMA welcomes anyone with a passion to help others regardless of religious faith or background. No previous disaster response experience is necessary- our skilled team leaders will teach you everything you need to know to make a difference.” I am not Jewish and enjoyed my time with this organization as a day volunteer. I’d love to work with them again as a residential volunteer.
The Clearwater, docked at Cold Spring, NY
Ship work: Some ships require prior sailing knowledge/experience, but there are many that teach you en route. With no sailing experience, I spent a week on the Sloop Clearwater in NY, sailing up and down the Hudson River teaching kids about the environment. I have a friend who traveled by ship volunteering for two years nonstop. She started with no sailing knowledge and volunteered as a cook, then acquired crew positions as she learned more.
Other environmental projects: Check out the Department of Conservation or similar for whatever country you’re going to. I found projects in New Zealand and the US this way. Some require ongoing commitment, like trail maintenance crews in the US, but others require just short-term commitment.
Lodging without volunteering:
My first Host A Sister host, Gabrielle
There are many Facebook groups for female-identifying travelers to find places to stay. You can host, search for travel buddies, find a house swap, etc. Here are a few:
Off of Facebook, there are ways to find lodging for people of all genders. Most of these platforms are about cultural exchange, not just free housing.
Warmshowers: An amazing resource connecting cyclists. On my Pacific Coast Highway trip I stayed with WS hosts 16 times. They usually provide camping space, a couch, or a bed, plus sometimes meals and of course a warm shower. Almost every host is a cyclist, so you get tons of cycling advice. You do have to pay a one-time fee to join this, and a subscription fee to use the app (you can use the website for free).
Couchsurfing Vietnam with Quynh and Nhi
Couchsurfing: I’ve been a Couchsurfing traveler and host since 2012. You make a profile, then find hosts, travel buddies, etc. Some women have had bad experiences with Couchsurfing, but there are ways to avoid sketchy situations. Stay away from anyone with “neutral” or “negative” reviews, males who only have reviews from females, hosts without reviews, guys who have photos with their shirts off, anyone who wants you to contact them off Couchsurfing, or if they mention that you need to share a room and/or bed. If they have good reviews from all genders, photos of themselves traveling, interests related to traveling, a description of their house, etc., they are usually great; I’ve made good friends through CS. For popular destinations send many requests and personalize each one. As a host in NYC I delete requests that are copy/pasted; I get too many to spend time looking at those when others send personalized messages. Note: Couchsurfing now charges a subscription fee. I’ve found BeWelcometo be a good free alternative, though it doesn’t have the same amount of users yet.
House swap: If you have a cool house or apartment, and/or live in an appealing area, you can swap houses with someone else. The Host A Sister FB group mentioned above has an active house swap community. Here is a list of home swap websites.
BeWelcome: An alternative to Couchsurfing, currently only in Europe. I used this for the first time in March 2023 in Europe and it was great! I had an amazing host and connected with a few people who couldn’t host me but had lots of travel tips. It’s not quite at the level of Couchsurfing yet in terms of finding hosts, but it’s getting there. It’s a decent option without a paywall.
WorldPackers: Another Couchsurfing alternative. I have not used this yet, but one of my students recommended it.
Trustroots: Another Couchsurfing alternative I haven’t yet used. Totally free, no subscription cost!
Camping:
“Bike Hostel Area,” Riverhead, NY
Welcome To My Garden: A not-for-profit initiative born during the 2020 lockdown in Belgium. Hosts offer hikers and cyclists a chance to camp in their backyards. It’s most active in Europe, but the map is expanding.
1Nite Tent: Similar to Welcome To My Garden but German (with spots throughout Europe). From their website: “In Germany it is forbidden to raise your tent outside of campsites. You might be fined by up to 500€. Sleeping outside without a tent is a legal uncertainty. In Scandinavia the „Everyman’s right“ is applied: For one night you are allowed to raise your tent everywhere. We would like to establish this kind of travelling in Germany as well.”
Hiker/biker campsites: If you like camping, the US is chock-full of places to camp for $0-$10 if you enter by foot or bike. You can read about the free bike hostel campsites I stayed at on Long Island here. There are TONS of hike/bike sites along the Pacific Coast Highway, and probably more places I haven’t explored elsewhere. 🙂
Wild camping: There are many places where you can camp legally. Make sure to check what’s legal in whatever area you visit, or just choose a stealthy spot. 😉
Monasteries:
Many monasteries – primarily in historically Catholic countries like Italy – offer free or cheap housing for guests. Some examples:
Good Night and God Bless: From their website: “Step off the beaten tourist path and step into clean, cheap, safe and well-located accommodation in the world’s convents, monasteries, religious guesthouses and hotels.Good Night and God Bless is an essential online booking tool for today’s tourists and pilgrims, singles and groups, ramblers and explorers and for all travelers searching for a unique experience.“
Monasteries.com: Essentially a search engine for finding monasteries by destination.
Of course, there are also hostels! Hostels are not just for young people; anyone can stay. Hostelworld.com is a good place to search for hostels.
A blog reader told me that a few of her friends stayed in US national parks for free by searching for opportunities on CoolWorks.com. I haven’t used this myself and it’s unclear if her friends volunteered in exchange for housing. If anyone gives it a try, let me know how it goes!
Most if not all of these opportunities are about way more than acquiring free housing. These opportunities are designed for travelers to connect to local communities, not just take selfies and move along. I’ve enjoyed these programs and have met amazing people, some of whom I now consider friends.
One of my favorite Warmshowers experiences, at Hiromi & Kirby’s place in El Segundo, CA
What if I’m an introvert? Never fear! As a self-identified introvert myself, I can say with confidence that you’ll be okay! There is an unwritten script amongst travelers: Hosts ask about your adventures, you ask about theirs, they show you the bathroom, the wifi, house rules, go over the food arrangement, offer travel advice, etc. It’s a different kind of small talk than you have to prepare yourself for at parties; you already have something in common to connect with. Much easier 🙂
But is it safe? I typically feel *safer* using these services than I do staying alone in a hotel if no one knows where I am. Hosts have profiles on almost all of these platforms and can’t erase reviews from guests; if a host has even one negative or neutral review, I don’t stay at their place. It’s a relief to know someone is waiting for me to arrive, and sometimes they meet me somewhere or pick me up if I’m lost or it’s getting dark. It’s cool to meet community members and explore places from local perspectives, and for me, that’s a large part of what travel is about.
So…that’s my list. If you know of other opportunities I should add or if you’d like to share your own experiences using these services, leave a comment. Thanks for reading, and happy travels!
Interested in following Carolyn’s adventures? Follow her on Instagram @carolynventures
San Francisco is a magical place and I spent more time there than intended. My “rest days” were nothing of the sort! So…let’s log the miles:
Day 13: Arrival from Sausalito (logged in last entry)
Days 14-16: San Francisco “rest days”
Day 14: 25 miles (technically on day 15…but very early)
Day 15: 8 miles
Day 16: True rest day! With yoga 🙂
Day 17: Departure on CalTrain
Total miles since last entry: ~33 miles Trip total: ~463 miles, average 29 miles/day (counting rest days)
My time in San Francisco was amazing. I had an incredible host – Miguel, who offered the perfect balance of hanging out and doing our own things. Here are the highlights:
Day 13: A few miles that I didn’t track
Golden Gate Park: I could have easily spent my entire weekend here. Miguel recommended it as a place to hang out on the day I arrived, and I see why! I had a lovely time watching ducks in one of the many ponds, taking photos of my bike, attending a free concert, hunting for windmills, and catching the sunset at Ocean Beach. GGP feels like a mix of Central Park and Prospect Park. According to Wikipedia, GGP is the third-most visited city park in the US, behind Central Park and the Lincoln Memorial. It was designed by engineer William Hammond Hall. Interestingly, as stated on Wikipedia, “In 1865, Frederick Law Olmsted proposed a plan for a park using native species suited for San Francisco’s dry climate; however, the proposal was rejected in favor of a Central Park-style park needing extensive irrigation.” Olmsted designed Central Park, so it’s fascinating that his proposal for GGP was rejected.
Day 14:
I started this day by exploring on my own, then met up with Miguel for a delicious home-cooked meal of paella and charcuterie:
Ferry Building: This was a great indoor-outdoor farmer’s market. I was excited to find momo, a dumpling-like snack from Nepal that the Bhutanese kids at RISSE (a refugee center I used to work at) loved to eat. Yum!
The Exploratorium: This was such a cool, interactive science museum! I wish I hadn’t visited on a weekend – I love kids, but there were way, way too many on this day. Nonetheless, I enjoyed my visit. Highlights were the lifesize model of the Mars Perseverance Rover and the infrared scanner that confirmed once and for all that yes indeed, my fingers are very, very cold. The area focused on inventions was also pretty cool.
Lillie Hitchcock Coit: SF has lots of signs around the city to read to learn about its history. I enjoyed learning about Ms. Coit, a “renegade Southern belle” who became a certified member of SF’s fire department at age 20 in the mid-1800s. According to the sign, “she smoked cigars, drank bourbon, and drove teams of fire horses.” Badass. I’ll think of her when I see Coit Tower at the top of Telegraph Hill.
Fisherman’s Wharf: I visited this place twice. The first time, it was Saturday afternoon and felt way too touristy and icky. The second was Tuesday morning and it was gorgeous and peaceful. Only visit on weekdays if you can!
Day 15:
Midnight Mystery Ride: This was an unexpected delight recommended by Alexei, another Warmshowers host. Once a month, cyclists in SF gather in a location disclosed at noon the day of the ride. The ride organizer leads everyone on an adventure to areas of SF you might not otherwise think to visit. There are stops in public park areas for drinks and snacks. Miguel joined for this adventure too, and what an adventure it was! We met so many cool cyclists and visited SO MUCH of San Francisco. It was magical.
Post-Mystery Ride: After the ride, some us hung out for more adventures. There was a stop at Crispy Crunchy Chicken – a SF favorite inside gas stations -, Dolores Park – where you can see the golden fire hydrant that survived the famous SF fire -, an amazing alley in the Mission district filled with murals, and then finally…an ambitious adventure cycling up to Twin Peaks!
Twin Peaks: The roads leading up to Twin Peaks are made of concrete rather than asphalt because of how steep the gradient is. At one point I felt like my front bike wheel was about to come off the ground! After a lot of hard work, we all made it to the top and were rewarded with an incredible 5 AM view of the entire city. This was so amazing, and very much worth the climb on my “rest day.”
Grandview: One of the riders on the mystery ride, Phil, had a pannier repair kit and could fix my bag. Hooray! After visiting a farmer’s market, Miguel and I rode to Phil’s place and learned quite a bit about bike maintenance while Phil checked my bike to see if anything needed tweaking and then…fixed my pannier! Then he lead us on a ride to Grandview, his favorite place to watch the sunset. Yet another steep climb – including flights of stairs carrying our bikes – and we were at the top. We enjoyed an amazing sunset while a saxophonist serenaded the city. So cool, and once again worth the work on my rest day.
Day 17 & Other Highlights
Food: I haven’t focused much on “foodie” life on this bike tour but that changed in San Francisco, thanks in part to Miguel. I had Vietnamese, Burmese, Thai, Nepalese, and Chinese food, as well as Miguel’s delicious cooking and a few sweet treats. Yum!
Crissy Field: On the day I left, I joined Miguel for his 9-mile commute to work, which happened to also be the same direction as the CalTrain I’d be catching to Redwood City. A lot of the ride was on the bike path along Crissy Field. The path was beautiful, the sunrise was great, and you get a cool view of the Golden Gate Bridge. Awesome way to end my visit to SF.
CalTrain: I have to include this as a highlight because this train was SO CHEAP ($6!) and has three cars devoted just to bicycle storage. San Francisco clearly has their bicycle game figured out. Well done CalTrain!
Miguel! I feel lucky to have had Miguel as my host; he had amazing advice about the Pacific Coast Highway and the perfect attitude for my weekend. We even did yoga together in the park! I can genuinely say I made a new friend on my SF stop, met lots of amazing people, and hope to return. I think SF would have been cool regardless, but it was definitely extra great with such an awesome host.
Wow, it is hard to keep up on this blog! I’m currently in San Francisco, but I’ll write about that as a separate entry.
Here’s where I’ve been over the past week:
Day 6: Piercy-Fort Bragg: 55 miles
Lodging: Couchsurfing – Jay’s guest house
Day 7: Fort Bragg-Elk: 24 miles
Lodging: Warmshowers – Barn on Judy’s property
Day 8: Elk-Gualala Point Campground: 45 miles
Lodging: Hike or bike campground, $5
Day 9: Gualala Point Campground-Jenner Inn: 37 miles
Lodging: Room at an inn, $200 (eek!)
Day 10: Jenner Inn-Valley Ford: 22 miles
Lodging: Host A Sister – Spare room at Gabrielle’s house
Day 11: Rest day in Sebastopol: 0 miles
Lodging: Host A Sister – Spare room at Gabrielle’s house
Day 12: Valley Ford-Sausalito: 52 miles
Lodging: Friend of friend – Gabrielle’s friend Dianne’s boat!!! 😮
Day 13: Sausalito-San Francisco: 15 miles
Lodging: Warmshowers – Room in Miguel’s house
Total miles since last entry: ~250 miles Trip total: ~430 miles, average 33 miles/day(or 39/day, not counting rest days)
Day 6: Piercy-Fort Bragg, 55 miles
I started this day by giving a piano lesson to my student Noah on Zoom, made breakfast with the help of Sam and Janelle’s 3-y/o Frank, then went on my way (Frank told me “Be careful of the cars!” Wise words from a toddler). The hill from Sam’s house is a doozy – I had my hands on my brakes almost the whole way down!
This ride was intense. There is an enormous hill around Leggett that really got me. Plus, on the way up, one of my panniers snapped! I rigged it with bungee cords, but oh boy, I hope it makes it to San Diego.
Sam had told me he was excited for this part of my ride, and I understand why. The climbs were intense, but this is the part of the ride when you transition from Highway 101 to Highway 1. There comes a point when you turn a corner and suddenly BOOM, the coast appears! It caught me by surprise a bit, and it was definitely worth the work on the climb. I enjoyed a nice lunch along the coastline before continuing on to Fort Bragg, where I stayed in the guesthouse of Jay, a woman who I found on Couchsurfing. I was quite exhausted by that point, so I’m sort of glad she has a separate guest house, I’m not sure I would have been up for much socializing in my state!
Day 7: Fort Bragg-Elk, 24 miles
This was a shorter ride because I had an important stop: The gray whale festival at Point Cabrillo Light Station Historic State Park. I arrived in time for a morning birdwatching tour. We saw twelve different kinds of birds, plus gray whales spouting! Didn’t see any whales surface, but it was cool to see their spouts and know they were there. I also explored the lighthouse itself and the museum. The staff I met were friendly and the scenery was amazing; I enjoyed my time very much!
Next, I stopped to eat my lunch at the headlands of Mendocino. But…it was windy and chilly thanks to incoming rain, so I didn’t stay long. Typically on the west coast wind blows north to south, so I have tailwinds when biking. However, whenever rain is coming, the winds move south to north instead. Not fun to ride with headwinds AND hills!
I continued to battle headwinds into Elk, where I summited one final, extremely long hill to get to my next host’s house. Judy is somewhat of a celebrity on Warmshowers; she is the only host in the area and has been on WS for a full decade; it’s likely she has hosted 1000 cyclists! Many cyclists I’ve met on this trip know of Judy, either because she gave them advice and/or hosted them.
Judy lives with her friend Nick, her brother Dave, their 94-y/o father Rusty, a dog, a cat, and an emu! Judy’s family used to breed emus and had 54 at one point! The family built their own house and made it solar-powered over forty years ago, long before solar panels were popular. Pretty impressive!
Judy is the postmaster and firefighter for Elk, an important member of her community. We all shared dinner and stories before I retired to the barn and set up my tent inside to avoid the incoming rain. Very grateful to have had shelter while it was raining!
Day 8: Elk-Gualala, 45 miles
This was the first day I didn’t have a concrete destination; I was going to ride until I was too tired, then find a place to camp. Judy recommended Gualala as a possible destination and that’s exactly where I ended up, at Gualala Point Campground’s $5 hike or bike area. The campground was gorgeous, and once again I had the HB area to myself, surrounded by RVs. This time rather than bear boxes there were raccoon boxes, so once again I was able to store my food worry-free. The HB food locker was clearly the coolest; lots of cyclists left their mark on the inside of the door.
Day 9: Gualala-Jenner, 37 miles
Day 8’s ride was intense, but it was nothing compared to Day 9. A storm was coming, so I faced headwinds and some of the largest hills of the trip. Plus, I really had no destination; there was a campground coming up but the forecast was 100% rain, and there were no Couchsurfing, Warmshowers, or Host A Sister hosts anywhere around. What to do?!
As I was contemplating this, I spotted a deer grazing on grass and behind it…the most unique building I’ve seen on this trip. It was the non-denominational Sea Ranch Chapel. I legitimately enjoyed sitting in the chapel reflecting on my trip and resting before continuing into the unknown.
Not much else to say about this day…I felt like a zombie, and I didn’t pass any places to stop for food, drink, or restrooms. When I finally did pass a general store, it was closed until April! Big shoutout to The Fort Ross store for being the only open store I passed; the vegetarian tamales I bought there were so tasty after so much despair! When I got to Fort Ross, I decided I needed to make a decision about where to stay for the night. I chose the Jenner Inn, called them up, and reserved a room.
From Fort Ross, I encountered enormous hills and did a ton of bike-walking. Then, with around six miles left, a pick-up truck pulled up beside me. “Are you doing okay?” the man in the driver’s seat asked. “Doing the best I can!” I responded. He asked if I’d like a break to get up the hill, and seeing his bike rack on the truck, I accepted. It turns out that Kevin is a fellow cyclist and has been in situations like mine, so he understood. He very nicely drove me to the Jenner Inn and waited to make sure I got settled in before continuing on. Thank you Kevin for the assistance!
That night it POURED rain; I could hear it all night long in my room. The Jenner Inn was not cheap, but I was able to post my lesson for my students, stay dry, recover from the most difficult riding day I’ve had on this entire trip, and enjoy amenities like a free breakfast sitting out on a beautiful porch overlooking the water. I am very grateful for that place, and would recommend it if you want to splurge on a place to stay in that area.
Day 10: Jenner-Valley Ford, 22 miles
After enjoying a leisurely breakfast with tea on the porch at the Jenner Inn, I checked in on my students and hit the road. This ride was MUCH better; no big hills and no headwinds! The misty morning made the cliff sides and farmland look magical. I had a short ride on this day; just 22 miles to Valley Ford to meet Gabrielle, a host I connected with through a Facebook group for female-identifying travelers called Host A Sister. Since the ride was short, I took a detour to ride an off-road path in Bodega Bay called Bird Walk Coastal Access, part of the Sonoma County Regional Parks program. Great place!
Gabrielle very nicely picked me up and drove me to her home in Sebastopol, where I stayed for two nights.
Day 11: Rest day in Sebastopol, 0 miles
I had a wonderful time at Gabrielle’s house. We shared meals and stories, but she also left me plenty of time to get work done. Sometimes it’s a bit difficult to teach and travel, but I was able to catch up on my teaching tasks on the rest day. Thank you Gabrielle for letting me take this time in your lovely home.
Day 12: Valley Ford-Sausalito, 52 miles
Before I left, Gabrielle asked where I was staying that next night and I told her honestly that I did not know. She made a call and next thing I knew, I was set to spend the night on her friend Dianne’s boat in Sausalito!
The ride to Sausalito was great, especially after I crossed into Marin County. As Gabrielle explained, the laws around roadwork in Sonoma County – where she lives – are very limiting, and I would know immediately when I reached Marin when the road quality improved. She was right!
Midway through this day I met two local cyclists who invited me to their house for food as a rest stop. I wish I’d said yes, but my brain was set on getting to Sausalito. If I’d said yes I may have known to turn left onto Panorama Highway rather than continuing on Highway 1 to get to Sausalito. Instead, I encountered extremely steep, never-ending hills that could have been avoided. Ugh!!!
Regardless, I somehow arrived at Sausalito by 5 PM. I had dinner, located the boat, then treated myself to Lappert’s Ice Cream as I explored the downtown area, including “The Floating Taj Mahal” houseboat. Then I enjoyed a nice quiet evening reading on the boat. Sausalito is a cute town and I am glad I got to stay there!
Day 13: Sausalito-San Francisco, 15 miles
The next morning I gave Noah a piano lesson on Zoom from the boat. It’s becoming part of our lesson tradition for Noah to ask me where I am, which is fun! 🙂 Given the early lesson time, I was awake to watch the sunrise from the boat. Awesome!
After the lesson I packed up and happened to meet Dianne, who was coming to grab the kayak just as I was leaving, hence the cool boat photos 🙂 Next, I met my next Warmshowers host, Miguel, who had cycled from San Francisco to Sausalito that morning. We had breakfast and then he acted as my tour guide and photographer on the ride to San Francisco. Thanks to him I have some cool photos crossing the Golden Gate Bridge and outside the Legion of Honor building. As he said, you only get one first time crossing the bridge! I’m having a great time in San Francisco, but I’ll share more in a separate post. I’m here for three nights – Friday through Monday – so that I can explore a bunch before continuing south. Adventures await!
I’m writing from a beautiful home on 20 acres of land in Piercy, CA. It’s my first rest day, and I’m enjoying the solitude and sounds of nature around me. My Warmshowers host is Sam, a high school special education teacher with a love of gardening, so I’m currently sitting in one of his gardens writing this. There is an incredibly noisy squirrel in a tree nearby!
Today is Day 5 of my bike adventure, a perfect time to summarize the trip so far:
Day 1: Crescent City-Trinidad, CA: 61 miles
Lodging: Warmshowers – Spare bedroom at Carol’s house
Day 2: Trinidad-Loleta, CA: 44 miles
Lodging: Warmshowers – Camping in a garden at Angela and Jamie’s house
Day 3: Loleta-Burlington Campground: 38 miles
Lodging: Hiker/Biker Campground, $5
Day 4: Burlington Campground-Piercy, CA: 37 miles
Lodging: Spare room at Sam & Janelle’s house
Day 5: Rest day in Piercy: 0 miles
Total miles: ~180, average 45 miles/day
Day 1: Crescent City-Trinidad, 61 miles
My host Rachel made an amazing veggie omelette, we double-checked that my bike was in working order, then I hit the road! I’m glad Rachel and Dave were the ones to see me off; they were great hosts!
Tip: If you bike the Pacific Coast Highway, there’s an enormous hill directly south of Crescent City. Rachel warned me, and I’m glad I mentally prepared for it. That was 15 miles/1.5 hours on a hill from hell. Glad I got that over with early!
CA is hilly, but nothing else that day was particularly grueling. My disc brake started rubbing at one point, but I fixed it. Then my chain started jumping and I didn’t have enough know-how to do more than adjust the derailleur cable on the road. So…I put up with a jumping cable for the last two hours of the ride.
The views that day were amazing! From coast, to redwoods, to farmland…everything was gorgeous. Towards the end I saw lots of “Beware of elk” sign and then…a herd of elk! Luckily they did not charge.
Trinidad is sixty miles from Crescent City, quite the undertaking on day one, but I managed to pull into my host’s house just after the sun had set. Carol greeted me with an AMAZING plate of food; the best I’ve had so far! She was also fun to talk to; she lives a zero waste lifestyle, used to be a dancer, and did a Fulbright studying dance in Brazil. So cool! She recently bought an electric bike so she can keep cycling as she nears her 70s. As an added plus, she has a basket of information for cyclists, including some fun facts about Trinidad. My favorite:
Carol’s house is just about halfway between Canada and Mexico. The exact halfway point is 40.89N latitude, and her house is 41.06N. As she wrote in the information booklet: “Each degree of latitude is approximately 69 miles or 111 kilometers apart. We are approximately 12 miles or 19 kilometers from the precise halfway point.
Day 2: Trinidad-Loleta, 44 miles
I got a late start on this day; I needed to rest after that grueling hill on day one. Luckily I had only 40 miles to ride. My first stop was a bike shop in Arcata to get my chain fixed. Carol showed me an alternate route I could take to Arcata; instead of Highway 101 I traveled through 15 gorgeous miles along the Hammock Trail, so this was quite nice despite the jumping chain.
In Arcata I’m pretty sure I got played. The mechanic used his chain wear tool to check my chain and reported that it was worn out to the point of needing to be replaced. What?! This is a brand new bike, and I hadn’t even ridden 100 miles! He explained that the chain was poor quality and that it wasn’t surprising that a low-quality chain would wear out so quickly. I spent $112 at that shop for a new chain, $80 of labor cost, and replacing four screws that had come out of my crankset (for this I am glad I went to the bike shop; I hadn’t even noticed that I’d lost them!). I’m not sure I truly needed a new chain, but my bike is running a lot smoother now and at the time I was going through small-town CA, so I didn’t want to take a chance in case I couldn’t find a bike shop in the miles ahead.
That night I stayed in the backyard of Angela and Jamie in Loleta, CA. Jamie is a musician, so we had some great conversations about music and life. I set up my tent in their yard and spent a wonderful night camped out. I am grateful that they let me hang out the following day to catch up on grading before setting out.
Day 3: Loleta-Burlington Campground, 38 miles
The ride from Loleta to Burlington was amazing. It started out with miles and miles of beautiful farmland. I love riding through farmland and saying hello to all the cows. There was also a crazy steep descent in Ferndale, but the view beforehand was gorgeous. Eventually I hit the Avenue of the Giants, an incredible paved, mostly flat ride through the Humboldt Redwood State Park. I really enjoyed this ride, and the campground itself. Cyclists can stay at Burlington for just $5! I was the only tent there; everyone else had an RV!
Day 4: Burlington Campground-Piercy, 37 miles
I had a short ride ahead, so I started with a loop trail hike across the street from the campground. I can’t get over the size of these redwoods…they are enormous!
Then I began what turned out to be the most picturesque ride of the day. I can’t even describe it, so I’ll let the photos talk. Aside from the Avenue of the Giants, most of this was along the Eel River and Highway 101. I also visited the famous Shrine Tree and took the obligatory selfie inside the tree x-D
Early in the ride I was grateful to meet my next host, Sam, on his lunch break from the school he teaches at, so I was able to put my panniers in his truck and ride 27 happy miles pannier-free. So light!
Day 5: Rest day in Piercy, 0 miles
Sam and his wife Janelle live on twenty acres in a beautiful wooden house in Piercy, CA. I decided to spend two nights here and take a rest day to catch up on work. This was such a lovely rest and I was grateful for it.
What’s Next?
Tomorrow I’ve got a big ride; 60 miles to Caspar or 55 to Fort Bragg depending on what my legs are up for. I know that possibly the steepest hill of the entire PCH is coming up on this day, so we’ll see if I make it, or have to stop at a campground. My plan is to get to Point Cabrillo Light Station State Park for their gray whale festival on Saturday, so hopefully I’ll at least make it to Fort Bragg! Adventures ahead…
I slowly roll my bike out the apartment door, sunscreen slapped on my face and panniers bulging with everything I’ve thrown into them…even a last-minute item added minutes ago. I marvel at the uncanny stillness of early morning Brooklyn, the streets seeming to yawn and stretch as they take their first breaths of morning air.
I rest my Trek Lexa road bike – the best thing I’ve ever found on Craigslist – against the brick apartment exterior and snap a few photos in the dim light of the rising sun. “October Blue” is laden with two panniers carrying everything I’ll need – and hopefully nothing I won’t – for the next six days. Tent, check. Water, check. Route sheets, check. Adrenaline, anticipation, fitness, check check check. This is the longest, most ambitious bike ride of my life, and I am ready.
My bike, “October Blue,” packed and ready for six days of cyclotouring!
Flashback: January 2021
In January 2021 I walked away from graduate school. 6.5 years spent in a program I wasn’t enjoying, pursuing a PhD I didn’t need, still at least two years away from finishing. I’d promised myself that when I finally did either leave or finish my program, I’d celebrate with a big bike adventure, preferably across Europe. COVID disagreed, so I altered my plans and opted to explore some of the East Coast Greenway.
The East Coast Greenway
As stated on its website, “The East Coast Greenway connects 15 states and 450 cities and towns for 3,000 miles from Maine to Florida. We are fostering a safe walking and biking route through the country’s most populated corridor.” The ECG has been in the works for three decades, beginning with the establishment of the East Coast Greenway Alliance in NYC in November 1991. How fitting to start my ECG experience exactly 30 years after the alliance was founded, in the very city where it started.
My ECG plan:
Day 1: Brooklyn, NY to New Haven, CT, an ambitious 106-mile pursuit. Why so long? To achieve my goal of riding a century in one day.
Day 2: New Haven to West Hartford, CT (~55 miles)
Day 3: West Hartford to Lisbon, CT (~40 miles, going off the route to reach a Warmshowers host)
Day 4: Lisbon to Providence, RI (~50 miles)
Day 5: Explore Providence! [Providence arrival if I’ve taken a rest day somewhere]
Day 6: Trip to Rose Island, Amtrak back to NYC
More or less, my intended route from the ECG website
Along the way, I would stay with hosts through Warmshowers, a system similar to Couchsurfing but designed specifically for cyclists by cyclists. Warmshowers hosts know what cyclotouring feels like, since many have gone on extensive trips themselves.
The ECG is still in development, but enough of it is complete – thanks largely to preexisting bicycle trails – that it is possible to bike the whole thing…with the understanding that some sections are connected by roads without protected bike lanes. Everywhere I biked on this trip felt safe; if you’re considering checking out the ECG, go for it!
Day 1: Brooklyn to New Haven
This day started as planned:
Cross the eerily empty Brooklyn Bridge (I usually avoid this tourist-laden bridge, but at 6 AM it was practically a ghost town).
Ride the Hudson River Greenway – a beautiful path that is part of both the ECG and the NYS Empire Trail – from Manhattan all the way to the Bronx. Familiar territory which I’ve ridden plenty of times before.
Take a few turns on busier roads to eventually continue along the Empire Trail until turning east…somewhere…
…uh oh…getting lost…
After the Hudson River portion, things got tricky. My phone was dying and I couldn’t rely on it for directions; even the RideWithGPS maps I’d downloaded were draining the battery! Relying on cue sheets I’d printed in advance and the occasional ECG sign, I made it to the Mosholu-Pelham Greenway to continue up the Empire Trail (which spans 750-mile, across the entirety of New York State). Then came an unclear divide in the road; the Empire Trail went straight but a sign saying “Bike Route” pointed right. I asked another cyclist which way to go for the Greenway and he instructed me to continue straight. Many miles later it became clear that was the wrong decision; I was ten miles north of where I needed to be!
I used my phone’s precious battery life to check Google maps, which suggested turning off the trail in a few miles to reroute toward CT. I followed the route and then…trail closed?! With no indication of how to detour around the closure, I backtracked 3 miles (a sign would have been nice to know the trail was closed ahead) and was rescued by another cyclist. “Are you trying to get back to the trail?” he shouted. “Follow me!”
Graciously I followed my new guide – Ted – for three miles on the main road to reach a turn to head east to CT. As we rode, I learned that Ted is known as “the bike guy” in town; someone from his area once recognized him randomly in Greece because of his local bicycle fame. Ted explained that the Empire Trail is also a greenway, so the rider who instructed me to go straight probably misunderstood what I was asking.
Once back on track, the ride was long, tiring, but not terrible. My phone refused to stay charged despite two external battery packs, so I stopped too many times to find places to charge it. It didn’t help that the ECG markings were unclear in places, but from Norwalk, CT onward the signs became clearer and more frequent.
Eventually – seventeen hours after leaving Brooklyn – I reached New Haven and my host Demi’s house. Big shoutout to Demi, whose house was about to be sold the following week. Demi let me crash in the completely empty house despite not being able to actually be there during my stay. I arrived so late and exhausted that it’s just as well I had the place to myself; as soon as I’d showered and checked in with friends and family I fell right asleep!
Some highlights from Day 1, both good and bad:
The Empire Trail. This was very pretty and relaxing. I’d love to return and ride it all the way up New York State.
The kindness of Ted, Demi, and the places that let me hang out to charge my phone.
Wednesday afternoon rest stop in Stamford, CT. My phone was at 5% battery, I was frustrated from the detour, the sky was gray, and I couldn’t find a place to get healthy food. Finally, I went to a pizza shop just to stop somewhere and, as I locked up my bike on a signpost, watched a man puke on the sidewalk across the street. I discovered that the pizza shop was doing takeout only because of COVID, so I sat on the curb next to my bike eating a dissatisfying pizza slice, feeling frustrated about my dying phone but grateful to have this experience at all.
Norwalk. I didn’t spend much time here, but the charm of Norwalk and the improvement of the ECG signs were very welcome.
Tired and out of water, excitedly coming across three girls selling lemonade on a residential street outside Bridgeport. I’ve never been so happy to find a lemonade stand!
Biting into the cucumber I brought and feeling like it was the most delicious food on the planet. Maybe they’re heavy, but cucumbers are such a satisfying bike food!
Cycling along the coastline near Bridgeport. Even though I was tired, the coastline was so pretty! St. Mary’s By The Water is gorgeous.
Begrudgingly stopping for late-night ice cream because I needed to charge my phone again, then sitting on the ground outside the takeout-only shop enjoying every bite.
Rolling into New Haven in the dark and rain, only to discover that the bridge I needed to cross was closed and I needed to take a long detour.
Finally arriving at my host’s completely empty home after seventeen hours and collapsing on the floor.
Sleeping as late as I pleased the next morning.
My first day of this trip was not exactly relaxing; I couldn’t track mileage, but calculating detours and wrong turns, I estimate that I rode ~130 miles. It was long and exhausting, but I knew this day would be challenging even if I were completing *just* a century. Day 1 was meant to be a challenge, and I conquered it!
Photos from Day 1:
Day 2: New Haven to West Hartford
Day 2 was a vast improvement over Day 1. As I went to bed that first night, I considered whether I might take the train to Hartford the next day. However, I woke up to a message from my next Warmshowers host, Jack, suggesting his favorite route to Hartford, which cut out ~15 of the least bike-friendly miles of the ECG. 40 miles instead of 55? Okay, I could do that. I didn’t feel 100% recovered, but I could handle 40 miles.
I am SO glad I chose to bike on that second day. The trails to Hartford were gorgeous, some of my favorites of the entire trip. I rode sloooow, taking my time and stopping wherever and whenever I wanted/needed. I had all day to complete 1/3 of the distance from Day 1!
Day 2 Highlights:
The Farmington Canal Trail. This trail continues to Northhampton, MA and I want to explore it all the way up. The trails around Northhampton/Hadley/Amherst are gorgeous; I bike there each summer while volunteering for The Farm Ride, and I’d love to return to explore when the leaves are changing colors in the fall.
Initially missing the [very clear, I just was oblivious] entrance to the FCT and cycling up an INCREDIBLY steep hill (see photo of exhausted Carolyn after realizing mistake).
All the graffiti along the FCT (see photos below).
Stopping to splurge on a fresh peach and banana from farm stand, for a grand total of 55 cents!
The CTfastrak Multi-Use Trail. What a cool thing! I don’t know why, but I felt very speedy on this paved path.
Meeting my Warmshowers hosts Beth, Jack, and Moose. They were out on their porch to welcome me when I arrived, and I was so grateful for their hospitality. After a relaxing shower and an hour to settle in, I got to know them over homemade squash quesadillas for dinner. Jack in particular is an avid cyclist and has tons of stories about his adventures. Both he and Beth are also quite knowledgeable about CT history, which was great to hear about.
Speaking on the phone with another solo female cyclist who had almost stayed that night, but hadn’t made it to West Hartford. She had been on the road for over two months, having retired from her job and heading out the very next day. What a feat for someone in their late 60s!
Relaxing with tea and chocolate in Beth and Jack’s living room that evening. Even Moose came to hang out and get his ears scratched, apparently a rare occurrence when Warmshowers guests are around. Beth was working on an oral history project, and Jack and I swapped cycling stories while she worked.
Two great pieces of wisdom that Jack shared with me: 1) “We pack our fears;” 2) “Are you a farmer, or a sailor?”
Just to stress this once more, I am extremely grateful for the hospitality of Beth and Jack. They are in many ways the perfect hosts for bikepackers and I appreciate their commitment to civil rights and history preservation as well. I hope our paths cross again. Thank you Beth and Jack!
Photos from Day 2:
Day 3: West Hartford to Lisbon
I woke up on Day 3 feeling relaxed and well-rested. Beth and Jack fully open their kitchen to guests, so I made myself a delicious breakfast of tea, egg and hummus on toast, and a small bowl of Beth’s homemade granola with blueberries – yum! I sat on the porch and spent an hour enjoying my meal and reading a book Jack had mentioned, In The City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist by Peter Jordan. What a great way to start the day!
The night prior, Jack had showed route options on his laptop for my trip and offered to ride out of Hartford with me. At 11 AM we said goodbye to Beth and set out. As we rolled through downtown Hartford, Jack shared facts about the city, the Connecticut River, and stories of previous guests. He once hosted a cyclist from the Netherlands whose goal was to visit every US state capital. When he reached the capitol building of Hartford with Jack, he began to cry, explaining that reaching a new capital brought a sense of relief; he had made it to a new destination and could rest easy for the night. As I asked Jack to take my photo with the building in the background, I imagined the sense of euphoria and relief that same site had brought to the Dutch traveler.
Jack and I parted ways when we reached the ECG path out of Hartford. I thanked him once again for his hospitality and set out on what would prove to be another gorgeous and relaxing day of riding through Connecticut.
Day 3 Highlights:
Riding around Hartford and the waterfront path heading east. Gorgeous!
The Charter Oak Greenway and the graffiti art I found there.
The Hop River Trail. This was my favorite part of the ECG – it was off-road, but I felt safe with my road bike thanks to well-packed dirt. It was meditative to ride along this trail for 2.5 hours.
Reaching Willimantic, my end point of the ECG, and fueling up at the Willimantic Food Co-op, recommended by Jack. If you ride the ECG, definitely stop here for lunch!
Meeting someone in the co-op parking lot who was considering riding the ECG to NYC. I was able to offer encouragement and advice. “Welcome to Willimantic!” he exclaimed as we parted ways.
Reaching “Frog Bridge” and learning about Willimantic’s history as a textile town.
Meeting my new hosts, Kristie and Ray, and their three dogs. Ray was kind enough to pick me up from Willimantic and drive the remaining 16 miles to their house. Then, after my warm shower and time to unwind, we got to know each other over a pizza dinner. Kristie and Ray have been Warmshowers hosts for over 20 years and have been cyclotouring for 35 years!
Kristie and Ray were wonderful hosts. They don’t get many Warmshowers guests since they are around 16 miles off the ECG, but they love hosting cyclists and were happy I chose to visit. Kristie has an infectious laugh that always makes you smile, and Ray is a cycling enthusiast who was generous enough to check my bike and offer small maintenance tips. Kristie and Ray have SO many stories of cyclotouring on their tandem bike all over the world. Many of their favorite spots are in Europe, a reminder that I would really like to cycle there! Thank you Kristie and Ray for your generosity as hosts!
Photos from Day 3:
Day 4: Lisbon to Providence
I woke up on Day 4 and enjoyed a breakfast of homemade pancakes with Ray. Kristie made the batter in advance while preparing for a Zoom symposium for the polymer crafts she makes (her pieces are beautiful!). The pancakes were perfect fuel for the journey ahead, which started out with another edition of Carolyn Misses An Important Turn and Travels Many Miles Out of Her Way. Hooray! Eventually I got back on track after turning what should have been a 42-mile into a ~50-mile day. Not too bad.
Day 4 Highlights:
Sleepy morning cycling in rural CT (before I missed my turn). It was nice to cycle through farmland after so much time seeing coasts and tree canopies.
The moment I crossed from CT into RI. It felt like the scenery instantly changed, and my destination was so close!
Discovering a real general store, and eating my leftover pizza for lunch outside 🙂
The Washington Secondary Trail. I got to ride this trail for over 20 miles and it brought me almost directly into Providence. Very little need to check my phone for directions – hooray!
Stopping for ice cream at Udder Delights, right off of the WST. Yum!
Cycling into the downtown harbor area of Providence. At that point I was half a mile from my host’s place and felt like my journey was complete! I paused on the bridge to take in the view and celebrate my accomplishment.
Not exactly a highlight, but my Day 4 evening was quite unexpected. I arrived at the Corliss-Carrington House and met my Warmshowers host, Lorne, and his girlfriend Victoria. What a property they live on! After my shower I got to talk to them a bit, then their AirBnB guests invited us all to join them at a brewery with them. Next thing I knew, I was at not a brewery, but a house party next door. Ummm…okay…not exactly my idea of relaxing after having just ridden almost 300 miles, but sure, let’s do it. Then I discovered that they’d only be grilling steaks at the party – not ideal for a vegetarian cyclist who ate nuts, ice cream, and a protein bar for lunch. I went to a brewery across the street to order the only appealing food on their menu – carrot-based hot dogs! Admittedly these were amazing, but I didn’t have any desire to go back to the party, so Lorne was nice enough to drive me back to his place. Then he and his gf left for dinner and I set up my tent on their lawn. It was so nice to FINALLY sleep in the tent I’d been carrying across three states! #HappyCarolyn
Photos from Day 4:
Day 5: Exploring Providence…Or…Backtracking West
I woke up the next morning very happy to have spent the night in my tent. Then, since Lorne doesn’t provide food for Warmshowers guests (hosts are not required, many just do), I walked to Plant City, a vegan food court where even the silverware is compostable. I passed a flea market on the way, then ate my breakfast burrito on a bridge overlooking downtown Providence. Not a bad view!
My friend Lindsay lives just outside Providence, so I had plans to meet her in the afternoon. In the meantime, I spent an hour casually walking around downtown.
—Interruption—
Let’s pause here for a moment. One of my friends was doing a bike trip while I was doing mine, and as I was walking, I felt my phone buzz. “Having a break after 100ks,” the message read, with a photo of a stunning Norwegian landscape. “Wanna see it live?”
Let me tell you, after hearing from Kristie and Ray that their favorite places to cycle are in Europe, hearing from Jack about his upcoming trip to cycle across parts of Europe (depending on COVID), reading part of a book about Dutch cycling, already wanting to do a bike trip through Europe, and then seeing a live view of gorgeous Norwegian landscapes and car-free bike paths…well, let’s just say I am still very motivated to cycle through Europe. I know I am 100% capable of doing long bikepacking trips, and when the world allows it I am making this happen!
Just a casual view from Norway. Whatever, my trip was still awesome x-D
Anyway…
As I wandered through the city I was pleasantly surprised when I stumbled across Seven Stars Bakery, a place Beth and Jack said I must visit in Providence. Following their recommendation, I ordered a chocolate almond croissant; now I understand why they recommended it! Lindsay later confirmed that Seven Stars Bakery is amazing, and we returned there later in hopes of buying some olive bread. If you visit Providence, definitely go to Seven Stars Bakery!
Lindsay and I drove an hour west, passing signs for many places I’d just cycled through the previous day. How awesome it is to drive an hour and think “I just did this in reverse on two wheels.”
We ended our drive at Ell Pond Preserve to hike Lindsay’s favorite trail in RI, the Narragansett Trail. It was a great adventure, with lots of rock scrambling. It rained a bit while we were hiking, but that didn’t dampen our reunion! Following the hike, we returned to Providence to tour Lindsay’s old neighborhood and meet my college friend Dave for dinner. Not a bad day! Then Lindsay and I went back to the Corliss-Carrington House and explored the interior, including its wallpaper from the 1850s. The Corliss-Carrington house has a problematic history, but the negative parts of its story are included on its website. I will say it was weird sleeping on the grounds of such a fancy place; my tent felt a bit out of place!
Photos from Day 5:
Day 6: East Bay Bike Path
I was really looking forward to Day 6 of my trip. Like…really, really looking forward to it. Three years ago, I went to New Zealand and spent time living on a piece of paradise called Quarantine Island/Kamau Taurua, one of the best places on Earth (read about my experience here). You can imagine my excitement when, the week before this trip, Lorne contacted me to suggest taking the Amtrak back to NYC from Kingston, RI instead of Providence, RI so that I could join him and Victoria for a trip to Rose Island, a tiny island in southern RI that reminded me of QIKT in its commitment to conservation work. Wow! How exciting, to end my trip in a place like that! I booked my ticket before prices got too expensive and happily anticipated the beautiful day.
So…Day 6, Rose Island Day. I woke at 6 AM to the sound of light rain and scrambled to pack my tent and move inside. Normally rain would be fine, but I didn’t want to carry a wet tent home. I was awakened again when Victoria’s dog – an enormous puppy – came barreling in. Good morning to you too!
As I recovered and got ready for the day, I heard Lorne open the stable door downstairs and call my name. He had not considered logistics of taking my bike in the car, so it seemed I’d have to stay behind. He and Victoria would leave at 10, so I had an hour to pack and figure out a plan. Well…great…
I considered my options:
Leave immediately and frantically pedal to Newport, catch a ferry to Rose Island for an hour, catch a ferry to Jamesport, pedal another 15 miles to catch my evening train in Kingston.
Skip seeing Rose Island, pedal to Newport, ferry to Jamestown, pedal to Kingston.
Change my train to depart from Providence and spend a relaxing day exploring Lindsay’s favorite local bike path, the East Bay Bike Path.
Frantic pedaling, the chance of a flat tire or other mechanical mishap on my journey, and the cost of the ferries I’d take were not appealing, so I spent 30 minutes on hold with Amtrak, begrudgingly paid the necessary fees to change my train, and then departed to explore the East Bay path.
I don’t regret my choice. I was bummed about missing Rose Island and spending an unplanned $40 to change my train, but the East Bay Bike Path was one of the best paths I rode. It runs from Providence down to Bristol and is flat and smooth the entire way. I saw lots of birds, rode along beautiful coastlines, stopped at an Audubon Center, and even met two women embarking on their first bikepacking adventure that day. I had a relaxing, enjoyable time, and when I finished, I think I’d accumulated enough miles to bring my total past 300. Go me!
Photos from Day 6:
Reflection
I stopped for a quick dinner near the Amtrak station and then hopped on the train. As I traveled, I reflected on my journey, marveling at the ability of a human body to take a person across so many borders. Some thoughts:
I am grateful to have a body that can physically do this journey, the freedom in my schedule to take this trip, and the privilege that comes from being a middle-class white woman who can walk into a stranger’s house or set up a tent in their yard with no fear for how I’m perceived. I can likewise cycle through tiny towns with “Trmp” flags waving and not worry for my safety because of how I look. I had many discussions about inequity and cycling with Beth, Jack, Kristie, and Ray and it is heartening that so many Warmshowers hosts are thinking about how to make cyclotouring more welcoming and accessible for everyone. There is a long way to go, but hosts like that are a step in the right direction.
Although the act of cycling itself is budget-friendly, preparing for a trip like this is not necessarily. I had to spend money on a long-overdue bike tune-up, a small bit of gear, some snacks, and my Amtrak ticket home. I was grateful to be able to borrow items like a small tent, sleeping pad, and even a pannier from my friend Genai, items that would have added a lot to my trip’s cost.
Despite those expenses, once your bike is in working order, bikepacking can be very affordable. With so many Warmshowers hosts providing housing and food, it is possible to go on a journey without having a large budget. I could have even avoided the $40 Amtrak fee and rode down to Kingston, though I was grateful for the flexibility in my personal budget to be able to change that train, even if I didn’t want to.
Apparently it’s pretty rare to come across a young female cycling solo. I hope that reading my post encourages more women to get out there and do it – you are capable and the rewards are worth it!
Let’s normalize conversation about the uncomfortable parts of cyclotouring that typically get left off of blogs, such as dealing with saddle sores and learning tips for making your ride smoother. I’m grateful that my hosts were open to my answering my questions and offering advice. Thank you Jack for the tube of Chamois Butt’r and the tip about not wearing underwear with cycling shorts – that made such a difference!
This was an amazing taste of cyclotouring. It wasn’t all fun, but it was worth it. I’m glad I did this, and I will certainly have more bike adventures in the future. Next up: Hopefully a small trip to explore the “bike hostel” campgrounds of Long Island.
Thanks for reading. Follow my adventures here and on Instagram: @carolynventures
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