Most of my travel adventures to date, particularly my bike travels, have involved long continuous journeys: Circling Iceland, Taiwan, New Zealand, Ireland, the Baltic,…, or End to End Japan, Vietnam, Norway or across Canada, US, China … These adventures have been wonderful and demanding, both physically and mentally, but time and circumstances move on.  I am heading off to Italy for the month of October to try meandering, on my Bike Friday, from place to place with no end goal.  

Bike Friday is pictured below with my handle bar bag that holds my camera, cell, wallet,… my seat bag contains my bike repair kit, …the one pannier is for clothes and things.  In front of Friday is the transport bag, with an inner cardboard box that the bike packs into for planes and trains. When riding I throw away the cardboard box… the bag rolls up onto my rack.  Returning home on the plane I will search out another cardboard box to insert into the bag.

I have used eight different bikes for my bike travels; four of them have been stolen, two from my garage and two while travelling.  I have had Bike Friday now for twenty years and it has been with me on trips mostly to Asia but also Central America, North America and only Great Britain in Europe.  We will be working together on this new mode of travel for us.

I will not be aiming to ride the length of Italy, nor trying to emulate the Giro d’Italia riders as they ride the high Alpine passes and the rugged Strade Bianche (white roads).  Initially I will be heading to Tuscany in search of quiet roads, some of which may be Strade Bianche, the rural gravel roads the Italians call white roads from the fine white dust that builds on them when dry.  Generally I expect to cycle less than 50 km/day and I hope to spend more than one night in most places. Periodically I will likely fold Friday into its bag and hop onto a train to head for a new region, but always in Italy. I am going independent – alone, creating my own route – still my  preferred approach.

What will I do when not on my bike?  I am working hard to understand the “Dolce Via” way of travel.  Slow mornings over a second coffee, afternoon visits to the odd winery or olive grove, and I will work on understanding the gastronomy of each region that I visit and I will have a camera. I will visit some of the tourist destinations that I have not yet been to and possibly some of my favourites, but that is not the prime purpose of this trip.

My periodic postings may include photos if I can make that work.  If you wish to see how I do in this modest departure from my past adventures, please follow along, and if you have any suggestions for places, food, experiences … please email.

KEN