A few months ago I had an interesting conversation with three fellow long-term travellers about what is "HOME". All of us had been on the road for months, and none of us had a physical space that we were renting or mortgaging back in our respective lands. So the question was, do you have a place that you consider "ho ...
Feliz Navidad from Ensenada, Mexico!! Crossed the border on Christmas day after climbing some big hills into the border town of Tecate, where we enjoyed tacos at a roadside stand instead of a turkey dinner. We chose to cross a bit inland to avoid Tijuana and the craziness of Hwy 1 and no regrets so far, despite some pr ...
One hundred days ago, I set out with three main goals as I began my cycle journey: 1) to explore new people, places and adventures as I pedal 3000 kms from Canada to Mexico; 2) to raise awareness and $15,000 to build a school for a small village in rural Guatemala and; 3) to inspire others to realize and live their d ...
Greetings from sunny San Francisco! The four weeks since my last entry have been filled with so much drama, wonder and life lessons I have no idea where to begin or how to put it into words. But I'll try anyway. Here goes.. I had just returned from the whirlwind of Latin America and was delightfully surprised w ...
Bike, train, bus, plane...and don't forget the tuk-tuk. That's how I found myself in Honduras, enveloped in a world of lush green mountains, steep cobble stone roads, political unrest, deadly rains and people with stories etched into the lines of their faces. I was reading Eva Luna and I felt Isabel Allende's words ...
This blog entry is long overdue. Sorry folks. Nothing personal. Long days of pedaling- many in the rain-equals not a lot of down time that isn't spent building fires, preparing dinner, setting up camp and of course, taking the time to enjoy the people and places I'm so grateful to be interacting with whether in storm ...
Made it to Oregon yesterday- woohoo!! What a ride and climb over the 5 mile bridge that spans the massive mouth of the Columbia River. Luckily, the weather turned in our favor and we've been loving Oregon since our arrival. Chris and I are on the same route now...at least till Cali, so we're traveling as a duo. Been me ...
60 mph wind gusts. Trees felled. Rain worthy of an ark. Spent the day in a soggy camp with Chris who rolled in last night. We had a delicious dinner of fresh fire-grilled tuna, prawns, roasted potatoes and corn on the cob and stayed up late catching up and talking about the goodness of people. The weather was great but ...
I'm lying here in my tent in Cape Disappointment Park listening to the wind and rain swirl in all directions around me, thinking this peninsula is doing it's best to live up to it's name. If I'm not back in Canada in the spring, you'll know where to find me, campsite 187 wrapped up in my sleeping bag waiting out this s ...
120.1 kms (74.6 miles) in the rain!!! I dreaded the idea but it was actually pretty nice and refreshing. I stayed cool and relatively dry. My gear held up well and I was especially impressed with the performance of my tires on the slicks. Thanks to Ryan, Jules, Jay, Joel and all the peeps at Bow Cycle in Calgary who ga ...
Knew this great weather wouldn't hold out forever. Time to test what these tires, rain jacket and dry bag are made of! 103.5 km yesterday (64.3 miles) and more to come. Heading west towards the coast today to Twin Harbors State Park. Rollin' out....
800 feet uphill with a strong headwind. Thank God I stopped at that little espresso stand in Quilcene for those 2 shots right before. It's all downhill from here. Glorious day to be on the road. Heading south along the Hood Canal, perhaps the windiest place on earth
The universe is conspiring against me using technology on this trip. My SPOT (personal GPS tracking device) isn't working. I've made numerous posts using my blog's iPhone app that never went through (hours wasted) and my cycling computer that keeps track of my distance, speed, etc stopped working, though the faulty sen ...
Days on the road: 6Distance pedaled: 212.6 km / 132.1 milesBike repairs: 2 Showers: 0Baths in mountain lakes: 2Fastest speed: 37.2 mph / 59.9 kph (fun and a lil scary!)Fall down, go boom: twiceSpeed traveling when fell: 0 mph, both times Campfires: 2 Nights with rain: 2 Rainy days: 0Awesome people I've met: too many to ...
My SPOT wasn't working earlier. Dunno why. And I have sporadic reception around these islands. I am on "Orcas island" in Washington. Took the ferry over from San Juan today. I've never ridden hills like this in my life. Nothing is more humbling than a big hill with 50lbs of gear behind you, especially when you know the ...
This blog entry is long overdue. Sorry folks. Nothing personal. Long days of pedaling- many in the rain-equals not a lot of down time that isn't spent building fires, preparing dinner, setting up camp and of course, taking the time to enjoy the people and places I'm so grateful to be interacting with whether in storms ...
Well folks, the time has come to live out a dream. I saved some money, quit my job and moved my material life into storage so I can ride my bicycle 3000 kms from Canada to Mexico and then travel throughout Latin America for half a year. Woo-hoo!!! At first, I was going Forrest-Gump-style...I just felt like riding. But like life, plans evolved. When my friend and mentor, Carol Brouwer returned from Honduras in June with news of a small village across the border in Guatemala in desperate need of a new school, I knew this was my calling. Hope Cycle 3000 was born. In partnership with A Better World & Project School Supplies, my journey will be not only personal, but also purposeful: a fundraiser to build a two-room school, latrines, washing station, classroom furniture and provide school and teaching supplies for 90 children in the small village of San Jose de las Lagrimas, Guatemala. Goal: $15,000 ($5/km). I will be following the pacific coast, from BC, through Washington, Oregon & California to the US/Mexico border, travelling along Hwy 101 or 1 for the most part, pulling a one-wheel trailer with the bare essentials for camping and staying warm, fed, hydrated and road-worthy. The route is well-serviced with campgrounds, hostels, places to buy food, bike shops, etc. I have also signed up with www.warmshowers.org and plan to stay with some of the friendly hosts that open up their homes to other cycling tourists. I BEGIN CYCLING TODAY- September 15, 2011. Follow my journey. Be inspired to follow your own dream, whatever it may be. In the wise words of Canadian hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, "You'll always miss 100% of the shots you don't take." For more information about the project and to donate, visit: www.a-better-world.ca or send me an email: maria.cycles@gmail.com. I will be updating my blog regularly with photos, stories and location updates from my iPhone along the way. Stay tuned!