A short series of photos from the aftermath of the Iran elections, direct from twitter….

The second in the series of photos highlighting good trips in Latin America comes from Torres del Paine in Chilean Patagonia, where I trekked the “W” route for 5 days. The park is a world biosphere reserve and is home to a huge amount of plant and animal species, as well as snow capped mountain peaks, rivers, lakes, glaciers and waterfalls.

This photo was taken at the entrance to the park, and as I wrote at the time, it got things off to a great start:
I had an hour …

I recently read a good article about planning, written by Leo Woodland over on crazyguyonabike. I especially like this quote, taken from a conversation the author had with a friend of his:
‘You know what I realised?’ he said with his habit of answering one question with another. ‘Away from civilisation you hardly need any money. And when you’re in civilisation, you think “Well, the roads are crowded, and that everywhere they’re selling cars and that cars get dirty in the rain.” So I go to garages and say I’m cycling …

Another week, another item of equipment. This time its the comfort factor taken care of with some sleeping mats.
I’ve opted for the Slim Airic self-inflating camp mat. You can check out the product page here.

“Plod forever, but never believe you are going to get there.”
Those are the words that Sir Ranulph Fiennes used to motivate himself on his third attempt to climb Everest.
At the age of 65 he shows us all that if we can control ourselves mentally and not allow negative thoughts to creep in, our bodies are capable of much more than we would ever believe.

“I’d love to travel, but I just don’t have the money.”
Have you ever heard anyone saying anything along these lines? Maybe you’ve even said it yourself.
Whenever I hear something like this I am reminded of a common misconception that all travel is expensive. I estimate that two people, on a self supported bicycle tour, camping four or five nights a week, cooking their own food, and abstaining (in the main) from alcohol, could theoretically live on an average budget of $10 a day. I do not expect that we …

Its official. I have started buying things for the tour.
On Thursday I ordered two sets of Panniers, the Altura Fusion 40 in red. Evans Cycles had a good deal on at £50 for the pair, so I decided to take advantage and order them there and then.

They arrived at my parents house on Saturday.
I have updated the equipment page in the ‘Planning’ section of the site, there is now a downloadable packing list for anyone planning their own tour.

In researching countries on the route, one of the foremost questions in my mind concerns visas. As a British Passport holder, I am very lucky to be able to either
i) enter the majority of countries without the need for a visa, or
ii) obtain one at the port of entry.
Regardless of this, it always pays to be sure about the entry requirements before arrival at the gates!
Although guidebooks such as Lonely Planet and Rough Guide print chapters devoted to Visas and Red Tape, requirements and entry conditions change frequently, especially …