Welcome to this weblog by Roy Jones. Here you'll find the diary of a backpacking trip through Latin America, musings on life, living as an expat in the Caribbean, as well as plans for a bicycle tour through Europe and beyond.


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Tag: backpacking

Bicycle Tour

Planning
Route
Equipment
Sponsorship
Charity

Planning
Being a complete novice at bicycle touring, the planning can sometimes get a little overwhelming. There are a multitude of things to think about, including;

route
visas
budget
equipment
time
work

For someone like me, who changes plans and makes alterations along the way, finalising anything can get a little problematic. For example, the route is still undecided. This is mainly due [...]

Making a Soda Can Stove

A few weeks back I had a few old cans lying around, so I made an attempt at a soda can stove, in truth only to see how it would work.
For anyone not sure what a soda can stove is, Wikipedia give a good definition…

A beverage-can stove (or pop-can stove) is a homemade, ultra-light portable [...]

Random Photo (2): Torres Del Paine

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 [...]

Planning Is Overrated

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. [...]

Random Photo (1): Copper Canyon

I’ve decided to do a series of random photo posts, highlighting a good day or excursion from my travels.
The first in the series comes from the Copper Canyon in Mexico, taken only a week or two into the 11 month Latin America trip. The train from Los Mochis to Creel is a must-do for anyone [...]

Yet More Equipment…

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

“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 [...]

The Cost of Travel

“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 [...]

Advertise

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Other Opportunities
Do you have a revolutionary way of getting your product out there? Are you into guerilla marketing? Bootstrapping maybe? Send me an email and [...]

Buying Equipment

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 [...]