Central Asia - Part One

Central Asia has been great. I was originally going to miss out on this whole region at the start due to potential visa hassles and that would have been a mistake. Although saying that I have my first potential trouble coming up as my Tajikistan visa expires on Monday and my Turkmenistan transit visa is still not ready. They said to come back on Monday and if it is not ready I will then have to extend my Tajikistan visa. This takes a week which will then give me 3 days to ride the 600 km to the Turkmenistan border as the dates for the transit visa are fixed. It should be OK if the visa is ready on Monday but if it isn't things could get a bit problematic. I have had it fairly smooth with regards to visas so far and this is the last one I will have to get. There is one cyclist here, Paul from the UK, who has been stuck in central asia for 8 weeks as his Iranian visa has been delayed.

So as I have been going along I have been putting together the videos for each country which are below. I got quite excited when I entered Kazakhstan due to the wide array of chocolate that they had and the fact that the kebab shops had chips !!! Such small things do make me happy these days. I had the seat post snap in Kazakhstan which meant I had to ride 300 km into Almaty to find a bike shop with a very low saddle position. I hadn't originally planned on going into Almaty and rode the longest yet for a 237 km day. 

Central Asia Part One - Kazakhstan

From Kazakhstan it was onto Kyrgyzstan which is the only country out of all of the 'stans', which is visa free on arrival. It was a great country and I had to take a week here in Bishkek to get my Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Iranian visas which all went pretty smooth. From Bishkek it was into the mountains which were great and it was also good to escape from the blistering heat for a while. I really enjoyed Kyrgyzstan, it was cheap, the people were friendly, the roads were good, shops were fairly regular and the scenery amazing.

Central Asia Part Two - Kyrgyzstan

On the way into Almaty I met Hannah from the UK who had just come from the Pamir mountains in Tajikistan. This is a very famous cycle route but I hadn't originally planned on riding it on this trip. she convinced me it was worth doing so from Kyrgyzstan it was into Tajikistan to ride along the M41 otherwise known as the Pamir highway. This is without a a shadow of doubt some of the best scenery of the whole trip so far. I had to cross 6 passes over 4000m including the worlds second highest road at 4655m. In parts the roads were really bad and always at the top of the passes which meant for some tough but visually rewarding cycling. I also passed 20,000 km for the trip along this route. I also met loads of cyclists along the way mostly heading east so hello to all. The video below only takes you up to half way through Tajikistan so there may be a part two.

Central Asia Part Three - Tajikistan

So hopefully on Monday I will be of to cycle the 1100 km across the deserts of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan to finish of the central Asia section of the trip. Its going to be hot! From there it will be into the middle east of Iran and Turkey. In the last blog I mentioned how I have started to try and raise some money for the Birmingham Childrens hospital charity. A lot of people have said they would donate but not many people have. If you have a spare few quid it would be good if you could make a donation. Thanks.

http://www.justgiving.com/CycleEatSleep

As of tomorrow I have to pay attention to what day it is as the premiership starts :-)

Anyway, hope all is well with everyone back in the UK and around the world.

Cheers, Neil

A good cause.

When I started this trip a lot of people asked me if I were going to raise money for charity. I always answered that sometime along the way I might put up a just giving page to raise some money for a good cause. As I am approaching the 20,000 km milestone and have some tough new challenges ahead I feel it is a good time to put the request out. 

About this time last year me and Phil Hayward (Wolves head of medical department) started to train for the Chester marathon where we collectively raised over £2000 for the Birmingham Children's hospital. This seems like a good cause to try and continue to raise some money for, especially since I am cycling back to near Birmingham.

So if you enjoyed reading my blog, or asked me before I left if I was raising money for charity then now is your chance to donate some money to a good cause. One of the players at Wolves FC where I used to work, said I could 'raise a million', if I did it for charity. I don't really think that is possible, but even if a small amount is raised I'm sure the hospital would appreciate it. I have not set a target as I see it as any money raised is a bonus and know that people get asked all the time to donate money to charity all the time. So if you feel it is a good cause it would be good if you could spare a few pounds.

DONATE HERE: http://www.justgiving.com/CycleEatSleep

I am currently in Osh, Kyrgyzstan and about to take on the Pamir mountains into Tajikistan and along the Afghanistan border. I will be cycling up to an altitude of over 4600 meters so it will be very cold and with spectacular views. During this time I will pass the 20,000 km mark for the entire trip before arriving in Dushanbe. Here I will have to wait a week for my Turkmenistan transit visa which is the last visa I have to obtain. From here I will cross the scorching deserts of Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Iran. After Iran I have a choice to make. I can either go straight across Turkey or up through Armenia and Georgia and then get the ferry across the Black sea. I am currently thinking of the later option especially if I spend the whole month in Iran. All cyclists say it is the highlight of their trip and with the cost of the visa I think I should maximise my time there. Once back in Europe it a 3000 km time trial to get the ferry to the UK! 

China

Well I had started writing about the time in China, but the videos are finished so thought I would just upload them and post a video blog. I may do another written blog in the future as a lot happened and the mechanical problem in the second video had  a lot more complications and issues than simply replacing the cable. Anyway the videos will give you a good idea of the trip. China is now my favourite country to cycle in beating France into second place.

China Part 1 - Yunnan Province

China Part 2 - Up To Lanzhou

China Part 3 - The Hexi Corridor

China Part 4 - Exit The Dragon

South East Asia Revisited

I am currently in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan awaiting for my Iranian visa after obtaining ones for Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. I should get it on Thursday all being well and then its off to cycle across the Pamir mountains which I am very much looking forward to. The only visa left to get will then be the Turkmenistan transit visa which I hope to get in Dushanbe. I arrived here after cycling through Kazakhstan from China both of which were great.

China was an incredible journey. It was a shade under 2 months and 5573 unforgettable and epic kilometers. This makes it the most cycled country on the trip so far beating New Zealand by about 100 km. It is also now the third county I have spent the most time in. England is obviously first, Germany second (3.5 years when younger), China third (3.5 months for work in 2006, 2 months now and a few trips to HK) and then the states fourth (3 months in 1996 and various holidays and work trips of various lengths making about 5 months total). 

China will probably be 4 videos, 2 of which are done and 2 I've got to put together so should be up fairly soon. The reason I do the videos is document the trip whilst I’m going along and prefer them to just looking at my photos. I try and use music which I am listening to at the time or which represents a theme in the clips. I've been listening to ‘The Streets’ a lot whilst in China, which is not something I would usually listen to but the lyrics make me chuckle and some remind me of home ... “the hazy fog over the bull ring”, “If they don't win this one and the next one, they're getting relegated to the third division” ... hmmm ... unfortunately that happened to Wolves where I used to work but let “push things forward”. At least Villa survived! I know this all happened ages ago but I was without access to this site whilst in China.

Before I blog about the ride in China it’s time to go back to South East Asia, as I’ve uploaded the videos for Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Take a look!

South East Asia, Part Two - Cambodia

South East Asia, Part Three - Laos

South East Asia, Part Four - Vietnam

SE Asia - Part 2 and Entering the Dragon

Well it’s been a long time without a blog update so I though I would do a short written one before I enter the dragon of China and do not have access to this website.

Since leaving Thailand a lot has happened as Mike and I cycled across Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam to Hanoi. Mikes blog is here and he has already detailed some of what has happened so take a look.

To summarise; we got food poisoning in Cambodia which slowed us down for a while. I knocked over a pot of boiling dumplings with my bike and had to make a swift exit after negotiating a payment settlement. We experienced Laos New Year which was crazy. Everyone was in very good spirits, having water fights and giving us free beer. We rode into the night on one occasion (which was great) as we wanted to make big distance that day and thought the further town might have a better hotel, which it didn't.

We rode from Laos into Vietnam across the number 12 road which was one of the best rides in South East Asia, had a bit of trouble getting into Vietnam as Mikes visa had sustained water damage in Laos ... but after extended checking and phoning the guy let us through.

The contrast from one country to the other as we cycled over a mountain range into ‘nam was incredible. The sound of the birds and insects in Vietnam was straight out of a ‘nam film (bar the chopper) and we were cycling through swarms of flies. It was just hilly jungle and getting late. We were thinking of pitching the tent somewhere before it got dark just after seeing a big black snake slither down the road, when we saw what we thought might be a guest house so went to investigate. As it turned out it was a small primary school. We got invited in by the totally non English speaking teachers who shared a meal, gave us shots of their home made rice spirit  lost at chess to me, let us use the bucket for a wash and then let us stay in the class room under the watchful eye of a Ho Chi Minh portrait. We got up early and then cycled of to the bemusement of the local arriving school children. The people of Vietnam were intrigued by my height which meant that we got a lot of attention. We didn't actually see any other white people until we got to Hanoi. I intend to do the usual video blogs for this section of the trip but will have to do them at another time. So a few should appear once I exit the dragon.

Things did take a slight turn for the worse though as Mike gashed his leg on his pedal when cycling on a really rough road. This then got infected as we rode into Hanoi in really bad weather on really bad roads and covered in filth. Things then got really worse as his leg swelled up to the size of an elephants and he was sick from the antibiotics (a common side effect with this particular type) meaning he had to go into hospital for a few days to have them delivered by an IV drip. Thankfully it seems he is on the mend though and will be heading back to KL and then Canada in the next few weeks.

I really enjoyed Hanoi and Vietnam and will miss it, but it is time to move on. I am near the border with China and should cross in the next few days. I have been cycling up to the border with Darren a great guy (and another Canadian) who is then heading to Sapa and then into Laos. He has just come the way I am heading so has been a great source of info. You can find his blog here. It’s been great riding with the Canadians and will be back on my own in the next few days which makes it seem like the start of a totally new trip.

My route is to be China (got the visa OK but have to extend it half way across or ride very long each day), Kyrgyzstan (No visa needed), Uzbekistan (paid an agency for an LOI so can obtain a visa on the spot in Bishkek), Turkmenistan (will have to get the transit visa in Tashkent), Iran (visa application code applied for, which if I get I can apply for a visa in Bishkek), turkey (no visa needed) and then into Europe. Total distance will be about 15,000 km to give a total of 27,000 km for the whole trip and home sometime in September.

It’s going to be epic!

SE Asia Part 1 & Route Home Options

Well it has been a long time since the last blog and a lot has happened. I left Indonesia and arrived in Singapore and then cycled into Malaysia to meet Mike in Kula Lumpur. During this time there was some sad news from home. After spending a few days at Mike’s cousin’s house (thanks again) we set of up peninsular Malaysia and into Thailand. We met some interesting people along the way and had some great riding. As usual it’s all in the video so take a look ...

As you can see from the video it was getting hot. It was also time for a hair cut so went back to my roots (literally) ...

Anyway we are now in Cambodia, where the plan is to cycle up through Laos and into Vietnam. Mike leaves Hanoi on the 25^th of April and I’ll have to make my way home. I've currently done just over 10,000 km and anticipate another 2,000 km to Hanoi. From there it will be between 12,000 and 15,000 km (route dependent) to Calais to jump on a ferry and to see the white cliffs of Dover.

I’ll spend some time in Hanoi sourcing visa and planning route options, but I basically have 4 options:

1: China -> Kazakhstan -> Russia -> Europe

2: China -> Kazakhstan -> Ferry across the Caspian sea -> Azerbaijan -> Georgia -> Europe

3: China -> Tajikistan -> Uzbekistan -> Turkmenistan -> Iran - > Europe

4: Go to the Himalayas and then fly into Europe and cycle back

All have their pro’s and con’s.

Option 1 is relatively straight forward, apart from insects and potential swamp land in Russia. It could also be a bit boring for long stretches. It is dependent on getting a Russia visa in Hanoi, but there is an embassy there and loads of people must decide to go and get the trans-Siberian train home and have to pick up a visa somewhere. China and Kazakhstan visas should be relatively easy to obtain.

Option 2 is on paper quite straight forward. The trouble is that you can only get a 30-day Kazakhstan visa. The route to the ferry is not direct and additionally the ferry only leaves once a week meaning I have to get there within 23 days. I may also need time in Kazakhstan to obtain an Azerbaijan visa which makes things more tricky and tight on time frames.

Option 3 is the best but a visa nightmare. The Pamir highway through Tajikistan is meant to be one of the worlds cycling highlights but has recently been shut off to foreigners due to civil unrest. Further on from there obtaining visas could be a headache. Apparently they can be obtained at each neighboring country but at a time cost of at least a week at a time. Due to the amount of countries I have to pass through, time and cost will add up, plus the fact that I will arrive in Europe in late autumn which is not ideal.

Option 4 was my original idea. I have always wanted to cycle in the Himalayas and it is only possible to do it during July, August and September. Tibet is also a no-go area for individual foreign travel. It is possible, but highly risky, to enter by sneaking through check points at night. If I went to the Himalayas I could either fly in to Nepal and then into northern India (which would give me time to cycle south-east China) or cycle across China to Kashgar and then south down the Karokaram Highway into Islamabad. A big problem here is O’Bhamas drones and militants. Again, the KKH is always cited as one of the worlds cycling highlights but isn’t really practical at this point in history.

Basically I have until I enter China to decide. It’s currently looking like option 1 and home for September.

Anyway, thanks for reading and watching.

Take care, Neil

Indonesia

Well that’s the trip to Indonesia done bar packing the bike up tomorrow and sitting around the hotel. As with New Zealand and Australia the time here has gone too quick. I have to try and make the most of every moment, even the bad ones, as before I know it I’ll be back in the UK. So as usual the highlights are in the video below.

I was riding along one day and a monkey jumped out of a tree and looked at me quite inquisitively, a bit different to squirrels you see when riding back home. Certain sections of the island did have a lot of mosquitoes which had a good feed on me. After the last 2 weeks I think the mosquito population of Bali is going to have an obesity epidemic.

The people here were really friendly and happy, the food was good and the riding was interesting. As I said in my last blog the riding was always going to be reduced for this portion as I had some other things to finish off for back at home. I haven’t got as far as I would have hoped but progress is being made. I will just have to try and maintain a little each day approach. I have been doing that with stretching and can now quite easily touch my toes. I have really long legs and am really inflexible. Those toes always seemed so far away, but they are now within touching distance (pun intended). I just have to keep working on my left hip.

Cheers, Neil