Touring - Anybody go touring by themselves?

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone here has gone touring by themselves...and if so, what was it like? Where did you stay? How long was your trip? Are day trips considered touring? Pictures are obviously welcome!!!

I wouldn't mind going touring, but I have nobody to 'tour with'....and company is always nice especially on long rides.

Cheers

Between jobs, years ago, I did some touring... First started with local trips, just extending my day trips to include overnighters. Then I went beyond that and just kept going.

I hauled just a simple tarp to sleep under (as well as sleeping bag and light cooking gear in panniers) and used roadside "car camping" locations... all of which have showers and were usually just on the edge of town.

I suggest you look to the touring section of BF for more info.

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone here has gone touring by themselves...and if so, what was it like? Where did you stay? How long was your trip? Are day trips considered touring? Pictures are obviously welcome!!!

I wouldn't mind going touring, but I have nobody to 'tour with'....and company is always nice especially on long rides.

Cheers

I used to... it's great if you can stand your own company. :) Hostels, tents, side of the road, relatives or strangers houses. My longest solo tour was 5 months. I took a lot of day trips when I was touring. ;) I've never taken a camera on tour.

Thanks for the tips folks. Sorry about the misspost, I did not know we had a touring section :)

Seek the book Metal Cowboy out and read it... the guy touring by himself has some amazing adventures and meets quite a few characters. He's written at least one or two follow ups.

Seek the book Metal Cowboy out and read it... the guy touring by himself has some amazing adventures and meets quite a few characters. He's written at least one or two follow ups.


+1 Found this book @ a thriftstore. Still have it. My favorite character he met was the cook in Colorado who was about 70 still out climbing hills on his bike. Another good book is the one by Fred A. Birchmore of Athens, GA. I think it's called 'Around The World On A Bicycle'...yes, just searched it and it's available on amazon. He's 98 now.

A few years ago I did a self-guided, non-supported cycling tour of Ireland, N. Ireland, Wales and part of England. Stayed at hostels and lived out of panniers for 7 weeks. Learned alot. It was fun, but travelling alone got old, so I got a mandolin. I already played guitar and the trip turned me into a mando player, too. Did a little over 2200 miles...had no idea how hard 300+ mi per week is to maintain. :p Got some maps, contacted the Irish Tourist Board. They sent me some info and IHH brochures. Independent Holiday Hostels. Equipped kitchens, dormitory beds and relatively inexpensive.

Was able to apply alot of what I learned as a commuter/utility cyclist to touring in terms of gear, etc. The biggest thing I learned is that a mechanical problem 40 miles from home is WAY different from a problem 4000 miles from home. Get dependable gear from the tires right on up.

Planning on it but haven't yet.

Check out Scott. He is riding solo from Miami to Anchorage right now. Just made it into BC a couple days ago. He is on the forum.

www.powercycle.net

Look at crazyguyonabike dot com.

I'd like to as well. I'm hoping sometime soon i'll get out and do some touring.

I'll be going on a solo eight day tour on July 31. I have called it the 2009 Tour De Highway 99 - Washington. Solo isn't bad, unless you are in the middle of an uninhabited area, in which case I would recommend someone else along.

yesterday, i happened to have done one in the out back of a forest hill, it was cool and fun to ride in the woods, very challenging when you have to ride the thick tree roots that gets in your way, or avoid being wiped by tall tree branches :lol:

i got to know some very interesting area, i was never able to access to before :thumb:

the only down side was... no public washroom for a very very far distance... needless to say, i felt like a little doggy marking the territory :roflmao2:


Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone here has gone touring by themselves...and if so, what was it like? Where did you stay? How long was your trip? Are day trips considered touring? Pictures are obviously welcome!!!

I wouldn't mind going touring, but I have nobody to 'tour with'....and company is always nice especially on long rides.

Cheers

I have - Portland Or to SF - 2 1/2 weeks. But I generally stayed in the state parks with hiker / biker group sites, so had others to talk to in the evenings. I found that I am only a sort-of loner; not as much a loner as I had thought.

I did put up a guy a few years ago (my name was on the "warm showers" list) from Belgium who was 2 years into a round the world solo tour. Clearly he was much more a loner than I.

So, it depends on your personality some as to how long you can be by yourself.

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone here has gone touring by themselves...and if so, what was it like? Where did you stay? How long was your trip? Are day trips considered touring? Pictures are obviously welcome!!!

I wouldn't mind going touring, but I have nobody to 'tour with'....and company is always nice especially on long rides.

Cheers

There is a quite good thread on this in the Touring Forum from last sumer. In fact I just searched it out recently to read it again.

I've done a few weekend trips, about 60-80 miles a day. Went from Big D to Tyler and back, different routes out and back. Did then camping Friday and Sat nights.

If you're just getting into touring, here's a site that's strong in this department with lots of good advice. Goes way past just what bike you should have.

http://www.biketoledo.net

If you're just getting into touring, here's a site that's strong in this department with lots of good advice. Goes way past just what bike you should have.

http://www.biketoledo.net

Just checked it out. Great site! Added it to my Favs list. Thanks for posting it. :thumb:

I tour by myself, with the exception of persons met along the way. 7 months is my max. I also have thousands of miles of weekend tours with one or two friends. Sometimes I do weekend jaunts alone too.

Shoot me a PM if you have any serious questions that you can't find in any of those "Bike Touring For Dummies" type of books. Always happy to help out.

My Touring Resume:

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=111344&stc=1&d=1247802368

Looks like you need to ride to Las Vegas, Joey. That would take care of half of your unridden states.

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone here has gone touring by themselves...and if so, what was it like? Where did you stay? How long was your trip? Are day trips considered touring? Pictures are obviously welcome!!!

I wouldn't mind going touring, but I have nobody to 'tour with'....and company is always nice especially on long rides.

Cheers

I just completed two weeks of touring from Pittsburgh, PA to my home, via DC and Delmarva. Read about it in these two threads. The second part of the tour was solo:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=557092

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=558513

Looks like you need to ride to Las Vegas, Joey. That would take care of half of your unridden states.

That would be fun (the Vegas part)! A winter trip for sure. Now if I can only figure out how to make Texas fun. :lol:

That would be fun (the Vegas part)! A winter trip for sure. Now if I can only figure out how to make Texas fun. :lol:

You'd be surprised at how nice Texas can be out on those lonely farm type roads... Even in summer.

I did your "missing southwest states" in 1984 in June... so even "summers" are possible... just keep hydrated and keep moving.

Looks like you've done some darn nice tours.

Hey if you ever do that Vegas tour, I suggest you get up to southern Utah... Zion is just incredibly beautiful... and the small towns along the way are simply nice.

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone here has gone touring by themselves...and if so, what was it like? Where did you stay? How long was your trip? Are day trips considered touring? Pictures are obviously welcome!!!

I wouldn't mind going touring, but I have nobody to 'tour with'....and company is always nice especially on long rides.

Cheers

I think you'll get much more response from the Touring forum...moving this thread and leaving a redirect.

You'd be surprised at how nice Texas can be out on those lonely farm type roads... Even in summer.

I did your "missing southwest states" in 1984 in June... so even "summers" are possible... just keep hydrated and keep moving.

Thanks for the tips. Still, I think I will try that ride in the Fall. :thumb:

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone here has gone touring by themselves...and if so, what was it like? Where did you stay? How long was your trip? Are day trips considered touring? Pictures are obviously welcome!!!

I wouldn't mind going touring, but I have nobody to 'tour with'....and company is always nice especially on long rides.

Cheers
I did the TransAmerica (73 days) with two companions, and met many folks who were going solo while on that trip.

Since then I did a solo trip from Kansas City to Santa Fe. That was 800 miles in 10 days of riding (11 days if you count one day that I was holed up sick in a motel). I am usually inclined to camp. On the TA we camped most of the time, but stayed with hosts a few times, and stayed in a motel twice. On the Santa Fe trip I got a room several times when I got to town as thunderstorms were blowing up. Mostly I like to stay in impromptu campsites. City parks and church lawns are my favorites. I seldom have trouble finding a place to pitch a tent in small towns.

The Santa Fe trip was originally supposed to be with a few companions, but one had work commitments and when another broke his hip at the start i continued alone. It was sad that he was injured, but I enjoyed the trip just fine solo.

Check out my journals via the link in my signature if interested in more details.

I'm planning a solo trip next June from Dallas TX to Humboldt County CA.

I was wondering if anyone here has gone touring by themselves...and if so, what was it like? Where did you stay? How long was your trip? Are day trips considered touring? Pictures are obviously welcome!!!


Sure, most of my cycle trips have been solo. Longest one was 365 days and 17,700 miles. During that time I crossed the US, did one lap around outside of Australia, went across north Island of New Zealand and spend a month and a half in south India (http://www.mvermeulen.com/oneyear). I stayed a little of everywhere: in my tent, in dongas, in motels, in hostels, in small hotels in India, etc.

I post on Adventure Cycling companions wanted when I took a bike a ride across Russia (five months of a total ten month long tour). My motivation there was that since I was going to a non-English speaking country and my Russian would only be rudimentary, it would probably be nice to talk with someone in deeper conversations than the basic "where are you from" or "how do I find my way to X" type conversations I could do in Russian.

I'm leaving the end of month for 9 days from Boston to P'Town and back to Boston by ferry.
Commuter train to Worcester and riding back to Springfield ma. Camping along the way

I have made two cross country solo unsupported tours. I have also participated in one organized, supported tour. I enjoy all of them. Finding someone to tour with is not an easy project since we all look at touring in different ways. I have met a lot of folks on the road who began their tour with others but ended up spliting off to ride alone. There are so many decisions to be made every day: how early do you like to get started, which route would you like to take this day, how far do you want to ride today, how fast do you like to ride today, do you want to camp every day, do you ever like to spend a night in a motel, do you want to cook every meal, do you like to eat in a restaurant, can you fix a flat tire, can you fix two flats in a day, etc. On an organized/supported tour, most of those decisions are made for you, so you can find a riding buddy or go solo for the day and it all works out. If you begin a long trip with someone on an unsupported tour these decisions will become a challenge for you to deal with every day. Lots of folks find a way to do it, some of us like to travel solo or ride a day here and there with others we meet on the way. Riding alone is just not a big deal, in many ways it is easier than riding with someone.
Good luck on your ride.

Most of my tours were fully-loaded solo, until I got married. Trans-USA for a month was the longest solo, and lots of 1 or 2 week tours. I always camped, and now we always camp. I can think of a few occasions where we stayed in a hostel. Dry is nice sometimes when one of us is sick. We go for about a 2 or 3 weeks tour each year. She has become great at replacing spokes, and progressed to re-building wheels. I'd say the main disadvantage to having a touring companion is that I ***** when the weather sucks or my bike breaks. Alone, I suck it up better. And you meet more people that way.

I've racked up thousands of miles on solo bike tours and plan to rack up thousands more. I'm not sure I'd want it any other way, unless the person I was with was flexible and independent. In the past I've met people on the road that I've ridden with for a day or two, and that's nice too, but in the end I like having the flexibility and the freedom. I remember one day in New Zealand a couple of years ago, when myself and about six other cyclists (most of who were from The Netherlands) were holed up in a backpacker place at Makarora on the South Island after the whether turned nasty. The seven of us were riding the same way the next day, but since we each wanted to go at our own pace, we basically rode there seperately and just caught up at the end of the day. That's the sort of flexibility I like.

I've done lots of short tours(week or two) and weekend trips by myself. Usually I couldn't find anybody with time off work or a brand of insanity similar to mine. Company is fine, but I usually meet people and sometimes even cyclists along the way. Most people I meet are very friendly and inquisitive and I stay at State and National parks camping with a tent, or sometimes at a hotel or any combination of that during a trip. It is nice to stay at a decent hotel one or two nights just for a break. I am planning to circumnavigate each of the Great Lakes over the next few years. I hope to have company but don't expect it.

The seven of us were riding the same way the next day, but since we each wanted to go at our own pace, we basically rode there separately and just caught up at the end of the day. That's the sort of flexibility I like.

Even in my cross Russia trip, the two of us did a variation on this. We'd camp in the same place overnight. I was slower, so usually would take off earlier. She would catch up to me and some point a little after that we'd get an initial meal at a road cafe. We'd decide then a rough regroup point or two after that. Towards end of they day we'd be together at what I called our "water ritual", naming finding a place in village or elsewhere we could fill up ~10-15 liters of water for overnight and then cycle the last 5-10km from there to finding a spot to camp. We'd camp in same spots and catch up on days events from there. There were variations, but it was a pattern we worked out over time that worked for us and kept two sometimes independent minded individuals having fun cycling together for five months.

Awkward spots would come in places where routes were ambiguous such as through some of the biggest cities [not quite as easy to navigate through as in north America]. We had one instance like that leaving Kazan where she stopped to wait for me and I went past without either of us seeing the other. It compounded from there since I kept going, not wanting to hold her up and she decided to turn back to look for me. The bush telegraph also didn't work as well as it would have had we spoken Russian better, so we both ended up cycling independently for 1000km before meeting up in Yekaterinburg ten days later. We were happy to see each other after that and took more care to avoid missing each other.

I got used to doing pretty much all my recreation by myself, mainly because I don`t know a lot of people and because my days off are usually midweek. On the occasions when I do hook up with somebody else to ride, I now find the company frustrating after just a few hours and I don`t think I`d care to deal with that while on a tour. All my tours have been short (fopur days max), so maybe I wouldn`t hold out so well on a long solo trip- maybe I`ll find out one of these days.

As far as hanging it it up for the night, I just stop where ever I am when it`s time. That`s pretty easy in NV and CA. The only time I mess with designated camgrounds is when I take my wife or nieces camping- they like the ritzy places with outhouses and water spiggots, even if those areas are crowded and require a payment.

I tour by myself, with the exception of persons met along the way. 7 months is my max. I also have thousands of miles of weekend tours with one or two friends. Sometimes I do weekend jaunts alone too.

Shoot me a PM if you have any serious questions that you can't find in any of those "Bike Touring For Dummies" type of books. Always happy to help out.

My Touring Resume:


Be proud.. You've biked more states than many have visited...
.. I'd consider going it alone, but there is something about the support of several friends while out on the open road.. As long as you are well suited...

alone.

770 miles in rural southwest China last april/may

DOCUMENTED_HERE (http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?o=3Tzut&doc_id=5065&v=Lc)

I tour by myself all the time. Mostly, I do weekend trips, (that whole work thing gets in the way of all the fun stuff) and then a week or 2 week ride with vacation time. I don't know anyone locally who likes to tour either...so I figured that if I waited to find someone to like doing what I like doing, I'll be sitting at home indefinitely.

When I started touring by myself, I stayed in hotels...then I started staying in campgrounds. Now, depending on my mood (and/or proximity of campgrounds where I want to go), I do both...campgrounds or hotels.

I have some friends in the US who tour, and we do get together and tour together, and we have a blast. But, alas...we don't get together nearly often enough.

~10-15 liters of water for overnight and then cycle the last 5-10km from there to finding a spot to camp. We'd camp in same spots and catch up on days events from there.

:eek::eek: 5-7.5l each per night? What were you doing with it?:D

I am going on my first weekend trip with a bike. I have booked a two day weekend camping trip in southwestern Michigan. I'm going to camp at Warren dunes, and ride around the area during the day.
I hope it launches into a passion for longer trips in the future. I had asked another friend to come with me, but he just lost his job. So he will be looking for work. It is a good test for my first solo trip. I hope you will enjoy your first solo trip.

:eek::eek: 5-7.5l each per night? What were you doing with it?:D

Cooking, washing, making sure bottles were filled up the next morning. It can get hot in Siberia...

Hot in Siberia? It`s amazing how many geography lessons I learn form bicycling sites.


:eek::eek: 5-7.5l each per night?
That sounds reasonable to me. You`d be surprised how much water you go through when you aren`t getting it here and there or washing in the sink.

looks like I will be heading out by myself in mid August for a short tour around the Lake Champlain islands and Burlington, VT. I posted companion wanted ads on Crazy guy and Adventure Cycling, got a few responses, but no one could arrange work schedules for the dates I had selected. I'm ok w/ going by myself even though it is my first tour and I've barely gotten to do any riding this summer since it has rained non stop since the end of May. I think I would be more shy about it if I were going to a remote area (as a woman I wouldn't feel comfortable w/ that) but I'll be staying at a campground in Burlington a few nights, riding the bike paths around the city and staying at a state park on the islands and probably seeing a lot of people on the bike paths there. If the weather manages to hold off for the week, it should be a a really good time. If I have to deal w/ constant rain, it will be more challenging.

I will be doing a 7 day mountain bike trail ride solo to south West Texas & South East NM.

Here is just 1 of the trails I will be riding.

Mountain Biking The Big Bend
Glenn Spring Loop and
Old Ore Road
35-mile loop and about 2000 feet of climbing

http://gorp.away.com/gorp/publishers...a/bik_big2.htm

I tour mostly with myself. If you have ever toured with me you'd know why. I am not exactly Mr. Personality and I sometimes mistake touring for being in the Tour de France. I have toured with ex-girlfriends and sometimes other cycletourists I met along the way but for the most part people who know me refuse to attend my tours and sometimes they will recite my most notorious touring itineraries in protest.

Touring with yourself means you'll meet more strangers. People are less likely to strike up a conversation when you are with another cycletourist. Touring with yourself also means you can sing out loud without complaints from other cyclists.

I was touring solo in France for 3 weeks. Got lonely being alone in a crowd. Met a gal but there was a serious language barrier so that didn't make it easy. Now I'm in the US and craving some meaningful convo. Despite that I am totally keen on going off into nowheresville because a lot of the people I have been meeting make me want to light them on fire.