Touring - How to decide to leave for a long solo tour?

It's pretty much all in the title...
How do you finally tell yourself "that's it, I'm going!"?
I have the opportunity to go for a 6-months trip next year, it's something that has always made me dream (I've done quite a few several weeks trips before and I love it) and yet, I don't feel 100% comfortable with the idea of being in the great unknown, far from home, and leaving my boyfriend for such a long time (though he would probably come ride with me for a part of the trip).
How do you deal with that fear of leaving?

My longest tour was only 9 days but I've been dreaming of a long tour and it seems to me that I wouldn't have the "fear of leaving" but the "fear of returning", when it's over and I have to return to "normal life" with all its complexities.

I don't know, nor is it any of my business what your personal life's situation is, "claire", but as we've all been told many times, great opportunities seldom come twice in our lifetime. I didn't start touring until I was about 48 years old, and have only been able to take up to 3 weeks off at a time. Even within these relatively short windows of opportunity, Ive been able to tour from Fairbanks Alaska down along the west coast to San Francisco and many, many, roads in between. Now, I am 65 and retired, which should allow me longer touring time; but I now have health issues, which might not allow me to take the extra time most of us dream about when we are younger and too busy. When I was younger, I would have loved to have a 6 months opportunity, so that I could ride across Canada, or to ride from the top of North America to the southern tip, all in one shot, rather than in pieces. So I say...go for it! you might not get another chance.

Maybe you shouldn't look at it as a 6 month tour. Plan to do a shorter tour that you can extend if you want to.

I typically do 1 month tours. Doing a 6 month tour would be a daunting task. But, riding for, say 6 weeks, a bit longer than normal, and ending up at a place where I could get home from if I wanted would allow me to decide if I wanted to continue or call it quits.

Also, if you add in plans to spend some time in interesting places, either national parks or cities, then it isn't spending every day pushing the pedals.

Just some thoughts.

Ray

Pick a day, then leave. It really is the only way. Don't analyze too much.

Pick a day, then leave. It really is the only way. Don't analyze too much.

That's the best way.

You have the opportunity, take it while you can. I find the best way to actually make ideas a reality is to start teling people what you plan to do. Soon there's no way back and any fears you have (which are inevitable) you'll find a way to deal with.

My motto in life is, 'you'll only regret the things you don't do....' and it's treating me well so far.

pack your stuff into a storage unit, then get on a plane,
to somewhere that interests you...

why do you have to tell yourself?
you do it and self knows.

I don't miss a thing. I never give up a chance. I've lost numerous jobs over 20 day backpacks in the Grand Canyon.
Dream this; in your death bed:
"I wished I had" or
"I'm glad I did".
I've had hundreds of adventures. None a looser. If you don't go I'm coming to France to take your bike away from you.

I've been riding for 30 days. In October I'm going to ride across the Escalante/Grand Staircase of Utah. I don't care if I fail and have to hitch home in the back of a pick up truck. I'm going. Right after I finish another backpack in the Grand Canyon. LOL.

I've never done a tour that long but I always have some "jitters" before any tour. However, once I force myself to get started, everything works itself out and I have a good time. Just try to relax and enjoy!

Pick a day, then leave. It really is the only way. Don't analyze too much.

That is what I've done. Last big trip was for 10 months in 2007. In 2002, after returning from a year cycling on the road, I decided I was going to take another long trip "in five years". In 2004, I determined the longest leg would be Russia. By 2005 additional details were filled in, by 2006 I took a six week long training ride and by time it was 2007 this had been in my plans so long I just took off for the trip.

I definitely enjoy work, family, friends and all of my current situation; but I've got another date on the wall and am in preparation for my next long trip.

The first step is the hardest. Once you're out there it will be easy.

I think bike touring for me is just like travelling in general. You just need to go and do it, in the end it will all work out. When I was 18 and went on my first backpacking trip for 6 months I was terrified, but after a few days it was fine. Now that I am 33 the anxiety is only short lived, but I do still get it. That is part of the excitement though.

Go on your trip, have fun, grow as a person, and in the end you will probably want to do it all over again.

Print these posts and stick the good ones up where you can read them easily. That oughta help ease your doubts and fears. If your motivation remains high enough, you'll go. If not, you won't.


Pick a day, then leave. It really is the only way. Don't analyze too much.

Hey, thanks everyone! Lots of good advice here!
I've already started talking to people about it (not my mom though, I think she'll be terrified when I tell her...)
I'm planning to do a big tour of Europe (april to september so I avoid the coldest months!), so if anyone wants to join me or if something goes horribly wrong it's always possible to take the train and meet me/go home...

i'll be cycling from Belgium towards Turkey around that time next year, after a detour through France to visit some friends
we should talk when plans get more concrete :-) its always nice to share the road with someone, short or long!

I went on my first tour last year....alone. Buffalo, NY to about Louisville, KY. I was supposed to go to Austin, but had a little mental breakdown on the way (I was only 19...not that I'm that much older now) and ended up calling my mom who drove 600 miles to pick me up on a street corner in Indiana. I don't regret anything I did though, and I think that's the biggest part. Sometimes, even if you're frightened, you just have to go. If it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out. You'll kick yourself if you don't at least give it a try, trust me :)

edit: as far as talking to your mom about it.... my family freaked out on me (my grandma told me she would never talk to me again...we're still very close!). They'll be scared for you too, sure, but just reassure them. The best way to do that confidently is to make sure you are sure of yourself too, and that doesn't mean you can't be nervous.

The hardest part to doing anything is starting it, like Northwestrider said. I've always found that to be true, whether it's actually putting on your shoes to go for a long run or just getting on your bike and pedaling to get out of the city. What would be the point in getting out of bed if there was nothing challenging awaiting you? :)

Fly somewhere far far away with only your bicycle and panniers.Problem solved.

Long trips can seem scary if you look at the big picture.It disrupts most peoples whole lifes,unless you don't have one like me.You just have to do a 180 step program,take it one day at a time.

Say I'm going from L.A.- Denver and back.I'll plan the first few days and that's it.I know where Denver is on the map.If I get up in the morning and ride towards the sun,I'm going to Denver.I'll make it there,I'll probably get lost quite a few times,oh well,I'm bike touring,that's part of the fun.I can't ride a regimented tour,it takes all of the fun out of it.

I just plan a day to leave,take care of what need to be taken care of around the house,plan a couple days ride with a finale destination,then get out of Dodge.

I won't go on a ride with time constaints.I leave plenty of time to do/look at things.I could be in the middle of nowhere and find the world biggest bra ball or Picasso's made from dryer lint or the worlds biggest barbed-wire collection.How could I pass that up?

I never have trouble leaving,I have trouble coming home.

How do you deal with that fear of leaving?

Alcohol.

Cherish the fear. That's when you know you're about to embark on a real adventure. Once the ride begins, the fear turns to elation.

Personally I think opportunities to take months off at a time come quite rarely; so when they do present themselves I have no choice but to take advantage. Bring your boyfriend along. Mine is taking me on a three month tour this fall to visit her folks in Hungary.

Its corny, but the old quote "A journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step." But it is also true. There is also a country song you probably won't have heard of there in France, "Live like you were dying."

The bottom line is to make your plans, test rides and then GO. You can always go home if you hate it. Or change directions or destinations.

I'm on a more or less open-ended 12 months or so tour of the U.S. I also have an invite from a friend to head to the middle east to start an Asia tour when I'm done here.

I like your 'bent, but you might want to consider a LWB one for the tour.

I'm only 34 but have twice sold everything I owned to go on big tours that my partner dreamed of, the first one was only meant for 1 year but turned into a four year "thing".
I will be honest and say it has been hard settling back in and and finding a good job again, but I now only live to save for the next big trip.
I believe in one corny saying "Carma is a *****" always try and treat other's how you like to be treated and eventually you will always land back on your feet.
Go for it ;-)

Cherish the fear. That's when you know you're about to embark on a real adventure. Once the ride begins, the fear turns to elation.

Nice.

My dad surprised the heck out of me - I thought he would be scared for me, tell me to take the conservative path, keep my job, prepare for my future...

He told me to go and enjoy the most out of my life. He was on his deathbed, at the time.

Claire - go if you want to, even if you are scared. If you don't want to, but feel you are too far down the planning path to back out, don't go.

Fly somewhere far far away with only your bicycle and panniers.Problem solved.
On that note, I will say that I find it does help with commitment to the trip to start far from home. If you live near one end of the trip, start at the far end unless there is a good reason to do otherwise. For me that commitment really kicks in as soon as I have a non refundable airline ticket.

Nice.

My dad surprised the heck out of me - I thought he would be scared for me, tell me to take the conservative path, keep my job, prepare for my future...

He told me to go and enjoy the most out of my life. He was on his deathbed, at the time.

Claire - go if you want to, even if you are scared. If you don't want to, but feel you are too far down the planning path to back out, don't go.

Great advice. (Both your Dad's to you and your's to Claire)

As a dad of a touring daughter, I got kind of choked up reading that.

A bit late here I realize, but do a trial tour if you haven't already. Pick a weekend to try it out close to home; that way if everything fails you can always have a friend come get you.

One thing that's very important on any tour is to have some sort of backup plan. It doesn't have to be complex, just something, so you can have fun and not be worried about anything. I did a three-week tour of southern Ontario last year, staying only at hostels (unprepared to camp), on my old Specialized Globe. I carried my cell phone as well as phone numbers for all my friends (on paper, just in case) and regional taxi companies for emergencies. If it ever became necessary I have a few friends who would have driven up from Boston if absolutely necessary. Of course I never needed any help.

Bottom line is, have a basic contingency plan. You shouldn't need it but that way you can enjoy the tour and not be worried.

I take it you are young enough that you don't have a job or financial obligations that prevent you from going for so long, nor kids....a chance like this will not present itself until you retire. The most I can get are about 1 week long trips, simply because I get a week more than my wife does of vacation or I wouldn't even get that, just long weekends occasionally.
I would not waste a chance like this because it will be 40 years before you get it again.

Fear is normal for a number of reasons, so don't let it affect your underlying judgement.

Be careful though of entirely arbitrary challenge based experiences if you want to have a pleasant and low resistence kind of trip. Why six months for instance, like the ridiculous trend in climbing at one time to force entirely straight routes that followed the path of a falling drop of water. Consider the difference between some kind of challenge based trip for self growth, history (not in this case), embracing difficulties, building up self-image. The kind of thing that succeeds only if there is a fair amount of resistence overcome. And a trip that is intended to flow, and not consist of fighting the current, in general an unhealthy, and unprofitable activity. Decide what it is you want from the trip and then go after it. Often what people seak is a little bit of everything, rather muddy, rather that truly identifying what they want to do. When you think about your objectives, who is in the frame. How much of what you think about has to do with how it will be seen rather than what it is you want.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myYV4ovypEQ&feature=related

Check out Abraham-Hicks. I am not into this stuff, but it represents almost the opposite of the way I live, and so the ideas of illignment are at least a window for me into a different way of seeing things. So having been exposed to their tapes by a friend, I do at least identify when I am trying to swim upstream. I will still do it, but at least I am aware of it.

The ride is going to be worth it, but only if it is YOU who says so...

`http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGxZngLecK0&feature=related

What?

Go for it, you don't get chances like this very often.

If I do really long-time on the road tours, I often split them up with a plane journey.
ie: 6 weeks round Ireland tour then Ryanair down to Bordeaux and then the Camino to Santiago.
With six months, you might want to go to the Southern Hemisphere [NZ or Oz] for the winter months.

if flying to the start , the date and time of that is fixed. on the ticket :innocent:

Just came back from a 6-weeks trip in France and Basque Country with my boyfriend, nice to see all these answers!
I really feel that now is the right time, because I'm 34, I don't have too much responsabilities at work yet, and no children yet, but all that might change quite soon!
I do have some experience in travelling, both with my boyfriend and alone. If I count all the trips I've done over 2 weeks, I think in total I've travelled by bike for about 10 months. Last night me and my boyfriend sat in front of a map of Europe and we talked about my itinerary. So far it stands like this: I would leave from home in the beginning of April and go towards Spain. He would then meet me at the border and we'd go to Santiago together. Then he would go back to Paris and I would keep going on my own, back to south of France and the Alps, towards Greece. (either going down Italy or going down Slovenia/Croatia/Montenegro). Then we would meet again in July in Bulgaria and come back towards Germany together. And to finish I would go around Denmark, Norway and UK on my own, and back at home in october or something like that.
Now I just need to officially ask for my leave, then I will have a fixed date to go!
As for the bike, though I love the recumbent, I would probably go with the usual tourer. Mostly because it's easier to fix in case of problem and also more discrete!

I want to go on a cross-country tour but my job is a major factor on deciding to do it. I would need 10 weeks to make the trip. I'm in my mid-fifties and my job is the best job I have ever had in my life. With the economy and unemployment the way it is, I simply cannot risk losing it. It's easier to drop everything and just go when you are younger (I've done it)...you have more time to make up for having done so. The HR department where I work asked the question to my supervisor, "If he can be away for that long, why do we need him?" Unless I get some sort of guarantee about my job I think I will have to wait until I have the time out of circumstance. No point shooting myself in the foot.

Somebody famous said" a journey of a thousand miles starts with just one step"

Open the door take the step....I don't plan (it drives others mad) i have a vague idea ill go uuuummmmmm thata way...turn back when i have had enough

Just googled it

Ahh its Chinese might have guessed.

Although this is the popular form of this quotation, a more correct translation from the original Chinese would be "The journey of a thousand miles begins beneath one's feet." Rather than emphasizing the first step, Lau Tzu regarded action as something that arises naturally from stillness. Another potential phrasing would be "Even the longest journey must begin where you stand."

No one lays on their deathbed saying "I wish I had spent more time in the office."
You can always find excuses NOT to do something. Load it up and go.

I've often said that THE most difficult part of our three-year journey from Alaska to Argentina was making the decision to take it. Once the decision was made, it was a piece of cake. I've got a page on our website where I talk about making the decision - all the top articles are more geared toward family travel, but scroll down to the box at the bottom and I've got 10 or 15 links to other long-term travelers where they talk about making the decision to head out. http://familyonbikes.org/resources/decision.htm

Buy an expensive plane ticket. Then you've almost got no choice.

Pick a day, then leave. It really is the only way. Don't analyze too much.

I haven't had the opportunity yet,bit I think this is it. Don't overthink it or it won't happen.

Marc

I'm jealous with you all for having faith and go out touring even bring family along for years. I still have trouble in making decision on "when" and most of all "why". Anyway I'm still building my bike for this purpose and collecting appropriate gears to be taken along. For scrapser thank you very much for giving me a different perspective, I really appreciate it. I may take a one~three days touring as a start maybe just during week-end or maybe one/two weeks of touring someday as I take my annual leave out of work n off course a permit from my family. I wish I could be as brave as you are folks...