Quite a few years ago I arrived in Toulouse France planning to backpack around the country taking trains here and there.
But on day 2 I rented a bike just to roll around for the day and decided right away I wanted the whole trip to be a bike tour instead. So I bought a cheap used "city bike" with a rear rack and some low gearing. Bungee corded the backpack to the rack and off I went for about two and a half weeks, choosing my destinations the night before typically, and leapfrogging ahead by train every 3 or 4 days. Did some fairly hard rides on the cheap old bike.
Last edited by dgodave; 09-04-21 at 07:54 AM.