We are very pleased and happy to announce the release of our new Cycle2Sydney website, where you can track our cycling activities. Best regards,
Patrick & Kevin Thanks to Gregory
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27Apr
4 more nights , nog 4 keer slapen
In 2010 when i was preparing the bicycle tour to Berlin with my children i said to myself in 2015 : i want to cycle to Sydney. Most people i told my plans to, told me that it was a silly idea. First ...
Patrick is leaving his hometown. All the necessary stuff packed, say goodbye to Pater familias Frans. And try to get the train in time. Ok arrived in London, Kevin waiting for me in the trainstation...
We wanted to get the 1600 hour boat but we did not make it. Kevin had to bring Lily to the busstation and when cycling very hard a woman in a very fast car stopped us to tell us that we had chosen the...
Yesterday, because we missed our boat we arrived quite late but a big welcom-team was waiting for us. Danny, Griet, Anne and Marc gave us a warm welcome. This morning we had a nice breakfast. The c...
We slept well in Kessel - lo, while my sister was doing our laundry. A nice breakfast gave us enough power to cycle to genk. In the meanwhile we stopped for a picture at the place where i met Kevin th...
After a nice breakfast at my mothers place we cycled through Holland into Germany. We wanted to cycle just 200 km but there were no hotels available so continued on until the city of Beckum at 240 km....
Nice weather, Breakfast finished Lets go If i say nice weather i mean the sun was shining when we left the hotel but we could not cycle hard enough to stay in front of the storm. It was raining quit...
Up as always as the crack of dawn, we left for Berlin. En route we enjoyed Turkish cuisine and coffee in Potsdam before arriving at the borders of the Tiergarten to meet with friend Xavier for lunch ...
Kevin's foot was not working properly, until he saw the pharmacy-girl. If people are wondering why we are cycling so far north, the reason is simple, to avoid all countries involved in war and countr...
As the sun broke from the thick clouds, we were ready for some fine polish cuisine. The steak could melt in your mouth it was that soft. And as always served with some beetroot salad, we haven't had...
After we polished off scrambled eggs and pancakes, it was time to polish off our time in Poland. Meeting with Chris at the final town short of the Lithuanian border, we had coffee with the last of ou...
We left in the morning knowing fine well we'd have the wind at our tails. Averaging 25km per hour over the course of the day, the food and lovely people of Lithuania were just in memory and in photos...
Now that we are nearing Russia, music has become almost comical. Over breakfast the rain continued to beat hard, so more coffee and Latvian pop rock for us it is. Once we are spared or look set to b...
Sitting beyond the border, I caught a brief nap in the gas station as Patrick trotted back to Chris' rescue. After confirming he was the owner of the car, we were all free to roam the vast land of Ru...
It rained, then rained a little more before eventually pouring down. More pedalling of desperation came with help from shady looking men at the roadside with hazard lights flashing, only a complete n...
Waking at 5:30, we hit the road after some coffee, before stopping for more at 07:30, this time with pastries. As our morning stopped and started, the rain continued and would do so for the entire da...
It won't be very often I'll be saying this during the tour, but I was up before Patrick at the later time of 08:00. We earned ourselves an extra few in bed after our heroic efforts yesterday, and bre...
Pulling out from the hotel, we hadn't got 20 meters from the front door before losing each other. Knowing Patricks co ordination isn't his strongest asset, I returned to Chris at her breakfast to giv...
Up at the crack of dawn, we missed what would turn out to be a lovely breakfast in bed according to Chris. On the road from 6am, Russia provided more of the same, a lot of trucks and a scenic less ro...
As barbecues smoked from the roadside, it was time to leave our motel under a grey drizzling sky at 6am. Our first mission would be to remedy the wifi router with some much needed credit, which is ea...
We could not have asked for a better start to the day. With a clear blue sky, smooth road and wind to carry us along, we had a belly full of soup and 110km beneath us by 12:30. Though as afternoons ...
Shortcuts are never a good idea, and we are learning it the hard way. Upon leaving the hotel and the lovely receptionists, we crossed what was once the longest bridge in the Soviet Union for unkept r...
What a day!? 254km of butt busting "road" shared between Russia and our latest adventure ground, Kazakhstan. Waking at 4:30, we were intent on making the most of the daylight knowing fine well we had...
He was having a very rare off day, not being fit enough to rest in my slipstream. But when I looked back Patrick had been pulled over by a trucker, a trucker with a passenger, that passenger being Ch...
We didn't get back to Oral until late, and slept peacefully after tins of tuna and slices of bread, Chris mentally exhausted, Patrick and I physically. In the morning we visited the Renault dealershi...
As planned we were driving by 6am, with our fill of problems all but digested we looked ahead for the green grass on the other side. Unfortunately after 20km the engine was feeling as positively as u...
It seems the car is getting a lot of press these days, luckily today it gives us confidence in knowing we are never far from a well earned bed in Kazakhstan's deserted west. And I'm sure from the out...
Leaving our stadium side accommodation I wasn't confident on us making much inroads. With a headwind from the get go and climbs at 12% gradient, we reached a waiting Chris at a cafe for brunch above ...
Starting at the crack of dawn as always, our accommodation was ready to be a car once more, and us cyclists. The first hours as sun rises make or break a day in these parts, due to killer cross and h...
Waking at 5am from the car, our bikes and other belongings were still safe and sound and as was, lined around the car outside. It was a decent sleep, but a little less comfortable due to the two days...
My toughest day on the bike was followed swiftly by Patrick's. Leaving at sunrise, we manoeuvred morning traffic of camels and cows for highway 32, and a predicted hell of a headwind. We made good t...
After a late breakfast, we conceded into not going for another 200 plus kilometre day, after missing some vital sunrise cycling hours. By early afternoon the heat and wind had come to much to bare, l...
In order to avoid cycling in the afternoon heat and strong winds, we begin cycling at sunrise once again. We put in some solid hours and join Chris for fresh bread and sausage before cycling until 1p...
The full moon was still big and bold by the time we were cycling again at 06:00. Time was flying with our average speed not far behind come breakfast at a small cafeteria with Chris a few hours later...
Eating fried fish with our hands, we awaited confirmation from Chris on where we would be staying later that evening. Patrick hoped for a more salad and all round healthier eating at the hotel now th...
In the morning as predicted following a superb dinner, we were spoiled for choice at breakfast. With our fill of eggs and porridge we were on the road for 8:30 with a young Kazakhstan Boxing team clo...
After breakfast of yesterday's dinner and some oddly fried bread served by the hotel, we were ready to rock. But only 15km into the day, Patrick suffered his first of two punctures within minutes of ...
Unable to take the shortest route via. Bishek in Kyrgyzstan to our destination of Korday, Kazakhstan, we stay on the largely deserted A2. The first half of the day passed without drama. Upon reachin...
5 am breakfast followed an early start on our first challenge of the day, a 1220 meter mountain pass. Come 10:00 we were coming down the other side on a 6.7% decline en route for morning and cream fo...
Today was quite simply perfect. The day started with a buffet breakfast before Chris and Patrick took a trip to the Renault Garage. The support car, surprisingly, was given the thumbs up. Despite i...
The mood at breakfast was upbeat despite imminent goodbyes. At the hotel steps, Chris and Patrick kissed before bidding each other farewell for now. Chris has been supporting us since day 3 from the...
One army control was followed by another, before a long stretch of road leading to a bridge and the customs building. The process was thorough, it would put you in mind of a flight check-in. But onc...
The day started with a 60km downhill and Patrick suffering his fourth puncture of the tour. We quickly fixed before arriving at the first signs of life. At the gas station, inside the neighbouring r...
I didn't wake up with much confidence, 245km with climbing and a headwind isn't easy, especially after a so so sleep. But that soon changed by breakfast at 8:30 with already 45km and tasty scrambled ...
We hit the snooze button until it was time to get up and going at 6:00. Luckily for us, the weatherman got it spot on, we had the wind at our tales and never looked back. Stops were brief, breakfast...
The Sheraton experience continued with a great breakfast, a perfect follow up to our sushi and Hagen Daz the night previous. Our exit was delayed due to rain, making the decision to source a bike sho...
We didn't wake until 08:15, due to finishing late and having kebab until the wee hours. After breakfast of many eggs the rain continued to pour, delaying our start. Making the most of the little time...
Hopes of reaching Kumul went up in smoke before the day even began. As the sun began to rise above the morning mist, Patrick tyre issues reached new levels with another blown sidewall. Attempts to f...
Our second attempt to reach Kumul started more positively on a cool Friday morning. We started off with a favourite breakfast of ours, scrambled egg with tomatoes and bread given to us by a passing c...
'Kevin, just so you know that wasn't your fault' 'Don't worry Patrick, I'm taking zero responsibility for you...' The alarm went at 05:30 after 4 hours sleep. We packed and left with empty bellies in...
Not a lot to report on from today, 287km over 12 hours on the saddle speaks for itself. 200 meters of climbing remained at sunrise, a steady ascent over 80km. At the summit with a tailwind, we hast...
It could have been a very easy day, and would have had it not been for the return of puncture prone Patrick. Starting at the later time of 08:00 due to a typical Chinese breakfast of boiled eggs and...
An almost perfect days cycling, a lot of distance and not much drama. With Chengdu and the arrival of his daughter and Chris on Patricks mind always, it's cycle cycle cycle from dawn till dusk. The ...
No alarm required, we wake at 05:30 in what could easily have been a students bedroom, we somehow always create a mess. The started slowly but smoothly. Come brunch at 10:45 we had 66km complete, not...
Up a dawn, we carried out an idea I had to help with Patricks recent puncture fetish. Swapping my puncture proof German made tire for his rear bald Chinese one, we then proceeded to lighten our loads...
Woke a little later than usual, by later I mean 6am. Pat completed some work from bed before breakfast of eggs. The road climbed and twisted until Lanzhou, the capital of the province. We stopped a...
Bananas, croissants and coffee to kick start the day, very continental for us, a perfect follow up to our previous nights KHZ burgers (KFC to the rest of the world). The morning started promising, no...
The day started off on the wrong foot as the lady of the hotel presented me with a dirty face cloth. She wasn't the least bit impressed with me using it to clean my shoes, and neither was Patrick. Ov...
Hopes of reaching Chengdu within 48 hours were slowly going up in smoke as we made our way up the 2,000 meter pass. After being denied access to the highway, we were subject to mountains dividing val...
After just 3 hours of sleep, we were packed and cycling once again. Bananas in hand, we pedalled having breakfast on the move. The bikes were quickly muddied up once more when construction took plac...
For the first time since the Sheraton in Urumqi, me and Patrick enjoyed a continental style breakfast of jam, bread, eggs, cereals and coffee with fresh fruits. This time we were in the company of hi...
I woke up early to give Lily and my parents a shout before a final breakfast with Pien and Chris. Once their taxi driver left them at the airport he returned me and Patrick to our bikes some 200km ba...
In the morning the lobby bar had been transformed into a fine dining experience for guests to enjoy breakfast. Like kids at Christmas we unwrapped our favourite dishes before getting stuck in to a 4 ...
We woke to a rain filled Friday morning. I had a good but as always short sleep. The rain was forecasted to continue for some time, so we made tracks for breakfast of belly warming noodles before br...
Mistaking the sound of crashing waterfalls for rain, we woke and finished what we started on a dry Sunday morning. The road continued in its horrible state until noon for some 48km. At the crossroad...
I woke just before the alarm went at 06:30 and prepared us Nescafes before going over the planned route with the gas station attendants. They assured us the expressway allowed bicycles, we were not c...
The day started with firstly, escaping the Police and toll booth attendants with the help of a slow moving truck. Back on the highway we began a steady climb to 2,800 meters, before an early lunch be...
Woke at 3am with a killer stomach ache, resulting in some vicious vomiting before crawling back into bed, can't be sure what brought it on. At breakfast we cleaned the kitchen of watermelon, bananas ...
The alarm went at 03:30, it's getting earlier and earlier as our time draws to a close in China. Without sounding like a broken record, we crept back onto the highway, this time in the dark. Stunnin...
The storm raged during our short sleep, waking us at its most thunderous. From the get go at 04:30, its effects were shown with mudslides covering the road, causing a policed road block in the misty ...
At 07:00, the hotel restaurant was like a busy barnyard. Hordes of Chinese tourists attacked the buffet leaving not a lot besides food I'd class as solely for dinner, breakfast time will not be misse...
Awake from 06:30, the glossed blue roof, mist and moisture in the air painted a wet morning. But it was dry, and more importantly, time to leave China. A young Chinese girl, now living in Miami had ...
Thankfully it had stopped raining, and looked to have done so for at least an hour going by the semi dry road. Patrick informed me of bad roads and construction ahead according to Chris and our guest...
Breakfast itself was beautiful, scrambled egg with tomato and onion, granola and yogurt, washed down with fresh coffee and orange. The toasted baguette was excellent also, a fine left behind from Fre...
Our second and final beautiful breakfast by the Mekong river, for the highlight of Luang Prabang. Back on the road, we had 340km to complete should Patrick see his daughter Pien before returning to B...
More of the same on day 2 of 'Mission Pien'. Up at 5:30, we cycled disciplined stopping only for breakfast, lunch and odd cold drink. Lunch of pizza was a welcome change from rice and noodles, also ...
With Pein making the long flight hopping trip home, we were back as a group of three. Though unlike Kazakshtan and before, Chris will not be supporting us. After breakfast, we visited the bike shop ...
Patrick did set his alarm for 05:30, but his clock wasn't set to Bangkok time. Waking naturally at 06:20, we went for a surprisingly good hotel breakfast, a buffet of local and continental cuisine. ...
It drizzled as we sat in shelter at the market. For breakfast we feasted on 7/11 cheese and ham toasties with instant cappuccinos. The headwind had not eased overnight, and is set to bother us until...
Up at 06:00, we waited a half hour for the chef to wake and prepare us a pretty unexciting 'American Breakfast'. Thailand has very quickly become routine, due to capitalism striving alongside the hig...
Breakfast was absolutely smashing, confirming the hotel as an absolute bargain. We stuffed our faces with continental cuisine, with sides of sushi and local fruit. Tuesday morning traffic was as exp...
Chris eyes lit up with at the prospect of breakfast in bed as I nipped out for instant coffee and 7/11 egg, ham and cheese toasties at 06:30, they are mightily tasty and convenient. Back on the road,...
The clear blue sky and open road looked very inviting after toasties and coffee. The wind appeared to had eased overnight, and kilometres soon mounted up. Rest stops and service areas were perfectly...
We parted once more after breakfast when Chris's taxi arrived. As she travels by train South we cycle highway 41. The cycling is monotonous with very little to divert our eyes. The usual coffee bre...
We cycled almost 20km before our first bites. The usual 7/11 toasties and Amazon coffees were had before doing some serious stints. As our morning unfolded so did a new plan to meet Chris between tr...
A surprisingly tough day given the distance. Malaysia got off to a perfect start with a local favourite recipe, nasri canai. I would best describe it as a savoury pancake, ours was filled with fried...
The buffet breakfast provided a perfect egg filled start to the day. Our route to Melaka continues to be flat with a strong but manageable headwind. At 11:00 we finally got our hands on some mobile ...
A case of Dumb and Dumber today, with me being the dumbest. The morning started with a beautiful red sun rising, and a tasty local breakfast with lovely locals eager to know where we were heading. F...
After 15km we'd stop for breakfast, a local bread plate by the name of Rori Canai with egg, essentially a non sweet pancake. They also had fresh doughnuts, hot just out of the oven, they were insanel...
The final breakfast in Asia was excellent, full of jams and fresh bread, and my favourite, cereal and fresh yogurt. After, Patrick would pop Chris's case on his pannier rack and we'd all make our way...
05:30 alarm was Patrick entering my room for his MacBook, before quickly getting ready. Cycling for shortly after six, the sky was thick grey with clouds and pollution. Sumatra central and east is e...
Like in China, Laos, Thailand and more or less in Malaysia, the smiley happy people of Indonesia do to enjoy dinner as breakfast. Holding out until lunch for rice and spices, we instead enjoyed toast...
The morning started with a surprisingly good inclusive breakfast of Nasi Goreng (a lightly hot fried rice with egg) and a hot sugary tea. From the get go we had it tough, with ascents exceeding 10 pe...
Waking at 3am as the electricity continued to turn off and on due to the heavy rain, I shook off ants from my body with a towel, besides this I and both Patrick slept soundly. The hills continued as ...
Despite having only one towel and duvet between the both of us, we had our own breakfasts of Nasi Goreng which has fast become a favourite of ours. The morning was smooth with no dramas. Carefree, P...
With only 9 hours sleep between us after fixing my snapped gear cable past midnight, we stumbled upon a delicious revitalising breakfast at the third floor restaurant. Now suitably filled with eggs, ...
Our bodies were still feeling the efforts from the day previous come noon. Sitting at a fruit stall, children practised their English, took selfies and introduced us to new fruits before we stomached...
I felt like death in the morning. After a cold shower we hit the road at the later time of 08:45. The road to Jakarta was exactly our cuppa tea, manic.. Traffic was crazy, requiring the upmost atte...
Jakarta by morning is almost as chaotic as by night, on the road again shortly after 7, we bundled along eastwards with mopeds and traffic of all sorts. Seeing the watermill high above us we stopped ...
Hot green bread and chocolate for breakfast, never thought I'd putting those words next to eachother. The wind was strong from the get go at 06:45, and would continue that way until darkness. There ...
I kicked off the day with a big bowl of rice and veg with soy instead of spiced sauce, doctors orders. Patrick enjoyed three sunny side up eggs and toast before hitting the road. It was windy, and f...
Nutella toasties and a fried egg, not exactly one to put on top of the other but never the less very tasty on their own. The last of our 200km plus days started on smooth road with be it for a while,...
It may have only been an extra half hour, but those extra minutes in bed make all the difference, especially when hard earned. The continental breakfast completed the fine start as we made tracks on ...
Nasi goreng in the open air for breakfast, it was tasty as always and might just be our last. Our second last days full cycling in Indonesia kicked off under a fine, clear blue sky. Java was also lo...
Out on his morning jog, the young fella went out of his way to see us to an early opening telephone shop. Topped up with 3G Internet access, we posed together before starting the final full days cycl...
Unsurprisingly the hotel breakfast was excellent, and the perfect start to the day after skyping with the parents. Patrick and I took full advantage of the morning, firstly by cleaning and lubricatin...
Breakfast was once again a delight, with freshly made pancakes back on the menu. Suitably filled, me and Patrick wasted no time in seeing to our bikes. With the help of the boys and girls at Rodalin...
Day one in Auz started with a puncture, still it was fixed in no time before going to McDees fro breakfast. And after sorting ourselves out with some 3G access, we hit the open road. There was quite...
Waking with the sun, the cafe was now open. Patrick could charge his laptop and check emails whilst we both enjoyed coffees and homemade muffins. The lady of the house was chatty and a cyclist herse...
Up at 06:40, we woke with the rising sun after a night free of bother outdoors in the outback. Patrick had the last blueberry muffin as I enjoyed a homebaked cookie with chunks as big as rocks, somet...
The alarm sounded at 5:20, we rose slowly. The motel chef whipped up an incredible eggs, bacon and toast with a chopped tomato, a fry to rival my Dads. It was cold, and had us in extra tees and a ja...
Day started with another fine fried breakfast. At 7am we were good to go after meeting our French photographer, he proceeded to take more photos and praise us again for our efforts thus far. The mor...
We blasted the final 70km to the 41 mile Bore Camp after an extended lunch break at Three Ways. Arriving at the camp after dark, we joined the only campervans showing signs of life. With Chris, his ...
In the morning we got a group photo in the dark, before, perhaps a little prematurely, saying goodbye to Neill and Dale. Once more there was not a lot to look at in the bush or in the flood planes, i...
Steve and Julia were not awake to see us off, but they did eventually catch up. The first 60km was cycled in mild morning temperatures, but come the arrival of our new friends, we were in need of col...
Be joined us at 6am as we sipped on coffees with morning bread, chocolate and orange. Back on the road it wasn't long before Patrick was visiting Be once more, when returning for forgotten laundry ha...
Up at 05:30 and in the restaurant shortly after, we nipped in for breakfast just before the workers arrived. I had a large helping of cereal and bread, Patrick bacon and eggs. It was the only positi...
Besides a car pulling over to see if we were still alive, we slept undisturbed until 03:00 before cycling again. The wind had still not let up before taking shelter after 6km from a short rainfall, l...
The door knocked at 07:20, and the lovely lady whom we woke just 6 hours earlier for a room, presented us with an even lovelier breakfast. After our worthy for a king breakfasts, we hit Death Valley...
It's not often someone is more on the ball than us in the morning, but at 06:45 Bob knocked to tell say our breakfast was waiting, 15 minutes early to our delight. It was a feast and Bob joined us in...
We will be quoted soon as saying '175km is a walk in the park', though let it be known there are some hilly parks out there, and the extra 50km to Emerald called for an extra hour in bed on our lazy 1...
We were a touch lazy getting up, no real reason why. The chef wasn't in any rush either, but when our fry ups did arrive, they were as always excellent. The morning was certainly chilly, and still a...
The alarm went at the earlier time of 05:15, before nipping next door to the gas station to order some breakfast for the room. It's quite cold in the morning, though the sunrise is getting earlier no...
Tom Petty kicked off the day as the alarm sounded at 05:15. We swiftly packed before having breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast in the restaurant motel. The waitress said 'I'll throw those coffees do...
Patrick had a full fry, as I mixed it up with a BBQ egg, bacon and cheese toastie, we didn't leave a pick. Large puddles remained at 06:00 following a night of heavy showers and strong winds, luckily...
Waking at 05:30, we packed and made a decision to go our separate ways. Not wanting my wobbly bottom bracket to become a set back, thus putting the 175km per day average in jeopardy, I made tracks Ea...