Thursday, November 19, 2009

Traveling with a Bike, part 1

In one of my original posts, I kvetched about the logistics of flying a bicycle overseas. I think I've found the solution(thanks to some cycling blogs).

Initially, I'd though that I would have to buy a bike box or bike bag and pack my bike, then repack the bike before flying home from Europe. What I was confused about was what to do with the bag or box (heavy plastic) while we were on the road - we aren't ending where we started, and we couldn't possibly carry them with us either. I had been thinking that we'd have to ship the boxes somewhere or something. You can see how that would be scary, right?

It turns out that "nearly all" cycling shops will pack your bike up into a cardboard box that can be checked for your flight. It's not free, but it sounds like it is a nominal price, and certainly cheaper than a plastic box and shipping fees.

That sounds like the way to go. I am sure I can find a place here in Seattle, but I will need to do a little research for a place in Paris. Maybe I will get to practice my french.

I'll also need to check with Icelandair's site for the box specs, so I don't get charged extra for "oversized." While I am on the topic, Icelandair is actually the cheapest I've found for flying a bike to Europe: $40 each way. And you get free stayovers in Reykjavik.

Planning, round 2

Mitchel is in Seattle this weekend for a variety of things including some trip planning. We've both been pretty busy, so I think we have some making up to do.

I'm fairly certain I have the Amsterdam to Paris route planned with days and distances. So I expect we'll review that. Then I will check out anything he has pulled together. I am still slacking on Prague to Vienna, but I am really just looking for a good map of the Czech Greenways because that route is already pretty well established.

That reminds me, I need to e-mail Audrey. She's done at least part of the Prague to Vienna trip. I think it's fair to say that her trip is the inspiration for all of this. Yay for having adventurous friends!!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Comments... oops

I thought I had allowed everyone to comment, even anonymously, but apparently not. I turned this on. But if you post and you don't have a login, please say who you are :)

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

So I was Thinking...

... which isn't always a good thing.

Maybe we don't bike all the way to Paris from Amsterdam? The more I look at the maps and calculate distances, it seems like we will fly..err..bike through the Netherlands (many great cities, most of which are close-ish together), but then spend a few days in the North of France where there is very little except countryside.

So I am proposing a slight route change to finish our trip:

    Amsterdam to The Hague
    The Hague to Bruges
    Bruges to Brussels
    Train from Brussels to Luxembourg
    Train from Luxembourg to Paris

We'll see what Mitchel thinks.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Planning (really) Begins

Now that our route is set from a country/big city perspective, we have to begin planning the actual bike route. For now, Mitchel and I have split up the planning by legs of the trip. Mitch is taking Copenhagen to Berlin and Vienna to Budapest. I am taking Prague to Vienna and Amsterdam to Paris.

In this first round of planning, we are pretty much just coming up with the bike route, estimated mileage and number of days. I think we're going to do some research on accommodations as well.

We've started purchasing books and maps to do the planning. There are so many online resources, both for maps and for finding books/maps. A couple I am looking at currently are CycleTourer, a great site with resources on bike touring all over the place (including maps and book info) and OmniMap, an online store with an impressive array of cycling maps.

More on books and maps later, I am sure.

Sunday, November 1, 2009

The Route!

Mitchel and I did some planning today while I was in SF... our route has been determined. Yay!! I think it's a good route that appeals to both of what Mitchel and I want.

Here's what we came up with:

    Fly into Copenhagen
    Quick bike trip over to Malmo, Sweden and back
    Bike from Copenhagen to Berlin
    Train from Berlin to Prague
    Bike from Prague to Budapest
            via Vienna and Bratislava
    Overnight train (~17hrs!!) from Budapest to Amsterdam
    Bike from Amsterdam to Paris
            via The Hague, Bruges, Brussles (maybe), Lille
    Fly home from Paris

There we go. I believe that's 10 countries! For right now, Mitchel and I split up the route and are doing some preliminary research (days, distances, accommodation, stuff like that). More on that later.