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Bikeabout into the final leg of Auckland to Ambleside
Chris Leaky and Liz Wilton have been cycling for nearly two and a half years! So far they have cycled though incredible heat, lush tropics, harsh desert, sleet, snow and hail. Chris, as an 'ambassador' for Bramwell International, has been putting some Source sandals to the test as well as a pair of Meindl Maine Mids.
Liz has summed up the journey to date so beautifully, we thought it might give you a little bit of inspiration for 2012, even if that inspiration is 'slow down, look around you and enjoy the people, places and experiences that you have the privilege to be a part of.'
"When I left the UK for New Zealand in September 2009, with our shiny touring bikes and pannier bags so new that they were stiff to fold, I had no idea how far I would get or what lay ahead. After the first few tough weeks, with New Zealand’s many hills and mountains, my fitness began to improve and I was spoilt by the spectacular scenery of the two islands.
There were days where I was reduced to tears by the wind and the climbing, and others where the tears were joyful, emotional tears that you cry when you are overcome by the beauty of place like Lake Tekapo or the Rainbow Valley. As Chris said back then, beautiful places are often hard to get to. They are... but so rewarding too, as you stand there aware that many people may never have the chance to go there and see what you can, right at that moment.
Along the way there were many challenges and times where I wanted to give up. In Australia, the lack of research meant that cycling the east coast was a rollercoaster of hills, endlessly going up and down in the heat. In Malaysia the 45 degree heat and humidity was unbearable most of the time and I cycled with a pounding headache most days. In the Gobi, the strong, constant headwind facing us everyday, along with freak hail storms and 24 hour sand storms, meant that we cycled slowly across the monotonous empty desert and it will be a long time before I greet sand with a smile again.
Despite the hard times, I seem to have developed a skill for rose-tinting my memories, even immediately after the event. Chris will stand laughing and shaking his head when he hears me saying, “Ah it wasn’t that bad really”.
I believe my strong sense of optimism and the ability to endure situations outside of my ‘normal habitat’ have kept me going all this time. Plus as my best friend would say, “you’re bloody stubborn’. I never saw myself as a stubborn person, but being on the road for such a long time gives you chance to really get to know yourself. And she is right, I am pretty stubborn. However, despite this mental strength and determination, we all have our limits.
I believe that the human body is amazing and we are capable of far more than we realise. The days where your legs ache and you feel that you need to stop, but you push on either through lack of choice or determination and find that you can go much further than you thought.
The joy of travelling across the world by bicycle is the people you meet along the way. In a world where our news media saturates the airways with tales of war and horror and cruelty, it’s easy to lose sight of all the good in the world. In every single country we have visited, we have experienced kindness beyond politeness, friendship from strangers, help in the most unlikely situations, waves and big smiles from the people who have the least (possessions) and the overwhelming feeling you are left with is: that people are good.
Seeing the world by bike is slow, the pace matches that of the butterflies and birds, and as they flutter and swoop alongside you, there is time to take in everything around you. The earth is beautiful, for those hoping for paradise in heaven, I would say don’t rush for your heaven, you have a paradise right here, now. I’m not just talking about cliche waterfalls and orange sunsets, although they are beautiful, I mean the beauty of a colourful Chinese market, with all the fruits and vegetables you can imagine, or the delicate designs of the coral underwater, that somehow looks as if it were stenciled on by machine, or watching a pelican take flight, or the unspoilt mountains of Laos where all you can see is green and forest for as far as the horizon, in every direction, or children laughing and running and waving at you from a hillside, or watching a sea turtle have breakfast… this list is endless.
I feel privileged to have seen so much and am so humbled by this experience, and I hope I never take for granted what I have been lucky enough to see and do.