James, Author at Really Big Bike Ride

Making Hay While The Sun Shines: Italy to Croatia By Bike

1 Jul ’2518 Jun ’15 by James

Italy to Croatia by bike: Cycle Touring the Dalmatian Coast

The third instalment of my trip across Eurasia takes me from Italy to Croatia by Bike. Along the Dalmatian Coast all the way to Dubrovnik.

Having crossed the Alps in some pretty cold weather Kyle and I agreed to spend a few days at Lake Bled to rest our legs and enjoy the scenery. Slovenia is a very beautiful country and Lake Bled is the centre of attention, popular with tourists from across the globe. We arrived on Friday evening to a busy lake and expensive campsite. Chatting with a few folks on the grass down by the water we learned that the hostel over in town would cost less and provide much more. So with our new friends Lauren and Kendall we set off to check in at the Castle 1004 hostel.

Into The Clouds: Munich to Lake Bled by Bike

30 Jun ’2531 May ’15 by James

A riff on long-distance cycle touring from Munich to Lake Bled in the pouring rain

The second blog post from my Eurasian bicycle adventure. In this edition, I join a fellow called Kyle, and we cross the Alps in the snow as we travel from Munich to Lake Bled by bike.

Living with the weather is as much a part of the challenge as any other aspect of a world cycle. Your waking hours are spent in it, your movements can be determined by it, and your sleep can be disturbed by it. The weather is your everything. Obvious as this may sound, the last few days have been a stark reminder that on a long trip you really need to be prepared for the worst and ready for anything.

In The Beginning: London to Munich by Bicycle

30 Jun ’2522 May ’15 by James

How not to cycle from London to Munich. A chancer’s guide to getting lost on the German Radweg Network and getting away with it.

In this blog post, I share my journey from London to Munich by Bicycle. The first leg of my Eurasian bicycle tour.

At length, I finally made it to the boat. What a week. Since leaving the family home from the Village in sleepy rural Staffordshire on a fully laden bicycle it feels more like I’ve been riding a rollercoaster than a bike. I’ve toasted friends’ birthdays, drank endless cups of tea with Grandmothers and conversed with World cyclists. I’ve not even left the country and I’ve already been gifted numerous meals, stayed with a wonderful couple in Rawdon (thanks Dave & Sue) and been loaded up with more cake than you can shake a stick at. People are lovely. I feel blessed.

My Favourite Apps For Bike Travel And RTW Adventures

7 Aug ’2527 Jan ’13 by James

Top Apps For Bike Travel That I Recommend For Overland Adventures I first shared this post about apps for bike travel in 2013, at the time I was fresh off my charity bike ride around Europe, where I’d used paper maps and fallen in love with the romance of route planning in real time on … Read more

Part 14: Majdas Touch: Bosnia by Bike

7 May ’2523 Jan ’12 by James

Bosnia by Bike: The one where we go island hopping, get gassed on a night train and cycle into Slovenia to meet friends Our bike journey through Bosnia was eclipsed by a robbery on a night train. That’s why this post does not include photographs of the three countries we cycled through: Croatia, Bosnia, and … Read more

Part 13: Unlucky for Some: Kosovo by Bike

7 May ’2524 Oct ’11 by James

Kosovo by Bike: Is this the end of the road for our intrepid explorers? Find out as we cycle from Albania to Croatia through Kosovo and Montenegro The final week of our official charity bike ride comes as we cross Kosovo by Bike, cycle through Montenegro and arrive in Croatia. We also have unfinished business … Read more

Part 11: Pretty Ohrid: North Macedonia by Bike

6 May ’2511 Oct ’11 by James

Macedonia by Bike: Follow our ride from Star Dorjan to Lake Ohrid as we make friends and eat pizza on our charity cycling challenge Join our bike ride across North Macedonia as we cycle from Star Dorjan to Lake Ohrid via Negatino. Macedonia by Bike Happily this last few weeks we’ve fallen into a pattern … Read more

Part 9: Rila Round the Mountain: Bulgaria by Bike

5 May ’2530 Sep ’11 by James

Bulgaria by Bike: Week seven around Europe with a bicycle for Charity. We’re following a series of rivers towards Thessaloniki This week we’re exploring Bulgaria by Bike and getting into the Balkan way of life. We’re cycling major tributaries of the Danube and climbing high into the mountains through Rila National Park. Bulgaria by Bike … Read more

Part 7: Turn Left at Jesus: Hungary by Bike

1 May ’2512 Sep ’11 by James

Join us in week seven as we travel to Hungary by Bike from Budapest to Novi Sad on the EuroVelo 6, the Atlantic to Black Sea Cycle Route In week seven of our charity cycling challenge across Europe, we cross Hungary by Bike to Serbia and enter the Balkans. We cycle from just outside Budapest … Read more

Part 5: Munchen and the Mosselandlsee Massacre: Bavaria by Bike

1 May ’2527 Aug ’11 by James

Join us in week five as we cross Bavaria by bike, take a well-earned rest in Munich and cycle into Czech Republic This week, we arrive in Munich, where we take a long weekend to attend to some life admin, experience the most significant heatwave to hit Europe in a decade, and explore the Olympic … Read more