When Geoffrey launched a general call to set up this project, I was one of the multitude of people who expressed interest.
A few months later, we both found ourselves on BonneGueule to take stock of this ambitious trip which saw us leave Paris and arrive in Istanbul 31 days later...
To find the other episodes, follow the guide:
1 – departure and bicycle travel equipment ,
2 – fatigue and diet of the cyclist ,
3 - the train, the tent and the bed
4 - technical clothing, skin protection and solar panels
5 - saddlebags, semi-auto pedals and bicycle repairs
6 - the parka, the fleece and the home-made bags
7 - the glasses, the dragonfly and Istanbul
Here is the great saga of the summer: both a discovery of Europe, the opportunity to test technical clothing and equipment, with our funniest anecdotes.
176th km: we have a long way to go!
Our first stages in France (176km).
Why go from Paris to Istanbul by bike?
Geoffrey: a trip to clear the air... but not only that
I had many motivations for taking this trip.
First things first: get out of town . It was time to take a real break, without my computer which has followed me everywhere for 3 years... even on vacation.
Then, experiencing a situation where you have to fend for yourself : we voluntarily left with a limited budget, carefully avoiding all the too comfortable and too luxurious aspects of modern life, in search of a certain return to basics ( and I'm not talking about the thermal baths of Budapest here).
I also want to share with you what we feel in these moments . Besides, I left with two books that I had wanted to read for a long time, and this trip was the perfect opportunity to do so (I read a lot of books throughout the year, but it's more often books of business, to train myself in the role of young manager that I play alongside Benoît, or novels for pure entertainment, or real books that make you think about yourself).
My first book. And the second was The Count of Monte Cristo. So big you can prop up your bike with it.
Indeed, the idea was not necessarily to meet people and cultures (even if that is appreciable), but rather to learn a few things about myself during this month of relative solitude (we were only two). Of course, I was delighted to make friends and learn lots of things, but that just wasn't my primary goal.
Finding good eating habits was also one of the benefits sought: limiting the intake of overly refined sugars and starchy foods, eating more legumes, brown rice, nuts, green vegetables, etc.
Fifth motivation: testing clothing and technical materials in real conditions . Oh yeah, we're not doing it again! So this may seem paradoxical compared to my desire to take a 1-month break, but my only job was ultimately to take photos with my smartphone. The articles were only produced after the fact since I returned a few weeks ago.
And finally... make you want to do the same .
Romain: discover your environment in another way
When Geoffrey was taking the temperature to see if there were motivated people, I answered without hesitation that I was excited for at least two reasons.
When you travel by bike, you are free and you take your time : enjoy the landscape, observe the surroundings, listen to the birds, wind turbines and trucks whirring past you, smell the smell of the fields, trees and fertilizers fertilizers. You are free to go to improbable places, you can stop when you want and leave when you want.
Then, this way of traveling arouses the sympathy of the people you meet and that's great. Beyond the curiosity of seeing a guy struggling on a bike loaded with luggage, people are particularly warm and smiling when they learn that you are crossing a continent.
Departure from Paris.
Preparing for a bike trip
The route
When you see the multitude of possibilities available to you for getting from Paris to Istanbul, you tell yourself that there are two ways to go about it.
The first consists of carefully developing your itinerary by looking for the best compromise between distance and elevation in light of the rare testimonials that you can find on the Internet. Once the stages and locations are clearly identified, you know that you will reach the final destination on that day and you book a return plane ticket accordingly. By the way, you choose the window seat number because you love it, but not at wing level because you can't see anything there.
In the second case, you buy your return ticket blindly, then you rush off, telling yourself that you will improvise every day .
This is obviously what we did.
No need to rely on Google to map out a great route for you to take by bike. On such a trip, the calculation algorithm is completely jettisoned.
To tell the truth, we simply agreed on 3 things when we took the first pedal stroke:
- due to our professional constraints, we only have 31 days ahead of us
→ we have to travel a long way by train to meet deadlines; - we allow ourselves the possibility of improvising because we like the flexibility that this induces in the progress of the trip;
- we set ourselves a first objective which is to reach Geoffrey's parents' house in Alsace, near Mulhouse .
Cycling equipment
Romain's equipment :
To put together my equipment, I remembered my two cycle touring experiences:
When I was a student, I discovered that you could put pretty much anything you wanted on a bike, like here in 2006.
While I was studying in Mexico in 2008, I had the chance to cycle through Cuba (900 kilometers in 28 days).
But to cross Europe, we had to gather many other testimonies to be sure not to leave anything behind. To do this, we have defined some fundamentals:
- be autonomous , therefore have all the equipment to be able to camp, including wild camping;
- guarantee a sufficient level of comfort and privacy (individual tents, good beds, etc.).
This is how we put together our list of all important cycling accessories, repair kits, but also camping equipment, food preparation, technical clothing, first aid kits and other care products.
To be honest, we did not act in moderation: we found ourselves with a large load of more than 25 kilos each to distribute as best we could on our machines.
At this stage we can talk about a semi-trailer rather than a bicycle. But while it's rolling...
Subsequently, I will tell you about the navigation method. Before that, I hand over to Geoffrey who wants to take you on a journey in his bags.
Geoffrey's equipment :
We therefore anticipated the preparation of the trip well so that we could be as peaceful as possible along the way and not miss anything. Of course, we took unnecessary things, like duplicate repair kits, but the trip to Mulhouse (at my great dad and my great mom) allowed me to unload my bike.
A good bike : Décathlon Riverside 7: €250 on Le Bon Coin . Accessories : anti-theft device , km counter , horns , very solid crutch, luggage rack , and above all... TWO GOURDES (and a third wouldn't have been too much). All at BTWIN (Decathlon). Summary: really great material, very affordable price .
The altimeter for diving with the bike. The horns are extremely important for alternating arm positions, especially on the never-ending false flats.
The luggage rack, with its pinup sticker.
Yes, I customize everything, I really need to assert my identity.
Basic equipment : 3 BTWIN cycling shorts (one would have been enough), 1 BTWIN shorts (which I wore almost all the time) , 3 pairs of wool socks and 2 IceBreaker wool boxer shorts (expensive but super practical), 1 DIM boxer shorts in cotton polyester, 2 t-shirts in Outlier.cc and IceBreaker wool, and another from Quechua, BTWIN cycling gloves (very comfortable), and a Buff microfiber neck gaiter (against the sun, mosquitoes or the cold, it's very practical).
Rain gear : plastic bags (to waterproof shoes), BTWIN rain poncho, Decathlon Quechua cap (it's very good and holds the head well with its elastic back, very important), Fjällräven windbreaker (great, test to come ), Arc'teryx water-repellent fleece (great), and Outlier.cc water-repellent stretch pants (incredible brand, review to come). Bottom line: everything was useful.
Sun : be heavy on the sunscreen , Randolph Engineering glasses, WhenIWasSeventeen glasses case. Luxury (= personal comfort not essential): Meditations by Marcus Aurelius, The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, Vivre à Propos (translated from Japanese) by Montaigne (I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT regret having carried these brilliant books over 1,800 km), field notes and pens, and USB solar panel (super useful) . Too busy, I left the rest in Mulhouse with my parents: La Comédie Humaine sweater, BonneGueule x Marchand Drapier chinos, Marchand Drapier shorts.
Sleeping : QuickHiker UltraLight Quechua 3-person tent (I would have preferred a much smaller tent since I was alone in it, but it was very good), Quechua 10°C sleeping bag (later replaced by a Quechua 15°C , much less bulky), Quechua silk meat bag.
Armory : pepper spray (you never know), Duracel LED headlamp (very good), Leatherman C33X tactical knife (vital), Swiss army knife (secondary). Pharmacy : mosquito repellent (a lot), nok cream to preventively strengthen the skin of the buttocks (not used, I should have), biafine (with whom I got to know a lot), survival blanket (potentially very useful), anti -diarrheals and constipating agents (take up little space but can save a trip), anti-inflammatories, disinfectant, plaster strips. Hygiene : terry towel (there are compact microfiber ones, but I hate the touch of them), cleaning wipes (very important because hygiene must be impeccable when you cycle for a whole day), usual toiletries. Bottom line: everything was useful, except the power strip kit.
Kitchen : JetBoil and its 3 gas cylinders (practical, but just one would have been enough! And the airport staff doesn't like that much). DIY and repairs : 2 inner tubes , 2 tensioners (vital!), tape and plastic bags (super useful, it can be used in 1,000 ways!), Quechua aluminum cutlery set (very light). Shoes : a pair of ultra-comfortable Nike Lunar FlyKnits (this design is a Nike x Undercover collab). Bottom line: I abandoned the inner tubes at my parents' house, and I should have done the same with the cylinders, but I didn't know anything about it...
Lunches : 2 kilos of oat bran (I love it but it's hard to find), white almond puree, dried fruit. Dinners : 2 kilos of pre-cooked brown rice (the same, impossible to find along the way, but it's clear that it weighs), salt, paprika, 2 cans of Gomasio, and tuna in oil. Summary: happy to have taken enough, the stocks still went down quite quickly with two on top .
Decathlon Riverside 7 VTC bike test
I bought this Decathlon Riverside 7 bike (which is the old model) on Le Bon Coin. It is rather easy to find and in good condition, but the savings are not obvious compared to the new price.
As for the brakes, no hydraulics but Shimanos which however work very well!
I chose to take a VTC (All-Terrain Bike), rather than a mountain bike (All-Terrain Bike) because on such a long trip, mountain bike wheels are not suitable: they do not allow you to benefit from inertia of the bike because they grip the ground too much with their large width and their crampons.
At the start of the trip I had a thin mountain bike tire on the back and a city tire on the front. I finally changed both tires during my visit to Alsace for two much thinner ones. Result: it's day and night, the bike seems to move on its own on the flats.
The VTC Riverside 7 turned out to be very robust, perfectly supporting my 30kg of luggage (yes, it's huge: the beginner's mistake... even if I finished the trip with around 20kg, aunt and food included) .
Navigation by bike
In 2014, any form of travel can be handled by a smartphone. As long as electrical energy is not a limiting factor (see solar panels a little further on), you can go to the other side of the world with a well-configured smartphone.
For my part, I quickly noticed the limits of navigation assistance software - what is commonly called "GPS" although this is a misnomer. Even if it has become a universal reflex to use a GPS at the slightest car trip, I strongly advise against its use for a bike trip.
Indeed, experience has proven to me that we cannot trust an algorithm that is not designed to cover "long" distances by bike (99% of GPS are developed for cars).
So the best thing to do is to plan your route yourself from day to day and use your phone as a map that fits in your pocket and displays your position in real time.
In this way, you are sure to take the roads you want and stick exactly to the planned number of kilometers (no more 10 km detours because the GPS changed the route without warning).
Applications that work well
CityMaps2Go : an essential software that allows you to download all the maps you want from an internet connection and to be able to use them offline abroad without consuming data.
The maps contain very practical metadata such as the position of railway stations, campsites, hotels, youth hostels, monument descriptions, etc.
This software costs money (less than 3 euros) but subsequently all maps are free to download when you have an internet connection.
ViaMichelin : an application that calculates routes reliably but does not directly provide navigation assistance. The algorithm is one of the smartest I've tested when it comes to calculating a distance between two points in cycling mode.
Another advantage: the software is free.
Maps 3D : a young application that is very useful for cycling because it allows you to visualize reliefs on 3D maps. The software allows you to locate yourself on the map, but also to calculate routes with display of elevation differences.
The GPS function works very well as long as you have validated your route beforehand, even if the cycling algorithm is not yet very reliable. Requires an internet connection to download maps.
Paid software (less than 5 euros), free maps. A little complicated to exploit 100% of the possibilities because it is very complete, so allow a little time to familiarize yourself with it before departure.
The big departure: leaving Paris and getting your bearings
On a symbolic level, the idea of riding your bike at the foot of the Eiffel Tower is interesting. In practice, this is a bad idea: once you have passed the dangerous and aggressive environment of the streets of the capital and the inner suburbs, you still have to ride for a while before reaching a more pleasant area for cycle touring.
In order to avoid spending an entire day leaving Paris, we opted for an RER ride to begin our journey 7 kilometers east of the capital.
Note that taking an RATP train with loaded bikes like ours is already an ordeal in itself ( note from Geoffrey: unless climbing stairs while lifting 50 kilos at arm's length is your thing ).
Despite this rail boost, we find ourselves on a shared route with cars and trucks driving at full speed for a good while.
This first day is relatively difficult in that the traffic in the Paris region is really unpleasant. To make matters worse, the body is not yet used to this type of effort. You have to show self-sacrifice to complete the first 80 kilometers.
Note from Geoffrey: for my part, I didn't really feel the stress linked to trucks, but I understand that it can be scary, especially when you rediscover half of Noah's ark in pancake mode on the sides of the road .
Provins
Arriving in Provins is a real pleasure, especially when the medieval city is colored red in the light of the setting sun or rather, said with less poetry and bold letters: when you've got your bike's legs full of it and you want to put your rind somewhere.
Made up of an upper town and a lower town, Provins is full of curiosities and monuments to discover. The bike is probably not the best means of transport given the provincial differences as well as the cobblestones which cause the wheels to skip.
On the other hand, exploring the city on foot promises a pleasant stroll to connect multiple points of interest: César Tower, Porte Saint-Jean, Collegiate Church of Saint-Quiriace, and various churches...
With a little luck, you can even come across one of the many events that bring the city to life: fairs, clearance sales, shows, parties or shows.
Provins is famous in particular for the fortifications which surround it.
The old Haute-Seine canal
A good part of eastern France is just fields. 33 degrees? Smoking bitumen? No trees? I hope you all grabbed your hats.
Wheat fields, hemp fields, wind turbine fields. France loves the fields.
Cycling makes you rediscover simple pleasures: buying cherries at the local supermarket and a cold beer is close to perfection on Earth.
The best thing that can happen to a cycle tourist out and about is to come across a canal bordered by a path reserved for bicycles. Note from Geoffrey: I cannot contradict this statement .
The bike is perfect for serving as food for mosquitoes.
This is exactly the case of the old Haute Seine canal which allowed us to reach Troyes in the best conditions: driving straight, at the water's edge, on flat ground, far from any buzzing vehicles.
It was on this occasion that I saw for the first time a bridge allowing a watercourse to pass over another watercourse.
The aqueduct is the best way to NEVER encounter the scents .
Even more aqueducts if you like aqueducts .
To be continued
In the next article, you will not know if Geoffrey finally finished his AAA andouillette from Troyes, but you will discover in particular how to manage his fatigue and his diet.
Dressing the andouillette worthy of Top Chef: the imaginative will see... a good man!
To find the other episodes, follow the guide:
1 – departure and bicycle travel equipment ,
2 – fatigue and diet of the cyclist ,
3 - the train, the tent and the bed
4 - technical clothing, skin protection and solar panels
5 - saddlebags, semi-auto pedals and bicycle repairs
6 - the parka, the fleece and the home-made bags
7 - the glasses, the dragonfly and Istanbul
