We hope you got some valuable information out of this video for your own adventures! If you have any extra tips & tricks for us feel free to share them here! Thanks for watching & Have a great day, E&M
I would add: don't overnight in (big)city's It's great fun to go through a city, but if you want do the city thing. Either ride through in a day or stay outside the city and daytrip with public transport or bike. Sleeping outside the city will safe you money in accommodation and usually have much better/safer parking for you bike. Sleeping on graveyard is also a protip: well maintained, running water, always a quiet spot. Don't push you luck when you see prepared grave.... a friend of mine told me...
Great video! Useful information. Dumpster diving 👍👍 I found my 1984 Raleigh Alyeska ( touring bike) in a dumpster. I couldn't afford to buy one in 1984. Found it in 2004. Was missing the front wheel. A friend gave me a front wheel with new tire and tube. I also bought a 1992 Trek 520 at a Curch sale for $25. Complete rideable bike.
Super useful tips! Thank you so much for sharing them. Considering just how much the two of you have traveled and how self-sufficient you are, the experiences you share are pure gold. Thank you for helping the community learn from you.
In Australia you can almost always camp at town recreation reserves (next to the football oval) or at the local showgrounds for no cost or very little. Often they will have toilets and even showers available. Our local small supermarkets are often expensive; same for many small town farmers markets. The large supermarkets are usually the cheapest place for food.
I stayed with over 40 warm shower hosts on a year long trip and I only met 3 that have actually bike toured. They all loved cycling but very few cyclists have the courage to tour. I tell them they just need to do it, even a short few days tour.
I've been a warmshower host without doing a lot of biking myself and absolutely zero bike travel. And my goal was to meet people traveling by bike, and most of the people I met were a nice experience.
One tip for recharging your gadgets is to invest in a REALLY fast-charging charger+powerbank combo. These days you can get 65, 100 or even 150 W superfast charging, which means you really can recharge your powerbank in an hour at a café. Just make sure you get components (including the cable) that are compatible with each other. Of course, these are not the cheapest models so it's always a balance between convenience and budget. But even a high-end powerbank plus charger combo still cost less than a wheel rebuild and hub generator. I like using my powerbank to recharge my phone, tablet, navigator etc in the tent. None of them support fast charging and leaving them unattended overnight in some campground washroom is always risky. But in the morning they'll be full and the powerbank half empty, but lots of people up and about so leaving the powerbank+charger in the washroom or laundry for an hour while I have breakfast and pack my tent is less of a risk. At least, it's worked so far...
5:11 I would really just get good folding solar panel and big battery pack. I use 20k mAh battery for both bike trekking, hiking and travel. You can then just charge the battery while cycling. I'm not big fan of dynamos as they are not really that good. Small solar on top of your back rack is usually just so much more efficient. And you can just get another/bigger power bank if you need more power. For example 26k power bank form Anker can probably get you few days of device usage on road even if you use laptop. It's you can charge your laptop fully once or phone about five times. That should be plenty of time to use solar panel off or on bike and maybe find a power from plug.
Lots of great advice about couch surfers, etc. A good idea (But be respectful) is to use the water in graveyards. They are generally out-of-the-way and you can also on occasion pitch your tent nearby. Also, in churches, you can easily charge your chargers secretly. As well as taking in the sights of the interior if it is stifling hot (or cold) outside.
Wow, I hadn't thought of charging things in a church! Nice one. I would feel slightly immoral doing that so will have had to have tried almost everything else before I did it - but I've been there! I have used water taps in church graveyards
My friend Mark recommended your channel months ago. Ever since then I've been watching your videos. And I've always enjoyed watching your adventures. Solid advice. I plan to do some touring next year. I'm planning routes locally this year. Nothing too big. 50 mile excursions
Thanks to the both of you, I will be even more ready when I do finally get on the road on my bike. The world just makes more sense to me when I am on two wheels. 🚲
What a GREAT video! One 'Like' just isn't enough - there is great ideas here, some of which I've tried, some are new to me, several I've heard of but not understood. Until now. I shall store this away for future use
I intend to make my own meals if I get to Europe and any first world countries. For now in Africa I find local meals cheaper than cooking for myself. These tips are handy. Thanks
Water - do filter but also carefully chose your source. An industrial area is a bad idea. Also do use a UV light source water bug killer there are a few. You may never catch a waterborne bug but it’s not nice when you do. Filter and UV kills everything. What it will never kill is any lead or heavy metals in water near the wrong water source.
Pacific Northwest (us) there are a lot of logging roads which are blocked to cars but perfect for stealth camping! Also picking berries and foraging (/purifying) water
Awesome post 🤗 I just starting following you, guys. But, I am already very impressed with the tips from the bike gear till the acomodations! Not mentioning the simple, natural astonished images & films that are shared. Thank you for being there !!! For me, besides the beauty of landscapes, I have been pleased in my trips with amazing moments with local people at small villages and/or in the big cities all over the World 🙌🏻 including close encounters with other local cyclists. Be safe, keep going and having fun 😊 See ya, blue skies 🤙🏻🍀🚲
Thanks 👍 Great video. I love it when the little lady does school teacher videos 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗 I’m hanging out to see you guys back out on the road 🤔. I do hope your both doing ok.
Thanks, a lot of good tips. At some points it was a bit hard to keep up with all the information, but the presentation is nicely divided into sections and easy to find certain topics again.
I'm reliably informed that University towns have some useful kit left in skips at the end of the academic year when a certain demographic of rich foreign student returns home. I even heard of a carbon road bike being left behind. Thanks for the great tips! :)
your video is super helpful, I have a plan to cycling patagonia in next couple months and dont know how to start or how to plan or begin and end. Thank you
Enjoyed listening to this. On the subject of cooking, I'm surprised that no-one has come up with a small simple book of camping recipes. Is that an idea?
Also if you know that groceries will be more expensive along your way, sending resupply boxes ahead by mail can be cheaper than paying high regional food prices and give you better selection too. Another way to save money which is not for everyone, is to carry more food - when you buy food for the week or 2 you get to buy bigger packages, and pay a better price, if you can handle the weight... then that is a good way to save a ton of money on food.
Each season I try to add one or 2 edible plants to what I know. It is amazing how soon you will look at the world completely differently. Know your/you're love
Here is a detailed answer about dogs. I wrote it on another thread for a person planning a transcon on a recumbent. As for dogs on tour, I have had many experiences with them. Some cyclists might carry pepper spray, which I have done but never used. I saw another advise carrying a water pistol containing a mixture of water and ammonia; this I have never done. The fact is that dogs can be an occasional annoyance or hassle or whatever, but by and large they are not a real danger unless one comes charging at you from out of nowhere, startling you, and causing you to involuntarily swerve out into traffic. It happens. There is something about the movement of cycling that sets dogs off into a headstrong frenzy of barking and chasing. I mean, you come along, and there is some dog in a yard. It has been lolling around all day perhaps. It catches sight of you going by on your bike, and it immediately goes nuts. It starts barking, snarling, yelping, and growling, and chasing you at high speed and going for your heels with all its might. I have seen dogs go absolutely bananas at the sight of me cycling, even if I was two hundred feet away from them. I have seen them come charging out at me, stopped only by a fence around the property. They would follow all along the fence line to the end, and then go ape trying to jump over the fence or tunnel under it. This kind of reaction comes from dogs of all sizes from the largest dogs to even those little Mexican Chihuahuas. That is no kidding. I was cycling through some town. Somebody was carrying one of those little Mexican dogs. It saw me. It went crazy trying to jump from its owners arms and chase along. I have worked out a manner of dealing with dogs. In spite of all the noise and chases not one dog has ever actually bitten me. However, they do seem to be fond of going for the feet, and some have come close to biting. First, slow down a bit, look at the dog and yell out a loud, sharp report, and when I say loud and sharp that is what is meant; something like you might expect to hear from a marine corps drill sargeant. You might have to yell a number of times. The yelling will bring some dogs to a halt. Some will stop temporarily and continue, and slow down or halt every time you yell. Just yell out hut or ha loud, sharp, and clear. If that does not dissuade the cur from pursuing his pleasure or whatever it is he gets out of the chase, come to a dead stop and give him the yell. He will stop. He may turn around and take off. He may tarry a while and snip and growl. He may come close, but my experience is the actual attack will not happen. I have cycled 34,000 miles through 19 countries, and six or more times across the USA, so I know of what I speak. I have always ridden an upright touring bike, therefore, having a dog running along and chasing at my heels is a different matter from riding a recumbent with the animal more nearly at the vital parts such as torso, head, and throat. My general advice is this. If you are concerned, do what I have told you, and carry a water pistol with water and ammonia in it, if legal to do so, or a very good pepper spray, not one of those little key chain things, but a canister with a real fog or large volume spray that comes out, but do not use it as a first response. If you yell and stop and yell, the dog will stop his pursuit. In other words, do not run and it will not chase. Often, as you are stopped at the roadside waiting for the animal to lose interest, its owner will come out and call it back, and it trots on home. If you stop and it stops and loses interest, it might head back to its territory on its own, but if you take off it will turn around and continue chasing. Dogs, for the most part, are a temporary nuisance, but not a real serious danger. However, I am sure cyclists have been actually attacked, and perhaps even injured. When stopped, the hound may come close, but will not actually sink its teeth into your hide. If it is particularly vicious or mean, give him a whiff of the pepper spray or whatever, but I have never found that to be necessary. If you get off the bike and walk a ways, which you would not or might not be able to do, it could lose interest; get back on and cycle away, and it will pick up where it left off, or just go home. Try not to let a dog catch you by surprise in close quarters. That happened to me once, and I tipped over injuring my ankle. It was at night on a quiet, placid road. A very large dog came charging aggressively from out of the bushes near the side of the road. All of a sudden I heard this very loud barking and snarling, and saw a blur out of the corner of my eye. In an attempt to stop, dismount immediately, and get the bike between myself and the attacking dog, I forgot my feet were strapped into the pedals, and tried to get off on the right of the bike, I fell over and twisted my ankle. Well, at least I fell over away from the dog and not toward it. After all that the dog just stood there looking at me, and turned around and left. It was one of the larger breeds of dog, and I am sure it would not have harmed me, but it caught me completely unexpected, and I reacted unthinking with a start. There was no time to think through what to do. The subconscious mind told me I was under attack and needed to respond, and I did. You might have dog problems in some areas at times, and no dog problems whatsoever in other places. In 1984 in winter along highway 90 in Florida free ranging dogs were all over the place, and I might add, were often seen dead along the roadside after having been slammed by motor vehicles. In 2007 I cycled 90, and there was not the first problem with the first dog; very different from 1984. In countrified areas dog owners may be more disposed to letting their dogs roam free. Some may be fenced in, but have some little tunnel dug out under the fence in some bush-covered corner. They actually seem to be smart enough to try and cover or hide their tunnels. Anyway, that is about all I can tell you. If you go into Eastern Europe, you may find canines of a very different stripe; very different from the friendly domesticated kind we are used to in the US. As for some of those dogs I encountered in eastern Europe, nothing short of a firearm would save you. Some of those would run you to earth and kill you and eat you. I had never seen anything even remotely as vicious as those, and have not seen anything like it since. If there is any such thing as a homicidal, insane, psychotic, murderous, savage dog, those dogs were it. Thank God for chain link fences. They must have been raised to be that way.
Thanks a lot for sharing your precious experiences. I saw that your handlebar post is longer than normal, especially on your butterfly bars, would you share the specifications?
Hi again, looking forwards to more travel vids. Meanwhile, could you say something about your chain-cleaning on the road - what do you use, how often etc. I know you carry a toothbrush for that purpose and use a lube that sets up dry - and that Eric said in one video that you get 20k Kilometres out of a chain + cassette. That is staggering (I get about 3K Kilometres if I’m lucky). Do you use any cleaner ?
We never clean the chains as the lube has a kind of self cleaning effect by letting the dried lube fall of taking some dirt with it. I did about 20K with one crankset and two chains, swapping them out every 1500-2000km or so. It worked but at the end for sure there was some skipping from time to time. Now we do more offroad riding and the whole drivetrain is deteriorating so much faster than in our asphalt days...
Thanks! We like cooking on gas with a ground stove and titanium pots. We mix our stove situation from time to time to experiment and have some fun with it! All the best, E&M
Be aware that in many countries volunteering and housesitting is considered work and officially requires a working visa. In reality the risk is tiny, but if caught consequences may be severe.
Hygiene is so important. If you are too tired at the end of the day to clean up, you are biking too many miles a day. Don't embrace a smelly body. Prevent it, body order and smelly clothing are telling you that "there is a fungus among us".
Women i dont like your name pronounced in english,it sound to me in french like''maudit'' wich mean cursed,,wich you are far from being one. Thanks for the tips guys ;).
We hope you got some valuable information out of this video for your own adventures! If you have any extra tips & tricks for us feel free to share them here! Thanks for watching & Have a great day, E&M
Wonderful advice thank you
In the UK I've slept in bird spotter huts,making a change from pitching the tent
Great idea Stephen! We have to try that some day... Best wishes, E&M
I would add: don't overnight in (big)city's
It's great fun to go through a city, but if you want do the city thing. Either ride through in a day or stay outside the city and daytrip with public transport or bike.
Sleeping outside the city will safe you money in accommodation and usually have much better/safer parking for you bike.
Sleeping on graveyard is also a protip: well maintained, running water, always a quiet spot.
Don't push you luck when you see prepared grave.... a friend of mine told me...
Your camping meals always look great. How about a video on favourite recipes when you have some down time.
Thanks Mik! Perhaps we will do that. Great to hear you like our meals :) All the best, E&M
Great video! Useful information.
Dumpster diving 👍👍
I found my 1984 Raleigh Alyeska ( touring bike) in a dumpster. I couldn't afford to buy one in 1984. Found it in 2004. Was missing the front wheel. A friend gave me a front wheel with new tire and tube.
I also bought a 1992 Trek 520 at a Curch sale for $25. Complete rideable bike.
Thanks Jeffrey! Love hearing your dumpster findings 👍🏼 Enjoy the ride! E&M
Super useful tips! Thank you so much for sharing them.
Considering just how much the two of you have traveled and how self-sufficient you are, the experiences you share are pure gold. Thank you for helping the community learn from you.
Thank you Phylthya 🙏🏼 Great to hear our videos help out in this way! Best wishes, E&M
In Australia you can almost always camp at town recreation reserves (next to the football oval) or at the local showgrounds for no cost or very little. Often they will have toilets and even showers available.
Our local small supermarkets are often expensive; same for many small town farmers markets. The large supermarkets are usually the cheapest place for food.
I stayed with over 40 warm shower hosts on a year long trip and I only met 3 that have actually bike toured. They all loved cycling but very few cyclists have the courage to tour. I tell them they just need to do it, even a short few days tour.
I've been a warmshower host without doing a lot of biking myself and absolutely zero bike travel. And my goal was to meet people traveling by bike, and most of the people I met were a nice experience.
It's incredible how you manage to offer so much quality content in a relatively short video. Thank you for that.
Thanks so much Bruno 🙏🏼 All the Best!
One tip for recharging your gadgets is to invest in a REALLY fast-charging charger+powerbank combo. These days you can get 65, 100 or even 150 W superfast charging, which means you really can recharge your powerbank in an hour at a café. Just make sure you get components (including the cable) that are compatible with each other.
Of course, these are not the cheapest models so it's always a balance between convenience and budget. But even a high-end powerbank plus charger combo still cost less than a wheel rebuild and hub generator.
I like using my powerbank to recharge my phone, tablet, navigator etc in the tent. None of them support fast charging and leaving them unattended overnight in some campground washroom is always risky. But in the morning they'll be full and the powerbank half empty, but lots of people up and about so leaving the powerbank+charger in the washroom or laundry for an hour while I have breakfast and pack my tent is less of a risk. At least, it's worked so far...
5:11 I would really just get good folding solar panel and big battery pack. I use 20k mAh battery for both bike trekking, hiking and travel. You can then just charge the battery while cycling. I'm not big fan of dynamos as they are not really that good. Small solar on top of your back rack is usually just so much more efficient. And you can just get another/bigger power bank if you need more power. For example 26k power bank form Anker can probably get you few days of device usage on road even if you use laptop. It's you can charge your laptop fully once or phone about five times. That should be plenty of time to use solar panel off or on bike and maybe find a power from plug.
We might be checking out some solar panels soon... 😉 Thanks & All the best!
Lots of great advice about couch surfers, etc. A good idea (But be respectful) is to use the water in graveyards. They are generally out-of-the-way and you can also on occasion pitch your tent nearby. Also, in churches, you can easily charge your chargers secretly. As well as taking in the sights of the interior if it is stifling hot (or cold) outside.
Thanks for the great tips there! We will, respectfully, try to see how they work for us. All the best, E&M
Wow, I hadn't thought of charging things in a church! Nice one. I would feel slightly immoral doing that so will have had to have tried almost everything else before I did it - but I've been there!
I have used water taps in church graveyards
@@Neilhuny Oh! I would NEVER steal their water. That's HOLY!
@@davideldred.campingwilder6481 😁😆
My friend Mark recommended your channel months ago. Ever since then I've been watching your videos. And I've always enjoyed watching your adventures. Solid advice. I plan to do some touring next year. I'm planning routes locally this year. Nothing too big. 50 mile excursions
Amazing and awesome and absolutely cool. Love these important tips! 👍👍
Thanks to the both of you,
I will be even more ready when I do finally get on the road on my bike. The world just makes more sense to me when I am on two wheels. 🚲
Lots of great advice there Maudi👍 I hope you are both keeping well, I can't wait for your next adventure😁
Thank you Rab 😊 We are doing good with the next adventure in the making... Best wishes, E&M
@@WheelstoWander Thats great to hear, all the best guys👍
Lovely couple. Enjoy your videos very much.
Great advice as always. I find Maudie’s narration very relaxing and interesting to listen too. Thank you.
Thank You Maudi.....! This video was much needed......Awesome! This is what TH-cam about.
🙏🏼😊 Happy to hear that!! Thanks
Fun to watch for sure. Love all you trips. I am a cyclist and also occasionally tour but not to you r extreme. That is why I savour your content.
Hello Maudi, very compact information. Was fun, thanks
I hope you are both doing well and you can travel again
Best regards
Bernard
What a GREAT video! One 'Like' just isn't enough - there is great ideas here, some of which I've tried, some are new to me, several I've heard of but not understood. Until now.
I shall store this away for future use
Great to hear Neil 😊 We hope you will get good use out of it! Tailwinds, E&M
So well spoken, great tips !!
Thanks Guys 🙏🏼 Best wishes!!
Many thanks for your time and tips, have a great journey anytime my friends 💪🏻💪🏻
Thanks Damian 😊 Wishing you all the Best, E&M
Very informative. 😊 Need this type of more video.
Thanks Rochit 😊 Great to hear that! All the Best, E&M
Warmshower list is the best one for accommodation
I intend to make my own meals if I get to Europe and any first world countries. For now in Africa I find local meals cheaper than cooking for myself.
These tips are handy. Thanks
Thanks Mugumya 😊 We can imagine that in Africa. Wishing you all the best on your travels, E&M
Best video I found on the subject. Greetings from Brazil.
Thanks 😊 All the Best, E&M
Water - do filter but also carefully chose your source. An industrial area is a bad idea. Also do use a UV light source water bug killer there are a few. You may never catch a waterborne bug but it’s not nice when you do. Filter and UV kills everything. What it will never kill is any lead or heavy metals in water near the wrong water source.
Great tips all around! Thanks 🙏🏼
Pacific Northwest (us) there are a lot of logging roads which are blocked to cars but perfect for stealth camping! Also picking berries and foraging (/purifying) water
And bear spotting.
I appreciate your instructional “think about this” videos.
Awesome post 🤗 I just starting following you, guys. But, I am already very impressed with the tips from the bike gear till the acomodations! Not mentioning the simple, natural astonished images & films that are shared. Thank you for being there !!!
For me, besides the beauty of landscapes, I have been pleased in my trips with amazing moments with local people at small villages and/or in the big cities all over the World 🙌🏻 including close encounters with other local cyclists.
Be safe, keep going and having fun 😊 See ya, blue skies 🤙🏻🍀🚲
Great to hear your positive perspective on bicycle touring 😊 Thanks you, best wishes & tailwinds 🚲🍀
Another very informative video. Thank you and take care, Al
Good tips .thanks globe wonderers. ur beautiful experience on wheels. Great .❤
Thanks 👍 Great video. I love it when the little lady does school teacher videos 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗 I’m hanging out to see you guys back out on the road 🤔. I do hope your both doing ok.
these are all great advice and very important points. Awesome stuff , thank you so much for posting.
Thank you too 😊🙏🏼 All the Best, E&M
Thanks, a lot of good tips. At some points it was a bit hard to keep up with all the information, but the presentation is nicely divided into sections and easy to find certain topics again.
Thank you Elly! There is indeed quite a lot here. Great to hear you found the presentation to be adequate. Best wishes :)
Thank you for the great advices ❤
Happy to hear that, Thanks 😊
I'm reliably informed that University towns have some useful kit left in skips at the end of the academic year when a certain demographic of rich foreign student returns home. I even heard of a carbon road bike being left behind. Thanks for the great tips! :)
your video is super helpful, I have a plan to cycling patagonia in next couple months and dont know how to start or how to plan or begin and end. Thank you
Thank you Sola 😊 All the best for your upcoming tour, E&M
So useful… i learned many new tips.
nice the contine for bike touring keep safe always🙏♥️🙏♥️
Enjoyed listening to this. On the subject of cooking, I'm surprised that no-one has come up with a small simple book of camping recipes. Is that an idea?
Thank you Alex! That is an idea we have brewing ;) All the best, E&M
Very helpful video. Thank you
Thanks for so many useful tips friends.
Thank you Rahimullah 😊 Happy you liked it! Best wishes, E&M
Also if you know that groceries will be more expensive along your way, sending resupply boxes ahead by mail can be cheaper than paying high regional food prices and give you better selection too. Another way to save money which is not for everyone, is to carry more food - when you buy food for the week or 2 you get to buy bigger packages, and pay a better price, if you can handle the weight... then that is a good way to save a ton of money on food.
Each season I try to add one or 2 edible plants to what I know. It is amazing how soon you will look at the world completely differently. Know your/you're love
Here is a detailed answer about dogs. I wrote it on another thread for a person planning a transcon on a recumbent.
As for dogs on tour, I have had many experiences with them. Some cyclists might carry pepper spray, which I have done but never used. I saw another advise carrying a water pistol containing a mixture of water and ammonia; this I have never done. The fact is that dogs can be an occasional annoyance or hassle or whatever, but by and large they are not a real danger unless one comes charging at you from out of nowhere, startling you, and causing you to involuntarily swerve out into traffic. It happens.
There is something about the movement of cycling that sets dogs off into a headstrong frenzy of barking and chasing. I mean, you come along, and there is some dog in a yard. It has been lolling around all day perhaps. It catches sight of you going by on your bike, and it immediately goes nuts. It starts barking, snarling, yelping, and growling, and chasing you at high speed and going for your heels with all its might. I have seen dogs go absolutely bananas at the sight of me cycling, even if I was two hundred feet away from them. I have seen them come charging out at me, stopped only by a fence around the property. They would follow all along the fence line to the end, and then go ape trying to jump over the fence or tunnel under it. This kind of reaction comes from dogs of all sizes from the largest dogs to even those little Mexican Chihuahuas. That is no kidding. I was cycling through some town. Somebody was carrying one of those little Mexican dogs. It saw me. It went crazy trying to jump from its owners arms and chase along.
I
have worked out a manner of dealing with dogs. In spite of all the noise and chases not one dog has ever actually bitten me. However, they do seem to be fond of going for the feet, and some have come close to biting. First, slow down a bit, look at the dog and yell out a loud, sharp report, and when I say loud and sharp that is what is meant; something like you might expect to hear from a marine corps drill sargeant. You might have to yell a number of times. The yelling will bring some dogs to a halt. Some will stop temporarily and continue, and slow down or halt every time you yell. Just yell out hut or ha loud, sharp, and clear. If that does not dissuade the cur from pursuing his pleasure or whatever it is he gets out of the chase, come to a dead stop and give him the yell. He will stop. He may turn around and take off. He may tarry a while and snip and growl. He may come close, but my experience is the actual attack will not happen. I have cycled 34,000 miles through 19 countries, and six or more times across the USA, so I know of what I speak.
I
have always ridden an upright touring bike, therefore, having a dog running along and chasing at my heels is a different matter from riding a recumbent with the animal more nearly at the vital parts such as torso, head, and throat. My general advice is this. If you are concerned, do what I have told you, and carry a water pistol with water and ammonia in it, if legal to do so, or a very good pepper spray, not one of those little key chain things, but a canister with a real fog or large volume spray that comes out, but do not use it as a first response. If you yell and stop and yell, the dog will stop his pursuit. In other words, do not run and it will not chase. Often, as you are stopped at the roadside waiting for the animal to lose interest, its owner will come out and call it back, and it trots on home. If you stop and it stops and loses interest, it might head back to its territory on its own, but if you take off it will turn around and continue chasing. Dogs, for the most part, are a temporary nuisance, but not a real serious danger. However, I am sure cyclists have been actually attacked, and perhaps even injured.
When stopped, the hound may come close, but will not actually sink its teeth into your hide. If it is particularly vicious or mean, give him a whiff of the pepper spray or whatever, but I have never found that to be necessary. If you get off the bike and walk a ways, which you would not or might not be able to do, it could lose interest; get back on and cycle away, and it will pick up where it left off, or just go home.
Try not to let a dog catch you by surprise in close quarters. That happened to me once, and I tipped over injuring my ankle. It was at night on a quiet, placid road. A very large dog came charging aggressively from out of the bushes near the side of the road. All of a sudden I heard this very loud barking and snarling, and saw a blur out of the corner of my eye. In an attempt to stop, dismount immediately, and get the bike between myself and the attacking dog, I forgot my feet were strapped into the pedals, and tried to get off on the right of the bike, I fell over and twisted my ankle. Well, at least I fell over away from the dog and not toward it. After all that the dog just stood there looking at me, and turned around and left. It was one of the larger breeds of dog, and I am sure it would not have harmed me, but it caught me completely unexpected, and I reacted unthinking with a start. There was no time to think through what to do. The subconscious mind told me I was under attack and needed to respond, and I did.
You might have dog problems in some areas at times, and no dog problems whatsoever in other places. In 1984 in winter along highway 90 in Florida free ranging dogs were all over the place, and I might add, were often seen dead along the roadside after having been slammed by motor vehicles. In 2007 I cycled 90, and there was not the first problem with the first dog; very different from 1984. In countrified areas dog owners may be more disposed to letting their dogs roam free. Some may be fenced in, but have some little tunnel dug out under the fence in some bush-covered corner. They actually seem to be smart enough to try and cover or hide their tunnels. Anyway, that is about all I can tell you. If you go into Eastern Europe, you may find canines of a very different stripe; very different from the friendly domesticated kind we are used to in the US.
As for some of those dogs I encountered in eastern Europe, nothing short of a firearm would save you. Some of those would run you to earth and kill you and eat you. I had never seen anything even remotely as vicious as those, and have not seen anything like it since. If there is any such thing as a homicidal, insane, psychotic, murderous, savage dog, those dogs were it. Thank God for chain link fences. They must have been raised to be that way.
Excellent
This was very very useful. So helpful.
Thanks so much 😊 All the Best, E&M
Merci !
Thanks 😊 All the Best, E&M
Hi maudi, not sure what's going on, not getting notifications, but anyway thanks for a very informative video and hi Eric 😊
Hi David! We hear that sometimes... strange! We hope you are doing good! Best wishes, E&M
@@WheelstoWander thanks guys look after your self's.
Thanks a lot for sharing your precious experiences.
I saw that your handlebar post is longer than normal, especially on your butterfly bars, would you share the specifications?
Thanks :) It is the Soma high rise stem adapter!
Great job, Maudi!!
Thank you Robert 😊
Hi again, looking forwards to more travel vids. Meanwhile, could you say something about your chain-cleaning on the road - what do you use, how often etc. I know you carry a toothbrush for that purpose and use a lube that sets up dry - and that Eric said in one video that you get 20k Kilometres out of a chain + cassette. That is staggering (I get about 3K Kilometres if I’m lucky). Do you use any cleaner ?
We never clean the chains as the lube has a kind of self cleaning effect by letting the dried lube fall of taking some dirt with it. I did about 20K with one crankset and two chains, swapping them out every 1500-2000km or so. It worked but at the end for sure there was some skipping from time to time. Now we do more offroad riding and the whole drivetrain is deteriorating so much faster than in our asphalt days...
@@WheelstoWander thanks. Still an amazing mileage for 2 chains and one crankset. So you just put more dry lube on top of the existing stuff?
Thank you.
Thanks Don 😊 Best wishes, E&M
Great episode with hosts at 2:30 :)
Great video!!! Mahalo!!
0:36 are you in Azerbaijan in this clip? I'm guessing from both the food and the dishes.
Indeed we are :) Loved those filled pancakes!!
yes..... the more one travels, the more one enriches oneself with culture.
😄👍🏼
Thank you for the great tips! Any plans for biking the USA?
Great tips
Thanks Damian 😊 All the best
thanks 👍
Thanks Roger! All the Best, E&M
Everything is out standing but i am cuerious about your cooking items you know it is very difficult in travel
Thanks! We like cooking on gas with a ground stove and titanium pots. We mix our stove situation from time to time to experiment and have some fun with it! All the best, E&M
Awesome!
Thanks 😊 All the Best, E&M
Be aware that in many countries volunteering and housesitting is considered work and officially requires a working visa. In reality the risk is tiny, but if caught consequences may be severe.
Good to be aware of that! Thanks & All the best, E&M
Hi there
Could you tell me how much you as a couple would budget per week on average with the style of bikepacking touring you do
Cheers
At the moment we are not really counting that close anymore but on our big world trip it was about 25€ for 2 people a day.
💯
Hygiene is so important. If you are too tired at the end of the day to clean up, you are biking too many miles a day. Don't embrace a smelly body. Prevent it, body order and smelly clothing are telling you that "there is a fungus among us".
Indeed! Beter slow down a little and work on creature comforts!
welcome to China. you can have a wonderful bike journey here.
We would really be interested in that... Who knows!?
Time to tour usa or Australia or new Zealand
Saving money is click bate lol had to click lol good advice as always
😉 Thanks!
😍😍👍👍👍👌👌
😊
how can you talk about dumpster diving and put it in hacks video, god dayum
It's easy ;)
🇧🇷🙏🙏
Thank you Jose 😊
Asking a Nederlander how to save money is not wasting your time.
😂 We'll take that as a compliment!
Women i dont like your name pronounced in english,it sound to me in french like''maudit'' wich mean cursed,,wich you are far from being one. Thanks for the tips guys ;).
Thank you CJ! Lucky my name is without the -t... All the best!