Today wasn’t the greatest day in my ongoing efforts to master the basics of the Spanish language. My small class consists of me, a francophone Canadian and a multilingual Dutchman (who is probably reading this so I had better be careful what I say!). Both are very affable […]
So it’s Monday 9th March and I’m just about to start my second week at the language school here in Cádiz. Perhaps first of all I should apologise to all those people who are desperate for me to start writing about cycling once again. At the moment there […]
On the Sykes/CyclingEurope Luxembourg scale of local museum quality (where the Luxembourg City History Museum scores a straight 10 – more details here), the Museo de Cádiz that I’ve just visited comes out with a high 7. Today’s visit was the first of three that I’m going to […]
Yesterday, following my, err… ‘grate’ morning stroll to the main square in front of the ayuntamiento (or town hall) of the city, I sat down for a few minutes to upload the ‘grate’ pictures [OK, stop with the ‘grate’ jokes now…] to the Internet and to await my […]
I’ve just read the following comment on Instagram and I’m very touched indeed. Many thanks to Dr. Guru Singh for writing what he has:
Bear with me on this one… Whatever you may think of grates and manholes (or indeed personholes as I suppose we should nowadays refer to them as), they do come in a great (no pun intended) variety of shapes and sizes. Indeed some are very small, others are […]
It’s not the first time I have used the GoPro camera but it is the first time on this trip that I’ve tried to use it for a proper purpose. The results are mixed. I filmed a time-lapse sunset which was OK but the camera seems to compensate […]
By Felix Leckie This summer I’m planning to cycle 1,450 miles with my dad from home to Slovenia for charity. The charity we are raising money for is called the Children’s Bereavement Centre. It’s a fantastic local charity that helps support children and their families affected by terminal […]
But that’s no bad thing. I’m here for a month and can’t do ‘important’ things every day. And it’s not saying that the ‘unimportant’ things that I did do were nevertheless uninteresting; they weren’t. So what were they? Well the lessons this morning of course (we were studying… […]
I’ve been wandering around Cadiz since my arrival last Saturday, so much of what I saw today on my first proper tour with a guide who knew what she was talking about – it was my teacher at the language school Christina – wasn’t new. But the Torre […]
My cunning plan to continue to use my mobile phone and 3G/4G data during my two months in Spain – see the details at length here – is not working quite as well as I thought it might. To avoid the £3 per day charge from Vodafone UK, I […]
The plan for today was – and still is – to spend a few hours reviewing my notes from the Spanish course that I completed during the last three months of 2014 at Reading College. I’m slowly getting a little better at coming up with the important bits […]
Today has been very reminiscent of my first day at university over twenty years ago. It started with goodbyes, handshakes and embraces with members of my family (my uncle and his wife standing in for my parents this time around) followed by a long journey on a bus […]
Today was spent in and around Estepona, the coastal Andalucian town where my uncle and his wife live. The bike having been delivered yesterday – I was expecting it today and was prepared for a long wait – I became a liberated man and we made the most […]
Before heading down to my uncle’s house near Estepona yesterday afternoon I took the opportunity of paying a morning visit to the Alcazba, the palace of the Moors. Not quite of Granada’s Alhambra standard but interesting nevertheless and as I was the only tourist in the place (there […]
I would normally write ‘Cycling Day’ or ‘Rest Day’ plus a number up there in the title but that clearly isn’t yet relevant to this part of 2015’s travels across Europe as for the first five or six weeks I’m not going to be doing much crossing of […]
About to leave Yorkshire after a brief stay of just three weeks to fly to Malaga, Spain. Reggie (the bike) may already be there… Back in six months!
A few weeks ago I moved away from Reading in Berkshire having lived there for just over fifteen years. I can clearly remember my first visit to the town in Spring 1999 when I was summoned to the university for an interview. It was a horribly wet and windy […]
The word of the weekend has been ‘packing’. On Saturday morning I transported the final items from my move from the south to my new ‘lock-up’ in Halifax (it’s actually a large wooden box in a former woollen mill) and then, after having packed most of my cycling […]
I’ve been sent a couple of cycling guides to review by Cicerone: The Rhine Cycle Route (ISBN: 978-1-85284-797-5) and The Danube Cycleway (ISBN: 978-1-85284-722-7). The Rhine guide is an updated version of the original 2013 guide, the Danube guide has just been published for the first time. When […]
OK. You’ve seen what I’m taking, now have a look at how I packed (most of) it into one holdall ready to be transported by Luggage Mule to southern Spain next week:
Although most of it is not new, it’s taken me about a week to assemble the cycling gear in the picture below. The task was not made easier by the fact that I had already packed up the contents of my flat in Reading into lots of boxes prior […]
By Per Amble European Bike tourism is a growing pastime with thousands of new enthusiasts engaging in some fitness boosting, road rambling activity every passing month. Part of people’s new thirst for picturesque tours through Europe has been down to the massive innovation that is the smartphone app. […]
Being interviewed in almost all situations (I’m excluding being interviewed by the police here which I imagine is not a particularly pleasant experience) does, despite the often stressful nature of such encounters (job interview, other people listening…) have one very nice aspect. In life we don’t often have the […]
If you hadn’t noticed, I’ve posted these country-specific commentaries about the upcoming Eurovelo 1/3 trip from southern Spain to northern Norway: Cycling in Spain Cycling in France Cycling in Belgium Cycling in Germany Cycling in Denmark Cycling in Sweden Cycling in Norway
I woke up a couple of hours ago and decided to continue piecing together the pile of cycling/camping kit that I started to assemble earlier in the week. The start was modest to say the least but it only took me half an hour or so to bring […]
There is a moment in the film Raiders of the Lost Arc when Indiana Jones places a sacred staff in just the right place inside a newly discovered ancient cavern and magically a blinding shaft of light pierces through the skylight. The whole scene is played out to […]
Under two weeks now until departure and I’m finally beginning to piece things together in a serious way. The flight is purchased and the Spanish course booked but you already know that as you have read this, no? Yesterday I spent the day in Leeds in search of […]
I’m not sure if some you have noticed (probably yes) but I occasionally post things on CyclingEurope.org that have been ‘sponsored’. You can work out what that means! Anyway, this morning I was chatting on Twitter with a chap called John Wilson who asked if I could help […]
Not quite nothing to do with cycling…
So finally, after Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Belgium and France… I arrive at the beginning (if that makes sense), in Spain. If you remember, my posts about cycling through each of the countries of the Eurovelo 1/3 route that I will be following later in the year were […]
For more info about the statistics below, follow this link.
It’s been a busy few days since relocating back up to Yorkshire but I’m delighted that the whole process is now complete. I first started to plan my return to the county where I was born, brought up and educated over twelve months ago and everything has now […]
If you choose to use the service discussed below, you can now save 5% by using the discount code CYCEUR15 Cycling to southern Italy in 2010 it wasn’t a problem; I set off from my flat in Reading and just started pedalling. At the end of the journey in Brindisi, […]
I am delighted to announce that ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie‘ has now broken into the highly competitive Indian book market. It is currently the number 1 cycling eBook available on Amazon.in! (OK, I admit it, it’s sold one copy but it’s a start…) Meanwhile back […]
OK, I’m now back in Elland after my ride up and then down (kind of – I caught the train from Hebden Bridge to Halifax and then cycled back along the Hebble Trail and then the canal) the Calder Valley. Apart from the simple joy of getting out […]
I hate to admit this but… As chief executive (well, I write most of it) of CyclingEurope.org you’d think I’d be off on my bicycle every day doing this and that, cycling to work, heading off into the countryside every weekend seeking out nooks and crannies on my […]
Well, perhaps they weren’t but the likes of Sustrans and their local partners have made them feel that way…
By Simon Tilsley Three young men from Wirral, Simon Tilsley 22, Shaun Park 23 and Adam Woods 21, are undertaking an epic unsupported bike ride from London to Berlin to raise funds for Cancer Research UK and Dementia UK. “We’ve all had family and friends affected by these […]
Here’s a press release from the European Cyclists’ Federation about Velo-city 2015: France is well underway in the preparations to welcome Velo-city 2015, the global cycling summit, from June 2-5 in Nantes. The programme is in its final stages, having been constructed from a record-breaking 740 submissions from 51 […]
By Ben Smith I’ve been on short cycle tours before but January of this year saw me leave on my first trip that would stretch into weeks and months. The route was loose and fluid but the general plan was to get the ferry to Cherbourg in northern […]
By Alex Bodini, Co-founder, Fixation London We, like many others, have quietly observed the increase in cyclists on the roads of the UK with a big smile on our face over the past 5 years – we are bike people, always have been, always will be, so whether its […]
Today is my last full day in my flat in Reading, Berkshire before I head north to Yorkshire for a few weeks then to Cadiz, Spain for a bit of language learning and then set off to cycle from Tarifa to Nordkapp. The new owner moves in tomorrow. Compared […]
Here’s a nice little promotional video publicising Velo-City 2015 which will be taking place in Nantes, France from the 2nd – 5th June this year. I’m almost tempted to take a detour from my Eurovelo 1/3 trip to pay it a visit…
Two new reviews for ‘Along The Med on a Bike Called Reggie‘… ‘Guru’ writes on Amazon.co.uk: 5* – An epic journey across the Mediterranean by Reggie and a man called Andrew “I read Andrew’s first book Crossing Europe on a Bike called Reggie twice and enjoyed it even […]
In a few days I will leave Reading after just over fifteen years studying, working and living in the Berkshire town. One nice thing about doing so is using my departure as an excuse to meet up with friends that I will leave behind. This morning I said goodbye […]
So, after Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany and Belgium I arrive in France on my pre-Eurovelo 1/3 quest to have put at the very least a bit of thought into the planning of the route. Only one country to go – Spain – which will be the first of […]
So here it is… More details on Le Tour Yorkshire website.
UPDATE: You can now read the Henley Standard article referred to in this post online by following this link. It’s not often you make it onto the front page of a newspaper for bad reasons let alone for a good one but I’m please to say that I’ve managed to […]
A new edition of the free Bicycle Traveler magazine is out. I have mixed feelings when browsing this online publication; admiration and envy in equal measure. The stories of the trips that it recounts put my own little jaunts across Europe into perspective somewhat but perhaps one day I […]
This is brilliant technology from Jaguar Land Rover that, if it saves lives, is worth every penny. My only misgiving would be that we ever get to the point where drivers become more reliant upon such devices than they are on their own ability to keep a good look […]
“Dear CTC supporter At the beginning of next week, your MP will have a chance to make not only a difference to cycling but also to the future health and economy of the country. As CTC’s research issued today has shown, with ambition, leadership and long-term funding commitment […]
After pondering over whether to buy some new Ortlieb panniers (see previous post), my mind remained focussed on the general theme of ‘equipment’. I really need to set some kind of budget for getting hold of what I need to buy. After having cycled across Europe twice already, I […]
Sorry, but it’s time to sound like a nerd. At least I’ve warned you… Panniers. If you didn’t look away at the end of the first paragraph, you’re likely to have do so now but for the few of you left reading, panniers have been on my mind […]
It’s occasionally interesting to have a detailed look at the statistics that WordPress (the people who make this website function) furnish me with. You’d be surprised just how much information I know about you! For example, I know how many of you come here, what you read (well, I don’t […]
This post from Kevin Mayne of the ECF is very well timed in light of my own post at the weekend which looked forward to ‘Cycling in Belgium‘… Over to you Kevin!
By Jason Furness When you’re on the road as a cyclist, you can sometimes get the impression that those in the safety bubble of their cars can be totally oblivious to us two-wheelers. Whether you ride to work, use it for fitness, or for some outdoor time on a […]
“Words and verse about the race” sums up this half hour programme called ‘Fear and Loathing In Harrogate‘ that was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 earlier this week. Recorded in, well, Harrogate on the day that the Tour de France passed through the town, it’s well worth thirty […]
My journey across the continent continues… I have already posted planning notes on cycling through Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Germany. Here are my planning notes for Belgium after which only France and Spain need to be considered before I set off from Tarifa in Spain shortly after Easter. […]
Last Sunday at the swimming pool – Arthur Hill Pool at Cemetery Junction in Reading – it was quiet. This struck me a little strange it being the first Sunday of the year. Where were all the people who had committed to getting fit in 2015? It was […]
Guru Singh – ‘Singh of the Mountains‘ – is challenging himself to cycle over the Alps in aid of Cancer Research. Despite his cold, I’m delighted to say that ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie‘ and ‘Along The Med on a Bike Called Reggie‘ are helping to […]
An updated online look for 2015… on Twitter: …and on Facebook:
While maps are on my mind (see previous post)… I have a newly discovered love for Marco Polo maps. But before I get on to them, let’s back track a little. I can’t imagine there will ever be a day when I ditch paper maps altogether; when I cycled […]
So impressed was I yesterday with my ability to trace a nice blue track upon the German section of the Eurovelo map of Europe in my post Cycling in Germany, I decided to do it for the rest of the route. Much more info about the trip is in […]
I was managing to write one of these country commentaries at the rate of one per weekend earlier in December but I’ve had a break for a few weeks over Christmas. Remember that they are not a complete overview of cycling in the particular country through which I […]
Fascinating video courtesy of the new Derby Velodrome which opens this month…
Alberto, Jenna, Martin, David, Marengo, Diego, Wade, Robert, Matthew, Ross, Kate, Sean, Alain, Carla, Eddy, John, Jane, and Ross all have something in common: I’ve met them through the accommodation sharing website for travelling cyclists called Warmshowers. Some have stayed with me, others have accommodated me on my […]
Hoping you all have a wonderful 2015, preferably on a bicycle! Happy New Year… May your two-wheeled adventures be good ones…
It’s perfectly normal at the fag end of the old year to reflect upon what has happened over the previous twelve months and look forward to the new year with vague (perhaps even precise) resolutions to do everything better than you did before. In the books I have […]
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2014 annual report for this blog. Here’s an excerpt: The Louvre Museum has 8.5 million visitors per year. This blog was viewed about 180,000 times in 2014. If it were an exhibit at the Louvre Museum, it would take about 8 […]
I’m in the process of updating the ‘Eurovelos 1-15‘ section of CyclingEurope.org. Do you have a link to a blog, book, online map, video etc… that I could include in the updates? Please let me know and I will add it to the relevant page. Thanks!
Here in West Yorkshire – my home county and the place to which I will be relocating permanently later in 2015 – I have just had a brief Boxing Day walk over the newly-created cycle path in West Vale (about 3 miles south of Halifax) that makes use […]
Earlier today on Twitter I suggested that I should take Reggie (my bike) out for a photo shoot. I proposed various locations; next to the River Thames? The Kennet and Avon Canal (beside rather than in)? The park? The M4 (bad idea)? The motivation for the photo shoot? Reggie […]
It’s taken some time but finally the Waterstone’s website is now listing both Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie and Along The Med on a Bike Called Reggie with their correct titles and front cover images! Many thanks to the people at Completely Novel and The eBook […]
By Daisy Hythe-Clayton at Stroke. “The Stroke Association is offering people the chance to beat the bridges and help conquer stroke by taking part in the Thames Bridges Bike Ride on Sunday 10 May 2015. Around 3,000 cyclists will hit the streets of London next year for the […]
Great Advert From Orange County Transportation Authority.
My second column for the Reading Cycle Campaign (on the subject of cycle touring) has just been published. You can read the newsletter in which it appeared by following this link. The Reading Cycle Campaign do a very good job in the Thames Valley’s largest town raising the […]
See all the 2014 Instagram images by following this link.
Don’t forget that both ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie‘ and ‘Along The Med on a Bike Called Reggie‘ are available on Apple iTunes / iBooks. ‘Along The Med…’ has just received three five-star reviews in as many days!
20 – A road sign in Caversham that I cycle past every morning on my commute to work 19 – The electronic dial on my cooker that tells the time (erroneously as I didn’t turn it back when the clocks changed in October) 18 – The greetings card […]
In May 2013 I posted this short piece about a book called “Traveling Light or Cycling Europe on Fifty Cents a Day”. You may want to read what I wrote at the time before continuing to read this. Done it? Good… Today is my final day of work […]
My final week in my current job – a languages teacher at Gillotts School in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire – has started; just five days to go. Reggie, my bicycle, is at the bike shop getting a full service (including new wheel rims and tyres as well as a reconditioned […]
Clearly this is an advert for high visibility cycling gear, but it is an effective one. Watch the YouTube video below then go interactive at OutOfTheDark.tv. For each jacket the company sell incidentally (presumably through the interactive website) they will donate £5 to RoSPA. From the press release: […]
I am humbled by this post written by Norman on his own site ‘Pedalling on Regardless’. Thanks Norman, your comments are very much appreciated.
Only five more working days until I leave my current job… The final five numbers will be revealed on Instagram and Twitter from Monday through to Friday next week…
However eager I am to move on from my current job at the end of next week for pastures new, I shall miss the sunrises over the countryside of South Oxfordshire which can be truly spectacular. Of course my view is enhanced somewhat by travelling on two rather […]
I have arrived at country number three – in a reverse sense – after previously writing about Cycling In Norway and Cycling In Sweden. Denmark will, of course, be country number five after Spain, France, Belgium and Germany but in my quest not to neglect the latter part […]
Bicycle: The Film – Trailer from Blue Hippo Media on Vimeo.
It’s not a good thing to wish away your time but sometimes it’s all but inevitable. My Instagram countdown of the days that I have to work before finishing my current job and heading off for my adventures elsewhere has now reached number 12 and has created its […]
Last weekend I wrote about cycling in Norway, the final country on my 3rd pan-European quest next year. I’m purposefully starting at the end and working backwards so as to avoid falling into the trap of thinking a lot about the first few countries in advance and ignoring those […]
Yesterday morning, immediately after having clicked on the ‘publish’ button for the previous post, I was presented with the following page. 2000! This is number 2001 and I’m about to put pen to paper (well, I’m not but you know what I mean) to write post 2002 all […]
I’m spending my Saturday morning signing and wrapping copies of Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie and Along The Med on a Bike Called Reggie. If you would like to purchase a signed copy of either or both of the books, follow this link to find out […]
It’s good to know that ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie‘ is still finding new fans. Here’s a review just posted by Daniel Cox on Amazon.co.uk (where you can currently download the eBook for just £1.55 – bargain!): “Given I thoroughly enjoy cycling and European travel, I had […]
When I cycled from Greece to Portugal in 2013, I spent most of my time pre-trip thinking about Greece, Albania and, to a certain extent, Croatia. I didn’t spend too much time considering the western European countries through which I would be cycling. In France, a country I know […]
A few weeks ago I put out an open invite to anyone who would like to contribute a piece to CyclingEurope.org. Simon Stanforth from Stanforth Bikes was the first to respond and he has written an article about the inspiration behind the touring bike that he manufactures, the beautiful […]
Like all insurance, I suppose it only matters if you make a claim but as you never know when that will be… OK, you know how insurance works. Only a few years ago insuring your bike was out of the ordinary to say the least and if you did, […]
A couple of new reviews. The first from Paul Dennis at Amazon.co.uk for Along The Med on a Bike Called Reggie: “Once again Andrew Sykes (and Reggie) lead you on an adventure, exploring new places and making you feel like you are actually there with them. Beautifully written […]
OK, it’s not the greatest adventure, but my daily commute from Reading to Henley-on-Thames by bike (Reggie the bike no less) does give me the opportunity of testing out my newly acquired Go Pro Hero 4 (silver) camera. And it worked a treat! I videoed the entire half […]
What do I need to do to get a literary agent and a publishing contract???? Positions number 1 and 4 in the iTunes ‘Travel Writing‘ chart. Number 1 in the iTunes ‘Travel and Adventure‘ category and a third book out in 2016. It’s enough to make you leave […]
I spend more time doing that than doing, if that makes sense. The focus of my recent thoughts has been the Spanish portion of my 2015 ride along the Eurovelo 3 from Santiago de Compostela to Trondheim (and then North Cape via the Eurovelo 1). A Twitter twit […]
