Travelling to WHY on a bike (11/n), looking for a place to sleep
I actually made it to #Zwolle, and it's still more than half an hour earlier than when I arrived at the garden in Enschede yesterday.
But my bike battery is almost empty, all of the garden owners here on WTMG have either said they're not at home or booked out, or have just not replied at all :/
If anyone has a clue where I can find a camping spot that will let me in this late without having booked in advance, I'd be glad to know.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (12/n)
yawns good meowning ^^
Yesterday was very... adventurous 😬
but at least I did not have to sleep on the street.
I can tell you more in about two hours, I have to leave this place before 12 so I should start getting ready instead of posting on fedi.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (10/n)
Yeah, today I'm a lot slower. I'm just about halfway to Zwolle now and it feels like it already took forever...
Even if it's still a few minutes earlier than when I even started yesterday.
But yesterday was kinda stressful, and I knew I couldn't keep up with that speed for all the days.
Also I still don't know where I'll sleep tonight, so any clues are welcome...
Travelling to WHY on a bike (11/n), looking for a place to sleep
I actually made it to #Zwolle, and it's still more than half an hour earlier than when I arrived at the garden in Enschede yesterday.
But my bike battery is almost empty, all of the garden owners here on WTMG have either said they're not at home or booked out, or have just not replied at all :/
If anyone has a clue where I can find a camping spot that will let me in this late without having booked in advance, I'd be glad to know.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (9/n)
Finally everything packed up again... phew, that took longer than I expected.
I already asked some people on WTMG for a place to stay tonight, but haven't gotten a (positive) reply yet. So if anyone from near #Zwolle happens to read this here and have a garden with space for a tent, I'd be happy to hear from you ^^
Travelling to WHY on a bike (10/n)
Yeah, today I'm a lot slower. I'm just about halfway to Zwolle now and it feels like it already took forever...
Even if it's still a few minutes earlier than when I even started yesterday.
But yesterday was kinda stressful, and I knew I couldn't keep up with that speed for all the days.
Also I still don't know where I'll sleep tonight, so any clues are welcome...
Travelling to WHY on a bike (8/n)
Setting up my tent in the dark, while it was rainy and windy (and I was hungry, didn't have time for breaks on the way), took me a while (at least I had a parking spot for my bike under a roof), but I managed to get it done.
And now I'm writing this from my tent, drying in the sun between some apple trees, and I'm confident that I can start earlier today.
First I have to eat breakfast though, pack my stuff again, and look for a place to stay the next night.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (9/n)
Finally everything packed up again... phew, that took longer than I expected.
I already asked some people on WTMG for a place to stay tonight, but haven't gotten a (positive) reply yet. So if anyone from near #Zwolle happens to read this here and have a garden with space for a tent, I'd be happy to hear from you ^^
Travelling to WHY on a bike (7/n)
I contacted a few people on WTMG and finally found someone in Enschede who would let me in late enough that I could realistically make it.
It was still 62.5 km though, so I had to be quite fast. Luckily the roads and bike paths were mostly in good condition, so I actually made it there in 4 hours.
Made my legs hurt quite a bit though - usually I would go a bit slower and definitely take more breaks when I'm going that far with the trailer.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (8/n)
Setting up my tent in the dark, while it was rainy and windy (and I was hungry, didn't have time for breaks on the way), took me a while (at least I had a parking spot for my bike under a roof), but I managed to get it done.
And now I'm writing this from my tent, drying in the sun between some apple trees, and I'm confident that I can start earlier today.
First I have to eat breakfast though, pack my stuff again, and look for a place to stay the next night.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (6/n)
First I thought about asking around on fedi if anyone would let me stay in their garden when I arrive late at night.
But then I remembered that there is a platform actually made for that, and I even already had an account there. I had to upgrade to a paid membership for https://welcometomygarden.org, but a whole year of that is still cheaper than two nights on some random camping site, so it was an easy choice.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (7/n)
I contacted a few people on WTMG and finally found someone in Enschede who would let me in late enough that I could realistically make it.
It was still 62.5 km though, so I had to be quite fast. Luckily the roads and bike paths were mostly in good condition, so I actually made it there in 4 hours.
Made my legs hurt quite a bit though - usually I would go a bit slower and definitely take more breaks when I'm going that far with the trailer.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (5/n)
Packing everything into the bags and the trailer still took me half a day longer than I had hoped, so I was quite stressed yesterday evening, wondering if I will actually still be able to start on that day.
I had my general route to #WHY2025 planned quickly, but not planned the overnight stops yet ... and the problem with staying on camping sites is that they often already close their reception desk around 18:00 - when I hadn't even started.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (6/n)
First I thought about asking around on fedi if anyone would let me stay in their garden when I arrive late at night.
But then I remembered that there is a platform actually made for that, and I even already had an account there. I had to upgrade to a paid membership for https://welcometomygarden.org, but a whole year of that is still cheaper than two nights on some random camping site, so it was an easy choice.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (4/n)
... and sent some stuff home in a parcel from CCCamp to make my load more manageable at least for the second part of that tour.
I modified my tent poles a few weeks ago to have more and shorter segments, so they now fit into the trailer and I don't have to tie them to the outside any more.
And I'm only taking three bags directly on my bike this time, no shopping bag full of food stacked on top like last time.
(photo with eye contact in the second picture)
Travelling to WHY on a bike (5/n)
Packing everything into the bags and the trailer still took me half a day longer than I had hoped, so I was quite stressed yesterday evening, wondering if I will actually still be able to start on that day.
I had my general route to #WHY2025 planned quickly, but not planned the overnight stops yet ... and the problem with staying on camping sites is that they often already close their reception desk around 18:00 - when I hadn't even started.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (3/n)
From Münster to WHY it's a bit less far, ~260 km.
I still planned to do four day trips, because from experience, about 70 km is a distance that my bike can manage with a heavy trailer before having to recharge, so that's my guideline for how far I can get in one day.
My trailer is probably still a bit heavier than it should be this time, but considerably less so than it was two years ago, when I went to CCCamp and HOA (which was on the way back) in one trip...
Travelling to WHY on a bike (4/n)
... and sent some stuff home in a parcel from CCCamp to make my load more manageable at least for the second part of that tour.
I modified my tent poles a few weeks ago to have more and shorter segments, so they now fit into the trailer and I don't have to tie them to the outside any more.
And I'm only taking three bags directly on my bike this time, no shopping bag full of food stacked on top like last time.
(photo with eye contact in the second picture)
Travelling to WHY on a bike (2/n)
When I went to CCCamp23, it was about 300 km to get there from Braunschweig, which took me four days.
I stayed on camping sites overnight, and shared the first two day trips with @lenaschimmel@chaos.social who was travelling to a different event that was vaguely in the same direction. We used her tent for the first two nights, which is a lot smaller and lighter than mine.
This year, Lena also joined me for the start, but only the first ~20 km, then she went back home.
Travelling to WHY on a bike (3/n)
From Münster to WHY it's a bit less far, ~260 km.
I still planned to do four day trips, because from experience, about 70 km is a distance that my bike can manage with a heavy trailer before having to recharge, so that's my guideline for how far I can get in one day.
My trailer is probably still a bit heavier than it should be this time, but considerably less so than it was two years ago, when I went to CCCamp and HOA (which was on the way back) in one trip...
Kiki