Recap

July 14, 2011 – We leave Vancouver and head south for Tierra Del Fuego in Argentina.

July 15 – August 3, 2011 – We cycle the west coast of the United States camping at hike n’ bike campgrounds.  Kevin has bouts of stomach pain and has to stop and rest at times.

August 4 – September 3, 2011 – Lots of roughing it in Baja California but it provides some great adventure in the extreme heat.  On the mainland we run into some corrupt cops who claim we weren’t allowed to go down a hill just outside Acapulco and end up paying them off $155.  Also we were hit by a couple of intense storms causing us to vacate our tents in the middle of the night and head for cover. 

September 4 – 14, 2011 – We cycle through Guatemala and El Salvador before entering Honduras.  There we are robbed by bandits about 5km before the Nicaraguan border.  They threaten us with their gun and machete and end up taking our money and as many pannier bags they can carry into the jungle.  We get out of there physically unharmed and have no choice but to return to Vancouver to regroup. 

September 15 – December 30, 2011 – Kevin has surgery to remove his gallbladder as he had gallstones in it which was the cause of the stomach pains he had been experiencing en route.  A week after surgery he develops blood clots in his right leg and is put on blood thinners for the next 3 months.  He is down and out the entire time.  Finally at the end of the year he is given the green light to get off the blood thinners and is allowed to hit the road yet again.

January 11 – March 5, 2012 – Since it is winter we hold off on cycling in the Northern Hemisphere and instead backpack Latin America taking us from Peru all the way up to Nicaragua.  Pretty much covering a lot of the ground we had planned to cycle.  The main highlights included climbing Cotopaxi, mountain biking down Chimborazo, cycling the world’s most dangerous road in Bolivia and checking out Machu Picchu. 

April 1, 2012 – The 2^nd attempt to conquer the world on the bicycles begins, with the official starting point at Mile 0 marker in Victoria, BC. 

April 2 – June 5, 2012 – We cross Canada coast to coast in mostly cold conditions and end up at Cape Spear in Newfoundland.  The main highlight was purchasing white chocolate at 99 cents per kilogram at an Extra Foods in Marathon, Ontario. 

June 6 – July 25, 2012 – Starting the European leg in London, England, we set off through Europe with relative ease going up to Denmark to visit relatives and then back down through the Balkans into the Middle East. 

July 26 – August 8, 2012 – Kevin is harassed by some dumbass in Ankara, Turkey who threatens to blow up everything with explosives and also bullies him with a small 2x4 if he doesn’t hand over money.  In Eastern Turkey we dodge sticks and stones thrown at us by young boys who want money money money.  We race for the Iranian border to get out of there. 

August 9 – September 9, 2012 – Cycling through Iran was a joy as we were greeted almost daily by its friendly and hospitable people.  While waiting for the Uzbek visas we cycled down to Esfahan from Tehran and en route are pulled over by the Iranian army who end up confiscating all our electronics and then check them out back at their base.  We were unknowingly cycling by Iran’s most prominent nuclear facility in Natanz.  The army men returned our electronics down the road past the facility and even gave us a juice box for all the trouble. 

September 10 – October 18, 2012 – The ‘Stans were next and they were another interesting region to cycle through.  After cycling through the Turkmenistan desert within the 5 day window allotted, we entered Uzbekistan where we had to ensure we stayed at a hotel of sort every 3 days.  We both fell sick in Samarkand and Kevin even fainted in the Siob Bazaar after exchanging money.  We were out of action for almost a week.  In Kyrgyzstan we primarily waited for the Chinese visas and in Kazakhstan Trevor’s GPS unfortunately died but we picked up a new and improved one in Almaty. 

October 19 – December 10, 2012 – Enter the dragon and some cold weather.  We had 2 snowfalls which were unexpected.  This country was the toughest of the journey for many factors.  In Xi’an we pass the first antipodal spot.  Leaving China in the Yunnan province Kevin falls off his bike and face plants the pavement.  He is left with a hematoma above his right eye and cuts on his knees.  He cycles on but it takes months to fully heal. 

December 11, 2012 – January 16, 2013 – After a quick hit in Laos we cruise on into Thailand, our most favourite country to ride in.  Basically easy riding, always warm and always a 7-11 every 20 to 30km.  You just can’t go wrong there.  We continue onward all the way to Singapore where Kevin is ecstatic to return to the city state he adores. 

January 17 – March 13, 2013 – We cross Australia and battle strong headwinds from Perth to Sydney.  The crossing of the Nullarbor is challenging but rewarding after the fact.  Other highlights are viewing koalas along the Great Ocean Road and cycling up Mount Kosciuszko. 

March 14 – April 14, 2013 – We circle the South Island and then go through the North Island up to Auckland in New Zealand.  The South Island was a tough stretch as we would experience four seasons in one day.  We hit South Point, which is the southernmost point of the South Island and then continued north along the west.  The North Island was much better with much more sun.  Kevin tackled the Tongariro Alpine Crossing before heading up to Auckland.

April 15 – May 27, 2013 – The South American leg starts in Santiago, Chile and we cycle about 150km southwest of the capital to our 2^nd antipodal point on the trip.  As a result, we have technically circumnavigated the globe.  From there we continue south to the scenic Lake District and Kevin climbs Volcano Villarrica.  Spectacular views of the Andes.  They cross over into Argentina and love the food but absolutely hate the roads because they do not have hard shoulders.  As such, there is a tremendous amount of nerve racking cycling in Argentina.  They jump into Uruguay and struggle to keep well fed because the prices are very expensive.  They then quickly check out the Iguazu Falls from the Brazilian side before ending the South American leg in Asuncion, Paraguay.

May 28, 2013 – August 2, 2013 – The United States threw a lot of extreme weather their way.  First they got absolutely drenched as they cycled through daily storms.  They were even on the Tallahassee news in Florida about people outside braving the Tropical Storm Andrea.  Once out of the Hurricane region, they cycled into Tornado Alley and dealt with some intense winds.  All the rest of the way through the USA there encountered scary thunder and lightning gong shows.  Some of the best scenery on the trip was through the Rockies. 

August 3 – 21, 2013 – Back in the homeland they cycled one of the most scenic stretches of road in the world: Highway 93 in Alberta.  Bears started to appear from the forests but most of them ran away.  Though one particular bear in BC stood its ground and was quite aggressive.  They cycle to Prince Rupert and took the scenic ferry down to Port Hardy and then cycled to the official start of the trip: Mile marker 0 in Victoria.  Then back to Vancouver, BC, Canada.  Mission complete.  And they even get a little media exposure which is icing on the cake.