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Travel journals ... and key numbers !!
 Who am I ?
 Where am I going ? 
 Why on a bicycle ?
There are 18 countries on my itinerary, so there will be 18 journals. I will put them on-line as the trip goes.

Those journals include / will include : 

  • General information about each country,
  • Maps of each country,
  • The followed itinerary,
  • The story,
  • All the best pictures,
  • The highlight,
  • What I liked / didn't like,
  • Some useful information.
You can find below the list of all the countries and the name of its journal. Further you will find a summary of all the key numbers of the trip ... click here for a direct access to the key numbers !

Have a good time and a great trip !
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Country Period*
(start date)		 Distance* Total Distance* Journal
France & Thailand - - - Preparation of the trip : Getting ready !
Thailand 29 Jun 08 1,025   1,025 Goodbye Thailand !
Laos 11 Jul 08 0 269   1,294 Surrounded by US bombs
Vietnam 16 Jul 08 1,595   2,889 Climbing the first mountains
Yunnan (China) 11 Aug 08 1,502   4,391 In another world
Tibet (China) 04 Sept 08 2,340   6,731 Riding the roof of the world
Nepal 02 Oct 08 1,028   7,759 Back to Lumbini !
India 06 Nov 08 1,069   8,828 Eating the dust
Pakistan 27 Nov 08 1,914 10,742 In the desert with camels
Iran 07 Jan 09 2,316 13,058 Trucks are hell !
Turkey 20 Feb 09 2,921 15,979 Under, in and on the snow
Greece 09 Apr 09 0 855 16,834 At the foot of Mt Olympus
Albania 22 April 09 0 468 17,302 Country under construction
Montenegro  29 April 09 0 221 17,523 A little paradise
Bosnia-Herzegovina 04 May 09 0 619 18,142 A true life lesson
Croatia 14 May 09 0 181 18,323 Deep forest
Slovenia 16 May 09 0 289 18,612 With a million cyclists
Italy 20 May 09 0 878 19,490 La bicicletta non inquina
France 31 May 09 1,414 20,904 Home !
Châteaudun 26 Jun 09 - - -





Key numbers ...

Here are introduced the key numbers of this trip, but for the time being, this is just a draft I filled up with the information I have on hand before my departure.

This information will be completed once I will be on my way :
 When you are riding your bicycle, your are testing the human machine, this machine even more silent than your own ride. While pedaling, the 455 muscles of your body work together to provide you with sufficient energy, you put in motion your 211 bones and when you look at a nice scenery while smiling, you are using 17 muscles out of those 455.
Julos Beaucarne.
 Numbers ... 




Distances ...
  • Total distance : 20,800 km (estimate).
  • Total cumulated climbing : 167,379 m.
  • Number of countries traveled : 18 countries.
  • Average daily distance : 57.6 km/day.
  • Number of days on the bicycle : 215 days, or 59%.
  • Average distance per riding day : 103 km/day.
  • Greatest distance covered in one country : 3,842 km in China (including 2,340 km in Tibet).
  • Shortest distance covered in one country : 181 km in Croatia.
  • Longest stage : 171 km, from Dalbandin to Nukkondi (Balochistan - Pakistan).
  • Longest climb within a day : 2,370 m between Meteora and Ioannina (Greece) ... and 2,262 m between Yangjing (Yunnan) and Mangkang (Tibet).
  • Most difficult stage : 76 km in the mountains, under the rain, in the cold and in the mud of the too many landslides of a devastated road, from NEW Lai Chau to Sapa (Vietnam).
  • Fastest stage : 161 km at an average of 25.1 km/h, between Jacobabad and Sibi (Pakistan).
  • Easiest stage : maybe tomorrow ...
  • Top speed : 82 km/h, between Gap and Grenoble (France) and 80 km/h, between Pinarbasi and Kayseri (Turkey).
  • Highest altitude :  5,248 meters (Gyatso La pass, Tibet).
  • Steepest slope while going uphill : 16%, between Dandy et Takht-e Soleiman (Iran) and 15%, between NEW Lai Chau and Sapa (Vietnam).
  • Steepest slope while going downhill : an insane 22%, between Mac Leod Ganj and Dharamsala (India).

Weights ...
  • Weight of the bicycle alone : 18 kg.
  • Weight of the loaded bicycle : 55 kg.
  • Weight of the cyclist in June 08 (Bangkok, Thailand) : 70 kg.
  • Weight of the cyclist after 6,000 km (Lhasa, Tibet) : 64 kg.
  • Weight of the cyclist after 8,500 km (A. Sahib, Inde) : 64 kg.
  • Weight of the cyclist after 11,700 km (Esfahan, Iran) : 66 kg.
  • Weight of the cyclist after 19,300 km (Genova, Italie) : 72 Kg (oops).
  • Weight of the cyclist in June 09 (Châteaudun, France) : 71 Kg.

Weather ...
  • Number of rainy days : 36/363.
  • Number of stormy days : 3/363.

    •
  • Number of snowy days : 13/363.
  • First snow : 8th of September 2008 in Tibet, on top of a pass at 5,008 m ...
  • Last snow : 23rd of March 2009 in Turkey, on the way to Aphrodisias ...
  • Number of windy days : 39/363.
  • Most windy country : Iran, blowing from west everyday ... and pretty much the same in Turkey.
  • Maximum Temperature : +48 degrees celsius in Vietnam.
  • Minimum Temperature : -6 degrees celsius in Turkey.


Encounters ...
  • Number of cyclo-tourists : 31+, a Dutch lady in Thailand, a Belgium guy in Laos, an American in Vietnam, three Chinese & two Australians in Tibet, five Germans and a French in Nepal, a Dutch, two Spanish and a Japanese in India, two Dutch in Pakistan, another two Dutch and a French in Iran and a Swiss, a Spanish, a German and three French in Turkey, an old Austrian in Greece riding to Jerusalem and an Italian in Albania ... and so many other cyclists in Slovenia, Italy (Northern Italy !) and France.
  • Walking Pilgrims : about 30 in Tibet.
  • Number of dogs : far too many in Thailand, in Iranian Kurdistan and in TURKEY ... and a few in North-western Greece !!
  • Number of snakes (alive): 10, two in Thailand, one in Laos, one in Greece, one in Bosnia-Herzegovina, two in Slovenia and three in Italy.
  • Animals : few elephants in Thailand, lots of yaks in Tibet ... some monkeys and crocodiles in Nepal, lots of monkeys in India, some camels in Pakistan and Iran ... a wolf in Iran, lots of sheep in Turkey, a blue cat in Greece, a few deers in Slovenia, a scorpion, some deers and a lot of mosquitoes in Italy ... some hares, deers, lots of cows and also a fox in France.


Accommodation ...
  • % of nights spent in a guesthouse / hotel : 79%.
  • % of nights spent under the tent : 11%.
  • % of nights spent in somebody's house : 9%.
  • % of nights spent in a police station : 0.5%.
  • % of nights spent in a school : 0.5%.
  • Countries with the greatest hospitality : Iran, Turkey ... and France !!


Budget ...
  • Total budget : 20,000 Euros.
  • Equipment expenses : 12,000 Euros.
  • Daily expenses : 8,000 Euros.
  • Least expensive country : Nepal.
  • Most expensive countries : Italy and France.


Technical problems ...
  • Number of flats : 2, after more than 10,000 km, I got my first flat from a 2 cm long Baloch nail ... and after 14,000 km, I got a second flat in Turkey in between two snow storms. Lucky ...
  • Number of problems / repairs on the bicycle : 7.
    • automatic rear light (Basta SL6 - since the beginning), 
    • both rims (Rigida Grizzly, less than 3,000 km),
    • front dynamo hub (Shimano - 14,000 km),
    • rear tire about to burst open (Schwalbe Marathon XR - 16,000 km, but replaced free of charge by the manufacturer),
    • the complete transmission -chain+cassette+chain rings- worn out (Shimano XT - 16,000 km).
    • the left pedal which literally fell apart on the road (? - 19,000 km).
    • noisy and probably worn free wheel clickers (Shimano XT - 20,000 km).
  • Number of problems on the rest of the equipment : 1, my tent (Maréchal) is too fragile, it got holes in many places and is even torn where the metallic structure is supposed to be inserted. Very disappointing, not recommended.
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