Trailblazer Guide Books

Trailblazer guidebooks provide practical information on specific routes in less accessible parts of the world.
 — Wanderlust

INTRODUCTION

PART 1: PRACTICALITIES
Planning and preparation  A plan 13 – What kind of ride? 14 – Which continent? 15 – Seasons and climate 16 – Budget and time 18 – Travelling companions 20 – Research: Getting information 23

 

PART 2: BIKES, CLOTHING & CAMPING GEAR

Bikes  Narrowing down your choices 34 – Expedition touring bikes 34 – Traditional touring bikes 34 – Mountain bikes 35 – Fat bikes 36 – Recumbents 36 – Tandems 36 – Narrowing it down further 37 – Frame material 37 – Wheel size 38 – Derailleur gears vs hub gear 39 – Rim brakes vs disc brakes 39 – Drop bars vs straight bars 40

Choosing a new bike  Surly 40 – Thorn 41 – Koga-Miyata 42 – Santos 43 – Recumbents 43 – More dream bikes 44 – Cheaper touring bikes 45 – Mid-range MTBs 46 – Build your own bike 46

Gears, brakes and wheels  Gears 47 – Choosing brakes 51 Wheels 54 – Bottom brackets 58 – Headsets 58

Comfort zone  Finding the sweet spot 59 – Love in the saddle 60 – Handlebars 62 – Suspension forks 63

Carrying luggage  Racks 65 – Panniers 68 – Bikepacking setup 71

Pimping your ride 73

Tools and spares  Essentials 73 – Other things to consider 75

How much stuff?  Light vs heavy 76

Clothing  Layering 82 – Footwear 85 

Camping Tents 87 – Bike touring tents 89 Sleeping bags 91 – Sleeping pads & air mattresses 93 – Stoves 93 – Treating drinking water 96 – Kitchen essentials 96 – Toilet bag 97 – Electronic devices 98 – Other useful kit 98

PART 3: ON THE ROAD

Transporting your bike  By air 99 – Boxing your bike 100 – On buses & trains 102 – On horses & mules 103

Navigating the adventure cycle-touring world  Paper maps 104 – Asking as you go 104 – GPS units 105 – Smartphones 106

Staying in touch on the road  To blog or not to blog 107

Health on the road  Mosquito-borne diseases 108 – Altitude sickness 109 – Hygiene 110 – Women’s health 111 – Pacing yourself 112

Food and water  A healthy diet 112 – Food hygiene 113 Purifying water 113

Staying safe  Avoiding accidents 114 – Theft & robbery 115 Dealing with dogs 115

Dirt-road (off-road) riding 117

PART 4: ROUTE OUTLINES – EUROPE TO ASIA & AUSTRALASIA

Europe 121 – Ready-made routes 121– To the continent 121 – The call of the Orient 124 – To West Africa via Spain 126

Asia 127 – Main routes 130 – The southern route 132 – Turkey 132 – Iran 135 – Pakistan 140 – The Karakoram Highway 142 India 144 – The North-East, and to Myanmar 148 – Ladakh, Spiti & Kinnaur 148 – Manali to Leh 149 – North of Leh 149 – To Srinagar or Zanskar 150 – Rajasthan 151 – Nepal 153 – The Caucasus 155 Georgia 155 – Azerbaijan 157 – Armenia 158

Central Asia 160 – Turkmenistan 164 – Uzbekistan 165 Tajikistan 166 – The Pamir Highway 167 – Kyrgyzstan 169 Kazakhstan 170

The northern route 172 – Russia 172 – Mongolia 177

East Asia 181 – China 181 – Sichuan 185 – Yunnan 188 – Chongqing 190 – Guizhou 190 – Guanxi 191 – Tibet 191 – The Friendship Highway 192 – Kashgar to Lhasa – 192 Lhasa to Markham 193 – Taiwan 193 – South Korea 195 – Japan 197

South-East Asia 201 – Thailand 206 – Cambodia 208 – Vietnam 209 – Laos 210 – Malaysia 212 – Indonesia 213 Sumatra 214 – Java, Bali, Lombok 215 – Sumbawa, Flores, Timor 216 – Sulawesi, Borneo 217 – Philippines 217 – Myanmar 218

Australasia 221 – Australia 221 – Red centre, West coast, Nullarbor Plain 224 – Tasmania 225 – East coast 226 – New Zealand 226

 

PART 5: ROUTE OUTLINES – AFRICA

Main routes 229 The Nile route 236 – Egypt 237 – Sudan 237 – Ethiopia 241

East and Southern Africa 241 – Kenya, Uganda 242 – Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania 243 – Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia 245 – Namibia 246 – Botswana, South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland 247

West and Central Africa 248 – Morocco, Mauritania, Mali 249 – Senegal & The Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone 251 – Liberia, Ivory Coast 252 – Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon 253 – DRC, Angola 254

 

PART 6: ROUTE OUTLINES – AMERICAS

Introduction 255

North America 256 – USA & Canada 256 – PanAm route ideas – 258 – Riding Alaska to the Lower 48 258 – Pacific Coast Route 263 – Riding the Great Divide 265

Mexico and Central America 269 – Mexico 273 – Yucatán Peninsula/Belize 275 – Guatemala 275 – Honduras 276 – Nicaragua, Costa Rica 277 – Panama 278 – Cuba 278

South America 279 – Colombia 283 – Ecuador 287 – Peru 289 – Cordilleras Blanca & Huayhuash 294 – The Huascarán Circuit 294 – Cusco and the Sacred Valley 295 – Bolivia 296 – The Salars 300 – Chile 303 – Argentina 303 – Patagonia 305 – The Carretera Austral 307 – Venezuela 308

 

 

PART 7: TALES FROM THE SADDLE

The Wild Corner of Myanmar – Stephen Fabes 311

Kidnapped by Comedians – Emily Chappell 316

Crossings and Encounters – Anna Kortschak 320

Go with the Flow – John Burnham 325

Now or Never – Charlie Walker 330

Alaskan Epiphanies: Finding My Roads – Nathan Haley 335

Just Don’t Stop! – Helen Lloyd 339

APPENDIX – Bicycle maintenance 345

GLOSSARY 355

CONTRIBUTORS 356

INDEX 359

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