Trip of a lifetime

"And so it begins" (courtesy of my friend Garth and the guys from Lord of the Rings, I believe)!

I am 44 years young, have been fairly responsible all my life, but recently decided that I needed time out. And just like that, I resigned from a job that I loved and have been doing for the last 5 years.

To do what? Find another job, get married and settle down, go back to varsity to study again? NO! I am going on a fantastic bicycle tour over a planned distance (at this stage) of over 3200 km which should take me around two months to complete. Am I nuts? Maybe a little, but if I don't do it now, I never will. I also know that even though most of my friends are concerned for my safety, many of them would do the same it they could. The time I am taking out will not make me any poorer, in fact I believe it will make me richer, if anything (and fitter!)

Departure date is set at 15 March when I will head off from Protea Wilds Eco Lodge, half way between Plettenberg Bay and Knysna towards the West. I will keep you posted once I hit the road.

There are more questions at this stage than answers, but time will tell and I will adjust as we go along. What to pack, where to pack it, how much food to take and what to take. My bike (a GT Avalanche that I have had for 4 years) is serviced, racks fitted and ready to take the pannier bags. It has been raining for the last 3 days - most welcome, but this has meant that I have not done any training the last few days. Well I believe the best way to get fit, is simply to get onto the bike and start pedaling.

Average distances will be around 90km per day, with a few scary ones later in the trip (over 170km per day!), but I believe that I will be relaxed, fit and ready for them, when they come.

Enough said for now. There are 20 sleeps left and I can't wait!

Cheers, until later,

Karen