The Count Down Has Begun...

In 5 weeks time I'll be setting off on my next adventure. 

Excitement!!

Ordered a few last bits of kit which will hopefully keep me connected whilst pedalling across Europe. Having never used a cycle computer in over 20 years of biking, I have purchased a Garmin Edge 200 to record the stats. Everyone loves stats! 

I've also made the decision to just order a power pack to recharge my phone on the go and a solar recharger. I reckon I'll probably only be wild camping for a maximum 3 or 4 nights in a row, so will always have access to somewhere to recharge. I've ordered an EasyAcc 15600mAh power bank. It will hopefully give me up to 4 or 5 full charges of my Nexus mobile phone which I'll be taking with me. I'm going to test it out when it comes so I know what I can expect from it before I go.

I am going to use my phone for navigation, internet, camera and keeping in contact with family and friends. I don't want to bring a lot of technology stuff with me and worry about breaking or losing it all. 

I have also found a great map app that can be used offline. The app is called Maps.Me. So basically you download the country maps and have them available when offline. I've had a bit of a play about with the app and the maps are pretty detailed, so should be fine. I am a map geek. I love looking at maps and could spend hours imagining what places will look like and looking at routes and features.

To keep phone costs down, I'll mainly just be getting online when there is WiFi available. Nearly everywhere has it, cafes, bars, hostels, tourist places etc so shouldn't be a problem getting connected.

Apart from that everything else is pretty much sorted now. I'll have to update the gear page with the stuff I will be taking. I have packed my panniers to see the amount of stuff I can take, which isn't very much!

Insurance is the only other major item I still have to purchase, so I can be scraped off the road, if the worst happens, without it costing the parentals a fortune! 

I've also started mentioning to people that I'll be going for a bit of a cycle. Although the main idea is to aim to cycle to Istanbul, I'm not setting anything in stone. I'm trying not to preplan every last detail either. Having never done any cycle touring before, its a bit of an unknown to me as to how it will go. I may not even get 20 miles down the road. I could get bored, or injured, or even end up riding in circles! So I'm just going to take each hour, each day, as it comes. I have a general idea of route, but will still be flexible. 

No expectations, no disappointments!

The count down is ON!!

Facebook Page...

Just set up a Facebook page as well. I think it'll probably be easier to update daily when on the road :-)

https://m.facebook.com/jojourneystheworld

Where Does The Time Go?

Okay, finally remembered my login and password for this blog, its been well over a year!

I have a new adventure I'm planning to do within the next couple of months. It's still in the early stages, but I will add some details about it over the next few weeks.

Hopefully starting out on my new journey on 1st September 2014!!!