Has anyone here done a round the world cycle?

Have a crazy idea to do it in a few years.
Need to talk route, kit, etc

Was thinking of a route through Iran; however, seems getting a visa is very difficult.

Have a read of Chris Pountney's brilliant two books, No Wrong Turns: Cycling the World, Part One: Paris to Sydney and Into the Sunrise: Cycling the World, Part Two: Sydney to Mori.
He went through Iran.

He did it on a Surly Long Haul Trucker.

http://differentpartsofeverywhere.com/about/the-bikes/

been trying to convince my wife to do it, for the last 5 years.

she finishes work in october, i am going part time.
my plan was to rent our house out for a couple of years and do the trip with no rush.
the route i fancy is Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan and a ferry over the caspian and then on through the 'stans' to either Urumqi to Bejing or somehow through the proper hills south.

i have been planning this in my head for years. it will happen. hopefully with my wife, and if not i will be taking a marriage sabbatical.

https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/


enough info on here to spend a year planning.

Very envious of you if you pull it off.
I have done UK-Cape Town, and U.K.- India by bike plus some other long tours.
No better way to see the world imo. Don't rush if you do go. Ride with your head up and eyes open. It's all to easy to get carried away with stats and pushing big miles each day. There's a lot of joy to be had out there if you don't go steaming past it with your eyes fixed on the horizon.

It’s kind of odd, the thought is exciting and scary at the same time.
Something I have pondered over the years; need to find myself, if that makes any sense.
Suppose there are some advantages to being single with no children and no mortgage.

In recent weeks the itch has been growing, started plotting a route on ViewRanger over the weekend, then saw this video.....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUTL4Op ... ture=share

In an odd way to try and explain, good to know there are others out there.
“Normal” life is just so, well, boring.

Time to do something different.
Scares the cr@p out of me though

I know the feeling - drawn to the idea but scared by it simultaneously.
My experience was that the fear subsided once I was out on the road and I had overcome a few problems and had got to some of the country's I was worried about/been warned about. After that the latent fear morphed into a kind of excitement crossed with anticipation.

Just been reading about Iran visa

Seems a non-starter at the moment.

Maybe change in the future.

No surprise. My India trip itinerary reads a bit like an attempt at suicide these days eastern Turkey into Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the KKH into China...
But your more northern route across the Caspain would avoid the need to go to Iran anyway.

Edit: not you talking about the Caspian route. Sorry

Asposium wrote: ↑Mon Apr 08, 2019 11:13 pm Just been reading about Iran visa

Seems a non-starter at the moment.

Maybe change in the future.

I`ve been following a youtube channel "Itchy Boots" it is a young woman motorcycling around Asia and Eastern Europe and the current vids are her travels around Iran, I think she is Dutch, don`t know if that helps with Visas?

Yes it does - Iran anyway. A handful of Dutch cyclists have also passed through Iran over the last few years

The problem is persons with either a USA, UK, or Canadian passport.
Anyone else is pretty much fine

Hopefully the situation might change

If you've been watching the BBC series "Race around the World" then they went through Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and in to China presumably for similar reasons.

At the moment my thought is either up via the China route, or over fly from Georgia to Pakistan

Very much a ponder in progress; however, it is a start

https://my.viewranger.com/route/details/MjI4ODQ2OQ==

What tyres are we using and tubed or tubeless?

Actually, serious answers are acceptable.

Pirahna wrote: ↑Tue Apr 09, 2019 7:28 pm What tyres are we using and tubed or tubeless?

Actually, serious answers are acceptable.

Don’t know yet
Marathons seem the general choice for long distance

Heaven forbid for a boner, contemplating racks and panniers.

Asposium wrote: ↑Tue Apr 09, 2019 7:30 pm Don’t know yet
Marathons seem the general choice for long distance

Heaven forbid for a boner, contemplating racks and panniers.

Have you seen the Markus Stitz stuff on Youtube? I think he used Marathons.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUa_Bq ... y1UIR9cNsA

Hopefully this journey lies in my not too distant future (I'll be 56 this year). I'll take the Jones with bikepacking luggage, I know I can make this setup work for long trips.

Marathon XR. Tubes. Tubeless not really a good bet for a long tour imo.
If I went on a long road/dirt road tour even tomorrow it would be with racks /panniers without question. Because of:
The simplicity of packing. The ease of taking your kit off the bike into a hostel/hotel when you use one.The not looking 'too exotic' The total waterproofness. The no zips. The ease of using water bottles and lights. Etc.
On a non racing round the world trip even a light load is gonna include spare day clothes and shoes and generally just s bit more kit.
They don't need to be massive and you don't need to pack the kitchen sink (although an Ortleib collapsible bowl is bloody handy )
You can also ride some fairy tight trails with them. I did loads of off road with Tubus racks and Ortleib panniers in the past with no problems at all......
Just my opinion mind!

I would aim to be away for at least a year, may closer to two.

Would need a lot of essential gear; water storage, multi fuel stove, fuel, food, etc
Stuff I don’t take bikepacking

Still, will ask here for TLS advice.

It's horses for courses.
TLS for a two year tour is not the same as TLS for the TCR or LEJOG.
Long term comfort and daily living practically imo are top considerations.
My tour kit would include a free standing two skin tent like a Hilleberg Soulo. Multifuel stove, MSR Drangonfly is my fave for real cooking. Two ti pans 1l and 1.5l, a lexan plate, cutlery.
I can feel the boners screaming at their phones and look forward to a counter argument. Hell, I even take a Thermarest chair sleeve.
Non of this stuff is too heavy (relatively speaking) it is quite bulky though hence one reason for the panniers. It will however make life on the road much more livable and enjoyable imo.

Most useful pages I found doing some research into a similar idea -

https://caravanistan.com/visa/

https://caravanistan.com/border-crossings/ - this page is brilliant

I won't start typing out the route I wanted to take as it makes day to day work hard to justify If you have the urge then I think there needs to be a very good reason not to just set off.

lune ranger wrote: ↑Wed Apr 10, 2019 6:26 am It's horses for courses.
TLS for a two year tour is not the same as TLS for the TCR or LEJOG.
Long term comfort and daily living practically imo are top considerations.
My tour kit would include a free standing two skin tent like a Hilleberg Soulo. Multifuel stove, MSR Drangonfly is my fave for real cooking. Two ti pans 1l and 1.5l, a lexan plate, cutlery.
I can feel the boners screaming at their phones and look forward to a counter argument. Hell, I even take a Thermarest chair sleeve.
Non of this stuff is too heavy (relatively speaking) it is quite bulky though hence one reason for the panniers. It will however make life on the road much more livable and enjoyable imo.

My friend took a sub 1KG fold up chair for his year out touring (and other than that, went with the TLS - only his cycling shoes and no spares, great until they broke) and said it was a great luxury to sit up at night by his tent. Made the long nights much more bearable

This chap has been riding round South America posting stories on The Radivist (and other places no doubt) for yonks. His setup looks like a sort of bikepacking-perpetual touring hybrid.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BodIATtjjAt

Interesting
Seeing photos such as that do make me think a rear rack might be easier and less faff; would likely have a front rack.
Almost as if wanting to avoid racks because bikepacking is “cool”
Did see a comment that front panniers were kept mostly empty for extra food, fuel, and water when needed.
Suppose I would do similar. Would likely need to carry petrol for the stove, a Primus Omnilite Ti, really like that stove.

Planning is part of the fun

Asposium wrote: ↑Wed Apr 10, 2019 11:45 am Interesting
Seeing photos such as that do make me think a rear rack might be easier and less faff; would likely have a front rack.
...Almost as if wanting to avoid racks because bikepacking is “cool”...

Planning is part of the fun

Agreed. That set up is way complicated. On a long tour you will want to dismount your gear and stash it in your tent/room.
Two racks, 4 panniers and an old school bar bag and that job takes seconds. Looks like it'd take that bloke an absolute age.