Category Archives: Uncategorized

I’m here, in case you were wondering, ‘here’ being Anchorage. And I start riding north tomorrow. But I’m fed up of rehashing all the usual pre-trip highs and lows and nerves and fears. It will all get much more interesting once I’m on the road, and so my next post will just have to wait […]

I am really really really really really really really really really really excited. It’s a lovely feeling, and not one you’re treated to very often as a grown-up. Even though my life is, by some people’s standards, a lot more exciting than the average, it’s often difficult to see it that way from the inside. […]

And once again, as I did many moons ago, I find myself surrounded by half-packed bags and slightly too much kit, contemplating my imminent departure with the same mixture of nervousness and excitement, even though I should really have grown out of this by now. [Thanks to Genesis for the bike and Alpkit for the […]

Sorry, yes, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? Looks like I needed more of a holiday than I realized. I’m still here though, still looking forward to the next few (thousand) miles, and still planning to keep blogging, after just a few more  days’ rest. In the meantime, if you’re suffering from Chappell withdrawal, I’ll […]

I’ll be giving a talk about my journey so far, at Look Mum No Hands (London’s premier bike café) at 6.30pm on the 31st of January. 49 Old Street, London EC1 9HX. Come, and bring your friends. And if you’re based in Mid Wales, I’ll also be giving a talk at the Tabernacle in Machynlleth […]

I woke up to good news yesterday morning. I think this picture is worth all the thousands of words I’ve written in the past year, and the thousands that are yet to come. Thank you to everyone who’s helped make this possible. I don’t know where I’d be without all the help and support and […]

Just a quick one this time (!), to say thank you for the overwhelming (and overwhelmingly lovely) response to my last post. I’ve been sent far more questions than I expected, so it looks like this will turn into something a bit bigger than just a single blog post. I’ve also put together a panel […]

I have a lot more to say about the Qinghai Plateau and, well, everything (you should know me by now), but right now I can’t resist pointing you back to this post, written exactly a year ago, wherein I gripe characteristically about my To Do list and treat you to an uninspiring picture of all […]

And now I’m in Xining, finally approaching the centre of China (this country is so impossibly huge – I’ve been riding across it for two months, and I’m not even halfway), having left you in the middle of the Taklamakan Desert, almost two weeks ago. Sorry for the hiatus. As a friend (beautifully) put it […]

One of the other brilliant things about China is that, for the first time in several months, I’m sharing the road with other cyclists. Well, that’s not strictly true – after all, there were a lot of people on bikes in Pakistan. But I’m discounting those people for whom the bicycle is an economic necessity […]