Johnny Isaak | Adventure Cyclist
A compendium of adventure cycling chronicles, travel lore, tips, techniques, and tactics for the adventure cycling perplexed.
Standing on the shore, indigo water lapping at my feet, just taking in the moment. A cool breeze drives small cresting waves sparkling and falling in the low sun. Warm yellows and golds fade to black. There is something special about catching the last rays of wonderful day.
[Read more…] about Travelogue: A Few Moments on Lake Wakatipu
Standing over my bicycle in the sand of a beautiful beach breathing the salt air from a stiff offshore wind on a faraway island in another hemisphere, so far from home, it’s to feel a connection of sorts with legendary explores who’ve come this way.
[Read more…] about Travelogue: Mercury Bay Coromandel Peninsula
The angry, pulsating brown water thundering past mere feet away resonated at my very core. At narrowest point of Leaping Tiger Gorge, the full force of the Jinsha Jiang or “Golden Sanded River” coursed past me in a naked display of raw aggression. I had never seen such power or stood in such close proximity to so much unbridled energy. The raging power and fury of the Jinsha resonated on a primal level.
Up before the dawn, getting ready to go. The house is quiet, my family sleeps. Rising in the darkness to hit the road early. Down a cup of hot coffee and dress in warm clothes. Out the door and up the street to meet the day.
Laboring over the pedals, generating speed. Off the road and onto a dirt path. Frost coated gravel crunching under my wheels. Crisp autumn air biting my cheeks and stinging in my throat.
I looked up and turned my head toward the east. Fire in the sky, glowing orange, and yellow, a burning ember. Camera in hand, I straddle the bike and make a picture, capture the moment. Nevada sunrises are among the best I’ve seen.
Breaking snow on an early winter morning. Pedaling in near silence. Not a sound save for my panting breath and the snow crunching under my wheels. Still air. Not a single leaf rustling or a snowflake falling. Not another soul to be found. I have the ride to myself. The emptiness, the silence moves me as I pedal on. Times like these are special. They’re moments for adventure, small opportunities while living life in the normal world.
“Do you want to ride? It’s a long way, close to 100 miles of cycling two days in a row. Are you really up for it?” Mia nodded her head confidently. “Dad,” I want to ride. “I can make it.” Give your children a taste of adventure and they will rise to the challenge.
Our family was traveling out to a small cottage on Sanshan Dao, a small island on Tai Lake, for Golden Week to celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival and the Chinese National Day. The holiday would consist of a simple family dinner of local fare, a little exploring on the island, followed by a night mahjong for those game. The next morning, we’d all return to Shanghai for a final family dinner in the city.
[Read more…] about Mia Rides: Double Century Adventure to Tai Lake
With commitments and obligations keeping me in the city for a few months before the next long adventure, I’d been yearning to get out on the bike again.
The milder and warmer spring weather around Shanghai was beginning to provide excellent opportunities to get out on the bike for local adventures.
It was time to get out the bike and explore some of the sights in around the city to “see what could be seen.” After all, in China, a country with over five thousand years of written history, surely there was something to be discovered and explored.
Practically anywhere you go in China, the Chinese people have a rich, robust culture foreign to Westerners, which makes for interesting places to see and experience. [Read more…] about Going Local: Exploring the Watertown of Qibao
