Susanna Aug. 14, 2021: The longest 18 kms of our lives

Excited to start cycling, we stayed up late packing our things up in our Brussels lodging. We expected to calmly leave the next morning. But when morning came, we found ourselves with still quite a bit to figure out. The thing is–packing for cycle touring as we intend to do it, is not just about putting all our belongings into our panniers. Instead, it is more like a puzzle–checking we have all we need while minimizing size and weight, distributing weight evenly among bikes, making sure the most used items are handy, checking the bikes, and the cherry on top, packing musical instruments in such a way that they are well protected from, well, everything.

Fully loaded, apparently ready to go, our bikes weren’t too happy. Mine felt unstable and hard to control. I was carrying “Martita” (Horacio’s guitar) and was a bit uneasy about the possibility of anything happening to it. In our commotion, a really nice couple came out to say hi and offer help. It turns out they also did bicycle touring. They invited us over for coffee, which we couldn’t do as we were trying to leave, but they stayed with us for a bit and gave us a couple of ideas for how to reduce our load. Thank you, Myriam et Marcel!  ​

Already 1 p.m., we took a few moments to think about our setup in the park nearby (and to have a snack). What could we do differently so that the bikes were not that loaded? Did we really need everything we were carrying? It was hard to say at that point, as we were just starting our travels. It was only 18 kms to reach the campground. Could we actually make it, as is? At a minimum, Camilo and I would switch bikes with their corresponding cargo, and we would give it a try. His bike felt to me as if it was going to break, trembling the entire 18 kms and I rode them focusing on the most basic of skills–not falling down. He got a flat tire while riding my bike–our first while bicycle touring. Exhausted and moving painfully slowly, we eventually reached the campground. The road was beautiful, though, and it took us through fields and small towns. 

I had 2 conflicting feelings–on the one hand, being on a bike again was wonderful and Belgium was proving to be beautiful. On the other, I didn't quite feel free. Not yet at least. Instead, I felt tied to the many things we were carrying and to the hours needed to assemble “the package” to be able to cycle. Perhaps it is just a matter of getting into a routine and figuring out how to do things more efficiently? I am not sure what it is, but we have to give this process some serious thought.