Long Trip - a conversation with travelers

Couple weeks ago I was riding on the beach path in Santa Monica.

I saw two cyclists with full camping gear pass me. Later I saw them pulled over talking.

I stopped and asked them where they were coming from. Two guys - Pip and (name to be inserted later, when the brain comes back from vacation) where from Rotterdam, Netherlands. They started about 5 months ago in Toronto, rode across the continent to San Francisco, then spent a month coming down to L.A. They were leaving LAX for home in 3 days. And now they were looking for a motel to stay at.

I was able to recommend a local motel on Pico blvd. and 11th street in Santa Monica. I showed them which way to go. Later I was going by and saw their bikes, so I asked them if they had any plans. They did not, so I offered to show around L.A.. Later we met up, and I took them out for Mexican food (La Playita on Lincoln blvd. near Rose), then drove them around - we went to Beverly Hills and Hollywood. It was at night, so we could not see Hollywood sign, but still my guests were excited. They haven't been in a car for over 5 months!

I was very interested in their trip. I asked them what they would change if they had to do it over again, and first thing they said that they might bring warmer clothes. Also, they would wash their sleeping bags more often - after 5 months they felt very dingy.

They tried budgeting themselves to $40 per day. They camped - outside California costs were about $5 a person per night, inside California the costs doubled. They ate a lot of Top Ramen and hot dogs. At first they bought firewood, but later they started collecting fallen branches around the campsites. Later they acquired a saw to cut more wood.

Pip had 3 flats, Yelle (memory is back) had 7. One broken spoke. Because they were running ahead of schedule, they were cycling slowly. Some days they rode only 7 or 10 miles - from one campsite to another.

They said that their trip was not hard. Most important was to find a place to camp. Then, to get fire going - it was getting dark pretty early, and you had nothing else to do if you had no fire. Last, get the food going on the fire you started. Everything else was non essential.

So, what did I learn from their experience?

You need to have a clothing to protect you from the elements.
You need a roof over the head (tent + site).
You need food.
You need transportation.
You need destination.

Everything else is optional. Yellu and Pim did not have laptops, hell, they did not have cell phones. They had no gps, they were traveling "old school". Their bikes were just simple 24 speed mountain bikes with fenders and racks. They did have some maps and guidebooks, but most communications were done through internet at local libraries. They were living "off the land".

I feel they were living at most basic level, yet it was very satisfying. Sometimes, less is more.