We are off

Last minute so just the pictures, great wedding, grey weather but fantastic BBQ evening weather. Sailing from Newcastle 1 June going to Dundee station in 10 minutes.

Getting closer to the big day

It has been a while since there was a last update. Daan has bought himself a real touring bike not a Thorne but a VSF T-400 a rugged German beast. Daan is in the last weeks of work and currently sweating over writing up reports and being distracted by his new toy an all singingand dancing digital camera, to be more precise a digital SLR. I have to get to grips with the multitude of possibilities that a digital camera gives me there must millions of different combinations for taking pictures. Even Black and white and sepia tinted without changing film or hanging around in the darkroom. The wedding is getting nearer and both me and Kirsty think we covered everything or almost everything apart from a ring cushion and music. Hopefully we should be able to update this page regularly once we are on the road and with my new camera also be able to show some pretty pictures.

All the big planning

Well one of the things to be sorted out maybe a bit prematurely is a blog, so people can keep track of us (Daan & Kirsty) on our big cycle this year. The other big thing of course is our wedding, although us having chosen the family only option (with the exception of the witness), this is relatively minor. We also have to finish our jobs . Daan is leaving his and Kirsty is switching hers. Between us we should actually have all the gear for a 3 month cycle epic, a combination of camping and budget accommodation and using some of the travellers hospitality initiatives like the WSL (warm showers list) and the couch surfing project.
The only thing missing yet is a bike for Daan that will take a 6000 km trip, his trusted Dawes Horizon is up for retirement after 12 years and probably around 15,000 km. Daan has been pondering whether to go overboard and invest in a Thorn Raven Tour , only a slight upgrade fom his Dawes.The other is a way of recording our trip, so a digital SLR is probably going to be another big expenditure. That way we can update our blog with pictures, a bit more high tech than the postcards I used to sent.