Old John and I have explored the entire Wellington-to-Auckland route, via the Wairarapa and the Central North Island, then out to the Beachlands ferry. We've ridden right the way round the Coromandel Peninsula, including the tramping track with the two 400 metre climbs, in the first week of January in blazing sunshine. We've spent three weeks and 1300 Km riding from Picton to Blackball to Granity to Nelson and back to Picton. Earlier this year, I rode the Alps 2 Ocean.
But now and again, you want something slightly more challenging... Brazil!
Tomorrow I fly out to Santiago, via Auckland and the next day I fly to Rio de Janeiro. Plan is to ride from Rio, more or less down the coast to Porto Alegre, via Curitiba and Florianopolis. Also, I have a kiwi friend who lives in Rio Grande do Sul who I am keen to catch up with. I'm meeting my wife in Montevideo (Uruguay) in June.
I've been learning Portuguese from Samba music, Brazilian cop movies and Duolingo. Can't wait to use it for real:) I'm planning on staying mostly with Warmshowers.org hosts, at pousadas (country inns), backpackers and B&Bs. I'm bringing camping gear, but it seems camping isn't a thing in Brazil so I might bot have many opportunities to use it. We shall see.
I am travelling light, which means I'm taking my usual go-to bike, with the tools, USB gadgets and contingency gear - gloves, balaclava, Tiger Balm - that stay with the bike at all times. I'm adding my lightest tent, lightest sleeping bag and my light and compact Big Agnes mattress see-through air mattress. This will see me right down to about +5 degrees at night. If I was going somewhere colder, I'd take my Ground Effect Stormtrooper raincoat (seam sealed, with a hood) and my Sea to Summit Macro II down sleeping bag - but I'd take the same tent).
I like gear lists, so here goes.
Bike
1982 Trek 720 touring bike, 23" top tube (my favourite bike ever)
Mavic MA2 rims, 36 H, Shimano RSX 100 7 speed cassette hubs, stainless spokes
Schwalbe Kojak 700x35 mm slick tyres
TA chainset 46/26
Suntour Vx GT rear derailleur
Suntour Cyclone front deraileur
Suntour ratchet bar end shifters
Nitto Moustache handlebar
Weinmann centrepull brakes
Dia-Compe brake levers and lever stubs
Nitto technomic stem, 100 mm
MKS Sylvan Touring pedals with Christophe toeclips
Gilles Berthoud mudguards
Brooks mudflap
Front LED http://www.dx.com/p/xc-997b-cree-3w-200lm-3-mode-white-led-bicycle-bike-light-4-x-aa-108640#.U0IXlj2SyMI
Rear LED PDW Fenderbot
1976 Brooks B17N saddle
Stainless steel saddlebag rack (copy of 1960s Karrimor)
Carradice Camper Longflap saddlebag (28 litres)
Tools
Puncture kit
Micro chain breaker
Sandpaper, chalk
Superglue
Band-Aids
Small screwdriver to tighten hinges on sunglasses
3,4,5,6 mm allen keys
2 small rags
6 inch adjustable spanner (for pedals)
13/14 mm cone spanner
Camping gear
Zpacks hexamid Solo Plus tent with groundsheet and flyscreen 600g http://www.zpacks.com/shelter/hexamid_plus.shtml
Thermarest prolite 4 S 380 g
Outer Limits +10 deg synthetic sleeping bag, 600g
Silk sleeping bag liner
Clothes
1 pr worn old dress shoes (durable, fit toeclips well, can be dressed up or down by polishing, or not)
1 pr Macpac tramping socks, black and green
1 pr Dickies 13" shorts, faded brown with internal passport pocket (don't wanna look too flash in Brazil)
Reversible black/brown belt with concealed buckle
Seiko 5 automatic wristwatch (worn at airports, not worn on the road)
My most beat-up pair of Vuarnet 058 sunglasses
Kathmandu merino boxer shorts, black, x2
Kathmandu merino singlet (100 g)
Macpac olive merino 3 button polo shirt, short sleeved (200 g)
Logan black merino 2 button polo jersey, long sleeved (400 g)
Shoelace round neck to hang sunglasses from
Kangol 504 hat (folds up nicely, durable, keeps the sun off)
Outdoor Research Redline windbreaker, no hood, seam sealed by me
Cotton flannel (a wet flannel on the back of the neck keeps you cool)
So that means no change of clothes except for underwear - and yet I can look fairly respectable, or down-at-heel, according to what works best for the situation I'm in. With merino garments, you can just wash them with you in the shower, wring 'em out and put on wet. They'll keep you warm and your body heat with dry them out. I plan on buying a Brazilian beach sarong and maybe a pair of linen pants when I get to Rio. And a straw hat.
Miscellaneous stuff
Two credit cards (kept separate)
Some reals and USD (hidden in bike's steerer tube)
Nail clippers
Hand sanitiser
Tiger Balm
Tooshbrush & tooshpaste
No cooking gear
Sweet Cheeks Butt Butter http://www.capitalcycles.co.nz/sweet-cheeks-butt-butter
USB battery http://www.dx.com/p/portable-universal-6600mah-dual-usb-solar-power-bank-for-iphone-ipad-ipod-white-5v-290667#.U0IZnj2SyMI
2 x USB cables
Samsung Galaxy S2 phone
Black Diamond ion head torch
USB rechargable mini-LED http://www.dx.com/p/mini-usb-rechargeable-led-flashlight-green-black-248986#.U0IXhD2SyMI
Luxury Item
Remington USB hair clipper - because I'm a baldie with a beard.
I arrive in Rio on Wednesday 9 April. Wish me luck!
