New to touring, looking for help to get started

[billbring]

I'm really keen to get into cycle touring and just looking for a point in the right direction to get started.

I'm planning a trip to Hong Kong in November with four friends and looking to do a 500-600 mile loop. How do you guys go about planning your routes? are there any widely used resources or websites I can get route ideas from?

Thanks!

 

[psmiffy]

look at CGOB for what other people have done - decide what you want to see - dont just follow other peoples routes - plug in the major points for your objectives into some routing programme to check if it is doable - buy some maps - I dont know if it easy to buy good maps in HK so maybe go to Stanfords in London or similar - dont worry too much about the detail - make that up on the ground when you are there

 

[recycling]

Unless the roads and traffic in Hong Kong have changed dramatically since I lived there (admittedly thirty years ago) bicycle touring there would be interesting to say the least.
Unless you plan to go into China, planning a 500 mile loop will be challenging. It's not a big place.
Good luck.

Richard

 

[andym]

I know its the obvious answer but try googling. The Hong Kong government even has a page in English about cycling in and around Hong Kong:

http://www.gov.hk/en/residents/culture/recreation/activities/cycling.htm

Work out what places you want to see/go (using guidebooks, tourist information websites, pinterest, Google Image search etc etc) to and then look for quiet roads between them. Don't use auto-routing. If there are any tour operators who go there look at there they go.

There's an awful lot of dross on Crazy Guy on a Bike (psmiffy's contributions are of course an exception). I would approach any online blogs with caution: you've no idea how good or bad the person writing the blog is at routeplanning or navigating. For all you know they have bypassed every interesting place along the route or taken the busy main road when they could have taken a quiet back road. I also suspect that there are bloggers out there who intentionally, or unintentionally, hype up the drama/difficulty of their tours.

There are also sites where that people an use to plan routes or show where they've ridden (eg Strava) these might be worth checking out, if only to give you an idea of where the locals go. But again be cautious as you have no idea whether the person who posted the route has even ridden it, or whether they are a clueless idiot or someone who really knows the area.

The Open Street Map maps for Hong Kong look pretty detailed to me and they are available not just online but to download to a smartphone, tablet or GPS. There's also of course Google and Bing and Here. It's definitely worth buying a traditional map but you can plan using digital maps if you need to.

 

[T4tomo]

Hong Kong is a pretty poor place to be planning a 600 mile expedition on, you can pretty much cycle all round tehnew territories in a day, and that's the biggest and most cycleable bit. HK island due to traffic and hills I wouldn't bother with. Why not fly to say Vietnam instead is you want to head out east?

 

[Brains]

I'm another expat from HK (late 80's/early 90's)
HK is not a place for a 600 mile tour, as others have suggested I'd head for Vietnam.

 

[srw]

The best place to start a tour from is your own front door.

 

[Blue Hills]

Excellent point. Has the OP considered blighty, including scotland?

 

[billbring]

Thanks for all the replies. I would love to do a tour in the UK at some point, but this is going to be in November so I'd much rather be somewhere warm and light.

I don't think we'd cycle straight out of Hong Kong, maybe get on the train to somewhere more suitable first - Yangshuo/Guilin is being talked about.
I'm sort of at the mercy of the other people who are organising so just trying to get some info to feed back to them. As has been pointed out, Vietnam would seem to be a much better option.

Ideally, we'd go somewhere that's 15c + in November and has some nice scenery to explore.

 

[Dayvo]

Is Taiwan a possibility?

I don't know how high the tension is between the two countries is at present, but it's a beautiful, if hilly, island.

Plus you could pick up some cheap frames/bikes etc.

 

[billbring]

Plus you could pick up some cheap frames/bikes etc.

Do you mean, buy a cheap bike when we get that and use it for the tour?
I was planning to take my own bike but some others in the group would be renting as they only have race bikes.

One thing that troubled me with renting or picking up a bike when you arrive, is how can you be sure you can get all your luggage on if you haven't packed the bike in advance.

 

[Dayvo]

Do you mean, buy a cheap bike when we get that and use it for the tour?
I was planning to take my own bike but some others in the group would be renting as they only have race bikes.

One thing that troubled me with renting or picking up a bike when you arrive, is how can you be sure you can get all your luggage on if you haven't packed the bike in advance.

Panniers are the same size wherever you are.

Depends if you're planning on being self-supporting (camping, cooking for yourself) and what kind of weather you're likely to encounter: i.e cold and wet or dry sunny and warm, which will lighten your load or make it heavier.

Check the prices of bikes out online and decide if a cheaper new bike is a better option than either renting one there, or flying over with your own).

Rear panniers and a bar bag should be enough as you're unlikely to be doing 'extreme' stuff, and pack accordingly. Just take your own shoes and pedals and the gear you'll need for the trip - riding and non-riding wear. Tools and spares can be bought there.

 

[srw]

Thanks for all the replies. I would love to do a tour in the UK at some point, but this is going to be in November so I'd much rather be somewhere warm and light.

I don't think we'd cycle straight out of Hong Kong, maybe get on the train to somewhere more suitable first - Yangshuo/Guilin is being talked about.
I'm sort of at the mercy of the other people who are organising so just trying to get some info to feed back to them. As has been pointed out, Vietnam would seem to be a much better option.

Ideally, we'd go somewhere that's 15c + in November and has some nice scenery to explore.

Why don't you go somewhere that's 15C plus in November and has some nice scenery to explore, and then do a bike tour next summer?

With all awe and admiration for your spirit of adventure, I would honestly be inclined to pick something rather easier for a first long bike tour than a trip round a country that isn't especially bike friendly, presumably one where you don't speak the language, and possibly on someone else's bike. If there's anything designed more to put you off cycling touring for life, I can't think of it.

 

[Gravity Aided]

In November, you might try Florida in the States, pretty good weather, barring hurricanes, and flat as a flat thing.(do not try to bunny hop over alligators in the road.)Texas is another fine option, midst of their cycling season. Even Illinois will be in the 50's F through the start of November, maybe. Although this can happen at any time after mid-October.....

There's a full-on bike trail under that, somewhere.

 

[PaulSB]

I hate to be negative but much of what you have written suggests this will not work well. There is a lot to be learnt on one's first cycle tour and it's best learnt in familiar territory.

However! I have three sets of friends who have been on very successful cycling holidays in Vietnam. These were very much "cycling for softies" trips but it does suggest Vietnam is set up for cycle touring. It could be you will find more possibilities and assistance there than other countries you've mentioned.