Tour du Mont Blanc 2016
170km and 10,000m of ascent in 8 days

This was the natural continuation of the Matterhorn Ultraks. Zermatt is not that far away from Chamonix, and the TMB has been in my bucket list for a while. Now it felt the right moment to go for it.

Thinking the route would have been packed with people (as it was indeed) we booked the sleeping places in advance, so that we had no alternative but to reach the destination every day. At first we thought we were too optimistic doing it in 8 days, but we had great weather and felt good all the time, so that it can probably be done in 7 or even 6 days (the UTMB runners would do it in within 21 to 44 hours...)

MATTERHORN ULTRAKS K30

Even though the Achilles tendon never really healed I decided it was time to go back running and signed up for another challenge. The K46 felt too heavy so that I compromised on the K30 (32Km and 1950m elevation gained)

http://www.ultraks.com/en/pages/parcours/trail/-30k-race-137

The West Coast of Scotland Part 2 – The Revenge

When	7 to 15 May 2016
Distance	780km/487m
Elevation gained	8940 m
Bikes	Dharma and Hayduke (cross monsters)
Equipment	2 panniers and handlebar bag (sleeping in hostels)

Scotland never fails to surprise. We had been up the West Coast 2 years before and knew that the weather up there is harsh and changeable, so that we were ready for rain and storms but we were blessed with days of blazing sunshine, and a lot of headwind. The landscapes were superb as expected but the traffic was quite a spoiler, especially in the one lane roads. Still, very happy with the trip and with the memories we took with us.


Day 1 – Inverness to Alltbeithe – 80km, 640m elevation gained

1 week in Madeira
23-30 January 2016

Getting back to normal life, and work, in winter, after months spent cycling in the wild is hard. You look at work as a waste of life and you can only find solace in planning future trips. One rainy and dark winter day we looked for some winter break destinations and the cheapest option was Madeira. I had to check where it was and when I saw it's an island in the Atlantic I expected it to be as dry as the Canary Islands so that I was not convinced, but after seeing a few pictures it appeared the perfect trekking destination.

We found a great deal in EasyJet Holidays: flight and the hotel for 1 week for £170 each and we booked it straight away. We planned to do some trekking and cycling there but the truth is, Madeira is a different world from anything we have even been before!

Back to the Highlands
Stonehaven to Pitrochry via Deeside Way, Braemar and Glen Tilt

When	10 and 11 October 2015
Cycled	170km / 106miles
Bikes	Dharma and Hayduke (cross monsters)
Equipment	Light (we slept in a hostel), Paul brought a Camelback and me a pannier, had I know the route before I'd have taken a rucksack but the pannier was ok too Lots of waterproof stuff (useless in Scotland but you have to believe in something)
Considerations	Midges are still around I really don't like mud but I'm getting addicted to the bike packing spirit When an experience mountainbiker describes a route, the word “cyclable” is translated to “no way I get on the saddle here!”

Back from the Great Divide we were eager for more adventure, but time constraints wouldn't allow for more than 2 days. We wanted to see new places and planned a route on both paved and unpaved roads, and on the second day we decided to change the route completely.

Chapter 8 – Conclusion


Sometimes (well, many times..) we cursed the route, whoever draw it, us and the bikes, but, was is worth it? YESSSSS We have lived a dream and will never regret anything about it. 

Considering the amount of miles we covered, we considered ourselves very lucky – never got sick, no injuries, no mechanical problems, no guns pointed at us, we are still talking to each other, all went so smooth that we can't hardly believe it.

Chapter 7 – West US Road Trip


After 3545km / 2200 miles of dust, dirty roads and endless uphills, on 31 August we finally reached Santa Fe and celebrated the end of the Divide!