Travelling from one point to another will attract some people with a sense of personal mission. Chris and I spent a couple of days walking a small section of the Appalatian Trail in New England. It was striking the number of people who were somehow motivated by a sense of personal renewal. Mostly single walkers but also one couple who we met. A strong sense of self-discovery on the journey, and the possibility of restarting one’s life a with a new sense of purpose at the destination. From what I’ve read, it seems that there are walkers with similar motivations on the great pilgrimage trails in Europe such as the walk to Santiago de Compostella.

Some people are also motivated by a sense of physical and emotional achievement. Certainly you can find on the internet cyclists who have posted route maps of long stages that they have undertaken in a very short space of time.

Of course there are also people who are on holiday and who just want to have a nice time. Chris and I obviously fall into that category. We’ve got a home and a nice life to which we hope to return.

So how about the people we’ve met? I think cycling does introduce a different dimension.

We’ve met some single travellers who have been everywhere and done everything on their bikes and are still going strong without a break. Cyclists who have been up and down the Rhine, the Danube and other rivers that I’ve never heard of. They can be quite sociable and have opinions, but, of course, they are quickly gone again. In the extreme cases, they feel a bit like lost souls.

Chris and I have also met repeatedly met some fellow travellers on the same route as us. We met one man who had last year cycled the Danube and then climbed over the western Alps and this was going to cycle the Danube and climb over the eastern Alps. Early in our conversations with him, talking about his former profession, he said “I’m not a team player. That’s why I’m cycling alone”. He had a family that he would return to but they were not with him on the trip.

We also met a couple. In that case, the man had already undertaken some monumental cycling tours on his own. From east to west across the USA and then south all the way down the Pacific seaboard, in one trip. He had also cycled from north Europe to Spain, and back, in one trip.

In both cases, it seemed that the men found cycling on their own as a way of adjusting to retirement.

Chris and I have both discovered that we really enjoy cycling. Simply cycling together is an important aspect of the holiday, even compared to the sightseeing. But, as Chris pointed out, it has to be cycling through nice countryside. She wouldn’t like cycling through industrial areas. Or cycling day after day over long, boring stretches of the American mid-west. For us tourists, the sense of challenge is a fun aspect of the holiday rather than a more essential element. But anway, we still want to see how far we can get down the Danube (eventually) …

[Article courtesy of amazing, fast, free wifi in Linz. Even at our out-of-town campsite]