In contrast to Thursday’s rain, it was a beautiful morning to ride into Falcon Ridge. We were all fresh and clean after our hotel stay and our laundromat dinner. It was six days after I had captured this Start Video of us leaving Bristol and I captured this Finale Video coming down the big hill that overlooks the festival. It isn’t the biggest descent of our week, but I did break 40mph during the video. With the variety of events during the trip we didn’t all log the exact same mileage but my total for the trip rang in at 303 miles. Naturally we spent the rest of the weekend dancing and reveling in the music. Between dancing and climbing the hill to our campsite we got plenty of exercise at Falcon Ridge, but by Sunday I was starting to miss riding my bike!
As this is the third Fernandez Brothers bike trip you might think it’s getting routine. It’s true that I am more comfortable and confident in bike touring than the first trip, but it’s still an adventure. There’s always something unexpected to be found out there and on the bicycle there is always the thrill of self-dependence. It’s only your own efforts that will decide your course. Even though this trip shared a piece of its route with the last trip each journey is unique. I’m already looking forward to the next trip!
2013 Tour de Dance by The Fernandez Brothers
A dance focused bicycle adventure
Thanks for the update; your adventures are inspiring, to say the least, and your blog posts answered most of my questions. I’m curious: what did your gear weigh in at? And did you do any cooking on the road (meaning also did you also pack pots, stove, fuel etc). Your hammock tents – I’m guessing they were Hennessys- what were their best and worst features? I ask ’cause I’m planning a backpacking trip late this month, and my gear is a bit, well, outdated.
Thanks much and see you in the line up.
We’ve never put our gear on a scale but I estimate we are carrying about 50 pounds each. We don’t carry any cooking gear. We typically have one hot meal of the day at a restaurant and then a lot of snacking. Some days dinner is cold from a can at the campsite. This isn’t as bad as it sounds because we are plenty tired at the end of the day and often more interested in sleeping than in eating. If I were to carrycooking gear I would consider a liquid fueled stove. You certainly don’t want to be rolling around with any sort of compressed fuel!
Our hammocks are Hennessey and we have been thrilled with them since we got them back in 2009. Even when I’m not on my bike it is my preferred camping shelter. It takes a little practice to get setup but isn’t that hard. They do setup and pack up quickly. As compared to traditional tents there are a few major difference. Obviously, you need trees or something to tie them to. This generally isn’t a problem in New England. On the other hand, the ground condition doesn’t really matter. You will never have to sleep on a root or feel the hard ground under you again. However, you are more exposed on the bottom. The hammock is much cooler in hot weather, but you will need more insulation in the cold. Also, mosquitoes will bite through the bottom so don’t fall asleep in the woods without a barrier under you!! One more consideration is the sleeping position. It takes a little getting used to but most everyone seems to agree with us that it is very comfortable. Because the entry is underneath you, it can take a few seconds to get in and wriggle into place or into a sleeping bag. Once in there it takes a few seconds of maneuvering to get back out. This can lead to a touch of claustrophobia when you’re in there, but again you get used to it.
Good luck with your backpacking trip!