Imagine you’re nearing the end of another long day in the saddle, partway through your latest cycling tour. Your panniers feel heavy and your tyres sticky as you drag your bike over the final climb of the day. You pull your map out and wrestle with the foreign characters on the paper, trying to match them with those on the road sign ahead.
The underlying excitement that accompanies every bike tour is still there – the freedom, the freshness; it always is – but for the moment it’s forgotten. You begin to feel a little apprehensive about the prospect of trying to find a wild camping site at this hour, and the fact that you’re in a foreign country, don’t speak the language and certainly don’t know anybody nearby, only fuels your unease.
Fortunately there is a network of like-minded people – cycle tourers just like yourself – who have experienced these situations plenty of times before and are only too willing to help you negotiate this lonely, testing side of cycle touring. People around the world who are only too happy to let you sleep on their floor or sofa, or set up your tent in the security of their garden; who listen to your stories from the road with relish, and regale you with theirs over a cold beer.
What’s more, since they live in the place you’ve just arrived in, they are usually helpful in offering advice on local sightseeing opportunities, onward routes, and translating the local language. They may even offer you the chance to have a lovely warm shower.
This network is in fact called Warmshowers. Founded in the US in 1993 as a hospitality exchange for bike tourists, it now boasts 85,000 members worldwide, and as touring continues to grow in popularity, it stands to reason that the Warmshowers community will grow with it.
During a year-long ride from London to Hong Kong in 2015, I was the cycle tourist in need of its community. Leaving on such a big journey, the size of the task ahead was hard to fathom as I alighted from the ferry in Calais, the entirety of the Eurasian landmass ahead of me. I had arranged a Warmshowers host 70km away in Poperinge, Belgium, though, and while shelter from the intense cold of January in Flanders was of course welcome, it was the conversation, encouragement, and understanding of a friendly local that was the real benefit of the experience.
Later on, in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, I was one of 10 cyclists camping in the garden of a somewhat famous host, a French expat living in the city. Located between the western end of one of the world’s most hallowed touring roads, the Pamir Highway, and the deserts of Uzbekistan, Dushanbe is a bottleneck for pan-Eurasian bike travellers. The place was bustling with other tourers, and the garden in which we all camped provided an oasis of comfort and tranquility between the testing environments either side of the city. It was an opportunity to trade stories and tips with tourers travelling in the other direction, and provided space to recalibrate before continuing with the journey ahead.
A place to crash for the night is undoubtedly a welcome thing for any traveller, especially when it’s “free”, but the real beauty of Warmshowers is the way it allows cyclists to connect with kindred spirits, and trade insights into each other’s lives.
In many ways it is a priceless experience, and therein lies the true value of Warmshowers, because while no money ever changes hands, in order for it to work the beneficiaries of goodwill must “pay it forward” to another traveller. If you do end up being the grateful recipient of some Warmshowers hospitality, consider cooking your hosts dinner or buying them a gift, be courteous and respectful, make somebody glad they invited you into their home, and – if you can – open your door to other cycle tourists too.
It’s a circle of trust, and along with the open road and beautiful landscapes, some of my most lasting memories are of the help and hospitality I’ve received along the way. When you’re cold and hungry on top of that mountain pass, struggling to find the will for those final few kilometres of the day, it’s comforting to know there is someone out there – your imminent host – who knows exactly what you’re going through. And that’s why I will continue to pay it forward.
- Escape by Bike: Adventure Cycling, Bikepacking and Touring Off-Road is published by Thames and Hudson
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