OFF THE CHAIN

Monday, February 20, 2017 METRO 23

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Your urban guide

Travel | Culture | Adventure

Page 27 »

Why no journey should be

without a party

clubclass

travel section of the year

Spanish slalomVias Verdes are disused spanish railway lines turned into leafy walking or cycling paths. Bike holiday specialist saddle skedaddle’s newest tours utilise these networks to link up andalucia’s holy trinity of beautiful cities. The trip starts in Granada, handsome below its mighty alhambra fortress, before pedalling off into a rural land of parched sierras, olive-oil farms and white-walled villages. Dinner on one of Cordoba’s famous patios is followed by rides across wheat fields en route to the Guadalquivir river. Last up is seville, its flamenco scene likely to rouse even the most saddle-sore hips.

Dep Apr 16 and Oct 7, 26 miles a day, from £1,535, excl flights, seven nights’ board, guiding and bike hire, skedaddle.co.uk

Continued on: Page 24 »

It’s 200 years since Karl Drais built the proto-bicycle and here richard Mellor picks the best new trips to take in the saddle

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24 METRO Monday, February 20, 2017

Down the deltaPaddy fields, pagodas, floating markets and fruit farms – there’s nowhere quite like the mesmerising Mekong delta in Vietnam, where the asian river reaches the East Sea amid an explosion of islands. Suitable only for regular cyclists, Pedal Nation’s guided tour combines palm-canopied country roads with ferry rides and homestays in traditional villages. There are also amazing stops at a

stork sanctuary and crocodile farm, mangrove swamp and

forests of melaleuca tree, plus a chance to climb sacred Sam mountain and gaze into neighbouring Cambodia.

Dep Apr 8, 36 miles per day, from £848, excluding

flights, including airport transfers, seven nights’ half-

board, six dinners, guiding and bike hire, pedal-nation.co.uk

Artful wanderingsInntravel’s newest self-guided tour begins in one great art city and concludes in another four days later. the first is red-roofed renaissance Mantua, while verona – with its romeo & Juliet locations – provides an equally fine finale. ample time to explore both is included, either side of a pedal along the Mincio river by way of lake Garda and countless vineyards. the journey’s highlights are flower-filled sigurtà country park and Peschiera, as handsome a riverside town as you’ll find.

Apr-Oct, 19 miles per day, from £748, excl flights, incl six nights’

B&B and bike hire, inntravel.co.uk

Gold pedals and amazinG saddles

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Pedalling for portThErE’S something pleasingly incongruous about wine-focused

cycling – exercising in bucolic scenery in the name of booze. From March, guests at Portugal’s chic, riverside Vintage house hotel can take one of the ‘Cycle The douro’ itineraries. There are 12 routes to choose

from, taking in Croft’s port estate and tastings back at

base. Some just pootle around the douro Valley’s terraced

vineyards, while others climb to hilltop viewpoints.

Available Mar-Nov, rides from 25-75 miles, from £878 incl three nights’ B&B, one dinner, and bike

hire, vintagehousehotel.com

Family funProvIdInG kids’ and electric bikes, plus tag-along trailers in support and throwing in a rest day, Utracks’ new, self-guided itinerary around austria’s salzkammergut region is designed for families. It takes place

» Continued from Page 23

On the Nam: The Mekong journey begins at Ho Chi Minh City

Euro routes:. Verona and,.

right, along the.

river in Salzburg.

Snap: The route along the Mekong takes in a crocodile farm

Monday, February 20, 2017 METRO 25

Travel | Culture | Adventure EscapeEscapeEscapeEscape

B I K I N G T O T H E E N D S O F T H E E A R T H

amid enchanting Sound Of Music scenery: meadows, mountains, valleys and ten lakes. There are plenty of chances for apple strudel and schnitzel-sampling, while local lido water parks boast slides and high-rope courses.

Available Apr 22 to Oct 7, 26 miles per day, from £590 per

adult and £330 per child (6-11), excl flights, incl six nights’

B&B, bike hire and luggage transfers, utracks.com

Gearshifts and gorillasThis one may not be a spring

break but it’s a bit pricey, so that’s

when you might need to start

saving. Kigali To Congo is

from The slow Cyclist, founded by

Oli Broom after he

cycled from

London to Australia. Rather shorter than that, this tough group tour explores rural Rwanda where tea plantations give way to the jungles of the Virunga mountains and saddles are temporarily abandoned for the chance to trek and see rare mountain gorillas (for £775 extra). You’ll also bathe in the huge Lake Kivu.

Dep Oct 14, 37 miles per day, from £2,195, excluding flights, including

airport transfers, six nights’ full board, guiding and bike hire,

theslowcyclist.co.uk

The wind howls as i squint over at my cousin and expedition partner, Ben. he’s trying to keep his ridiculous hat from blowing away in winds of up to 90mph.

We’re standing next to our Thorn Raven bicycles, made of sturdy steel to withstand all types of terrain, at the top of an ice slope on Cape Denison in Antarctica, otherwise known as ‘the windiest place on earth’.

Beneath us at anchor in Commonwealth Bay is ex-Norwegian spy vessel sarson – our ride to the frozen continent. Our mission to cycle on every continent without using aeroplanes – and with a budget of just £2,000 each – is on track.

it took us 14 days to get here from Adelaide. Our captain is a friendly mining billionaire who, bemused by our story, let us hitch a lift for free.

‘here we go,’ screams Ben as we point our wheels toward oblivion. ‘We’re going to plunge straight over the edge of that ice shelf into the ocean,’ i shout.

Ben simply replies: ‘Continent number four!’ and lets out a pathetic yelp before careering down the slope, pinging his bell in a bid to scatter the Adélie penguins below us.

We’ve covered thousands of miles across europe and Asia, from the Russian wilderness to the eastern himalayas. When i think how we have crossed deserts and traversed oceans, mostly with the help of strangers, a tear forms.

i skid and slide down the ice, travelling faster and faster. i see a hill with a cross on top, a monument to those who never left. Beyond that are the icebergs and the infinite ocean.

suddenly, the snow deepens, the tyres bite, the brakes grip and we’re brought to a standstill – surrounded by a gaggle of bemused penguins.

Free Wheels East, a feature film by Jamie Mackenzie and

Ben Wylson, is out now, facebook.com/freewheelseast/

Think you’ve had some hairy bike rides? Cousins Jamie Mackenzie and Ben Wylson spent three years cycling on every continent

Jungle kings: The gorillas of Rwanda

Happy valleys: The. Douro, below,.

and, right, terrace. farming in Rwanda.