60 days in Las Vegas – Part 10
I am spending about 60 days in Las Vegas to work on assorted content and audience building projects. If you are interested in building audiences and that sort of thing I encourage you to follow my...
Just the facts. What are the chances?
I met Bruce and Rennee Allen of Grande Prairie, Alberta during my first bike tour on July 18, 2011 and stayed with them for 2 nights. The reason I met the Allen’s was thanks to my laptop...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 9
I am spending about 60 days in Las Vegas to work on assorted content and audience building projects. If you are interested in building audiences and that sort of thing I encourage you to follow my...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 8
I am spending about 60 days in Las Vegas to work on assorted content and audience building projects. If you are interested in building audiences and that sort of thing I encourage you to follow my...
How to actually reach your dreams
How to actually reach your dreams. If I had a dollar for every time someone said “someday” I would be independently wealthy. Do you ever notice that most people don’t actually reach or live their...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 7 – My 30 Day Review
I am spending about 60 days in Las Vegas to work on assorted content and audience building projects. If you are interested in building audiences and that sort of thing I encourage you to follow my...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 6
I am spending about 60 days in Las Vegas to work on assorted content and audience building projects. If you are interested in building audiences and that sort of thing I encourage you to follow my...
Las Vegas Nevada – Red Rock Canyon Part 2 (Feb 15 to 16)
February 15 Km’s Pedalled - 38 km’s Destination - Red Rock Canyon Some Notes – Over the last week I have found myself overwhelmed with lack of direction and a lot of self doubt with everything I am...
How much strength must I have
How much strength must I have Sure you have strength to move mountains Have you the strength to be me My self hatred of the boy inside me He dare not show his face for shame Hidden in the shadows...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 5
February 8 to 14, 2021 Some Notes - I am spending about 60 days in Las Vegas to work on assorted content and audience building projects. If you are interested in building audiences and that sort...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 4
February 2 to 7, 2021 I am spending about 60 days in Las Vegas to work on assorted content and audience building projects. If you are interested in building audiences and that sort of thing I...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 3
If you checked out 60 Days in Las Vegas - Part 2 you will know that I was answering some timely questions sent in from someone following my bike ride. The following question was also asked by Simon...
Come to Belize – the greatest country in the world!
Come to Belize! The following post are some of the questions and answers that were covered in a recent YouTube video done between me and my YouTube guy Brandon. You can watch the YouTube version...
The Plains Cottonwood Tree
I came across this particular Plains Cottonwood Tree in Dinosaur Provincial Park. The information plaque at this tree estimated the tree to be just over 200 years old. And that it was likely a...
Avenue of the Giants
In northern California there is a 31 mile section of old Highway 101 where the tallest trees in the world grow. These trees are called California Coast Redwoods (Sequoia Sempervirens) and this...
The Smallest of Things
As if it was yesterdayI never forgot what happened, I never forgot the painThe smallest of things brings me back to those days They say time heals all painTry telling that to the broken heartThe...
Every Night
Every night is the same A single tear rolls down a cheek Every night I am reminded of a lifetime of regrets I would rip out this broken heart to do life differently I look away in absolute shame My...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 2
If you haven’t read 60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 1 I encourage you to go read that first. There will be a link at the bottom of this post and HERE Interestingly enough only a few days ago literally...
60 Days in Las Vegas – Part 1
Intro and what this all about Originally, I was going to try turn this particular content into a YouTube series. For two main reasons – to create more YouTube content and attempt to get better in...
18 solid reasons to bike tour with a trailer
There are many very good reasons to bike tour with a trailer. In this post we will explore 18 reasons to bike tour with a trailer. But if I didn’t know better, I would say there truly is a...
Some of my favorite Las Vegas murals
These are some of my favorite murals that I found in Las Vegas Nevada. I was able to find most of these murals north of the strip heading towards the Fremont District. Click on image to enlarge...
The Mahogany Tree of Belize
This is a blog post to help organize all my personal and online research notes of the Mahogany tree of Belize in one place. Disclosure: The purpose of this post is not about writing a post but...
Stealth Camping on Bike Tour
Stealth camping on bike tour, this is perhaps a bit of a controversial topic. Some people believe that it is wrong to camp on someone’s property without permission. I can’ really argue that...
Emptying the Monkey Mind
I have no idea what I am typing or how to go about or layout what is about to be typed. I have listened to many business and lifestyle advice type podcasts and often heard about the exercise of...
Las Vegas Nevada Part 1 (Jan 27 to Feb 1)
January 27 Km’s Pedalled - 56 km’s Destination – just outside (west) Las Vegas Some Notes – A cool, cloudy and overcast morning and day with a of high of 5C....
California Part 11 (Jan 24 to 26) & Summary
January 24 Km’s Pedalled - 34 km’s Destination - 20 km’s from Shoshone (4 km’s to Salisbury Pass) Some Notes - There was a few side attractions along the main highway yesterday. I pedalled past...
Better questions and reflections to live by – Part 14
Over the years in truck I got into listening to podcasts. First a few a week and then depending on the day sometimes listening to podcasts 6-7 hours a day. I have probably listen to a few 1000...
California Part 10 (Jan 21 to 23)
January 21 Km’s Pedalled - 41 km’s (CA - 7 km’s & NV - 34 km’s) Destination -Nevada border Some Notes - I was hoping to go to Beatty get my groceries and at least get back up to Daylight Pass....
California Part 9 (Jan 17 to 20)
January 17 Km’s Pedalled - 77.5 km’s Destination - approx. 30 km’s from Panamint Springs Some Notes – A beautiful sunny day as usual, daytime average temperatures are about 75F/23C. Ever since...
California Part 8 (Jan 12 to 16)
January 12 Km’s Pedalled - 57.5 km’s Destination - Claremont Some Notes – With my last night with a roof over my head I went to bed at 2am. This bed time had me leaving Whittier and on the road...
Glen & Cathy McClure
Gen has been following my ride from the very beginning. He kept bugging me when I was going to arrive in LA. Funny thing was I originally had no plans to arrive bike in or to LA. But after I saw...
California Part 7 (Jan 4 to 11)
January 4 Km’s Pedalled - 75 km’s Destination - south of Toro Canyon Some Notes - Spirits are high and the sun is shining. I am back on the coast. I realized that I have been on this section of...
Homelessness in North America
A blog post about homelessness. Yup that’s right. So you might want to skip this post. I use to go to a church that had a purge Sunday. They intentionally tried to get people to leave the church...
California Part 6 (Dec 31 to Jan 3)
December 31 Km’s Pedalled - 84 km’s (Strava shut off for about 10 km’s) Destination - Cambria Some Notes - Sometime in the night the tent started to shake from the wind and it never did stop shaking...
2020 in Review
If I had to explain or describe 2020 in one word, I think it would be “WOW!!!???” With a few exclamation and question marks. I think it’s safe to say this year did not go as planned for anybody....
Thank you! You guys are awesome!
I make every effort to read every comment posted and to either respond or “like” every comment. From the beginning I have kept a record of my favorite comments/messages. What can I say other than...
California Part 5 (Dec 25 to 30
December 25 Km’s Pedalled - 53 km’s Destination - San Francisco Some Notes – I got a very late start and ended up pedalling all day in the rain and into the dark. I am camping very close to the...
Three Stories That Have Followed Me Everywhere
A simple easy-to-write blog post today. While the interpretations and morals to the stories may be fairly straight forward. I would challenge you to come to those on your own. The first 2 stories...
Paul Aschenbrenner
Paul Aschenbrenner and his 1978 Volkswagen van named Kermit just outside Castorville (which turns out to be the Artichoke Center of the World). Every Tuesday from 10:30 until 2:30 for the last 8...
California Part 4 (Dec 20 to 25)
December 20 to 25 Some Notes – My productivity has been on and off since getting here in Berkeley. I am very busy but mostly what I want to do is watch TV, which I have watched plenty of already. ...
Paul & Chase Skilbeck
Thanks to my media guy Matt Butterman I was able to have use of an empty apartment in Berkeley from December 19 to 25. Due to the Covid situation and students not in school it has left many...
California Part 3 (Dec 12 to 19)
December 12 Km’s Pedalled - 57 km’s (Strava shut off for about 6 km’s) Destination - just past Valley Ford (3.5 km’s) Some Notes - I slept better than expected last night. And this morning during...
The Story of Belize
I need to thank Tom Barbitta for this blog post. In a comment from a personal Facebook post Tom asked what the story was with Belize. Well that's the thing – it very much is a story. And like...
California Part 2 (Dec 6 to 11)
December 6 Km’s Pedalled – 64 km’s Destination – Piercy Some Notes – According to the lady that took my money this morning for camping in Burlington Campground (Avenue of the Giants) California is...
Bike Touring California Part 1 (Dec 1 to 5)
This is Part 1 of an 11 part blog series of bike touring through California. My route brought down the Pacific Coast Highway to Los Angeles and then across and north to Death Valley. Exiting Death...
Jim Sweet
I reached to Jim via Warmshowers because I didn’t know what else do in such a big city as San Francisco during these Covid times. Jim also turned out to be a professional bike mechanic. We (mostly...
Oregon Part 4 & Summary (Nov 28 to Dec 1)
November 28 Km’s Pedalled - 82 km’s Destination - Wedderburn Some Notes – A chilly morning as usual but the sun continues to shine. I bypassed Cape Blanco State Park which was also on my radar to...
Beverly and Todd Rigby
I came by the Rigby's thanks to my aunt Cynthia who use to live in Brooks Oregon a few years back. It is hard to express how amazing it feels and the morel boost one gets from getting out of the...
Oregon Part 3 (Nov 24 to 27)
November 24 Km’s Pedalled - 123 km’s Destination - Same spot as last night - the highest mountain peek between Florence and Reedsport Some Notes – A noisy camping spot last night. I am close to the...
Oregon Part 2 (Nov 15 to 23)
November 15 Km’s Pedalled - 63.5 km’s Destination - Willamina Some Notes - Based on yesterday‘s experience in the rain I thought today was going to be absolutely miserable. When I woke up the rain...
Jake Volz
I knew Jake originally as a Voortman Cookie distributor when I drove a truck (before this bike ride). I probably delivered to Jake 7-8 times over the years. Jake had a lot to do with my Oregon...
Oregon Part 1 (Nov 10 to 14)
November 10 Km’s Pedalled - 28 km’s Destination - Just outside Fort Steven Some Notes – It rained through out the night. The tent was a bit on a slope, so not the most comfortable sleep. And it...
Washington Part 3 & Summary (Nov 4 to 9)
November 4 to 7 Some Notes - I ended up spending 4 nights with my hosts in Raymond. As mentioned in the last post the gentleman that pulled over and offered me a warm bed to sleep in Aberdeen was...
Julie – aunt to Jake Volz
Through my friend Jake Volz who I use to deliver Voortman Cookies to in a truck to McMinnville back when I was a truck driver happened to have an aunt living in the town Nehalem where I camped the...
Washington Part 2 (Oct 29 to Nov 4)
October 30 Km’s Pedalled - 14 km’s Destination - Just outside Hoh Rain Forest Some Notes – It rained most of the whole night. The sun actually came out today which is so unbelievable! With sun out...
Derush Obed & The Twelve Tribes
On my way out of Aberdeen WA Derush Obed (essential one & servant in Hebrew) pulled over and mentioned that he was a Warm Showers host and if I wanted a warm bed in Raymond there would be one...
Washington Part 1 (Oct 25 to Oct 29)
October 25 Km’s Pedalled - 17 km’s Destination - Near the Fauntleroy ferry Some Notes – Wow, I am on a plane during a pandemic. So many vacation and travel plans have been cancelled and here I am...
Haunted by the desires that will never be
I imagine your touch How smooth and sensual your skin is to me My fingers trembling Looking into your eyes Seeing eternity in the depths Reflecting my hurt and pain so raw My hand runs up your thigh...
Bob & Diane Dynes
I have a long history with Bob. Bob was my landlord when I owned and ran The Reptile Store in Hamilton ON between 1999 and 2002. And then years later they moved to Vancouver. When I completed my...
Vancouver, and I am out of here & Summary (Oct 19 to 25)
October 19 Some Notes – Today was very busy day. First thing this morning I met up with John, Fatima and met for the first time Fred and Saireen all from The Healthy Way Vibes show. Tomorrow I am...
You asked, I answered
I wanted to take a moment to thank Kirk R Davis for reaching out and asking me some interesting questions. If you have a few questions of your own, please feel free to reach out and I will do my...
Oh Canada – What a story!!!
The genesis of this ride In 2011 I did a 6,500 km bike ride through all of western and northern Canada. Simply check out the map for reference. This ride would ultimately be one of the greatest...
Vancouver Island Part 4 – Canada complete (Oct 14 to 18)
October 14 Km’s Pedalled - 71.5 km’s Destination - Victoria Some Notes – Waking up the sun was coming out so I took extra time this morning to dry my tent out. The day turned into a beautiful sunny...
Vancouver Island Part 3 (Oct 4 to 14)
October 4 to October 10 Summary From arriving at the Allen’s in Qualicum Beach on the 4th until the 9th I barely left the kitchen table. I started working from the computer late morning but my...
Canada Complete Photo Shoot
October 17, 2019 - 12,340 km - 55 Canadian Hosts
Kane Mercer
Kane has been following my ride from way back and is a fellow cycle tourer. He has biked to Japan, Korea and across Canada. Me and Kane got along very well had many many conversations about life...
Personal Reflections and Gratitude
I posted this on Facebook over Thanksgiving Reflecting on over 12,000 km’s pedalled over the last year (inc winter) and being invited and hosted a record 53 times (so far) across Canada I am forced...
Patagonia Victoria
A super huge thank to the people at Patagonia Victoria for the very generous gift of a new Patagonia rain jacket and rain pants to help keep me dry as I pedal along the west coast of North America....
Nicolas originally from Toronto but now living in Victoria for a long time
Nicolas came biking up to me in Victoria after I had just finished photographing my first views of Victoria. He right away asked me if I needed a host because I could stay with him. I was actually...
Pascal Longhi
Do you remember Pascal from March 5? Pascal had been following my ride and when I arrived in Montreal he reached out and took me on a 4 hour walking tour of the downtown of Montreal. Pascal is...
My US Plans
It seems to be crazy to be laying out my plans for the Unite States at this time. For multiple reasons. First I should probably already be in San Diego California by now. Secondly I have to fly...
Bike Touring Challenges
Bike touring has it's challenges. But this is where the memories are made. This is my “what you don’t see” blog post. You get to see all the beautiful photos and videos I post. But there are...
Vancouver Island Part 2 (Sept 30 to Oct 4)
September 30 Km’s Pedalled – 42.5 km’s Destination – Wya Point Surf Shop at the junction of Hwy 4 and Ucluelet and Pacific Rim National Park Some Notes – Another beautiful sunny day. I hiked Cox...
Vancouver Island Part 1 (Sept 24 to 29)
September 24 Km’s Pedalled - 34 km’s Destination - Qualicum Beach Some Notes – The weather is overcast with just a little bit of rain. Today was only a short bike ride to my next hosts in Qualicum...
Vancouver Part 3 (Sept 19 to 23)
September 19 Some Notes – I biked to Bike Doctor bike shop looking for Post Turkey Swiss 108 (on Instagram). It turns out he is a bike mechanic and his name is Bailey. Bailey wasn’t in today. I...
Mark & Natasha originally of Ottawa now living in Wya
Mark & Natasha run the campground for Wya Point Surf Shop. When Mark heard that I had just biked across Canada he insisted that I stay for free as long as I wanted and fed me supper (twice)....
Spence, Rennee and Bruce Allen
Would you believe this family was my only host on my first bike ride when I biked through Grande Prairie AB in 2011. (They have since moved to Vancouver Island). In Grand Prairie they were hosts...
Chris Townsend & his girlfriend Sophie
You might recognize Chris's photo from earlier this summer. Chris and his friend Anthony recognized me in Jasper when they notice my latest Strava app update told them I was in Jasper. You can...
Social Media
It failed so can we please stop posting crap? If the world does not already realize the following [examples] then I promise your memes haven’t changed a thing. Every Canadian already knows that...
Vancouver Part 2 (Sept 11 to 18)
September 11 Today was a very busy day. John Leung who I was a guest on his YouTube show The Healthy Way Vibes stopped by the hostel to take me out to lunch. We had a great time. It was really...
Fatima Sumar
I enjoyed meeting Fatima Sumar and John Leung from The Healthy Way Vibes at Breka Bakery & Cafe Earlier in the week was a guest on their show and had a great time. Fatima was eager to meet me...
Patty Walters
Patty had the honor of being my 50th host crossing Canada by bicycle. The next morning Patty took me on a bit of a road tour around White Rock and to Canada‘s longest pier. We checked out the...
The Illman’s
Graeme & Joel in the back. Charis, Brooklin the dog, Karen and Hannah in the front Graeme was from back home in Ontario from the church I attended as a teenager. Graeme very unexpectedly...
The Northern Lights Wildlife Wolf Interpretive Centre
On my way out of Golden BC I notice a sign on the highway for the Northern Lights Wildlife Wolf Interpretive Centre. A search on Google Maps showed that it was only 5 km’s off the highway. Which...
Andy Sward
I had been following this guy on Facebook thanks to a previous host Alasdair Veitch. While I was in Vancouver I realized Andy only lived about 30 km's away from where I was staying. So I messaged...
Vancouver – Part 1 (Sept 5 to 10)
September 5 Km’s Pedalled - 90 km’s Destination - Vancouver Some Notes – Putting my riding clothes on this morning my clothes are saturated and heavy with sweat. This is the seventh day without a...
John Leung
John had reached out way back before the ride when I was still in PEI. So he has been following my ride from the very beginning. Upon reaching Vancouver John invited me on his show - The Healthy...
British Columbia – Getting closer to Vancouver (Aug 29 to Sept 4)
August 29 Km’s Pedalled - 120 km’s Destination - Kamloops Some Notes - I had a host waiting in Kamloops. So I basically pedalled non stop to Kamloops. I took almost no photos. Beautiful day but a...
Shannon Stange
I knew Shannon from way back in 2011 when I lived in Vancouver after my first bike ride. We attended the same church. Shannon was really sure where I was except he was sure that I was somewhere...
Orlando Schmidt
Orlando is a long time social media follower from Abbotsford British Columbia. Orlando is actually friends with Ray Chin and was thanks to Orlando that me and Ray met. Orlando drove out to...
Bruce Barton
Wandering through Vancouver this afternoon Bruce Barton walks up to me and asks me if I am Arie. 2.5 million people live in Vancouver. He said he recognized my smile, my (Voortman Cookie) baseball...
Far Out Ride
I met some super interesting folks last night - Antoine Gagne & Isabelle Richard of Quebec Antoine & Isabelle designed and modified their van to allow them to live in their van all year...
Dawn, Harrison & Will of Kamloops BC
I stayed with this really nice family for 2 nights. Dawn is originally from Halifax Nova Scotia and spent much of her early years biking and bike touring. It was awesome to talk bike touring. ...
Bruce and Hilary from Salmon Arm BC
Bruce and Hilary of Salmon Arm BC hosted me for 2 nights. (Hilary wouldn’t go for the picture deal) I stayed an extra day to enjoy a day on Shuswap Lake on their boat. And I ate like a king all day....
British Columbia – My 10th province (Aug 21 to 28)
August 21 Km’s Pedalled – 80.5 km’s 7 km’s to BC border / 73.5 km’s more to Golden Destination – Golden BC Some Notes – An overcast and cloudy day. I set my alarm for 6:30am and we were on the road...
Hermann Kerr
Hermann had posted a comment to a Facebook Group post a very long time ago about hosting me if I came his way. So when I sent him a message that I would be coming through town (Salmon Arm BC) he...
Tanya at Kicking Horse Hostel
I spent 3 nights at Kicking Horse Hostel in Golden British Columbia. I want to thank Tanya very much for being a lovely host. Camping in the backyard was only $10 a night plus access to everything...
I visited the Burrowing Owl Interpretive Centre
On July 22, 2020 I had the pleasure of visiting the Burrowing Owl Interpretive Centre in Moose Jaw Saskatchewan. Who doesn’t love owls and the chance to see one or two? I found out about the...
Alberta Completed – Aug 16 to 21 & Summary
August 16 Km’s Pedalled - 47 km’s Destination - Jasper Some Notes – Another beautiful sunny day. On the way to Jasper I visited, Sunwapta Falls, Athabasca Falls. Sunwapta Falls Athabaska Falls I am...