OUDTSHOORN SPORT NEWS - Niels Jansen, an avid cyclist from the Netherlands recently arrived in Oudtshoorn after covering 35 000km covering 24 countries on his bike.
According to Jansen, he decided to embark on this journey from his hometown on 11 March 2020. He was inspired by a cyclist couple in the desert who were cycling through the Americas.
"The nice thing about bicycle touring is that you have highlights every day. Sure there are absolute highlights like the fjords in Norway, the Pyramids in Egypt, but the real joy is in the small daily highlights.
The great view after cycling up a long mountain pass, a stranger who invites you over for a coffee and the wildlife that you see. A two-year-long cycling journey is never without challenges, but they are an inevitable part of the experience. I even got my passport stolen in Sudan and people tried to rob me in Ethiopia. Vicious stormy winds broke my tent in Zambia, I was terrorised by tsetse flies which have a terrible sting and will drive anyone crazy. Yet, regardless of the occasionally expected misfortunes, I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to explore the world on my own, with total freedom and with very minimal impact on the environment. "
Jansen said that his last stop in Africa will be Cape Town from where he will fly back to Portugal. From there he will cycle back home in about two months.
Now that many flights from South Africa have been cancelled due to Covid-19, he decided to tour through South Africa following the Cross Cape and the Garden Route.
Jansen also shares his cycling experiences and videos through his blog on Facebook in the hope to inspire others to take the bike more often. "For me, it is the purest and most sustainable way of travel and transportation. If you travel by bicycle you have more respect for nature and your surroundings."
