Absolutely adorable, I love this video with all those super meaningful thoughts, monologued under the dripping rain. Keep this stuff coming, you're a star, Jethro!
You are very kind, thank you. I'm glad you liked the video (and the musings). This is a day I think back to often. After the rain stopped I had an absolutely fantastic ride on forest trails, looking out across the water. One day I need to get back to Norway. Thanks for watching and for the kind words :)
Really nice channel! Informative, relaxed, thoughtful, humourous, friendly. Especially those kinds of monologues add something to the vast amount of bikepacking channels here. Keep it up!
Thank you very much. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I love getting philosophical about biking, I think in many ways it's more important than the chat about bags, bikes and how far you cycled.
I just discovered your channel and I love listening to your monologues! I wanted to give some more compliments but other commenters have already said it better than I could. Love your calm thoughtful reflexions.
Another compliment is always welcome :) Seriously though, I really appreciate this. I was literally just now mulling the idea of doing a video over the weekend and wondering if the internet will put up with another longwinded monologue. You have decided me on that one so thanks again, I hope I continue to entertain :)
Wonderful video! I’m in my early 50s and I’ve only recently started doing solo backcountry trips. It’s freeing and eye opening to realize how little of my life I’ve really spent time with myself (and by that I mean, without distraction…of people, gadgets, work, activities, etc.). It dawned on me that the decades I’ve spent going on trips to the mountains with friends weren’t really that at all. I was really with friends in the mountains. The ordering is key: it highlights what was the focus. And in a sense, I felt a bit of a loss for all the places I went but didn’t *really* see or hear or smell or feel. So, solo travel has become a way to be fully immersed in a physical space and practicing being presence. It’s also been helpful to remind myself that both the lonely (and other hard) feelings along with the elated feelings (of joy, excitement, wonder, and awe, for instance) will pass, that they’re all transient. As you say, lonely feelings won’t kill you. In fact, if we let them, they might just teach us something wonderful, beautiful, and valuable.
That's an interesting point and very true. Solitude is incredibly powerful but also incredibly fragile. It only takes a single other person or even just a consistent data signal to shatter it completely. Most experience can be spun out as a positive thing, you just have to find the angle. Spending time with friends in the wild is great - the best way to be with friends I'd argue - it is very different to being in the same place alone. A place is only a place. It exists independently of us and it is our experience of it that is how it gets written into our minds. I could ride the same trail as you on the same day and the same bike and our experiences would be wildly different. Being alone is very focusing and so all experience is different from that point of view
@@JethroJessop Absolutely! Really well said. One thing that I practice when I’m multi-day hillwalking is to focus on sounds and tactile experiences more than sights. I’ve found it really reshapes how I experience places I’ve been before in fresh, new ways. And I do agree that being in the wild places is the best way to be with friends. But, like you, though likely for (at least some) different reasons, I need the solitude that solo exploration provides. I’m grateful to have discovered that and to have given myself the gift of it.
Interesting contemplation, liked what you said. I find you are very eloquent, your good with words. I guess you read a lot. Great footage of Norway Jethro.
Thank you, I appreciate that. I don't read as much as I should anymore but I am a fan of language. I'm also a fan of contemplating - regardless of the subject. It is a passtime that seems to be falling from favour in these modern times.
Great video. Loved the comment about a small quantity of loneliness won't kill you - it's probably something good to try occasionally. Looking forward to watching some of your other videos now
Thank you! Very kind of you to say, I'm glad you enjoyed it. I am firmly of the opinion that a small amount of loneliness can be good. We live in a busy world where there is always something happening or someone talking. No time to enjoy the silence. I'm thinking I'll start doing more videos of rambling philosophy. The gear reviews get more views in the long run but the philosophy of the saddle is much more fun to film and comes much more naturally. Hope you can find a few that you like and stay tuned for more in the future.
I really like your stuff, thanks. I am a cyclist too. I cycle to work in Reading and plan short trips (Southampton to Portsmouth, Round the IOW) That sketch of the log burner type thing was great. Cycling has made an enormous difference to my mental health. Cool alliterative name as well. I cycled the Kennet and Avon canal from Bristol to Reading with some mates (stayed in Pewsey overnight). That's how I came across your channel. Sorry, my english is all over the place but TL;DR great channel.
Thank you very much! I could go on for ages about how cycling is the cure for all ills - it is good for the body, good for the soul, good for society and good for the environment. Really glad that you have found a passion for it. Dunno what sort of riding you like but if you are into gravel/off-road then I can highly recommend the Ridgeway. Follow the Thames out to Goring (a nice ride by itself) then climb up onto the Ridgeway trail from Streatley Golf Club. After that it is gravel/mud all the way - well signposted, amazing views, ancient monuments. You can stretch it all the way to Stone Henge and beyond. I did a video on the first section a while back and keep meaning to revisit it myself for a longer trip.
Not having to hear other peoples' words, thoughts, and deal with their nonsense is quite calming. All there is is whatever you're thinking in the moment. People and city noise can wear on the nerves and the drama that comes with people at times can be really irritating or triggering (!).
Definitely. Silence and solitude, when sought out intentionally, are very regenerative. And you can learn a lot from only having your own nonsense in your head for a while, it's a good way to filter it all
Hi, I did my first longish solo trip after a long break ,like you camping, I also enjoy my own company and space and own camp bed. But I would definitely recommend hostels they are usually very sociable when you have time on your hands in the evenings. The other time can be when it's a bit grim due to weather ,too many hills or just knackered. I like to comfort eat ,always have some music and of course you can usually talk or contact someone . Finally I think about what I would be doing in the cold and rain at home, not cycling that's for sure.
Eating well is a great way to perk up even the coldest and wettest day. A cup of coffee, a couple of biscuits or stopping somewhere warm for an unplanned feast. I could never be one of those cold soak/protein gel type tourers.
I'm glad you enjoyed my ramblings :) There is a lot to be gained from solo touring and its a pity that this current period of isolation means I haven't been able to do much bicycle isolation this year. Where did you do your touring?
I rode the Pacific West Coast from Vancouver to Cabo San Lucas, Baja ; from south coast to north coast of Spain via a meandering route and just returned from riding from north to south in Colombia. Three different adventures, very different experiences and different degrees of aloneness and loneliness. I got back to the UK in early March and have been stuck Oxfordshire since. It looks like it'll be UK exploring next :)
@@sarahcook3992 wow, some serious trips there! All my riding has been in Europe. I had actually planned to do more exploring of the UK this year - I really wanted to get back up to Scotland for a bit - but now I am stuck in Berkshire. What was Spain like? I have that and Portugal on my list as possible winter trips.
Yay! Scotland!! I've done a bit of riding there, and lots of mountaineering. The Outer Hebrides and the NC500 are on my Scotland list. Spain was fab. I started in the South in April and had a bit of weather over the Sierra Nevada, hot and sunny from Seville to the north coast, then more like UK weather along the north coast. Nav was a bit tricky as I wasn't riding a specific route a lot of the time and maps weren't brill, but I joined the Via de la Plata, a Camino route, so I could mostly follow the arrows! Lots of campsites along the coasts, a few wild camps but I'm not brilliantly brave doing those with my bike, and used some pilgrim hostels on the Camino. Great bread and sardines!
@@sarahcook3992 if I'm being honest the main attraction for me is the bread and sardines. I went to Portugal for a friend's 40th - only a few days but it convinced me there was good riding to be had and amazing seafood. What more motivation is needed? At the moment I'm doing a lot of looking at maps and imagining where I could go next. The NC500 is also on my list along with the HT550 and the Badger Divide. I'd also love to visit some of the train centers up there. I really hope there is some easing of lockdown soon but for now, the sun is shining so I'll get out somewhere local and make the most of it. Do you have enough local riding to keep you entertained?
"And then, depending on your nature, after a few weeks or a few months, you'll find yourself looking at maps again, wondering where you're gonna go next, thinking about how nice it is, sometimes, to just be a little bit lonely." I've discovered your channel today, in preparations for my first long solo tour and I love your interpretations of the inner worlds we enter when we embark upon adventures alone. I hope to discover you made a video about wild camping alone and facing the instinctual fear and anxiety that creeps in after sundown. Traversing the Alps is the least of my concerns. Spending the first night in the woods gives me the heebie-jeebies if I think about it too much.
I have made exactly that video as I too find myself in fear of the non-existent beasties and boogie men. It does get easier though, and pretty quickly. Especially when you are tired after a day of hard riding and sleep comes easy. You soon learn to feel the wilderness around as a barrier and a protection rather than a threat. I've done a few videos about solo riding and the benefits of it as I see them. They are all in this playlist along with my more 'thoughtful' videos ruclips.net/p/PLeEZMO6am23FZcY7V-ORBIOr1butDXIhy
@@JethroJessop This is stuff of gold. The notion of reinterpreting the wilderness as opposite to how I currently feel about it in terms of unease, sounds very appealing. Thanks for bringing that to my awareness. You can bet I'll bear that in mind when I'm out there. Thanks!
@@viktorvolaric-horvat5190 I'm really pleased you find something useful in my ramblings 😉 It is of course also good to keep in mind that the wilderness is not without dangers. Research you area and your route, learn what you might have to deal with in terem of wild animals, weather etc Knowing what the real dangers are and knowing that you have done what is required to minimise them is the best way to feel in control of the situation and thereby be able to relax and enjoy the solitude, the isolation and the silence. Thanks for watching, and for the kind words, the support is appreciated 🙂
@@JethroJessop While it suits me just fine to know that there is very little predatory evil out there if we’re talking about Central Europe so I can relax, it is heartbreaking to think our ancestors killed everything off so thoroughly :( I was worried about coming across bears in the Ardennes, Schwarzwald and the Alps, but alas, turns out there’s a bear sighting every few years and then they usually kill the poor beast. Checking the weather patterns is a good shout, thanks for the tip!
@@viktorvolaric-horvat5190 yeah, I'd love to see a bear or a wolf but everyone i asked in Sweden just laughed and said "you'll be lucky" They are about but they don't want anything to do with us. Elk and boar can be quite feisty as well but I only ever saw one elk and a few old boar scrapes
Well said. I can take in the silence of nature all day long: That sound you hear where there's no traffic noise, no people, no nothing, just the presence of where you are, the animals, the wind. Not everyone gets it really. Some just hear nothing and are bored by the solitude of the situation..... Similar for me really. I travel alone, and like it that way, but I love chatting to other travellers, other people, locals, etc... It's all part of the experience of the trip, and I get so much out of it. Thanks for the video!
Thank you! Really pleased you liked the video (and agreed with the sentiment). I absolutely think that silence and solitude are things we are deprived of in modern life and can be incredibly valuable (to some people). I'd recommend everyone tries it in their life. Not everyone will enjoy it and some will hate it but if it does click then you can get so much back from so little. I love it and wish I could have more of it.
Thank you. That was a wet old morning but such a beautiful location. I wish I'd filmed more of the lake and the surroundings - though I wouldn't have done it justice. Norway is somewhere I hope I can return to one day.
@@varragoastu I'm envious of you. It is a truly stunning country. I also loved riding over the border in Sweden. Both countries have a feeling of wilderness that we are sorely lacking in the UK
Greetings from the interstate in West Texas near Fort Stockton. I just discovered your channel a few days ago, but I am well hooked. I enjoy your philosophical musings inane accent. What part of England are you from?
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it. Incase you haven't seen them, I'll gently point you towards my other slightly rambling Philosophy Of The Saddle videos ruclips.net/p/PLeEZMO6am23FZcY7V-ORBIOr1butDXIhy I'm actually just about to go out and film another today. Sun is shining, coffee is kicking in, and I'm in the mood for some musing :) Have a great day
Glad you are enjoying them. I'll keep uploading as often as I can. Just booked another week off to do a ride and have a few ideas for videos in the meantime. I just need to go viral so I can make a fortune and finally become a full time bike bum 😄
Hostels, great, Seoul met eclectic group from a black Alaskan, French assistant to French embassy in Bangladesh, 8 others from all parts of the world, amazing 3 months, shared stories shared meals, nights out, exploring the hills meeting locals, can’t beat traveling
@@ingeleonora-denouden6222 Sketching is great while touring or just out and about. I only seem to do it while I'm away on the bike but I have friends who do it every day, no matter where they are and it is a fantastic record to look back over. Glad you enjoyed the video :)
OK, that's a reason for feeling lonely and miserable. But take your bicycle and panniers, put in the tent, sleeping bag, etc. Go your own way and be with yourself. In the here and now.
You are not the first person to mention this 😉 I also get compared to some chap from Game of Thrones but I've not seen it so dunno if that is a good thing or not. Regardless, welcome, glad you are enjoying the videos, great to have you onboard. What part of the world are you hailing from?
@@yyyyuno is that the place where there are those amazing bridges made from twisted vines? Sure I've read something about that and remembered the name because it sounds like somewhere from a fantasy novel!
I do long-distance walking projects after many years seakayaking. I never meet others as I use a Walkingtrailer and often use cycleroutes...but they go to fast to stop and have a chat. Anyway next week of to UK and Ireland if in the mood for many months. To not become insane I talk to the sheep...
Wow that sounds pretty intense. Good luck, I hope you have an amazing trip. I don't exactly talk to animals but I am incapable of passing one without making its noise. I moo at cows, baa at sheep etc It's an affliction 😉
Keeping a diary is cool but don't get too wrapped up in it, get on with it and then get going again always something new, something different that's why you do it that's what it is all about.
Very true. I make my videos which I suppose does a similar job to a diary and I do like to be able to go back and revisit them down the line. But the moment to moment reality is the point of it and generally I can go a long time on my own before I start to really miss human interaction. I am missing bike based solitude at the moment a whole lot more than I ever missed society when I was cycling
@@donnacampbell6967 I just use my phone. It's a Samsung S7 so not even a very good one but with a little external mic it does the job fairly well. I can keep it charged from my dynamo and it does double duty as my navigation device as well. I'd like to get something that has better picture quality but I don't want to switch to iPhone and the new Pixel is (reportedly) really crap in the battery department
I agree. Personally I love to cycle alone. My flippant use of the word sociopath was only to highlight that even those who enjoy and seek solitude will still feel lonely and homesick from time to time
@@TexasNightRider thank you. I try to always be courteous. Sensible, reasoned discussion seems to be going out of fashion these days but I'm keeping the flame alive 😉 Today a single RUclips comments thread, tomorrow the world!
Haha, i did think inane was a pretty blunt opinion 😉 Greeting back atcha, I'm really pleased you are enjoying the channel. I have lived all my life around Reading which is just a little west of London along the river Thames. I don't have the full Reading accent but enough that I have been picked out by fellow locals as far afield as Scotland
Absolutely adorable, I love this video with all those super meaningful thoughts, monologued under the dripping rain. Keep this stuff coming, you're a star, Jethro!
You are very kind, thank you. I'm glad you liked the video (and the musings).
This is a day I think back to often. After the rain stopped I had an absolutely fantastic ride on forest trails, looking out across the water.
One day I need to get back to Norway.
Thanks for watching and for the kind words :)
Really nice channel! Informative, relaxed, thoughtful, humourous, friendly. Especially those kinds of monologues add something to the vast amount of bikepacking channels here. Keep it up!
Thank you, I appreciate that. The gear reviews tend to get the most views but the monologues are actually what I enjoy doing the most.
You are a wise and articulate chap Jet
I try my best. Quite enjoyed philosophising under my tent. Might think of another subject to tackle next time it rains
One of the most interesting perspectives I've seen on bike packing/touring.
Thank you very much. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I love getting philosophical about biking, I think in many ways it's more important than the chat about bags, bikes and how far you cycled.
On my way in my first solo trip through Japan. Thank you, I needed this!
Amazing!
Have a fantastic time. Embrace every moment of it, colour in some enduring memories.
How long are you on the road for?
I just discovered your channel and I love listening to your monologues! I wanted to give some more compliments but other commenters have already said it better than I could. Love your calm thoughtful reflexions.
Another compliment is always welcome :)
Seriously though, I really appreciate this. I was literally just now mulling the idea of doing a video over the weekend and wondering if the internet will put up with another longwinded monologue. You have decided me on that one so thanks again, I hope I continue to entertain :)
Superbe Chanel for bike inspiration and réflexion ,keep calme and ride✌️
Wonderful video! I’m in my early 50s and I’ve only recently started doing solo backcountry trips. It’s freeing and eye opening to realize how little of my life I’ve really spent time with myself (and by that I mean, without distraction…of people, gadgets, work, activities, etc.). It dawned on me that the decades I’ve spent going on trips to the mountains with friends weren’t really that at all. I was really with friends in the mountains. The ordering is key: it highlights what was the focus. And in a sense, I felt a bit of a loss for all the places I went but didn’t *really* see or hear or smell or feel. So, solo travel has become a way to be fully immersed in a physical space and practicing being presence. It’s also been helpful to remind myself that both the lonely (and other hard) feelings along with the elated feelings (of joy, excitement, wonder, and awe, for instance) will pass, that they’re all transient. As you say, lonely feelings won’t kill you. In fact, if we let them, they might just teach us something wonderful, beautiful, and valuable.
That's an interesting point and very true. Solitude is incredibly powerful but also incredibly fragile. It only takes a single other person or even just a consistent data signal to shatter it completely.
Most experience can be spun out as a positive thing, you just have to find the angle. Spending time with friends in the wild is great - the best way to be with friends I'd argue - it is very different to being in the same place alone.
A place is only a place. It exists independently of us and it is our experience of it that is how it gets written into our minds.
I could ride the same trail as you on the same day and the same bike and our experiences would be wildly different.
Being alone is very focusing and so all experience is different from that point of view
@@JethroJessop Absolutely! Really well said. One thing that I practice when I’m multi-day hillwalking is to focus on sounds and tactile experiences more than sights. I’ve found it really reshapes how I experience places I’ve been before in fresh, new ways. And I do agree that being in the wild places is the best way to be with friends. But, like you, though likely for (at least some) different reasons, I need the solitude that solo exploration provides. I’m grateful to have discovered that and to have given myself the gift of it.
Interesting contemplation, liked what you said. I find you are very eloquent, your good with words. I guess you read a lot. Great footage of Norway Jethro.
Thank you, I appreciate that. I don't read as much as I should anymore but I am a fan of language. I'm also a fan of contemplating - regardless of the subject. It is a passtime that seems to be falling from favour in these modern times.
Great video. Loved the comment about a small quantity of loneliness won't kill you - it's probably something good to try occasionally. Looking forward to watching some of your other videos now
Thank you! Very kind of you to say, I'm glad you enjoyed it.
I am firmly of the opinion that a small amount of loneliness can be good. We live in a busy world where there is always something happening or someone talking. No time to enjoy the silence.
I'm thinking I'll start doing more videos of rambling philosophy. The gear reviews get more views in the long run but the philosophy of the saddle is much more fun to film and comes much more naturally.
Hope you can find a few that you like and stay tuned for more in the future.
I really like your stuff, thanks. I am a cyclist too. I cycle to work in Reading and plan short trips (Southampton to Portsmouth, Round the IOW) That sketch of the log burner type thing was great. Cycling has made an enormous difference to my mental health. Cool alliterative name as well. I cycled the Kennet and Avon canal from Bristol to Reading with some mates (stayed in Pewsey overnight). That's how I came across your channel. Sorry, my english is all over the place but TL;DR great channel.
Thank you very much! I could go on for ages about how cycling is the cure for all ills - it is good for the body, good for the soul, good for society and good for the environment. Really glad that you have found a passion for it.
Dunno what sort of riding you like but if you are into gravel/off-road then I can highly recommend the Ridgeway. Follow the Thames out to Goring (a nice ride by itself) then climb up onto the Ridgeway trail from Streatley Golf Club. After that it is gravel/mud all the way - well signposted, amazing views, ancient monuments. You can stretch it all the way to Stone Henge and beyond. I did a video on the first section a while back and keep meaning to revisit it myself for a longer trip.
@@JethroJessop Thanks, I will try it.
Not having to hear other peoples' words, thoughts, and deal with their nonsense is quite calming. All there is is whatever you're thinking in the moment. People and city noise can wear on the nerves and the drama that comes with people at times can be really irritating or triggering (!).
Definitely. Silence and solitude, when sought out intentionally, are very regenerative. And you can learn a lot from only having your own nonsense in your head for a while, it's a good way to filter it all
Major difference of being alone and loneliness.Cherish being alone. It is a luxury these days.
Absolutely. Solitude is a valuable thing and should be enjoyed fully!
Hi, I did my first longish solo trip after a long break ,like you camping, I also enjoy my own company and space and own camp bed. But I would definitely recommend hostels they are usually very sociable when you have time on your hands in the evenings. The other time can be when it's a bit grim due to weather ,too many hills or just knackered. I like to comfort eat ,always have some music and of course you can usually talk or contact someone . Finally I think about what I would be doing in the cold and rain at home, not cycling that's for sure.
Eating well is a great way to perk up even the coldest and wettest day. A cup of coffee, a couple of biscuits or stopping somewhere warm for an unplanned feast.
I could never be one of those cold soak/protein gel type tourers.
I just found this video and really enjoyed viewing it, you have a nice easy to listen to and watch style, well done, I just liked n subscribed😊
Love the wisdom Jethro. I've done three multi-month tours solo and everything you said spoke to my soul. Happy cycling!
I'm glad you enjoyed my ramblings :) There is a lot to be gained from solo touring and its a pity that this current period of isolation means I haven't been able to do much bicycle isolation this year.
Where did you do your touring?
I rode the Pacific West Coast from Vancouver to Cabo San Lucas, Baja ; from south coast to north coast of Spain via a meandering route and just returned from riding from north to south in Colombia. Three different adventures, very different experiences and different degrees of aloneness and loneliness. I got back to the UK in early March and have been stuck Oxfordshire since. It looks like it'll be UK exploring next :)
@@sarahcook3992 wow, some serious trips there! All my riding has been in Europe. I had actually planned to do more exploring of the UK this year - I really wanted to get back up to Scotland for a bit - but now I am stuck in Berkshire.
What was Spain like? I have that and Portugal on my list as possible winter trips.
Yay! Scotland!! I've done a bit of riding there, and lots of mountaineering. The Outer Hebrides and the NC500 are on my Scotland list. Spain was fab. I started in the South in April and had a bit of weather over the Sierra Nevada, hot and sunny from Seville to the north coast, then more like UK weather along the north coast. Nav was a bit tricky as I wasn't riding a specific route a lot of the time and maps weren't brill, but I joined the Via de la Plata, a Camino route, so I could mostly follow the arrows! Lots of campsites along the coasts, a few wild camps but I'm not brilliantly brave doing those with my bike, and used some pilgrim hostels on the Camino. Great bread and sardines!
@@sarahcook3992 if I'm being honest the main attraction for me is the bread and sardines. I went to Portugal for a friend's 40th - only a few days but it convinced me there was good riding to be had and amazing seafood. What more motivation is needed?
At the moment I'm doing a lot of looking at maps and imagining where I could go next. The NC500 is also on my list along with the HT550 and the Badger Divide. I'd also love to visit some of the train centers up there.
I really hope there is some easing of lockdown soon but for now, the sun is shining so I'll get out somewhere local and make the most of it.
Do you have enough local riding to keep you entertained?
"And then, depending on your nature, after a few weeks or a few months, you'll find yourself looking at maps again, wondering where you're gonna go next, thinking about how nice it is, sometimes, to just be a little bit lonely." I've discovered your channel today, in preparations for my first long solo tour and I love your interpretations of the inner worlds we enter when we embark upon adventures alone. I hope to discover you made a video about wild camping alone and facing the instinctual fear and anxiety that creeps in after sundown. Traversing the Alps is the least of my concerns. Spending the first night in the woods gives me the heebie-jeebies if I think about it too much.
I have made exactly that video as I too find myself in fear of the non-existent beasties and boogie men.
It does get easier though, and pretty quickly. Especially when you are tired after a day of hard riding and sleep comes easy. You soon learn to feel the wilderness around as a barrier and a protection rather than a threat.
I've done a few videos about solo riding and the benefits of it as I see them. They are all in this playlist along with my more 'thoughtful' videos ruclips.net/p/PLeEZMO6am23FZcY7V-ORBIOr1butDXIhy
@@JethroJessop This is stuff of gold. The notion of reinterpreting the wilderness as opposite to how I currently feel about it in terms of unease, sounds very appealing. Thanks for bringing that to my awareness. You can bet I'll bear that in mind when I'm out there. Thanks!
@@viktorvolaric-horvat5190 I'm really pleased you find something useful in my ramblings 😉
It is of course also good to keep in mind that the wilderness is not without dangers. Research you area and your route, learn what you might have to deal with in terem of wild animals, weather etc
Knowing what the real dangers are and knowing that you have done what is required to minimise them is the best way to feel in control of the situation and thereby be able to relax and enjoy the solitude, the isolation and the silence.
Thanks for watching, and for the kind words, the support is appreciated 🙂
@@JethroJessop While it suits me just fine to know that there is very little predatory evil out there if we’re talking about Central Europe so I can relax, it is heartbreaking to think our ancestors killed everything off so thoroughly :( I was worried about coming across bears in the Ardennes, Schwarzwald and the Alps, but alas, turns out there’s a bear sighting every few years and then they usually kill the poor beast.
Checking the weather patterns is a good shout, thanks for the tip!
@@viktorvolaric-horvat5190 yeah, I'd love to see a bear or a wolf but everyone i asked in Sweden just laughed and said "you'll be lucky"
They are about but they don't want anything to do with us.
Elk and boar can be quite feisty as well but I only ever saw one elk and a few old boar scrapes
Well said. I can take in the silence of nature all day long: That sound you hear where there's no traffic noise, no people, no nothing, just the presence of where you are, the animals, the wind. Not everyone gets it really. Some just hear nothing and are bored by the solitude of the situation.....
Similar for me really. I travel alone, and like it that way, but I love chatting to other travellers, other people, locals, etc... It's all part of the experience of the trip, and I get so much out of it. Thanks for the video!
Thank you!
Really pleased you liked the video (and agreed with the sentiment). I absolutely think that silence and solitude are things we are deprived of in modern life and can be incredibly valuable (to some people).
I'd recommend everyone tries it in their life. Not everyone will enjoy it and some will hate it but if it does click then you can get so much back from so little.
I love it and wish I could have more of it.
Cheers for opening up
Cheers for watching, I'm glad you enjoyed it
I love the rain in the backround. Nice topic.
Thank you.
That was a wet old morning but such a beautiful location. I wish I'd filmed more of the lake and the surroundings - though I wouldn't have done it justice.
Norway is somewhere I hope I can return to one day.
@@JethroJessop I was cycling in Norway last year and going back there this summer.
@@varragoastu I'm envious of you. It is a truly stunning country. I also loved riding over the border in Sweden.
Both countries have a feeling of wilderness that we are sorely lacking in the UK
Greetings from the interstate in West Texas near Fort Stockton. I just discovered your channel a few days ago, but I am well hooked. I enjoy your philosophical musings inane accent. What part of England are you from?
I enjoyed listening to your musings on loneliness and practical advice. Thanks.
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it. Incase you haven't seen them, I'll gently point you towards my other slightly rambling Philosophy Of The Saddle videos ruclips.net/p/PLeEZMO6am23FZcY7V-ORBIOr1butDXIhy
I'm actually just about to go out and film another today. Sun is shining, coffee is kicking in, and I'm in the mood for some musing :)
Have a great day
@@JethroJessop thanks I shall take a look.
nice keep uploading... I was absolutely hooked your videos.
Glad you are enjoying them. I'll keep uploading as often as I can. Just booked another week off to do a ride and have a few ideas for videos in the meantime.
I just need to go viral so I can make a fortune and finally become a full time bike bum 😄
Well said my friend and I have exactly the same feeling about this feeling...
Thanks.It's a strange feeling, but not a bad one :)
Hostels, great, Seoul met eclectic group from a black Alaskan, French assistant to French embassy in Bangladesh, 8 others from all parts of the world, amazing 3 months, shared stories shared meals, nights out, exploring the hills meeting locals, can’t beat traveling
At some point during a solo bike tour, you either find yourself, or you break, then find yourself. Either way it's well worth the pain.
It's definitely part of the whole adventure. Learning to be comfortable on your own is a valuable skill and you can learn a lot from solitude.
Great advice! (not that I need it, I feel very well touring solo)
btw I do make sketches too
@@ingeleonora-denouden6222 Sketching is great while touring or just out and about. I only seem to do it while I'm away on the bike but I have friends who do it every day, no matter where they are and it is a fantastic record to look back over.
Glad you enjoyed the video :)
Man l really like listening to you wat you sed make sense
Glad you enjoyed it. Always nice to know people are listening 🙂
The new David Attenborough! Really great words and video x
My wife divorced me , now I feel lonely and miserable ,
OK, that's a reason for feeling lonely and miserable. But take your bicycle and panniers, put in the tent, sleeping bag, etc. Go your own way and be with yourself. In the here and now.
could be the beat thing that happened to you
You sorta look like Benedict Cumberbatch my friend. New subscriber here.
You are not the first person to mention this 😉
I also get compared to some chap from Game of Thrones but I've not seen it so dunno if that is a good thing or not.
Regardless, welcome, glad you are enjoying the videos, great to have you onboard.
What part of the world are you hailing from?
@@JethroJessop I am from Meghalaya. Look it up. I also enjoy loneliness like you do.
@@yyyyuno is that the place where there are those amazing bridges made from twisted vines?
Sure I've read something about that and remembered the name because it sounds like somewhere from a fantasy novel!
@@JethroJessop yes, my friend. You’re absolutely correct.
@@yyyyuno It looks like a truly amazing place
Sometimes I sits and thinks … and sometimes I just sits 🤫😶
Never a truer word said
I do long-distance walking projects after many years seakayaking. I never meet others as I use a Walkingtrailer and often use cycleroutes...but they go to fast to stop and have a chat. Anyway next week of to UK and Ireland if in the mood for many months. To not become insane I talk to the sheep...
Wow that sounds pretty intense. Good luck, I hope you have an amazing trip.
I don't exactly talk to animals but I am incapable of passing one without making its noise. I moo at cows, baa at sheep etc
It's an affliction 😉
@@JethroJessop I call it the insanity of the road😎
@@kayakcobber524 it's a beautiful kind of madness
Keeping a diary is cool but don't get too wrapped up in it, get on with it and then get going again always something new, something different that's why you do it that's what it is all about.
Very true. I make my videos which I suppose does a similar job to a diary and I do like to be able to go back and revisit them down the line.
But the moment to moment reality is the point of it and generally I can go a long time on my own before I start to really miss human interaction.
I am missing bike based solitude at the moment a whole lot more than I ever missed society when I was cycling
@@JethroJessop I'm thinking of buying a go pro but I like my diaries I know what you mean though
@@donnacampbell6967 GoPro are cool. Too battery hungry for long rides though
@@JethroJessop What do you use
@@donnacampbell6967 I just use my phone. It's a Samsung S7 so not even a very good one but with a little external mic it does the job fairly well. I can keep it charged from my dynamo and it does double duty as my navigation device as well.
I'd like to get something that has better picture quality but I don't want to switch to iPhone and the new Pixel is (reportedly) really crap in the battery department
Tagging people who prefer to be alone while cycling or hiking as sociopaths is just wrong.
I agree. Personally I love to cycle alone.
My flippant use of the word sociopath was only to highlight that even those who enjoy and seek solitude will still feel lonely and homesick from time to time
@@JethroJessop Mr. Jessop, I was surprised by your courteous reply. You have another follower sir.
@@TexasNightRider thank you. I try to always be courteous. Sensible, reasoned discussion seems to be going out of fashion these days but I'm keeping the flame alive 😉
Today a single RUclips comments thread, tomorrow the world!
I'm not a cyclist but I'm here because it's Jan 1st 2021 and there's quarantine.
Of course. Enforced solitude is the worst kind. Keep in touch with everyone you can and keep looking forward. Nothing lasts forever.
I meant “and accent”.
Haha, i did think inane was a pretty blunt opinion 😉
Greeting back atcha, I'm really pleased you are enjoying the channel.
I have lived all my life around Reading which is just a little west of London along the river Thames. I don't have the full Reading accent but enough that I have been picked out by fellow locals as far afield as Scotland
great video. do you plan any cycle tour on May? i may join spontaniously
Glad you enjoyed it.
Sadly I have no plans for any big rides. These days I have to take what I can find which means last minute weekenders most often
Thanks for sharing really enjoyed this video stay safe out there 🚴♂️☀️🏕🔥...colin.
Thanks, this was a cracking day of riding once the rain stopped. Norway is amazing and I really hope to get back there one day.
Thanks for watching